Spinning ......

The last year of work has really slowed down all the fun personal projects around the shop that normally I would be doing, but on the other hand this year has been amazing for working on projects that may and will change the world.

From Meka Robotics crazy prototypes, Google madness, Boeing projects for the new 787 Dreamliner, Clorox Research stuff, USA Government projects, LightSail Energy, All Power Labs Gasifier crazyness, and now RedBull things..... Overall its a year to smile about.

I get a lot of emails asking about my projects and why I take so long building them.... That list above is the reason.... and its also the reason that makes better at what I do and think about things in a new light.

LightSail Energy is a company located in Berkeley and has a crazy green energy project that I have been stoked to help out on, I have been helping out doing some aluminum Tig welding.

The project is very neat in concept -

In a nutshell, its an " air battery"

the system runs off peak hours to compress air when electricty is cheap, then during the day when the grid needs power, the air compressor runs backwards using the stored air to turn it and it becomes an motor to turn the electrical motor which then becomes a generator of electrical power to sell back to the grid during demands.

The neat part is that all that heat generated in the compressor is captured with mists of water which can be used. Its a really rad system and very neat to look at.

I decieded this would be a perfect trade to get some help on one of my projects as a work for work exchange for my welding. The Speed Bike is still waiting on a front hub.....  So one of the machinist over at Lightsail named Liam decieded to help me out for the trade and spin the hub out after hours.

The Haas ST30 CNC lathe is perfect for the job

This is Liam doing all the layout and setup.

This hub is a tricky one....

Just hoggin the profile of the hub

sometimes you do some changes along the way

Spinning the finish profile of the hub on the outside.

Still a lot of weight reduction that needs to happen in the next few machine passes.

This gives you an idea of what the hub looks like and how it mounts

The hub makes some rad chips, which made the " Chip of the Day" in the Lightsail window

Just had to make a video of the prototype hub being made.

                          PedalFest - Oakland, CA  at  Jack London Square

This last weekend was the Oakland Jack London PedalFest

I was given a booth next to Jen at New Belgium Brewrey, so I brought the fleet of machines

There was no way that the WiskeyDrom was going to be there and I wasn't going to ride it.

This is the bike I just did for New Belgium that you will see this week after the photoshoot.

So a challenge went out via text message to Greg Minnaar to come race me....

So he showed up.... ready for the beach with his sandals and beach gear on

World Champ Downhill Mountain biker Greg tried all the bikes.... His lady Laila watching from the stairs leading in to the track.

even the kids little Schwinn from the 1960s

And this thing what ever it is.....

Pedalfest photos by Jon Suzuki

This was built by some guys up in Santa Rosa, CA with the help from New Belgium.

They call it the SpruceDeuce and its can go from land to water for a race located in northern California

Check it out - some good guys Krank Boom Clank

Hammer Time part 3 or something like that....

Gabe and I keep working on the Little Giant power hammer and all the other projects around the shop.... 

Well.....

Like normal I am out having fun while he keeps working , its summer time..... cut me a break.....

Downhill MTB champ Greg Minnaar decided to give us a quick tour of Santa Cruz bicycles the other day which was super rad, we all drove down from Oakland to go to hang out in Santa Cruz, CA for the weekend.

These are Greg and Steve Peat's test bike swingarms from years back

We got to meet the Syndicate Race team mechanic Doug, who was getting all Greg's race bikes ready for the next World Cup races overseas in a few days and we also got to see the rad research and development dept, where all the custom creatures are designed and built by the cool cats around the shop.

The next stop for us crew was New Belgium Beers Clips of Faith movie tour, which was raising money for a rad group with a cool idea in the Santa Cruz, CA area.

This is the set up New Belgium brought to show the movie shorts for the night in the empty field.

Hundreds of people showed up to have a good time and drink beer.

The non-profit project is called Santa Cruz Project Bike Trip, which in a nut shell, its a group dedicated to bringing bicycle mechanics and repair classes back to high schools. Its neat to see a big company like New Belgium getting with small groups with a good cause and get kids turning wrenches again...

Gabe and I decided if we had the Little Giant apart we needed to replace the clutch

So with the new upgrade clutch material we wrapped it.

The way to learn to rig and lift stuff is by doing so I make Gabe do it.

Gabe has a blast driving that forklift.  

Here is front without the spring and nothing tight

The front isn't painted because it needs a guard welded

The guard protects you from the spring.

And thats the spring...

Don't want that blowing out hitting you in the face.

These hammers are known for springs blasting out if over hit.

SCARY!

OK OK....

This is just a teaser for what showed up on a pallet at MLS the other day.....

Just wait.....