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Book Review: Eccentric Cubicle
by Chris Miller at 06:21:42 PM on Thursday, November 8th, 2007
I am not quite where to begin with this one. It is labeled as Office Accessories from a Parallel Universe. It is exactly that. Eccentric Cubicle brings it all to a parallel universe for sure!
Ecentric


This is way beyond what any of us would ever build for our desk. My favorite was the Projectile-2-Peer Intercubicle Messaging device. Which in reality was a well defined, through tool tap and die skills, missile launcher for your desk. The idea was to attach your message or put inside a rocket and shoot it to your neighbor. Much like the good old days. But the skills it took to build it were out of this world too.


Let me say the author, Kaden Harris, was fun to read though. His commentary for each project made the text portion enjoyable. Now there is not a lot of text overall in the grand scheme of 370 pages. A lot of the book is images and steps required to do each project.


In all there is 11 chapters starting with an introduction and then right into projects.


  1. Introduction
  2. Active Deskchop - a nice guillotine for cutting anything from pens to carrots at your desk
  3. Ballistamail - the missile launcher
  4. Maple Mike - a desktop golf ball driver
  5. DeskBeam Bass - need to play a bass guitar right on your desk?
  6. The Gynsin Device - a light tube to stimulate the mind iBlow - a bubble machine for your desk. The simplest to make it seemed
  7. Liquid Len Meets Discohead - a mirrored head reflecting light
  8. The Haze-o-Matic 3000 Fog Machine - now who doesn't need fog at their desk?
  9. Hammerhead Live - a mechanical drum machine
  10. Homebrew Wood Finishes

So there you go. If you have woodworking and tool tap and die skills this book rocks. If you are a geek like me that can do simple stuff at home but might cut off a finger, then read and laugh but don't try this at home.

I received a comment from Kaden who was quite correct, it is tap and die, not tool and die as I originally placed in the writing.
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Location: St. Louis, MO		 Category:  Book Reviews 
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  • 1) Book Review: Eccentric Cubicle
    Created by Damned Brit at 11/9/2007 4:29:10 AM email |

    If you don't fancy building you're own Ballistamail, you can always buy one (minus the mail part of it)..

    { Link }

  • 2) Book Review: Eccentric Cubicle
    Created by Kaden at 11/20/2007 1:33:56 PM email | website

    While this may seem like nitpickery, the repeated references made to 'tool and die' skills are worrisome; A tool and die maker occupies the pinnacle of the machinists' trade...they're the guys who make the tools to make tools with, kinda... it's a very demanding discipline with no relation whatsoever to Eccentric Cubicle. Cripes... I actually take a few pokes at proper machinists through the book

    Tap and die sets are a completely different thing... exceptionally useful tools with a surprisingly shallow learning curve that let you cut industry standard threads onto metal rod stock and into holes you've drilled, and clean up & rethread stripped out nuts and bolts encountered during home handyman gigs. If you can use a T-reamer you can use taps and dies. You can get a decently equiped set for under a hundred bones that'll handle most SAE and metric sizes.

    This is in no way a daunting challenge for John Q. Public to deal with: I point out repeatedly in the book the utility and ease of use of T&Ds, and their unsung hero status in the world of toolage. Mistaking taps and dies for tool and die making is pretty much of a disservice to the book.

    K

  • 3) re: Book Review: Eccentric Cubicle
    Created by Chris Miller at 11/20/2007 1:43:22 PM email | website

    Good point, let me amend it! I enjoyed the book as I said, but the title and cover threw me from the actual content. Good work!


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