STEM projects

Tag Archive: STEM projects

Make your own mechanical dragon with Ukrainian company UGEARS’ Windstorm Dragon kit

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March 15, 2022

Some people can get excited about science simply by watching an episode of Discovery’s How It’s Made. But it often takes only one personal discovery, some object in motion, a curious force of nature, or unthinkable technological improvement, and suddenly a wider world opens up. UGEARS is the Ukrainian company that creates spectacularly engineered models, reflecting the history of science and technology in plywood gears and rods. They also make steampunk and fantasy creations. With the current war, the company reports its employees in the country are safe–so far. UGEARS has just announced it is donating 1 million euros to Ziedot.lv, a fund of humanitarian aid to Ukrainian families, children, and the elderly, and will earmark 5 euros (which is currently about US$5.50) from each model purchased on its official global website to be spent on food, medications, and shelter for the people suffering from Russian aggression in Ukraine. Last year I reviewed several STEM kits provided by UGEARS (check out my reviews here) and today I’m reviewing their magnificent mechanical winged dragon model, the UGEARS Windstorm Dragon (available here)–to give you an idea of the ease of construction and quality of UGEARS’ products, and provide a way to support artisans, engineers, and craftspeople in Ukraine. Don’t miss our videos below of the dragon in action.

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One day build–Make a UGEARS belt-driven Variator Transmission system STEM Lab kit

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August 8, 2021

Some people can get excited about science simply by watching an episode of Discovery’s How It’s Made. But it often takes only one personal discovery, some object in motion, a curious force of nature, or unthinkable technological improvement, and suddenly a wider world opens up. For me it was my dad making a simple telegraph machine, and later it was marveling on my first flight on an airplane, at last realizing visually how clouds cast shadows on the earth. Today we’re featuring the final build in our trials of model maker UGEARS′ Stem Kit series of 3D engineering models (check out our other builds if you missed them: the 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit (reviewed here), the Gearbox (reviewed here), the Random Generator (reviewed here) and the Tachometer reviewed here). Today’s build is a fully operational, sturdy plywood 3D study model of inventor Milton Othello Reeves’ 1879 continuously variable transmission (CVT), or Variator, first used in sawmills, woolen mills and other Industrial Revolution mechanics, as part of car engines and any machine requiring a smooth changing of gear ratios.

No glue needed, no sanding required, with everything contained in the box, the Variator is part of UGEARS’ STEM Lab series, educational tools and fun models that aren’t just for kids, a way any family can spark an interest in science, and specifically understanding basic engineering assembly and design.

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One day build–Make a UGEARS Tachometer STEM Lab kit

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July 13, 2021

Today we’re building a fully operational, sturdy plywood 3D study model of German engineer Dietrich Uhlhorn’s 1817 invention, the Tachometer, used throughout the 19th century in locomotives and later–and still today–in automobiles. It’s a mechanism that, when the handle is rotated, movement is transmitted through a reducer, increasing the revolutions per minute (RPMs) and displacing twin weights in a rubber band-powered centrifugal unit. The higher the RPM, the more centrifugal force separates counter weights, shifting a movable axle with a flywheel. A dial is fixed to the axle, and the more the axle shifts (the higher the RPM), the more the dial arrow deflects, indicating higher speed rotation. It’s the UGEARS Tachometer, the fourth model we’re testing after the 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit (reviewed here), the Gearbox (reviewed here), and the Random Generator (reviewed here). The Tachometer is part of the model maker’s STEM Lab series, educational tools and fun models that aren’t just for kids. This kit, like the Gearbox we reviewed, is part of understanding basic engineering assembly design, most apparent in your family automobile.

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Tags: automotive basics, craft kits, Dietrich Uhlhorn, educational models, engineering, mechanical engineering, one-day build, Real Science, science and technology, STEM Lab, STEM Lab kits, STEM learning, STEM projects, UGEARS, UGEARS models, UGEARS models review, UGEARS Tachometer Kit, UGEARS Tachometer kit review, wooden 3d puzzles

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One day build–Make a UGEARS Random Generator STEM Lab kit

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June 16, 2021

Random chance can set all kinds of activities into motion. Remember Abed’s discussion of the dice role and its impact in Community? Do you recall the potential impending doom as a kid shaking the Magic 8 Ball, one of the toys in the National Toy Hall of Fame? Sure, you could settle with a coin toss or dice roll, but why? How about mixing up your next Dungeons & Dragons event with something different? Today we’re building a study model of a device that generates random numbers and provides different random results based on probability theory, including a 360 degree rotating octahedron that acts like an orrery, triggered by a button, with a rack-and-gear drive, overrunning clutch, and a driven wheel. It’s the UGEARS Random Generator, the third model we’re testing after the 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit (reviewed here) and the Gearbox (reviewed here). The Random Generator is part of the model maker’s STEM Lab series, educational tools and fun models that aren’t just for kids. This kit is full of surprises, and as it comes together you’ll see how science puts the “magic” in the Magic 8 Ball.

