Racing games are always better when you have a steering wheel instead of just a handheld controller. And those old-school arcade racing cockpits? Even better. Matthew Boyer decided to bring the feel of a racetrack into his living room with this insanely awesome DIY arcade racing cockpit. He built the frame out of plywood and a real racing seat, then added LEDs, surround sound, and a 32-inch flat screen. The pedals, shifters, and steering wheel are laid out to match the measurements in his rea...
A smartphone is pretty much useless with a dead battery. When you're out and about, it can be hard to find a place to plug in (if you remembered your charger, that is). But this DIY solar panel backpack made by electrical engineer Theodore Protasiewicz will help you use the scorching sun to your advantage and make sure that your gadgets are always ready to go. Theodore started with just a normal backpack, some solar panels, 18 gauge wire, and a USB port and hacked it into a traveling solar ch...
The worst part about playing darts is that when you miss—it can damage not only your ego, but also the wall behind the dartboard if it's not protected. Redditor mavantix found a solution to this problem in wine corks. Over a year, he collected over 1,000 corks from family and friends to make this DIY Cork Dartboard Cabinet—that's a lot of wine!
Projector screens can be pretty expensive, depending on the size and quality you're looking for. If you're thinking of installing one and want to save some money, you can build a pretty decent one yourself with just a few simple materials. Redditor dodgeboy made this 128" DIY projector screen for only $200, and I have to say it looks pretty impressive. Poplar 1x4s make up the frame, with pine 1x3s as supports. Once the frame was assembled and painted black, he installed mounting blocks on bot...
Rain can make for an amazing photograph, but it can do disastrous things to your equipment. This super simple DIY cover from Purple Summit Photography will keep out the rain so you can capture beautiful shots no matter the weather, and it's made using things you probably have lying around. Photo by Jon Shave
If a solar-powered air conditioner that requires no electricity or moving parts sounds to good to be true, well, then you're not as ambitious as this clever high school student. Instructables user Fozzy13 put together an awesome DIY tutorial on how he built his own air conditioning unit in his car that works using the principles of evaporation, convection, and capillary action. This air conditioner works by using sunlight to heat air at the bottom of the unit. The hot air rises, allowing the ...
Darin Cosgrove, founder of Ecomodder.com, used just cardboard, aluminum and duct tape to make his DIY "boat tail", a mod that creates aerodynamic efficiency. The tail, attached to his 1998 Pontiac Firefly, extends the car by 4.5 feet and increases the fuel economy to 64 MPG.
Yves Rossy, AKA Jetman, attempted to fly across the Atantic from Morocco to Spain yesterday. His homemade, jet powered wings "span 8 feet and are powered by four kerosene-fueled jet engines."
Ever since we got our fingers on the iPhone, we've been fascinated by multitouch. Why couldn't everything be so physically interactive?
Want to show off vacation photos on the big screen or project goofy videos on the wall? Using a shoebox, magnifying glass, and a smartphone, you can make your own photo or video projector for super cheap.
Check out this awesome tutorial that shows you how to make a light up Iron Man repulsor beam in the comfort of your home! Iron Man Inspired Repulsor Beam Blaster V1.0.
Check out this cheap recipe for homemade chalkboard paint! It's easy, and convenient. Honeysuckle Pink Chalkboard with Homemade Chalkboard Paint.
Says creator and Flickr user gomhi, "Handcrafted loudspeakers using chicken eggshell as cabinet. They sound narrow, but I'm pleased about the result. "
Fed up with your boring ol' traditional holiday wreath? Ditch the greenery and go extra festive this year with this felt ball wreath HowTo, courtesy of Norwegian craft blog Pickles.
Yum, geekdom fun. A Jar Jar salad. Wonderfully silly How-To from Only Knives: "A side dish from the Dark Side: Sculpt Jar Jar Binks out of a root vegetable."
Luxirare, my very favorite, over-the-top, superfluous (in the best possible sense) recipe blog. We've witnessed the Pie-On-a-Stick, and marveled the beautiful Jell-O shots. Now Luxirare demonstrates how to make some exceedingly fancy potato chips. These aren't your typical store bought snacks.
Nik Ramage creates low tech, absurd mechanical objects that perform mundane every-day tasks (from blowing out candles to walking down the street to drumming your fingers out of boredom). Click through to Ramage's site to see more of his work. Five of his pieces below:
This ultra clever mod of household junk makes for an ingenious variation on the carnival classic.
Castile soap is named for Castile, Spain, and is traditionally made from locally produced olive oil from the region. In current times, Castile soap refers to a category of soap that is made from 100 percent plant-based oils and does not include chemical detergents, making it a completely natural, biodegradable, and environmental-friendly product.
