I’ve always been interested in CNC machines, 3D printers and plotters, so I decided to build my own drawing plotter based on the COREXY design. The goal was to create something that was both functional and open-source, so others could build or modify it for their own projects. At the time all the alternatives were quite expensive.

This project started because of a random conversation in our company Slack. Someone mentioned building a custom keyboard for trading with our Cryptowatch Desktop product, similar to those Bloomberg trading terminal keypads. I thought it would be a fun side project to work on.

For quite some time, I’ve been curious about the Twitter API and its potential applications. Finally, I decided to spend a weekend exploring this technology and embarked on a fun DIY project that combines my interest in programming, photography, and Raspberry Pi.

I’ve been curious about generative art for some time but never really got into it until recently when I decided to experiment with p5.js. Helias is my first attempt at a fun little project that uses noise functions to generate unique abstract art pieces with each run.

This drone frame was my first big venture into 3D modeling and 3D printing. I took this project as a way to force myself to learn Autodesk 123D Design (now discontinued sadly). The frame was based on the Impulse RC Alien and Lumenier QAV-R with center X removable arms, and I made it available in various sizes from 4", 5" and 6" propellers. It was a great experience troubleshooting how to design it and it got me really fascinated with 3D modeling in general. The funny part is I never ended up building a functional version of my design.

This summer my fiancé offered me a flight experience for my birthday. It was an amazing surprise which I thoroughly enjoyed, but left me wanting more. I don’t think I necessarily wanted to go through proper flight training and get a license, but I wanted to know the ins and outs of flying an airplane to a degree that I would know what to do if I had to fly the real thing.

Chappie is another great movie by Neill Blomkamp following up his early Tetravaal short. As soon as I watched it, I knew I had to build something from the movie. Going through the ReplicaPropForum threads, I found someone had already designed the files for Chappie’s head, so I had to give them a try.

After designing some Star Wars lightsabers, I wanted to continue challenging myself with more complex movie prop designs. I decided to tackle Officer K’s blaster from Blade Runner 2049, which would be a great companion piece to the original Deckard blaster from Tomenosuke that I’d recently added to my collection.

I’ve always been a Star Wars fan, so I decided to try my hand at creating some lightsaber replicas using Fusion 360 and my 3D printer. These were my first movie prop models, and they turned out to be a really fun project!

I’ve been watching Adventure Time for a while now, and ever since I started the show, I’ve wanted to make a prop from the series. So here it is – my very first handmade prop: Finn’s Golden Sword of Battle!