My brother Ralfy brought across his old music system for repair. It was suffering from intermittent button operation and there was visible corrosion on the bodies of the switches inside.
This video shows the repair of the unit. I don't normally accept home audio products for repair due to...
2025-09-17 00:23:49 +0000 UTC View PostStreaming at the usual time (9pm UK-time. Schedule shown on Twitch at your local time).
Best viewed on Twitch, and you may need to refresh the page to start the stream.
https://www.twitch.tv/bigclivedotcom 2025-09-13 16:46:35 +0000 UTC View Post
These things aren't just really nice to have for decorative purposes, but they have very interesting circuitry too. Literally a classic multivibrator with inductive coils.
It also turns out that you can change the speed by swapping gears, and I think the little strip on the main output gea...
2025-09-11 02:12:29 +0000 UTC View Post
This ornament gives the impression of perpetual motion by accelerating a ball with what is basically a small rail gun that is normally hidden in a black or wood-effect case.
The circuitry is fairly complex and there is a small industrial inductive sensor, suggesting that this is quite an ex...
2025-09-10 01:00:30 +0000 UTC View Post
Another huge sack of AliExpress joy was awaiting me when I got back to the usual bench.
Let's dig in and see what tat I bought.
2025-09-08 23:35:34 +0000 UTC View Post
Although I made this video while in the work accommodation, I wanted to run some tests on the circuitry when I got back to my usual bench.
The heater passes 480mA at 3V and is run for 2.5 minutes before automatically turning off.
Here's a link to Twitch for the weekend live stream, happening in about an hour from posting this message.
https://www.twitch.tv/bigclivedotcom
Best viewed on Twitch, and you may need to refresh the page to s...
2025-09-06 19:06:04 +0000 UTC View Post
A tour of the tool bag that I travel with and use on showbiz jobs.
I don't take this on planes. Just by normal public transport.
2025-09-04 03:32:13 +0000 UTC View Post
A look at a very standard snubber module from AliExpress that is used to help suppress arcing across switch/relay contacts and to protect triacs and prevent false triggering by snubbing fast transients.
Usually these use a 100 ohm resistor in series with a 100nF capacitor. This one is usin...
2025-09-02 23:21:00 +0000 UTC View Post
This was one of the door interlocks from our Bocker goods lift we used at The Edinburgh Tattoo arena.
We retired that hoist due to reliability issues and replaced it with a Geda site hoist notable for being able to accommodate a height of 200m and potentially so many floors that it actually...
2025-09-01 20:31:33 +0000 UTC View Post
This light came from an eBay seller. It is a simple and very tightly sealed waterproof light intended for deep underwater use.
I'm sure the light or its case has many other applications though.
2025-08-31 19:27:09 +0000 UTC View PostI'll be streaming on Twitch in just over an hour after posting this.
https://www.twitch.tv/bigclivedotcom
Best viewed on Twitch, and you may need to refresh the screen to start the stream.
2025-08-30 18:46:47 +0000 UTC View PostThe Royal Mail postal service in the UK (The UK's USPS) has warned that it is about to stop sending packages to the USA and will instead return them to the senders.
I'm sure you can guess why this has happened.
There's a certain irony that the media page I saw this on was littered wit...
2025-08-29 17:32:16 +0000 UTC View Post
And another I recorded at the digs. These are a couple of magnetic pendulum ornaments I got from Ali-X. I gave the gold one to a coworker and kept the coil from the one with the black base. I may test the wire diameter when I get back to the usual workshop.
I've finally got time to finish a few videos I recorded while working on the REMT (Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo). Here's one of them.
I'm back in Gotham City (Glasgow) for a week before heading back to the usual workbench, and after a fairly heavy load out of the show (we completed most...
2025-08-29 02:42:38 +0000 UTC View Post
This is a slightly naughty upload of the BBC coverage of the Edinburgh Tattoo, so the link may get taken down unexpectedly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZ7iFuNGipY
2025-08-27 00:25:38 +0000 UTC View Post
Trucks all loaded and the show run is complete. Aching and slightly exhausted, but had a great time working with colleagues that are such good friends that it doesn't feel like work.
Now to have a shower, get some sleep, finish packing my stuff, and then get a train back to Gotham City (Gl...
2025-08-26 23:48:44 +0000 UTC View Post
A tour of the micro apartment I've been living in for about 6 weeks.
Although called "student accommodation" it just seems to be a way to get around regulations regarding the renting of tiny apartments in a building.
2025-08-26 14:25:59 +0000 UTC View Post
The second day of loading out the show, and we're almost done. Just a few lights, some power cables to drop down into flight cases and two trucks to load with stuff.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/m42I3dteQd0 2025-08-26 01:42:41 +0000 UTC View Post
We did a very worthwhile chunk of the load-out today. Everything in the castle and at the esplanade level.
Tomorrow (today) it's an early start (BOO!) and I expect to take down and box every single light on the upper gantry.
Time to pack up all our lighting and power equipment.
Normality will soon return.
https://youtube.com/shorts/_jBBA0UQQCI
2025-08-24 01:58:34 +0000 UTC View Post
This is the LED replacement for the classic miniature 10W 12V halogen bulbs often found in desk lights.
It's a logical design and quite a neat implementation.
This is another video recorded in my current work provided accommodation. This job should be finished in about a week.
...
2025-08-20 03:06:32 +0000 UTC View Post
Some more backstage stuff, including a rare glimpse of the lone piper from behind the scenes, and our new goods lift for getting our flight cases up to the technical level and gantries.
2025-08-19 14:52:35 +0000 UTC View Post
I was expecting this light to be more complex than the classic hot cathode ones, but it turned out to be simper. Given the higher voltage of the thin cold cathode tubes, I wonder how reliable this design was compared to the more common hot cathode type.
The unsmoothed power supply and diac...
2025-08-18 01:12:13 +0000 UTC View PostAnother stream starting in a couple of hours from posting this. (9pm Sunday UK time)
Best viewed on Twitch, and you may need to refresh the page to start the stream.
https://www.twitch.tv/bigclivedotcom
2025-08-17 18:04:30 +0000 UTC View Post
I'm not back home yet - but here's one of several videos I recorded before travelling over to work on the current show.
I did test and note down the capacity of the cell used in the light, but I've left the data behind at the workbench. I'll try and remember to update the description when ...
2025-08-16 14:02:04 +0000 UTC View PostShort notice for work reasons, but I'm planning on being at the Caley Picture House pub in Edinburgh (Scotland) this Sunday (17th August) between 3pm and 6pm if you live locally and want to join me for some beer/coffee/food and technical chat.
Please don't bring items for taking apart in vi...
2025-08-15 14:59:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Shipping of this stuff is so fast I can even get it sent to me while travelling with work.
Here's a sneak peek at stuff that may be finding its way into videos.
2025-08-13 14:51:21 +0000 UTC View Post
This is a bit of circuitry that I cobbled together a very long time ago. It's always useful to take a look at old designs to try and work out what I was thinking at the time, and also to see if improvements could be made.
2025-08-13 14:31:59 +0000 UTC View Post
I made this just before coming across to work on the show. They always seem to be popular videos although the outcome is fairly predictable.
2025-08-10 15:43:44 +0000 UTC View Post