One of the rarest Atari computers in existence. The Atari 1400XL! f15sim 2021-05-10 | I finally took the plunge and gathered the parts needed to test my Atari 1400XL. The 1400XL is a rare, unreleased computer from Atari. You can learn more about it here: http://www.atarimuseum.com/computers/8bits/xl/1400xl/1400.html
I bought a box of sex! Unboxing the Commander X16 f15sim 2024-01-25 | Just a quick unboxing video of my new Commander X16 Developer Edition, with an amusing twist.The Commander X16 is a neat "retro" computer design based on the 6502 CPU and uses all through hole parts instead of squishing everything into a tiny board that features an expensive FPGA.You can order your own Commander X16 here: texelec.com/product/cx16-preorder
The IMSAI 8080 lives again! f15sim 2024-01-07 | It's been a while since we last saw the poor IMSAI 8080. I ran out of time/interest in repairing the front panel myself, so I sent it off for some expert TLC.In the time since it was last powered on, the EMI filter packed it in - and since it was integrated with the IEC power socket, no angry pixies could reach the power supply. Thanks to Amazon Prime, I got that fixed in pretty short order and here we are!Here's a listing of the game, "Kill The Bit" that the computer is running:altairclone.com/downloads/killbits.pdf
Real F-15C Engine Gauge Demo f15sim 2023-09-17 | I needed to figure out at what temperatures that the "red flag" appears on the F-15C Turbine Inlet Temperature gauge. Unfortunately, there's only three ways to do that. Sit in an active duty F-15C and crank the engines up, tear apart an existing gauge, or try to drive one. Since the first two are non-starters (ha!), I enlisted the help of Mike from Mike's Flight Deck in order to see exactly what the TIT gauge did. As a bonus, he got the RPM gauge working as well.Make sure you check out Mike's website at http://www.mikesflightdeck.com - he's got some amazing projects on there.
An IMSAI and an Altair walk into a bar... f15sim 2023-05-06 | I was moving things around in the workshop today and decided to do a quick eval on two of the machines in my collection. You may recognize the IMSAI 8080 from the movie "Wargames". (note it's not THE IMSAI 8080, it's just AN IMSAI 8080). The Altair 8800 is a super basic model of that machine - it only has a four slot backplane (S-100 bus) and no floppy or tape boards. I'm not sure what it was originally used for. The original owner may have gone to a different platform instead of upgrading the Altair.
ACES II Quickie #1 f15sim 2023-02-21 | This is a quick look into why the initiator handles in the seat are frozen in the up position. Nothing bent or broken, just a bit of rust in combination with some tight tolerances.
PrintNC Build Part 7 - Mechanical build post-mortem. f15sim 2023-02-19 | I've finally been able to complete the mechanical build of my PrintNC CNC machine. This video covers the pain points in the build that I experienced. Hopefully this will help someone avoid the issues I found.Danger: Opinions inside. 🤣
F-15C Project - Unboxing an ACES II Ejection Seat! f15sim 2023-02-09 | The project is taking a leap forward! I was finally able to obtain a genuine ACES II ejection seat for the F-15C! The plywood ACES II replica that Rob & I built over 20 years ago go the job done, but this...this is a whole new level of cool.
F-15C Project - The Wiring Problem. (Feat. Vevor SWT508) f15sim 2023-02-08 | The F-15C consumes a LOT of wire. Not in great lengths, but a hell of a lot of short lengths. The APG-70 radar control panel alone uses up 52 wires.There's gotta be a better way than measuring and stripping all those wires by hand...and there is!The machine I bought: amazon.com/gp/product/B07B3T789N (and it's not what I actually got)The stepper driver it uses: amazon.com/dp/B09BMNLYVLMy notes on how my particular model of the machine works:f15sim.com/files/Vevor Automatic Wire Stripper Notes.txt(Because of the spaces in the filename, you'll need to copy/paste the whole URL above into your browser.)Vevor: If you're watching this, reach out! Your docs are barely comprehensible and I'd like to help!
