Tindie
MakersBox
Overall Rating:
All Reviews
George | Oct. 13, 2019
Fun Kit
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
This was a fun kit to build and show off. I ordered the option with some pre-programmed text as one of the modes. Everything works great. One thing that took a bit to figure out is that the spin direction matters for the text. You can spin either way for the symmetrical patterns, but if you want to read the speed, counter or custom text, the letters come out reversed when spun in the wrong direction. Thinking about the circuit's use of a hall sensor, this makes sense and was a good lesson in understanding the design.
Robert | June 8, 2019
Expletives not included!
For SMD Challenge
You need 1. Kit, 2. Soldering Iron, 3. Flux, 4. Tweezers, 5. Solder, 6. Magnification, 7. Dictionary of Very Offensive Words.
Both the regular and misery editions successfully assembled. (Didn't even know there was an 01005 size until I got this kit!)
Actually, the hardest part is soldering on the pin so you can wear it as a badge! Spent some time faffing about with that.
Great kit!!!
Both the regular and misery editions successfully assembled. (Didn't even know there was an 01005 size until I got this kit!)
Actually, the hardest part is soldering on the pin so you can wear it as a badge! Spent some time faffing about with that.
Great kit!!!
William | May 27, 2019
Easy to build, works great.
For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit
Good quality parts, excellent directions. Might be a little difficult for a first time soldering project, the battery clips are large which is harder to solder. Also winding a toroid transformer is of higher difficulty.
I like how this can be built for AA or AAA batteries. I have a lot of old AA batteries, so I did it for AA.
It worked the first time. The LED is really bright, I can see to not trip over the junk in my ham shack with it. I find is makes a nice light to put over my keyboard so I can read the keys at night. I just wedge it into the debris on my computer desk with the LED pointing at the keyboard.
The LED is still glowing when the battery is below 0.5 Volts. If I turn it off when the battery reads 0.44 Volts, then it won't turn back on immediately. If I let it sit for 5-10 minutes then the battery Voltage goes up a little and it starts again.
I like how this can be built for AA or AAA batteries. I have a lot of old AA batteries, so I did it for AA.
It worked the first time. The LED is really bright, I can see to not trip over the junk in my ham shack with it. I find is makes a nice light to put over my keyboard so I can read the keys at night. I just wedge it into the debris on my computer desk with the LED pointing at the keyboard.
The LED is still glowing when the battery is below 0.5 Volts. If I turn it off when the battery reads 0.44 Volts, then it won't turn back on immediately. If I let it sit for 5-10 minutes then the battery Voltage goes up a little and it starts again.
David | May 21, 2019
Excellent service as always.
The addition of a power switch is a nice addition. Having the schematic printed on the board is a plus.
Landon | April 23, 2019
Fantastic Kit!
For DIY Ardu (Arduino-Compatible Clone)
Great piece of kit. Definitely a fun way to spend an hour or to teach someone to solder while giving them someone at the end for future projects!
James | March 15, 2019
Happy customer
For Leo Kit (Arduino-Compatible Leonardo Clone)
I enjoyed putting this kit together and my new Arduino Leonardo Clone works great. I haven't detected any functional differences between this clone and an 'official' Leonardo from arduino.cc. The pictures of the product don't show a 2x3 pin ICSP programming connector but that was included. My kit was missing the USB connector so I contacted the vendor and he immediately took responsibility and sent me one. Great customer support!
The crystal and crystal load resistor (0603 package) where the most challenging parts for me to solder. I'm glad it wasn't too easy because now I'm proud of having assembled this myself. I used the SMD soldering tools and techniques I picked up from watching YouTube videos. I used a STK500 board to program the MEGA32u4 with the standard Leonardo bootloader that I found packaged with the Arduino IDE. Pin 1 on the ICSP connector is clearly marked with a small circle. I think this programming could have been done with any ICSP programmer, including another Arduino, but I already had the STK500.
The crystal and crystal load resistor (0603 package) where the most challenging parts for me to solder. I'm glad it wasn't too easy because now I'm proud of having assembled this myself. I used the SMD soldering tools and techniques I picked up from watching YouTube videos. I used a STK500 board to program the MEGA32u4 with the standard Leonardo bootloader that I found packaged with the Arduino IDE. Pin 1 on the ICSP connector is clearly marked with a small circle. I think this programming could have been done with any ICSP programmer, including another Arduino, but I already had the STK500.
Mark | March 2, 2019
Misery Edition Very Challenging!
