Spacewalking astronaut and space capsule weathervane

Spacewalking astronaut and space capsule weathervane

   So the idea or concept was to create an astronaut walking in space. At first the design seemed to be simple, but as I researched it more I quickly realized that I could take the design to whatever level of detail that I wanted. For presentation purposes I have chosen a simpler design than what an actual astronaut and space capsule would look like. It may be possible to create lifelike replicas but as this project would be exposed to the elements I chose to keep it simple. This way if the weathervane should become damaged it would be easy to make repairs. 
    I chose a weathervane design to minimize moving parts but also decided to add what is referred to as a wobble effect. This is done by adding a part of the design to a spring, metal band, or spring wire. In this case I'm using spring steel wire as the astronauts tether. The bouncing around motion that the astronaut will give in the wind will add to the illusion of someone actually walking in space. 
    The space capsule is actually cut out of 1/2" wood stock and the lower flame is notched so as to fit over the side part of the pivot. The thicker Woodstock allows you to make a more secure attachment to the pivot and the overlapping flame at the bottom will give it a more three-dimensional appearance. It should also be noted that I have intentionally left off the country of origin insignia on the side of the space capsule. This is so that you can put your own insignia on the side of the space capsule such as an American flag or some other countries insignia. 
    The pivot itself is a basic design and you can refer to the pivot design at the bottom of the following post. windmillhorses-weathervane-whirligig 


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Spooky Ghost Novelty

    As kids we have all played with magnets and how two like poles such as + and +will repel one another. I have used magnets in many projects since then and in a lot of different ways.
    In this project we are hiding magnets in a friendly looking ghost that hangs from a hangar over a wooden base with another hidden magnet in the base. We make sure that each magnet repels each other before gluing in place.
    As the ghost swings back and forth over the base, the ghost will move to avoid the magnet or magnets that are in the base. As a result the ghost does not move back and forth as you would think. I like using rare earth magnets because they are stronger and can be smaller and easier to hide. More than one magnet can be placed in the base to give additional and more unpredictable movements, just make sure all the magnets repel one another.
    This is one of my favorite novelties to create during the holidays. It makes a great conversation piece and easily amuses people who are not familiar with magnetism and how it works.

    As always this is a Nevada crafter.com project and has not been tested or created to scale. Adjustments and refinements to the project may be necessary.

It is presented here only as a form of entertainment.

[CAUTION: this project may contain small parts and is not intended for small children as these parts may present a choking hazard]