F-15C Cockpit Project Relaunch f15sim 2023-01-30 | How I got the F-15C fuselage section and what it's current state is. If you're a fan of the F-15 or flight simulators, you're going to want to watch this.Many thanks to the folks that have helped me over the years with information, photos, and documentation. Shout outs to the fine folks at the Air Force Historical Research Agency for not blowing off the weirdo with the F-15 wreck. :)Thanks to those of you on the 22nd AMU FB group! You've been very kind in answering my questions. I hope your patience continues. :)If you haven't watched or listened to the 10% True Podcast before, you're missing out on a great source of military aviation information and entertainment. Check them out here: 10percenttrue.com (YT channel: youtube.com/channel/UCKRC6h8Vk4d2a9hHDrS1hMA) The F-15C project website can be found here: f15sim.com
PrintNC Project Part 6. Finally! f15sim 2022-10-01 | I've been sitting on this one for quite a while. The work on the PrintNC build is going much more slowly than I'd prefer. This is primarily due to other obligations that are taking precedence. I also lack the patience to simultaneously deal with the issues involving videography and the vagaries that is the PrintNC build process itself.
CZUR ET24 vs Hackerspace Scanner f15sim 2022-07-20 | This past week I finally received the CZUR ET24 scanner that I purchased via their recent Indiegogo campaign. The ET24 is the first of their scanners that I feel meet the minimum requirements for doing good archival scans. Their prior offerings were just too low-resolution to provide a decent result.In this video, I show how the ET24 works in comparison to my DIY "Hackerspace" book scanner.The ET24 scan of the magazine can be found here:http://annex.retroarchive.org/scans/scans/Amazing_Experiences_v1n2_Sep-Oct_1990_czur.zipThe Hackerspace Scanner scan of the same magazine can be found here:archive.org/details/amazing-experiences-v-1n-2-sep-oct-1990The Internet Archive will create a number of different formats based on the uploaded source material. If you want to compare the two scanners more directly, you'll want to download the "CBZ" file - it's basically a normal zip file with a different file extension. The "format" is known as Comic Book Zip.
PrintNC Project Part 5 - Assembling the Y rollers and more! f15sim 2022-07-04 | This one is a bit long, but there's a lot going on and since it's all related, I decided to edit it together as one video.
PrintNC Project Part 4 - Y Axis Work f15sim 2022-06-19 | In this installment, I cover installing the linear rails on the Y axis supports and getting the BK12 block locations ready for later installation.My audio problems are still ongoing, so please bear with me. There's traffic noise on and off throughout the video. My apologies!PrintNC Discord: discord.gg/RxzPna6
Print NC Project Part 3.2 - Assembling the Frame f15sim 2022-06-12 | Part 3.2 covers assembling the frame of my PrintNC machine. After this episode I'm no longer going to break things up in "sub-parts". Next up will be Part 5 (BF12 blocks + more), Part 6, etc.
MacEffects Apple IIe Keyboard Unboxing and Installation f15sim 2022-05-30 | A few weeks ago, I ordered a new keyboard for my Enhanced Apple IIe after randomly discovering such a thing existed.Since I discovered I didn't have the fasteners to finish Part 3.2 of the PrintNC build video, I decided it would be fun to make an "unboxing" video for this keyboard. It's not cheap, but holy crap is it worth it!You can find the keyboard here:maceffects.com/products/apple-iie-mechanical-keyboardI guess I'm lucky they don't make replacement keyboards for the Apple II or II+, as there would be a VERY expensive shopping trip in my future. :)The Apple IIe shown in this video is the same machine that I ran the Age of Reason BBS on in 2008. It was the very first telnet-accessible BBS that ran on a real Apple IIe. The software was GBBS Pro and featured a popular adventure game called Land of Spur, which was made popular on the local Tacoma, WA BBS, "Dura Europos". Dura Europos came back online in 2016 from the original system backups and can be found by opening a telnet connection to dura-bbs.net, port #6359. It appears that Trajan (the sysop) has ANSI & RIP graphics added, and it's still running GBBS Pro!