For SMD Challenge
Just as advertised, the misery did increase once past the 0402 parts. I couldn't complete it due to parts flying away but I did manage to get one 0201 and 01005 parts down. I did a live stream while doing the challenge:
Part 1: https://youtu.be/aKSAb9lbrFI
Part 2: https://youtu.be/GNeI7xGzH98
Communication just OK because I didn't communicate with MakersBox. :)
Mark KA6WKE
Part 1: https://youtu.be/aKSAb9lbrFI
Part 2: https://youtu.be/GNeI7xGzH98
Communication just OK because I didn't communicate with MakersBox. :)
Mark KA6WKE
Brian | Dec. 24, 2018
Great challenge fun.
For SMD Challenge
Exactly as advertised. I chose the misery version. The ic chip has a pad directly beneath so i used a hot air gun on that one only. Messed up the 0603 led so I simply bridged the connection. The 0201 and 01005 I used my microscope. They supply a 2nd set 2nd chance on the smallest resistor and led.
David | Dec. 16, 2018
Product good but shipping expensive
For I Can Surface Mount Solder
Beware if you buy from UK you have to pay custom charges, nearly as much as Items! Was not expecting that.
Gregory | Dec. 16, 2018
short lived 0201 component challenge
For SMD Challenge
The smd kit challenge is a great way to test your soldering skills. but what would have made it even greater is if all the components (leds and resistors) where 0201 for those of us who want a really good challenge so as to improve those skills and challenges that we rarely face in soldering for a hobby. i wish the pcb had a key ring case so as to protect it from being shorted from any metal from any keys which it might come into contact with. perhaps tindie might look into doing something like that. being in the UK the delivery seemed to take for ages. maybe selling your product on amazon might make things a bit quicker. i really enjoyed putting the components on the pcb but once the 0201 components where soldered down all the rest seemed a breeze to put on. if you really want to challenge us tindi give us components (resistors and caps) with them all being 01005. this will i feel will really challenge those of us who take their soldering seriously and enjoy improving their skills in the art of soldering. great kit, but short lived challenge when the 0201 components where soldered down.
Bob | Nov. 23, 2018
Nice little kit
For Soldering Kit for Doctor Who Fans
Almost perfect.
The only thing I would change is to have the light slowly fade in-out when in sound mode like is does in silent mode, instead of on/off. However, I expect that is a limitation of the hardware.
Still great value for money. I wear it on my lanyard and get lots of comments.
The only thing I would change is to have the light slowly fade in-out when in sound mode like is does in silent mode, instead of on/off. However, I expect that is a limitation of the hardware.
Still great value for money. I wear it on my lanyard and get lots of comments.
Response from MakersBox | Nov. 26, 2018
It is more a limitation of the programmer (me). It could be done, it just needs a solid C programmer to tackle it.
Robert | Oct. 20, 2018
I never liked fidget spinners before.
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
Awesome. Easy assembly, super cool customization options, fun built-ins as well. Color me impressed. My friends are too.
Jan | Sept. 5, 2018
Awesome project, can only recommend
For SMD Challenge
I did have some experience hand-soldering 0603 parts, so I said to myself: "This can't be _that_ difficult…"
Well, going to 0402 was a challenge, and soldering the 0201 parts was brutal.
But, much to my surprise, everything worked at the first try :) Didn't even need the "second change" parts!
For anyone interested in electronics and soldering I can only recommend accepting this challenge. You will learn, you will curse, and in the end you will experience the joy of having completed a seemingly impossible task.
Some good magnification, a steady hand, high quality tweezers and a fine tipped soldering iron are a must. A multimeter with a diode tester is also really helpful.
Well, going to 0402 was a challenge, and soldering the 0201 parts was brutal.
But, much to my surprise, everything worked at the first try :) Didn't even need the "second change" parts!
For anyone interested in electronics and soldering I can only recommend accepting this challenge. You will learn, you will curse, and in the end you will experience the joy of having completed a seemingly impossible task.
Some good magnification, a steady hand, high quality tweezers and a fine tipped soldering iron are a must. A multimeter with a diode tester is also really helpful.
Andrew | July 2, 2018
Great little bot for getting kids excited about robotics
For Open Source Turtle Robot Kit
There is something about a physical robot putting pen to paper that excites and stimulates young minds more than the prettiest graphics on a screen could ever do. Amazingly, there is a huge "hole" in the robotics market to serve this purpose. OSTR stands alone, but is by no means a compromise.
