What can't you do with PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) pipe? The ubiquitous blue PVC water pipe might be seen along most streets right here and appears to be certainly one of Thailand's most plentiful un-pure assets. All kinds of different connectors can be found and apart from carrying water it is also used as an affordable building material that can be utilized to make the whole lot from clothes dryers to Wheel chairs (PDF), Crutches, flagpoles and store signs. After all on the internet you may also find another very cool and creative issues made from (non-blue) PVC pipe together with: Halloween costumes like Ben Hallert's Matrix APU and Aliens Exo-skeleton Power Loader, another energy loader costume, single and multi-guitar Guitar Hero stands, Zap Zone Defender Device a laptop stand, flutes, and even a shaving stand. Below one can find, in chronological order, a few of my very own (mostly authentic) creations made from PVC water pipe including: - a Marshmallow Shooter, Plumbing, Soccer Goals, - a Cricket Wicket, - a Basketball Hoop, Bookshelf Supports, - a Water Pipe Tron Controller, Racing Cars, Pinball Table Leg Extensions, Data Projector Zap Zone Defender System Mounts, - a Laptop Stand, - a Wiimote Holder, - a DIY Wii Zapper, - a Workbench, Real-Tron Controllers - a Music Stand Puzzle Bobble Coffee Grinder Controllers, - a Netbook Treadmill Hook, CD/DVD Holders, - a Nightstand/shelves, - Push Up Bar/Handles, Fake Legs, - a Hilbert Cube, - a Mario Kart steering wheel, - a Guitar Stand, Hockey Sticks, - a Tank-recreation (BZFlag) controller, - a Train Whistle, and - a Trident.

This was the challenge that began my love affair with blue PVC pipe. I had seen the blueprints for this marshmallow shooter while I was in Australia but the fittings have been prohibitively costly (see the picture proper). Fortunately they are very affordable here in Thailand. 2 x T-Pieces and 6 x elbows. Cricket (to not be confused with Brockian Ultra-Cricket) is Australia's national sport played with a bat, a ball, and two wickets. 6 x T-pieces, and 12 x 45-diploma elbows. The backboard is a non-regulation size piece of plywood that we discovered mendacity round and we used inexperienced duct tape for the markings. Although the ring is not strong sufficient to dangle off, the facet supports make it sturdy sufficient for regular play. Additionally they give it a really Star Trek really feel and I believe the ring looks not not like the NCC-31911 Saratoga. This is maybe the most straight forward use for PVC pipe on this web page. 2 x 25mm to 18mm (1" to 1/2") reducers, 2 x custom motorbike hand-grips, 4 x push-buttons, and a mercury swap that are connected to a pc by way of a hacked USB joystick.

You could find more particulars about how I made the controller on this project page and that i've additionally extended the same idea to play GL-Tron using actual motorbikes. A university scholar who performed with the PVC Water Pipe Tron Controller, described above, stated "That's Ok but I prefer to play driving video games". It got me considering and over the subsequent week I spent my evenings building a PVC racing automotive controller - basically a wheel-much less, PVC go-kart body related to the computer through a hacked USB joystick. Some Thai university college students who noticed the primary automobile wished to know how all of it labored and six of them got here around one Saturday and we spent the whole day hacking joysticks and building a second automobile. By connecting them both to a laptop computer and a knowledge projector we had been in a position to play split-screen Daytona USA. You could find extra details concerning the design and construction of the vehicles on this project web page. The white workplace desk I used for the digital pinball machine wasn't excessive sufficient to be played comfortably.

1 x T-piece, and Zap Zone Defender System 2 x elbows - partially to help air move however mostly to carry my display up as a result of the spring in the hinge has damaged. As simple as this stand seems, the "L"-formed upright part is definitely part of an air-conditioner mount for a knowledge projector that I made for one of many digital pinball desk installations. The T-piece isn't glued and so in a small means (a very, very small way) I wish to suppose that if the air-conditioning mount were ever wanted again then the elements may re-combine in a Voltron or Captain Planet and the Planeteers or Power Rangers MegaZord-like means. In fact if that happened my laptop display screen would fall down. I don't personal a Nintendo Wii however I did handle to get my arms on a Wiimote in order that I could try out some of Johnny Chung Lee's cool tasks. It is a Wiimote mount I built using a size of 35mm (1 and 1/4") pipe, some 18mm (1/2") pipe, three x T-items, and 4 x elbows.

The 35mm pipe has been lower so that it suits properly into the ridges down the aspect of the Wiimote which holds it securely. This is screwed onto a T-Piece which has additionally had its prime lower off. The joint between the 2 topmost elbows is just not glued so the angle of the top part may be adjusted. These sections are simply cable-tied onto the entrance of the motorbike handlebars and the gamers squeeze the buttons with their index fingers to turn left or right. A mercury switch can also be mounted on the right handlebar so the accelerator can be utilized to supply enhance inside the sport and as much as 4 bikes will be linked to the pc through a single hacked USB joystick. The centerstands keep the bikes upright throughout play and Zap Zone Defender System a half-spherical of bamboo is wedged underneath the again tires to stop them from rocking. This can be a music stand made from three different sizes of pipe.