PrintNC Project Part 3.1 - Steel prep and first holes drilled! f15sim 2022-05-30 | Welcome to Part 3.1! The reason for the .1 is that there's a LOT going on in a PrintNC build, I really can't do it justice and not have the video be absurdly long. Therefore I'm going to be breaking the steps up into smaller parts.I'm going to try for shorter videos that only focus on one or two steps that follow the assembly guide in the PrintNC wiki.The PrintNC wiki: wiki.printnc.info/en/home - start here! The Planning page is very important, so don't skip it!Make sure you print a calibration tool - wiki.printnc.info/en/v3/printing/tools#calibration-tool - after you've given the Fusion 360 model your steel dimensions.Deburring tool: wiki.printnc.info/en/home (not an affiliate link)
PrintNC Project Part 2b: The Table (continued) f15sim 2022-05-21 | The table build is finally done (enough)!The audio in this video is all over the place, my apologies!The cable grommet model: printables.com/model/210672-cable-grommet-for-a-printnc-tableI buy my pocket screws from these folks: cshardware.com/screwfinder - the Easy Screw Finder is a great tool!
PrintNC Project Part 2a: The Table f15sim 2022-05-08 | When you're building a PrintNC machine, you actually need a place to do the assembly. Why not build a table where that can happen AND give the machine a permanent home at the same time?This installment covers the build of my table - or most of it anyway. I'm trying to be more aware of how I spend my viewer's time, so I'm breaking up this part in to multiple shorter videos. I promise it won't be a month before Part 2b comes out. :)A few PDF drawings that I used for this table build can be found here:geneb.org/printnc/basic-printnc-table.zip.
Part 1.5 - Using the size calculator and getting a parts quote. f15sim 2022-04-14 | I thought it might be helpful to show folks exactly how the machine size calculator worked and what the various parameters were for.Direct link to the ThreeDesign machine calculator: https://threedesign.store/store
PrintNC Project Part 1: Parts and a little planning f15sim 2022-04-13 | This is the first in a series of videos chronicling my new PrintNC CNC machine project.Resources and more information:PrintNC website: https://threedesign.storePrintNC machine size calculator and parts quote generator: https://threedesign.store/store/PrintNC Wiki: wiki.printnc.info/en/homePrintNC Discord: discord.gg/RxzPna6Radius gauges and Calibration Tool: wiki.printnc.info/en/v3/printing/toolsDifferences between a contactor and a relay: electricalclassroom.com/difference-between-contactor-and-relaygrblHAL2000 CNC controller site: github.com/Expatria-Technologies/grblhal_2000_PrintNCTeensy 4.1: pjrc.com/store/teensy41.htmlSTL for the transfer punch alignment tool I designed: Transfer punch link: http://www.geneb.org/printnc/transfer-punch-align-tool.stl (and how it's used: https://i.imgur.com/B5Qkefv.jpg)6063-T52, 3x2x0.25" aluminum angle: onlinemetals.com/en/buy/aluminum/2-x-3-x-0-25-aluminum-angle-6063-t52/pid/12989ioSender (controls your PrintNC machine via the grblHAL2000 board): github.com/terjeio/ioSender8:37 Power goes out, then comes right back. Such a tease.16:02 Unboxing the kit components35:15 Steel parts39:47 Aluminum parts42:20 Parts sourced from Amazon.
Touring the Chaos (my workshop) f15sim 2022-03-21 | Just a quick & dirty, unplanned, mess of a video. :) I wanted to show you folks what has been going on around my workshop the last two years. (No human malware references either!)I'm hoping to get the rest of the vintage computer stuff moved on by the start of summer, but we'll see.