The electronics kit is straightforward and easy to assemble. The parts shipped are packaged correctly and the components chosen are easy to differentiate and assemble. The instructions on how to assemble them are also organized well and the order of assembly is correct for making sure that the parts are easy to solder (short components first, etc.). We have not used the IR wall detection yet, but this was a very nice touch which helps give the robot some additional educational opportunities.
The 3D printed body shipped is also very good quality. I was nervous at first because the holes for the metal nuts were not well shaped, but I found that pressing the nut into place by sticking the bolt through the hole, then threading the nut on to "pull" it into the plastic and finally removing the bolt, leaving the now-captured nut in place worked very well. The wheels also fit on to the motor shafts perfectly. I don't think that the "grub screw" method in the documentation would have worked at all with these wheels at all, but thankfully was unnecessary. The instructions also recommend threading the (long) motor and servo wires under the chassis but I found that this caused considerable interference with the movement of the pen.
The overall design of the robot is very well thought out -- putting the four AA batteries as low on the chassis as possible gives the robot a great low center of gravity and also adds considerable weight which helps the robot move around on the paper. The robot is pretty robust and other than it being stepped on or falling off of a table, I would not be worried about it being man-handled by excited children. I found that calibration was largely unnecessary, especially given that dead-reckoning movement is highly inaccurate to begin with. We were printing simple designs in only a few minutes. I think that adding a few washers to the caster so that it helps keep the robot from "rocking" would improve movement even more, but we really are talking about finicky little details.
There are only two "downsides" to OSTR, and neither prevents me from recommending this to anyone. The first is that you must connect a cable to the robot to program it. This is however easily solved with any of the BLE-to-UART modules that you can find online. The other downside is that for younger kids, programming the robot in Arduino's IDE is a little challenging. I am looking to see how difficult it would be to use any of the Blockly-inspired GUIs to program the robot with any tablet or computer.
OSTR really is a wonderful, relatively inexpensive Turtle Graphics robot. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who would like a basic drawing robot platform.
(Please note that Tindie doesn't let me not rate the communication; I did not try to communicate with the business owner but could not mark this field "not applicable")
The electronics kit is straightforward and easy to assemble. The parts shipped are packaged correctly and the components chosen are easy to differentiate and assemble. The instructions on how to assemble them are also organized well and the order of assembly is correct for making sure that the parts are easy to solder (short components first, etc.). We have not used the IR wall detection yet, but this was a very nice touch which helps give the robot some additional educational opportunities.
The 3D printed body shipped is also very good quality. I was nervous at first because the holes for the metal nuts were not well shaped, but I found that pressing the nut into place by sticking the bolt through the hole, then threading the nut on to "pull" it into the plastic and finally removing the bolt, leaving the now-captured nut in place worked very well. The wheels also fit on to the motor shafts perfectly. I don't think that the "grub screw" method in the documentation would have worked at all with these wheels at all, but thankfully was unnecessary. The instructions also recommend threading the (long) motor and servo wires under the chassis but I found that this caused considerable interference with the movement of the pen.
The overall design of the robot is very well thought out -- putting the four AA batteries as low on the chassis as possible gives the robot a great low center of gravity and also adds considerable weight which helps the robot move around on the paper. The robot is pretty robust and other than it being stepped on or falling off of a table, I would not be worried about it being man-handled by excited children. I found that calibration was largely unnecessary, especially given that dead-reckoning movement is highly inaccurate to begin with. We were printing simple designs in only a few minutes. I think that adding a few washers to the caster so that it helps keep the robot from "rocking" would improve movement even more, but we really are talking about finicky little details.
There are only two "downsides" to OSTR, and neither prevents me from recommending this to anyone. The first is that you must connect a cable to the robot to program it. This is however easily solved with any of the BLE-to-UART modules that you can find online. The other downside is that for younger kids, programming the robot in Arduino's IDE is a little challenging. I am looking to see how difficult it would be to use any of the Blockly-inspired GUIs to program the robot with any tablet or computer.
OSTR really is a wonderful, relatively inexpensive Turtle Graphics robot. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who would like a basic drawing robot platform.
(Please note that Tindie doesn't let me not rate the communication; I did not try to communicate with the business owner but could not mark this field "not applicable")
Seth | June 23, 2018
Works Great!
For Yet Another Programming Shield
Bought this to program attiny84 chips for Ken's Geek Spinner project. I like the indicator lights. Works great. Thanks Ken!
