While sheltering-in-place, Adam is livestreaming every week to work on builds and take questions from the Tested community! This livestream took place on 5/12/20, in between Adam’s demonstration of aging prop money.
Adam Savage’s One Day Builds: NASA Retro-Reflector Replica!
Adam makes a replica of one of NASA’s classic lunar experiments: a laser ranging retroreflector left on the Moon that are used for precise measurement of the orbit and orientation of the Moon relative to Earth. It’s a model that makes use of off-the-shelf prisms that mirrors light directly back to its point source, like the mirrors on road markers or bicycles. This replica is of the kind of retroreflector array NASA is sending with current Mars missions. And for this quick build, we see the debut of some tools like the sheet metal nibbler and unibit!
Adam Savage’s Live Builds: Weathering Prop Money!
In this live stream, Adam shows the process of weathering a stack of prop money (which you can find here). It’s the same aging process set decorators and propmasters would use for film work, adding random wear and grime to a stack of bills to create the illusion that it’s been used thousands of times. Plus, it’s a chance for Adam to put his workshop oven to use!
Tested From Home: Making Wood-Fired Neapolitan Pizza!
Joey shares one of his big passions: making Neapolitan-style pizza at home with a wood-fired oven. He’s been using the Ooni 3 compact pizza oven for a few years, and talks about his experience with this wood pellet fueled oven and his preparation process for making the most out of it. And yes, Joey shares his pizza dough recipe as well!
No $80 Cable Needed: Oculus Quest Link Works Out of the Box!
Is the $80 Oculus Link cable obsolete? A stealth update in the Oculus Beta channel has enabled Link support for USB 2.0 cables, including the 3 meter charging cable bundled with the Oculus Quest! Performance is the same as with the fiber optic cable, and USB 2.0 extension cables work as well. Just opt in to the PTC (Public Test Channel) in Oculus software, restart, and you can start playing desktop VR games like Half-Life: Alyx on the Quest!
Tested From Home: Customizing Home Studio LED Lights!
Fabricator Jen Schachter walks us through her latest project: refurbishing and customizing lights for home studio and cosplay displays! Using a combination of off-the-shelf spotlights and found lamp hardware, Jen combines customizable smart bulbs with vintage spotlight looks, showing how she goes from sketched concept to prototype to finished build.
Episode 551 – Cozy LEGO – 5/14/20
The podcast is flipped on its head this week as we go through our usual segments in reverse order, starting with the VR minute! Norm, Jeremy, and Kishore talk about how they celebrated mother’s day, cozy LEGO builds, and the impending release of the Hamilton concert film on Disney+. Plus, hand tracking experiments in VR, Unreal Engine 5 looking amazing, and hype for the upcoming Lower Decks Star Trek show. That and the usual goodness in this week’s packed episode!
Adam Savage’s One Day Builds: Lithium Ion Battery Charging Station!
Adam takes on a bit of shop infrastructure this week to tackle the inefficiencies of lithium-ion battery chargers. Specifically, he needs a charging rack that can store, charge, and organize the cave’s set of 3.7V li-ion cells–the kind used for high-powered flashlights and other electronics. Adam builds a portable gang charger that can power eight batteries at once from a single power supply–a simple build you can do at home too!
Adam Savage’s Favorite Tools: Workshop Utility Apron + Everyday Carry!
As you might’ve seen in Adam’s recent videos, one of the changes to his shop workflow has come from his use of a utility apron for carrying his essential tools like Pica pen and dial calipers. Adam talks about what changed his mind about wearing a shop apron, what kinds of tools he carries on it, and how it’s changed the operating procedures for his builds.
A Breath of Fresh Air – Still Untitled: The Adam Savage Project – 5/12/20
This week, we talk about the benefits of getting a little bit scenery change with a drive around or out of the city, and the need for empathy as we inch out of total isolation. We also praise the acting of Westworld now that we’re caught up with the latest season, and appreciate the hard choices directors and editors have to make in the filmmaking process. Who else is watching The Mandalorian behind-the-scenes series?