Royal Enfield Himalayan good for beginners? YES! f15sim 2021-04-12 | This video is from the 2nd ride on my new 2021 Royal Enfield Himalayan. Hopefully I provide some good information for beginning riders like myself.It's quite a bit different from the Hawk DLX and in good ways!I start discussing the Himalayan and my views on it at 11:34.0:00 - Getting on the road11:34 - Discussing the Himalayan as a new rider13:55 - Musings on being aware of my lack of experience riding15:50 - Brake problems? What brake problems?!17:19 - WA ATV sign derails train of thought17:37 - Weebles, Wobbles, doesn't fall down.18:08 - "I keep hearing things..."19:18 - Accidentally snatches front brake. Yep. Brake works!20:08 - Poorly positioned ambient air temp sensor20:55 - Lane position hilarity...doesn't ensue.22:37 - The road taken...second.22:39 - Livestock!22:35 - Big Scary Road!24:45 - Mystery road26:08 - My u-turns still suck, but I didn't fall over, so...26:20 - A fictional Karen is mocked28:21 - Baby's first gravel!28:52 - You get a pothole, and you get a pothole, and YOU get a pothole!30:39 - A poor fashion choice is revealed!31:49 - Big Scary Road: The Sequel32:45 - Scents from nature...34:04 - Throttle roll off
CompuPro S-100 system, first power up after decades in storage. f15sim 2020-12-19 | This is the first "loaded" power-up of one of my CompuPro S-100 systems after cleaning and testing of the power supply.This S-100 system was built around 1983-84 and contains the following cards:RAM-16 Memory board (6) (64K each, 384K total)RAM-22 Memory Board (256K) (total RAM installed is 640K)Scratch-built bus & cpu diagnostic display cardM-Drive/H 512K "Memory Drive"CPU 8085/88Disk 1 FDC with a boot ROM labeld, "BOOT F 68/85/86"System Support 1 boardInterfacer 4 board.
Second repaired H-89 doing a file copy... f15sim 2020-09-22 | Just a short, no-edit video showing the second H-89 I was able to get running again. This machine features a brand new H-37 floppy controller that will work with 3.5", DSDD disks. This version of the controller will allow you to use 3.5", 5.25, and 8" drives in your H-89. You can find the controller information here: http://koyado.com/Heathkit/H89-Z37.html - designed and produced by the amazing Norberto Collado!
Communicate with the ECU on your Hawk DLX without breaking the bank! f15sim 2020-09-04 | I discovered that in order to pull data from the Engine Control Unit in my Hawk DLX, I would have to spend upwards of $300 on a special ODB-II reader. The ECU in the Hawk DLX is a Delphi MT05. The MT05 has been around for a VERY long time. Like nearly 30 years. As such, it's pretty well documented if you know where to look. Fortunately for us, someone has created a software package designed specifically for talking to these Delphi ECUs. It's called HUD ECU Hacker and is "sharityware". (If you like the software, please make a donation to your favorite charity!)This video covers building the cable required and a brief rundown on hooking up your Hawk DLX to your computer. The HUD ECU Hacker website has complete instructions on how the software can be used, so I won't be covering that here.Links:HUD ECU Hacker: https://netcult.ch/elmue/HUD%20ECU%20Hacker/Female ODB-II Wiring pigtail: amazon.com/gp/product/B06XYP9P91Note, ignore the color to pin mapping on that page! You'll need to tone out the wires for the needed pins using a multi-meter. The mapping on the seller'spage cannot be relied upon to be accurate.Furukawa FW 090 6 Pin Male Connector: http://www.cycleterminal.com/furukawa-rfw-090.htmlEngineer PA-21 Universal Crimping Pliers: amazon.com/gp/product/B002L6HJ8WVAG/KKL ODB-II USB Interface: amazon.com/gp/product/B07X5VQ5DCEither one of the USB interfaces I linked above will work - I've tried them both. That being said, some may find the ELM327 unit to be more useful as it will talk to a wide variety of ODB-II compliant vehicles as well as the Hawk DLX.
