A useful hackerspace gives people the tools, knowledge, and room to do things for themselves and each other. September brought more of that work: getting the Craft Lab into shape, improving the electronics benches, and working through the details of a small robot-arm setup. Here’s where things stand, and what’s coming up.
The Next Chapter for Sewing
The Craft Lab’s worktables and organized supplies, September 9.
Before the pandemic, the space had one regular sewing machine, a Brother SE600 combination sewing and embroidery machine, and a serger. When people started making cloth masks, that grew to around eight sewing machines, including machines members brought in for the effort.
Thank you to everyone who made PPE, donated to that work, or helped it happen. People used the tools and skills they had to meet an immediate community need. That history is worth remembering as we decide what the sewing area needs next.
Those machines saw a lot of use. Without a consistent steward to keep up with maintenance, repairs accumulated. We now have Joni stewarding the Craft Lab, and a plan to get the sewing setup onto a more maintainable footing.
We’re planning to start with one Singer 8832 and see how well it meets the space’s needs before adding more as demand warrants. One machine first, with time to learn what works and what doesn’t.
We’re also sorting through the existing machines, and some will be rehomed. If you still own a sewing machine that’s at the space, please get in touch soon so we can account for it before that happens.
The broader Craft Lab is growing too. Joni’s inventory includes fabric, painting and jewelry-making supplies, a button maker, and zine tools. There are plenty of ways to make something here, whether or not it involves a circuit.
Electronics Lab: Benches for Building
The new electronics benches are taking shape. September brought a shelf for the standing bench, new lighting, and member storage for the small supplies and projects that otherwise tend to occupy the work surface.
Electronics benches with new lighting and storage, September 12.
The aim is straightforward: keep commonly used equipment within reach and leave enough clear space to actually work. Less frequently used gear belongs nearby rather than permanently covering the bench.
When you’re finished, clear the surface and switch off the power strip. Put your name on stored boxes; the orange parking stickers are valid through the end of 2026.
The layout is still being refined. Equipment feedback is welcome in #electronicslab, and clearer signs and labels are planned as the setup settles.
Four Arms, Two Pairs
Hannis has been working on four Waveshare RoArm-M3 Pro robot arms, arranged as two leader-follower pairs: L1/F1 and L2/F2. Moving a leader arm by hand lets its follower reproduce the motion. The project is a way to learn about robotics through the hardware, control software, and problems that appear when things start moving.
The documented setup includes persistent pairing, firmware backups, and a guard against sending movement commands when the leader’s power or joint feedback is invalid. Both pairs have passed observed powered tracking tests. That is a useful milestone; broader autonomous-task work is still exploratory.
The setup and operating notes are in the RoArm-M3 project repository.
October at PDX Hackerspace
| Date | Event | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesdays, October 7, 14, 21 & 28 | Exploit Workshop | 6:30–10:30 PM |
| October 3, 10, 17 & 24 | Work Party + Open House | Noon–5 PM |
| October 3 | Intro CAD (Fusion) Workshop | Noon–1 PM |
| October 4 | Portland Area Robotics Society | 10:30 AM–12:30 PM |
| October 4 | Halloween LED Workshop | 2–4 PM |
| October 12 | DorkbotPDX | 6:30–9:30 PM |
| October 14 | Hack Lunch | Noon–2 PM |
| October 17 | Locksport Meetup | 2–5 PM |
For the October 3 CAD workshop, arrive with Autodesk Fusion already installed. On October 4, John Romkey is hosting an informal addressable-LED workshop for Halloween projects in Section 2, open to everyone. It’s a chance to work on lighting for whatever you’re making as the evenings get longer.
All times Pacific. There is no public Open House on October 31. Check the full calendar for updates.
See You in October
Making the space more useful takes maintenance, experiments, and people willing to share what they’ve learned. Bring a project, help someone get started, or help keep a shared tool working. That’s how more of our community gets to build the future.