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One day build–Make a UGEARS Manual 4-speed Gearbox STEM Lab kit

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June 7, 2021

Today we’re building a study model of German engineer Karl Benz’s gearbox, the same mechanism you’d find in the transmission of any modern automobile, complete with drive shaft, layshaft with gear couplings, reverse idler, and a gear shift. It’s the UGEARS Gearbox, the second model we’re testing after the 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit (check out our first UGEARS review here). The Gearbox is part of the model maker’s STEM Lab series, educational tools and fun models that aren’t just for kids. Anyone who has ever driven a car should know the fundamentals of how a gearbox works, and this model is an excellent start.

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Tags: craft kits, educational models, engineering, mechanical engineering, one-day build, Real Science, science and technology, STEM Lab, STEM Lab kits, STEM learning, STEM projects, UGEARS, UGEARS Gearbox Kit, UGEARS Gearbox review, UGEARS models, UGEARS models review, wooden 3d puzzles

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One day build–Enter the world of UGEARS with the STEM mechanical 2-in-1 Arithmetic calculator kit

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June 2, 2021

You may have recently seen advertisements for UGEARS, maker of some incredible moving models made entirely from precision laser-cut plywood parts. We laid our hands on several STEM Lab kits and are going to feature our builds of each model over the next few weeks. These are projects that can be made generally in less than a day, and provide multiple avenues of entertainment and education. Each model improves the maker’s ability to assemble a model, fun in itself, but like LEGO expert builder series models and Erector sets of the past, these models are engineering marvels that replicate machines for mathematics, physics, and engineering study. More advances models in the catalog include working trains, cars, and a dragon with moving wings, which we’ll work up to.

First, let’s take a look at the Multiplier and Addiator builds, both included in the UGEARS 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit (available here at Amazon and also via model shops and online game and craft stores) tools students from grade school through college engineering can use and display, featured as one of the starter builds in the UGEARS catalog.

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Tags: Addiator model, craft kits, educational models, engineering, mechanical engineering, Multiplier model, one-day build, Real Science, science and technology, STEM Lab, STEM Lab kits, STEM learning, STEM projects, UGEARS, UGEARS 2-in-1 Arithmetic Kit, UGEARS Arithmetic Kit review, UGEARS models, UGEARS models review, wooden 3d puzzles

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Review–RadioShack’s Mand Labs All-in-One Electronics Kit is a must to jumpstart students’ STEM learning–and it’s fun

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May 13, 2021

Review by C.J. Bunce

RadioShack was founded 100 years ago, and for most of those decades it has been the go-to supplier for anyone interested in electronics. Not just for professionals, but it’s where students went to make things if they had even a remote interest in electronics. The new incarnation of RadioShack is little different, less storefronts but an endless online supply of materials and ideas that what was once the exclusive purview of kids in the A/V Club. It is now something any young person can–and should–become proficient in. I knew as soon as I saw the Mand Labs kits on the new RadioShack website that this kind of product can and should be part of the future of STEM learning–whether at home or in schools. So I reviewed the Mand Labs STEM Electronics Kit (KIT-1) to see if it’s as good as it looks.

It is.

Not only does the kit have everything you need–all the technological components to create more than 60 educational and fun projects–the even bigger value is the set of two textbook/workbooks, which provide all the theory, math, history, and core science so students understand the how and why. With the books, digital videos, and online resources that come with the kit, even a young grade schooler can learn the fundamentals of electricity, physics, computer science, robotics, and electrical engineering. And for adults, say you’re a cosplayer and you want to wire a helmet or chest box with lights and sound, or maybe you want to understand better why you can’t get your electronic fan or doorbell to work, or always wondered how the electric systems of your automobiles work, this kit will help you get started.

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Tags: A/V Club, computers, electrical engineering, electricity, electronics, Mand Labs, Mand Labs All-in-One Electronics kit, Mand Labs STEM Electronics Kit preview, Mand Labs STEM Electronics Kit review, one-day build, physics, RadioShack, RadioShack 100th anniversary, Real Science, robotics, robotics design, STEM learning, STEM projects

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Review–Tamiya’s Chain-Program Robot project, a great one-day build of a functioning, electronic robot

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July 22, 2020

Review by C.J. Bunce

For all the complex technology inside the Chain-Program Robot, a fully-functional, all-in-one model robotics kit, Tamiya, Japan’s premiere modelmaker, has made a surprisingly straight-forward, project to build in a day or less for anyone looking for a great hobby project right now. A motorized robot that resembles Number Five from the 1980s comedy classic starring Ally Sheedy and Steve Guttenberg, Short Circuit (“Number Five is alive!”), that is actually programmable, in a kit that includes everything you need to build and operate it, except a hobby knife, screwdriver, and double-A battery? Thanks to Plaza Japan, the world’s best online store for authentic Japanese action figures, model kits, toys and puzzles, we gave the Chain-Program Robot a try, and it is every bit as good–and fun–as it sounds. Take a look at a detailed rundown of my experience with the build process, and a video of the robot in action, below.