Hawk DLX Fuel Tank & Pump Replacement f15sim 2020-08-04 | A little trouble in paradise! Two days in, fuel started to leak. :(This video covers what happened and how it was resolved. (Spoiler - the bike is back on the road!)
Obligatory newbie stumbling along like a drunken sailor. (Hawk DLX 250 EFI) f15sim 2020-07-13 | Buddy whined about no "riding" video. Here you go. Try to stay awake, it's gripping stuff! No skill, no problem! :)
2020 Hawk DLX EFI 250 Unboxing & Build. (Come for the bike, stay for the clueless newbie!) f15sim 2020-07-13 | This absurdly long video follows my journey with building a Chinese manufactured Hawk DLX EFI 250 motorcycle. And yes, it came from Amazon. It was a fun project, even if I had no idea what I was doing on the way in. :)[18Nov21] Here's a link to the checklist I mention in the video - it's more of a guideline than a bullet-pointed list of things to check off, but it's useful for people new to these bikes:http://annex.retroarchive.org/hawk/box-bike-checklist.pdf [09Mar21] Wow. Totally forgot to put the link in for the place where I took the MSF course:gowmst.com - Washington Motorist Safety Training. A great bunch of folks!Here's some of the content I relied upon in order to make this build a success:Oil Change: youtube.com/watch?v=k9o0ISG7eJg (Motocheez)Finding TDC: youtube.com/watch?v=FC0xWo4GSX0 (Motocheez)Valve Adjustment: youtube.com/watch?v=RTpAcOuUf7w (Motocheez)Valve Adjustment (I leveraged both): youtube.com/watch?v=8l-qTudfFos (Jack of All Master of None)Pre-Start information: youtube.com/watch?v=80Kfqy4ZhkU (Goodol'boys)Amazon link for the bike: amazon.com/gp/product/B07W5RX92LChinariders Forum: http://www.chinariders.net/index.phpMotocheez's Hawk 250 page: sites.google.com/site/motocheez/RPS-hawk-250-resources (Many of the items on this page will work with either the EFI or carbureted Hawk 250.)
Repairing a 39 year old H/Z-89 Computer f15sim 2020-04-19 | This is my first adventure with repairing a H/Z-89 computer. It proved to be pretty educational for me, and with any luck some folks may learn something too.Shout out to the SEBHC (Society of Eight-Bit Heathkit Computerists) folks over at groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/sebhc - they're an amazing bunch!
Finished the PiDP 11/70 kit I bought at the last VCFPNW. Finally! f15sim 2019-12-20 | This is just a short video showing off the PiDP 11/70 kit I finally got the time to assemble. You can learn more about it and get your own here: obsolescence.wixsite.com/obsolescence/pidp-11
Building the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4, Part 2! f15sim 2019-10-06 | Welcome to the live build of the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4 3D printer!
Building the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4, Part 2! f15sim 2019-09-30 | Welcome to the live build of the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4 3D printer!
Building the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4! f15sim 2019-09-29 | Welcome to the live build of the SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX v4 3D printer!
Pulling the cab apart and checking the instruments! f15sim 2019-09-11 | Now you get to see what the simulator looks like with the "skin" off of it! It's actually pretty interesting, just not very well filmed. ;)You can learn more about the D'Arsonvol meter movements that I mention, here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanometer#D'Arsonval_and_Deprez
Power on and first flight of the ATC-810 IFR Flight Simulator! f15sim 2019-09-03 | From cold and dark to flying in the dark!This video is pretty good with one glaring exception. I'd completely forgotten how artificial horizons worked and without and outside visual reference, complained that the AH was broken. D'oh!Update: 28Feb22For those that are interested in the schematics, manuals, etc. that I got with the ATC-810, they're available on the Internet Archive here: archive.org/search.php?query=atc-810
ATC 810 offload and more unboxing! f15sim 2019-09-02 | In this video I show you how I managed to get the '810 off the crate without killing myself! I also go through the first (of many) boxes that were included with the simulator.AIAA Flight Simulator Technical Whitepaper scans: archive.org/search.php?query=aiaa%20flight%20simulationThe DIY Collimated Display Project: diy-cockpits.org/coll
ATC-810 (Commercial Flight Simulator) Unboxing! f15sim 2019-08-30 | Unboxing my new (to me!) ATC-810 CPT/IFR flight simulator!This thing is incredibly cool!Quick update - the simulator is configured as a Cessna 402. I'll have more detail on this in a later video. Thanks for watching!
