Photo of Andy Arthur

Andy Arthur

October and already the leaves are fading away in the Adirondacks. 🍂 Most shocking to me is that we are less then a month away from November, which in many ways should be a sigh of relief with the craziness of work and with the deep blue skies and crisp days of that month.

NYC Rapid Transit’s 45-Ton Rotary Convertor

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A rotary converter is a type of electrical machine which acts as a mechanical rectifier, inverter or frequency converter. “Rotary converters were used to convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC), or DC to AC power, before the advent of chemical or solid state power rectification and inverting. They were commonly used to provide DC power for commercial, industrial and railway electrification from an AC power source.”

I think it's fair to call this device old sparky.

Melting Cans With The Mini Metal Foundry

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For as long as I can remember, I've been intrigued by the idea of melting metal and making things with it. The problem has always been that it was out of reach or required really expensive equipment.

In this project I experimented with 10 different prototypes, to develop a reusable backyard foundry that melts aluminum soda cans easily and safely. I tested different refractory recipes, different containers, different setting for blowing air, and different types of makeshift crucibles.

I tried various ratios of portland cement, sand, perlite, plaster of paris, water, and even kitty litter. For containers, I experimented with clay pots, plastic buckets, no container, cinderblocks, and a galvanized steel pail.