Elias | June 15, 2018
Great Product
For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit
The Joule thief came on time. It was new-as advertised. I am very pleased with my order; and, I would definitely buy from this seller again.
Pierre | June 11, 2018
Really fun project to work on SMD soldering skills
For SMD Challenge
Great kit, fun way to work on SMD soldering skills. I wound up having to order a few spare 0201 LED's from Digikey, but the part #'s were easy to find and everything worked after learning some new soldering techniques!
Pierre | June 11, 2018
Easy way to experiment with ATtiny programming
For Yet Another Programming Shield
I bought this kit to experiment with ATtiny programming and it worked as advertised. Very easy to assemble the board and the instructions were clear to follow for programming as well.
Kirk | June 5, 2018
Great
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
Figit spinner was a quick project to put together and was fun to play with. TL;DR just junk to fill out the 100 characters required
Kirk | June 5, 2018
Robot is a great little project
For Open Source Turtle Robot Kit
Robot kit assembly was fairly easy and straight forward. Robot works as it should and is fun to do turtle graphics on paper rather than on screen.
Philip | May 30, 2018
Fun to put together
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
I really enjoyed assembling the Fidget Spinner. I purchased it pre-programmed with a message which worked out great. It was magic at first spin to see the message show up.
I highly recommend getting the flush wire cutters (Hakko CHP-170 recommended); they really improved the feel of the underside of the spinner. Has anyone tried a 3d printed case for the spinner?
I'd also recommend some PTFE lubricant for the center bearing. It makes the spinner much smoother.
I highly recommend getting the flush wire cutters (Hakko CHP-170 recommended); they really improved the feel of the underside of the spinner. Has anyone tried a 3d printed case for the spinner?
I'd also recommend some PTFE lubricant for the center bearing. It makes the spinner much smoother.
Ken | May 24, 2018
Turtle Robot a good first tech project
For Open Source Turtle Robot Kit
The Turtle Robot is a good first tech project for anyone wanting to learn more about programming Arduinos, electronics, 3D printing, CAD and design. It gently guides you through each step to complete the project step by step. It also gives you enough information and access to modify the programming to explore further. If you have access to a 3D printer, I suggest you buy the kit minus the printed parts. Many libraries not have 3D printers you can use for free, including plastic. Check you local library.
The weak point on the robot is the wheel design. The spooks are thin and the center hole is a little too big making them loose. This is a perfect chance to also learn a little CAD by importing the files and modifying them for a better fit. I also drilled the stepper motor shafts and tapped them for a M3 screw where the wheel holes are. Putting the screw all the way through the motor shaft makes a very strong connection.
The link to code to test the LEDs in the documentation is missing. It would be nice if the code were put back on GitHub.
The weak point on the robot is the wheel design. The spooks are thin and the center hole is a little too big making them loose. This is a perfect chance to also learn a little CAD by importing the files and modifying them for a better fit. I also drilled the stepper motor shafts and tapped them for a M3 screw where the wheel holes are. Putting the screw all the way through the motor shaft makes a very strong connection.
The link to code to test the LEDs in the documentation is missing. It would be nice if the code were put back on GitHub.
Response from MakersBox | May 24, 2018
Thanks for the review! I hope you'll consider uploading a photo in a comment on the Instructable page at https://www.instructables.com/id/OSTR/ or your favorite social media with the tag #TurtleRobot. I'd love to see how it turned out!
I agree about the wheels. I've uploaded a thicker wheel on the Thingiverse page at https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2881396. Getting the hub right requires calibrating your printer, but the M3 screw works as well.
I've upload the firmware for testing the eyes, writing text, and making patterns to the Github at https://github.com/aspro648/OSTR/tree/master/firmware.
Thanks again for the feedback!
I agree about the wheels. I've uploaded a thicker wheel on the Thingiverse page at https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2881396. Getting the hub right requires calibrating your printer, but the M3 screw works as well.
I've upload the firmware for testing the eyes, writing text, and making patterns to the Github at https://github.com/aspro648/OSTR/tree/master/firmware.
Thanks again for the feedback!
Garth | May 7, 2018
Great product and fun to put together.
For Yet Another Programming Shield
I'm still new to this hobby so it was fun to put together this YAPS. Works like a charm. Now it's time to learn something new - ATTiny85.
Steen | May 1, 2018
Great design and accurate customization with rapid shipment
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
Got two as gifts and had fun assembling with good youtube instructions. Will probably order again in a few months. Thanks!
