Monday, December 2, 2013

Nerf Vulcan Sentry Gun

In this instructable, I will show you how to modify a Nerf Vulcan to automatically aim and fire at targets.  As an added bonus, this gun won't fire at anyone wearing a shirt with the instructables robot on it. I had this project in mind for a long time and finally managed to find the time to bring it to life.

If you've been browsing through my other instructables, you might have noticed that I am obsessed with Nerf guns. So far, I’ve managed to infect just about everyone around me with the Nerf virus. It is really fun to see how these plastic toys turn grown men into small boys!

My main aim was for it to look awesome; which was difficult to achieve without removing the front part of the gun. But, I managed to accomplish this without removing the barrel, and I’m really happy with how it turned out!

A big thanks goes to Bob who authored an awesome write up on how to build a sentry gun.

Please do not attempt this mod unless you are convinced that you will be able to do it; otherwise you might destroy your gun.

Please follow this link: (embedding a video doesn't seem to be working at the moment)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C70R7oo4jMc



View the original article here

Make A Dessert Stand Out Of K'nex!!!

0.42315489601689205IMAG3549.jpgHaving a party can be a blast!!! Inviting all your friends and family over to share good food, conversation, and entertainment can turn a good day into a great one-unless you have no place to put your food! Your entire party can go sour if you don't have any place to arrange all of the sweet treats you have prepared! Luckily, there is a quick solution; make a dessert stand out of K'nex! Doing so is fast and fun, and it looks good when you have completed it! So if you want to have a great party with delicious desserts on a colorful display stand, let's get started!!!IMG_20130627_185346.jpgYou will need: 28 white connectors, 8 blue connectors, 28 yellow connectors, 8 green connectors, 20 grey connectors, 4 red connectors, 117 green rods, 95 white rods, and 2 yellow rods. (310 pieces total).

View the original article here

Turn Soda into a Slushie With No Special Equipment

Few things are better on a hot summer day than a frozen drink, and you can beat the heat with your own soda slushes at home with absolutely no special equipment.

The video above, aside from being completely mind-blowing, should show you what to do. You'll need to shake up room temperature soda bottles for a few moments, then freeze them for a few hours. Once they're chilled nearly ice cold, breaking the seal to release the pressure causes the drinks to freeze into a slush before your eyes. There are a few variations on how to serve the drink, but they all give you the same delicious treat. Just remember to set an alarm to get the sodas out of your fridge, and check up on them fairly often, as leaving them in too long could cause a messy explosion.

Self Freezing Coca-Cola (The trick that works on any soda!) | YouTube via Instructables


View the original article here

How to Maintain a Sidecut or Undercut hair style

hair.jpgA couple of months ago I got a pretty extreme haircut that was way different than anything I had before.  What I discovered after I got this part of my hair buzzed off was that my hair grows incredibly fast.  I didn't notice this when my hair was long, but when it's short, every fraction of an inch makes a huge difference.  I also have very thick, wavy hair so when the buzzed part starts growing out, it starts looking very silly very fast. (Well, sillier than usual)
I had a friend shave my head for me last time it got too long, but I believe in self reliance and I decided that if I couldn't maintain it myself then I didn't deserve this awesome haircut.  Also, that friend is in Canada and I'm in California, so I was on my own as far as hair cutting was concerned.DSC07040.jpgWhat I used and what you probably will need:
-big garbage bag (to wear as a smock)
-clippers (I ended up using two different models, but more on that later.)
-scissors (to cut arm and neck holes in the garbage bag)

Last time I got my hair cut I wore an old t-shirt that I didn't care about, figuring I could wash it afterwards.  It got so many little hairs stuck in the fabric and no amount of washing would get them out.  This time, I found a box of huge garbage bags in my garage so I decided to just wear one of those to protect my clothes and minimize clean up.  It worked great and I would highly recommend it to everyone.

I didn't have any clippers so I bought these on Amazon and I think they were less than $30.  I don't know much about clippers but Wahl is a reputable brand and the clippers that I have for my horse are that brand, so I figured they were good enough for me.


View the original article here

Healthy Delicious Homemade Granola

Never buy granola from the store again! This tastes so much better than anything you could buy - and you can customize this to put more of what you like and less of what you don't!

Please note: This recipe was adapted off of Rachel Ray's Addictive Granola recipe. I made a "Healthier" version by cutting down on some of the sugar and butter! It still tastes great - without overloading it with sweets and fat! I also made a bigger batch than her recipe called for, so I could store and save more for later.

Ingredients: 6 cups of Oats 2 cups of Almonds (I left 1/4 of a cup of them whole, and crushed the rest) 1 cup of Sweetened Coconut Flakes 2 cups of Chopped Walnuts 1/2 cup of Brown Sugar, packed 4 tablespoons of Honey 3 teaspoons of Cinnamon 6 tablespoons of Butter (if yo have Coconut Oil on hand, you can replace 2 tablespoons of butter with that) 1/2 teaspoon of Salt Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2:
In a large bowl, pour in the oats. Crush the almonds in a bag or with a mortar and pestle - add to the bowl. Add coconut flakes, walnuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Mix well.

Step 3:
Place a small saucepan on the burner over low heat. Once heated, add the butter (and coconut oil, optional), salt and the honey. Once melted, take it off the burner and pour over granola mixture and all ingredients - mix really well with wooden spoon (and hands if you're careful not to burn yourself).

Step 4:
Spread the granola out onto the baking sheets as evenly as possible - it's ok if the layer is fairly thick (ie: an inch or so in height).  But much thicker of a layer, will require you to either bake longer, or do another batch after the first has been taken out and cooled. Bake for 40-45 minutes total. Every 15 minutes, pull it out enough so you can stir and move the granola off the edges and mix it around for even cooking.

Step 5:
The granola should be a golden color and the nuts will be soft when done. Don't worry - once it cools they will harden. It is advised to not overcook this stuff! Once it has cooled, remove it from the pan and seal it up in airtight containers. I keep mine in the fridge - and it lasts a long time.

According to the original recipe, it can stay fresh at room temperature in air tight containers for up to two weeks, or freeze for up to three months or longer.

Lastly, if you find it's not sweet enough for your taste, then you can always melt a bit more butter and brown sugar and pour it over your batch of granola. Or, just add more the next time around. Personally, I think this is just sweet enough but still very natural and healthy.

My favorite way to eat this:
-Slice up whatever fruit you have into chunks. I prefer to peel and cut apples into chunks.
-Add some yoghurt.
-Top it off with some delicious homemade granola!
It's my favorite snack!


View the original article here

Keep Ants Out of Your Pets' Food with a Tray of Water

Keep Ants Out of Your Pets' Food with a Tray of Water

Just a few stray particles of pet food are enough to lead a parade of ants through your house. Before resorting to chemicals to get rid of them though, try using a pan of water as a moat to keep them away from the bowl.

Ants aren't particularly good swimmers, so a shallow tray of water will dissuade them from marching an entire colony through your house to get a few crumbs of kibble. If you feed your pets outside, this tip is even more important to keep them from getting bitten. Depending on how excited your pet gets about food, you may also want to set a towel underneath the tray to soak up any splashes.

Ants or not, the tray can also double as an extra large water bowl, saving you a few trips to the faucet. For some more clever pet tips, check out The Family Handyman's list through the source link.

Hints and Tips for Pet Care and Pet Safety | The Family Handyman


View the original article here