Not to be confused with Pop Rocks, rock candy, which is large chunks of crystallized sugar, is a wonderfully simple snack in and of itself, and can be used to dissolve in tea or coffee as well as on top of other desserts.
In addition to unclogging your toilet using common household items, you can also clean and disinfect your toilet for cheap without ever having to use expensive and chemically-toxic toilet cleaners ever again.
So long as you have a popsicle mold, making your own popsicles is ridiculously easy and the possibilities are limitless. For example, you can mix together gummy bears and Sprite, or for a more alcoholic treat, simply add Corona beer to the popsicle mold with a dash of lime juice.
Want to attract more birds into your backyard for your viewing pleasure? With a simple household objects and bird seeds, you can easily turn your backyard or outdoor balcony into a bustling destination for your neighborhood birds.
Got pesky weeds in your garden? Rather than stocking up on toxic weed killers from your local gardening store, you probably already have everything you need to kill weeds in your kitchen or living room.
Homemade ice cream sandwiches are delicious, but even when you use the slicing shortcut to make assembly easier, it still requires the planning and forethought to buy the ice cream and make the cookies. For the days when you have neither, you can satisfy your craving much faster with a bagful of Oreos and some milk.
To make your own fabric softener at home, simply mix together six parts water, three parts white vinegar, and two parts hair conditioner into one solution. Once you're done mixing, use ½ cup of the solution for every load of laundry during the rinse cycle to soften your clothes and to keep them static-free.
You probably shouldn't ever eat Crayola crayons, but you can definitely chop them up into tiny pieces, melt them over boiling water with coconut oil and olive oil, pour into an empty contact lens case and use the final congealed product as lipstick for your lips. Yes, it really is that simple.
Toothpicks can be surprisingly handy when it comes to woodworking and fixing small household problems like stripped screw holes and scratched furniture. They can also be used as a quick fix for a hard-to-close door that has to be forced or slammed shut.
Games are always more fun when you have someone to play them with, but if you're not always logged in to your Xbox LIVE account, how do you know when your friends are online? You can always log in and check, but where's the fun in that when you can hack together a traffic light to do it for you? Andrew F hooked up an Arduino with an Ethernet shield to check every five minutes to see how many of his Xbox LIVE friends are online. For each friend, it records either a zero or a one, depending on ...
If you've ever popped the hood of you car and went, "I can do that," then you're about to get your chance. A Japanese company called Modi-Corp has unveiled its plans to release a kit that will let you put together your very own electric car. Granted, it's not that impressive of a vehicle. Actually, the "Pius" is just a one-seater and somehow strangely classified in Japan as a "motorized bicycle." The "car" will only be able to reach top speeds of up to 21 mph, making it more of a go-kart than...
Playing Super Mario Bros 3 with a giant controller on a projection screen = nerd nirvana. Giant NES controller/coffee table/storage box made by Kyle Downes. This piece of furniture actually connects to the system, and works as a real controller. Scroll down for video demonstration and images.
Alan Parekh's latest creation is a clock made from wooden gears. Parekh says on Hacked Gadgets:
Dutch designer Anneke Jakobs created this recycled Chiquita banana box chandelier while a student at the Utrecht School of Product Design.
The fire piston is a primitive device that many claim Rudolph Diesel used as a model for his namesake engine design. Both employ the use of compression ignition. The piston compresses the air to over 800 degrees Fahrenheit. This results in the ignition of the tinder in the tip of the bolt.
Even the most seasoned kitchen cooks experience the annoyance of accidentally burning food on their pots, pans, and casserole dishes. When dishwashing soap and water doesn't work, what is the best way to remove burned-on gunk from your cookware?
Cat toys can be unnecessarily expensive. Using items you already own, you can provide your cat with new and fun ways to play. Look around, you may have dozens of potential cat toys that will occupy your cat for days to come!
Keys always seem to multiply. You start out with your house keys and car keys, and the next thing you know, your keychain is full and you have no idea what half of them even unlock.
Selfies have been around for quite a while, but with the popularity of social media (in particular Instagram) they've become ubiquitous in our culture. There's even mobile apps dedicated solely to selfies. If that and your news feed isn't proof enough, just check with the Oxford Dictionary.
Is your beloved silver bracelet looking a little worn? Stick it in a bowl of tomato ketchup to remove the tarnish. The acid in the tomatoes oxidizes with tarnished silver, which helps make your silver items look newer than ever before.
Have a hard-to-open jar? If it's never been opened, the air pressure inside the jar is making it harder to break the seal. If it's been in the fridge, it's possible that the lid shrunk slightly—just enough to be extremely frustrating.