Timothy | April 12, 2018
Fantastic kit at a great price!
For Yet Another Programming Shield
Assembled quickly and easily. Instructions were done visually and documented well. This is exactly what I needed to program stand alone chips. No need to use 2 Arduinos or make a breadboard. Excellent price for this kit! The PCB is excellent. The jumper that lets you select different chips is what made my mind when it came to purchasing. Looking on the web for one that would do many kinds was difficult, or only did one or two types. Thank you for offering a great deal on a great shield that I will use to make my own stand alone things! I wish you great success with this and your other offerings. Well done!
Andrew | March 20, 2018
Challenging, yet fun
For SMD Challenge
Having done very little SMD work, this kit provided some challenge, especially on the 0203 components.
It's a shame that 0102 LEDs aren't available, because that would complete the horror!
It's a shame that 0102 LEDs aren't available, because that would complete the horror!
Jan | March 5, 2018
Great Project
For SMD Challenge
I think the SMD - Challenge is a great project. The delivery was very fast and I have learnded a much about soldering and the smd - components.
All in all i gave a positive feedback for this project.
All in all i gave a positive feedback for this project.
Jeffrey | March 4, 2018
Brilliant!
For Yet Another Programming Shield
Easy to build, well documented, easy to use, works perfectly. Best of all, Made in Oregon. I wish everything Arduino was so simple.
Karl | Feb. 22, 2018
Great kit. Somewhere between challenge and torture :)
For SMD Challenge
This is a must have kit in my opinion. I have done a fair amount of smd kit assembly 0603 is the smallest I have ever attempted. 0402 was OK but 0201 was torture .
Fun torture . Had to break open my 2nd kit for a 3rd 0203 led. (rather not discuss the first 2 ) And wouldn't you know it's on backwards :) I will most likely order some more to hand out :)
Fun torture . Had to break open my 2nd kit for a 3rd 0203 led. (rather not discuss the first 2 ) And wouldn't you know it's on backwards :) I will most likely order some more to hand out :)
Ben | Feb. 11, 2018
Very fun; very challenging!
For SMD Challenge
This will definitely be a challenge but success is worth it!
The PCB is well designed with good pads for soldering to and nice test-pads as well. The only issue I found was that the hole for the pin is close enough that the pin can short out against the battery if the pin is soldered in place and the battery is fully inserted.
I really enjoyed this challenge.
The PCB is well designed with good pads for soldering to and nice test-pads as well. The only issue I found was that the hole for the pin is close enough that the pin can short out against the battery if the pin is soldered in place and the battery is fully inserted.
I really enjoyed this challenge.
Jasper | Feb. 10, 2018
It was fun
For SMD Challenge
The product is great. When I picked up the 0201 LED with my tweezer it slipped and it shot away to a place and I ould never find it back. I failed the SMD challenge, but it was fun.
Letícia | Feb. 7, 2018
Excellent!
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
Great product! Assembly was easy and straightforward. Works perfectly in the first time. Good balance of spinner and good POV display as well.
Nick | Jan. 24, 2018
Excellent kit
For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner
This is a well thought out and designed kit at a very reasonable price. Easy to assemble with an incredible amount of documentation and resources!
Ben | Jan. 20, 2018
Escellent challenging kit!
For SMD Challenge
This kit comes with all the parts you need, plus good documentation for a project of this level. My kit also had lapel pin hardware, which is great for attaching it to clothing after you've spent hours searching for 0201 parts that you accidentally breathed on and sent to Narnia. (I wonder if 0201 parts and the socks that get lost in the dryer all end up in the same place...)
I enjoyed assembling this kit. It's a good idea to order the spare parts kit if you haven't worked with very small SMD components before. Battery not included, so you'll need a fresh CR2032 battery. If the LEDs seem a little dim, and you've tried everything but the blue 0201 LED still doesn't work, try another battery or a regulated bench power supply. The first battery I tried was old stock, and it didn't have enough voltage to light the blue LED.
Be sure to join the 0201 Club when you get your kit working!
I enjoyed assembling this kit. It's a good idea to order the spare parts kit if you haven't worked with very small SMD components before. Battery not included, so you'll need a fresh CR2032 battery. If the LEDs seem a little dim, and you've tried everything but the blue 0201 LED still doesn't work, try another battery or a regulated bench power supply. The first battery I tried was old stock, and it didn't have enough voltage to light the blue LED.
Be sure to join the 0201 Club when you get your kit working!
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