MPCNC Build Finish and Test Run! f15sim 2019-04-24 | This video covers the final build steps I took along with some calibration and test processes.
Short three axis zero demo. f15sim 2019-03-22 | This was created to illustrate how the ON INPUT command works in the SBP programming language. Each time the bit contacts the metal block, the controller stops the axis in motion and returns control to the host computer. A jump is executed to the target of the ON INPUT command, where more action is taken.
MPCNC Cutting Table Build f15sim 2019-03-04 | One more step towards a completed MPCNC build!If you're in the Seattle/Tacoma area, make sure you check out the Vintage Computer Festival, Pacific Northwest! Details here: http://vcfed.org/vcf-pnw
MPCNC Motion Demo f15sim 2019-02-24 | I finally got the MPCNC machine mostly done! This is a motion test done by making the machine trace a spiral tool path. This would have been done last week, but I got sick. :(
APG-63(V1) radar panel rebuild overview f15sim 2019-01-14 | Just an informal overview of how I rebuild a panel for the simulator. In this case, it's the APG-63(V1) radar control panel for the F-15C.
Building an MPCNC table f15sim 2019-01-04 | A kind of long-winded video on how I built the table for my 48x48 MPCNC machine.
ShopBot Cuts a Book Scanner... f15sim 2018-12-20 | I shot this video while the ShopBot cut the parts for the DIY Book Scanner I built. It's cheezy and the music is kind of weird, but it kind of works. This is the first project I've ever done with Premiere Pro, and I suspect it shows. If nothing else, it shows how the scanner parts came to be.The music is Orbiting the Earth by UltraCat.
Using my newly built DIY Book Scanner! f15sim 2018-12-17 | I recently purchased the DOS software assets of Crescent Software (see http://annex.retroarchive.org/crescent ). In order to scan all the documentation both affordably and non-destructively, I had to do my own scanning - and build my own scanner.Here's were you can find the software I used as well as the plans for the scanner I built:Pi Scan: github.com/Tenrec-Builders/pi-scanScanTailor Advanced: github.com/4lex4/scantailor-advancedHackerspace Scanner (docs): forum.diybookscanner.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=2596Hackerspace Scanner (plans): forum.diybookscanner.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=1192Here's a link to the book I scanned: http://annex.retroarchive.org/crescent/QuickTalk Vol2 No1.pdf
Centurion MAX! f15sim 2018-10-21 | This all started with a Rostock MAX 3.2 kit from SeeMeCNC.I've gotten into the habit of naming my printers - because, why not? (Don't anthropomorphize 3D printers, they hate that.)Because the kit that I ended up with was black, I decided to add a trim color before the build... After that, things got a bit...excessive.
ARRON YOUR LATE f15sim 2018-08-31 | I spotted this on my way to get coffee this morning, around 4:30am.Wanna bet he's not going to be late again?The "YOUR" just kills me. My brain screams, "YOU'RE!" every time the sign blinks. :)
Using a hendecagon for holding bins. f15sim 2018-06-15 | The hendecagon is an 11 sided polygon - in this case, it's a cylinder that I built for holding up to 187 3" wide bins. I built this in 2008 and never really showed it off. The cylinder is 6ft tall and roughly 18" or so wide. The sides are joined together using glue and 1/8" thick splines.
