Uploaded February 2017 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
In this video I'll show you how to build a DIY Rubens' Tube! All the parts and steps are shown in the video and in the description below. Should you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment! If you want a detailed written document to follow, check out my blog post on the build at the link shown below in the LINKS section. If you want to see my tube in action, check out the songs listed in the SONGS section below.
================
===== LINKS =====
================
→ My blog post
goo.gl/ZfNiAP
→ Engineering Toolbox NPT
goo.gl/N9cQNf
=================
===== SONGS =====
=================
→ Lensko - Circles
goo.gl/cROa5P
→ Unknown Brain - Saviour
goo.gl/ldjdbR
→ K391 - Earth
goo.gl/8n4Cj1
→ Lensko - Cetus
goo.gl/3UQlOj
→ Lensko - Let's Go
goo.gl/VR7E17
=============================
===== WHAT YOU WILL NEED =====
=============================
- [1] Propane tank (grill LP 15 or 20 lb) ($30 empty + $18 fill)
- [2] Char-Broil Universal Propane Regulator with Nut (female 3/8" NPT) ($15)
- [3] Brass hex pipe nipple 3/8" MIP x 3/8" MIP ($3)
- [4] Gas ball valve 3/8" brass ($6.45)
- [5] Male Hose Barb Adaptor - 3/8" ID Hose Barb x 3/8" MIP ($3.79)
- [6] Vinyl tubing 3/8" ID x 1/2" OD ($0.39 per foot)
- [7] Nylon 3/8" barbed adaptor 90 degree elbow ($2)
- [8] 3" x 60" galvanized steel duct ($7.25)
- [9] 3" galvanized steel duct cap ($3.41)
- [10] Latex glove or balloon
- [11] Speaker (any kind you want)
- Duct/Aluminum/Foil tape ($3)
- PTFE thread seal tape ($1.50)
- Masking tape
- Ruler/tape measure
- Writing utensil
- 1/16" drill bit
- Drill
- Matches or a lighter
Total Cost = $50 (if you have a filled propane tank)
Total Cost = $100 (if you don't have a propane tank)
=================
===== NOTES =====
=================
► I don't have links to the parts in the list above, because I got everything at Lowes or Home Depot. If you go to the store, you will be able to find everything.
► The one thing the store didn't have in stock (but you can order it and have delivered to the store at no extra cost) is the 3" tube cap.
► Some songs might work better than others. The music needs to be in the correct frequency range for you to see the waves, so anything with frequencies that are too low or high probably aren't going to look special.
► I switch between calling it a Rubens Tube and a Rubens' Tube because I've seen it both ways. It was invented by a guy named Heinrich Rubens, so the second naming style is the possessive, calling it his tube. But I also think the first naming style is fine and makes more sense if you precede it with an article (e.g. A Rubens Tube). If John Smith invented it, I feel like it would make sense to call it a Smith Tube, instead of a Smith's Tube. If you have strong feelings about this, let me know.
In this video I'll show you how to build a DIY Rubens' Tube! All the parts and steps are shown in the video and in the description below. Should you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment! If you want a detailed written document to follow, check out my blog post on the build at the link shown below in the LINKS section. If you want to see my tube in action, check out the songs listed in the SONGS section below.
================
===== LINKS =====
================
→ My blog post
goo.gl/ZfNiAP
→ Engineering Toolbox NPT
goo.gl/N9cQNf
=================
===== SONGS =====
=================
→ Lensko - Circles
goo.gl/cROa5P
→ Unknown Brain - Saviour
goo.gl/ldjdbR
→ K391 - Earth
goo.gl/8n4Cj1
→ Lensko - Cetus
goo.gl/3UQlOj
→ Lensko - Let's Go
goo.gl/VR7E17
=============================
===== WHAT YOU WILL NEED =====
=============================
- [1] Propane tank (grill LP 15 or 20 lb) ($30 empty + $18 fill)
- [2] Char-Broil Universal Propane Regulator with Nut (female 3/8" NPT) ($15)
- [3] Brass hex pipe nipple 3/8" MIP x 3/8" MIP ($3)
- [4] Gas ball valve 3/8" brass ($6.45)
- [5] Male Hose Barb Adaptor - 3/8" ID Hose Barb x 3/8" MIP ($3.79)
- [6] Vinyl tubing 3/8" ID x 1/2" OD ($0.39 per foot)
- [7] Nylon 3/8" barbed adaptor 90 degree elbow ($2)
- [8] 3" x 60" galvanized steel duct ($7.25)
- [9] 3" galvanized steel duct cap ($3.41)
- [10] Latex glove or balloon
- [11] Speaker (any kind you want)
- Duct/Aluminum/Foil tape ($3)
- PTFE thread seal tape ($1.50)
- Masking tape
- Ruler/tape measure
- Writing utensil
- 1/16" drill bit
- Drill
- Matches or a lighter
Total Cost = $50 (if you have a filled propane tank)
Total Cost = $100 (if you don't have a propane tank)
=================
===== NOTES =====
=================
► I don't have links to the parts in the list above, because I got everything at Lowes or Home Depot. If you go to the store, you will be able to find everything.
► The one thing the store didn't have in stock (but you can order it and have delivered to the store at no extra cost) is the 3" tube cap.
► Some songs might work better than others. The music needs to be in the correct frequency range for you to see the waves, so anything with frequencies that are too low or high probably aren't going to look special.
► I switch between calling it a Rubens Tube and a Rubens' Tube because I've seen it both ways. It was invented by a guy named Heinrich Rubens, so the second naming style is the possessive, calling it his tube. But I also think the first naming style is fine and makes more sense if you precede it with an article (e.g. A Rubens Tube). If John Smith invented it, I feel like it would make sense to call it a Smith Tube, instead of a Smith's Tube. If you have strong feelings about this, let me know.
![Explained: NACA 4-Digit GUI Part 2/10 [MATLAB]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/spHG_XEP5-c/mqdefault.jpg "Explained: NACA 4-Digit GUI Part 2/10 [MATLAB]
This is the second video in my 10-video series on coding a program in MATLAB to compute, display, and save a NACA 4-digit airfoil.
IN THIS VIDEO:
We clean up the GUI layout after opening the .fig file in GUIDE. We make the widths of the components the same, as well as align boxes and buttons horizontally and vertically.
IN THIS SERIES:
Part 1/10 : https://goo.gl/9UBgbo
Part 2/10 : https://goo.gl/jRRcYJ
Part 3/10 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbW1NDuvdJQ
Part 4/10 : https://goo.gl/HwHB39
Part 5/10 : https://goo.gl/AlDne8
Part 6/10 : https://goo.gl/7n1QP7
Part 7/10 : https://goo.gl/nTGleR
Part 8/10 : https://goo.gl/ez247P
Part 9/10 : https://goo.gl/8mXYcc
Part 10/10: https://goo.gl/ovBlbW")
![Explained: Lift Curve [Airplanes]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/tF_Z1lz7HKw/mqdefault.jpg "Explained: Lift Curve [Airplanes]
Lift curves are available for various airfoils and provide data relating the lift coefficient of the airfoil to the angle of attack. The lift curves described in this video are for 2D (infinite wing) airfoils. Actual 3D wing lift curves are complicated by 3D effects such as spanwise flow and tip vortices. See the links below for actual NACA data for both a symmetric and a cambered airfoil.
Angle of Attack:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fm2Az-PgPUU
NACA 0012 (Symmetric):
- The lift curve to look at is the lower of the two sloped lines
- Notice that at zero AoA, the lift coefficient is zero
- The horizontal lines are moment coefficient plots, which you can ignore for now
http://mshades.free.fr/flapping/Cz0012.jpg
NACA 2412 (Cambered):
- Lift curve is the left of the two plots
- Notice that the zero lift AoA is negative (approx. -2 degrees)
http://www.tricity.wsu.edu/htmls/mme/me439/s2007/naca2412.jpg")
![Explained: Rain Gutters [Airplanes]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/u4FNaPu9-hQ/mqdefault.jpg "Explained: Rain Gutters [Airplanes]
Rain gutters are little strips of material above doors that allow you to stay dry as you get on or off a plane. They also help keep the interior of the plane dry.
Horizontal rain gutter:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled-%28Trans-World/Lockheed-L-1011-385-1-TriStar/0197040/L/&sid=030cda10fed5df9cd077f6437194798e
Slanted rain gutter:
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Trans-World-Airlines/Lockheed-L-1011-385-1-15-TriStar/0689474/L/&sid=030cda10fed5df9cd077f6437194798e")
![Explained: Taylor-Maccoll Conical Flow Overview [Taylor-Maccoll]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/v3EqbYGI_Hg/mqdefault.jpg "Explained: Taylor-Maccoll Conical Flow Overview [Taylor-Maccoll]
This is the first video in a series of videos about the supersonic flow over a cone at 0 degrees angle of attack. This is also known as Taylor-Maccoll conical flow, after the two guys that derived the equations and obtained solutions for this type of problem.
This video aims to introduce the general problem description and lay out the basic steps for the derivation/solution. More videos will follow as described in the video.")
![Explained: Slider GUI [MATLAB]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wGaPLzaHIps/mqdefault.jpg "Explained: Slider GUI [MATLAB]
This video explains how to code a slider in a MATLAB GUI. It also shows how to change the Min, Max, and Value arguments to alter the range of the slider.")
