The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning
Ed Nisley's Blog: Shop notes, electronics, firmware, machinery, 3D printing, laser cuttery, and curiosities. Contents: 100% human thinking, 0% AI slop.
Cruisin’ the streets
The running lights on our Tour Easy fairing sit just about perfectly level, despite how they appear in relation to the fairing edge:
And, because they’re firmly attached to the fairing mount, there’s no way to tilt them to extract the 18650 cell.
This took entirely too long to figure out:
The LC40 end caps have a recess exactly where it’ll do the most good: capturing the tab inside the cap means it can’t interfere with the rear contact spring:
Swapping cells no longer requires muttering!
We negotiated the Belmar Bridge connection stairway from the Allegheny River Trail to the Sandy Creek trail:
We’re maneuvering Mary’s bike, but you get the general idea. Our bikes aren’t built for stairways, particularly ones with low overheads:
The front fender clip on my Tour Easy snapped (at the expected spots) when the mudflap snagged on one of the angles:
For some inexplicable reason, I didn’t have a roll of duct tape in my packs, so the temporary repair required a strip of tape from a battery pack, two snippets of hook-and-loop tape, and considerable muttering:
It was good for two dozen more miles to the end of our vacation, so I’d say that was Good Enough.
The new version has holes in the ferrules ten stay diameters deep, instead of six, which might eliminate the need for heatstink tubing. I added a small hole at the joint between the curved hooks and the ferrules to force more plastic into those spots:
I also bent the hanger extension to put the fender’s neutral position closer to the wheel.
We’ll see how long this one lasts. By now, I now have black double-sticky foam tape!
The OpenSCAD source code as a GitHub Gist:
| // Tour Easy front fender clip | |
| // Ed Nisley KE4ZNU July 2017 | |
| Layout = "Build"; // Build Profile Ferrule Clip | |
| //- Extrusion parameters must match reality! | |
| ThreadThick = 0.25; | |
| ThreadWidth = 0.40; | |
| HoleWindage = 0.2; | |
| Protrusion = 0.1; // make holes end cleanly | |
| inch = 25.4; | |
| function IntegerMultiple(Size,Unit) = Unit * ceil(Size / Unit); | |
| //———————- | |
| // Dimensions | |
| // special case: fender is exactly half a circle! | |
| FenderC = 51.0; // fender outside width = chord | |
| FenderM = 21.0; // height of chord | |
| FenderR = (pow(FenderM,2) + pow(FenderC,2)/4) / (2 * FenderM); // radius | |
| echo(str("Fender radius: ", FenderR)); | |
| FenderD = 2*FenderR; | |
| FenderA = 2 * asin(FenderC / (2*FenderR)); | |
| echo(str(" … Arc: ",FenderA," deg")); | |
| FenderThick = 2.5; // fender thickness, assume dia of edge | |
| ClipHeight = 15.0; // top to bottom, ignoring rakish tilt | |
| ClipThick = IntegerMultiple(2.5,ThreadWidth); // thickness of clip around fender | |
| ClipD = FenderD; // ID of clip against fender | |
| ClipSides = 4 * 8; // polygon sides around clip circle | |
| BendReliefD = 2.5; // bend arch diameter | |
| BendReliefA = 2/3 * FenderA/2; // … angle from dead ahead | |
| BendReliefCut = 1.5; // factor to thin outside of bend | |
| ID = 0; | |
| OD = 1; | |
| LENGTH = 2; | |
| StayDia = 3.3; // fender stay rod diameter | |
| StayOffset = 15.0; // stay-to-fender distance | |
| StayPitch = -5; // angle from stay to fender arch | |
| DropoutSpace = 120; // stay spacing at wheel hub | |
| StayLength = 235; // stay length: hub to fender | |
| StaySplay = asin((DropoutSpace – FenderC)/(2*StayLength)); // outward angle to hub | |
| echo(str(" … Pitch: ",StayPitch," deg")); | |
| echo(str(" … Splay: ",StaySplay," deg")); | |
| FerruleSides = 2*4; | |
| Ferrule = [StayDia,3*FenderThick/cos(180/FerruleSides),10*StayDia + StayOffset]; // ID = stay rod OD | |
| FerruleHoleD = 0.1; // small hole to create solid plastic at ferrule joint | |
| //———————- | |
| // Useful routines | |
| module PolyCyl(Dia,Height,ForceSides=0) { // based on nophead's polyholes | |
| Sides = (ForceSides != 0) ? ForceSides : (ceil(Dia) + 2); | |
| FixDia = Dia / cos(180/Sides); | |
| cylinder(r=(FixDia + HoleWindage)/2, | |
| h=Height, | |
| $fn=Sides); | |
| } | |
| //———————- | |
| // Clip profile around fender | |
| // Centered on fender arc | |
| module Profile(HeightScale = 1) { | |
| linear_extrude(height=HeightScale*ClipHeight,convexity=5) { | |
| difference() { | |
| offset(r=ClipThick) // outside of clip | |
| union() { | |
| circle(d=ClipD,$fn=ClipSides); | |
| for (i=[-1,1]) | |
| rotate(i*BendReliefA) { | |
| translate([ClipD/2 + BendReliefD/2,0,0]) | |
| circle(d=BendReliefD,$fn=6); | |
| } | |
| } | |
| union() { // inside of clip | |
| circle(d=ClipD,$fn=ClipSides); | |
| for (i=[-1,1]) | |
| rotate(i*BendReliefA) { | |
| translate([ClipD/2 + BendReliefCut*BendReliefD/2,0,0]) | |
| circle(d=BendReliefD/cos(180/6),$fn=6); | |
| translate([ClipD/2,0,0]) | |
| square([BendReliefCut*BendReliefD,BendReliefD],center=true); | |
| } | |
| } | |
| translate([(FenderR – FenderM – FenderD/2),0]) // trim ends | |
| square([FenderD,2*FenderD],center=true); | |
| } | |
| for (a=[-1,1]) // hooks around fender | |
| rotate(a*(FenderA/2)) | |
| translate([FenderR – FenderThick/2,0]) { | |
| difference() { | |
| rotate(1*180/12) | |
| circle(d=FenderThick + 2*ClipThick,$fn=12); | |
| rotate(1*180/8) | |
| circle(d=FenderThick,$fn=8); | |
| rotate(a * -90) | |
| translate([0,-2*FenderThick,0]) | |
| square(4*FenderThick,center=false); | |
| } | |
| } | |
| } | |
| } | |
| //———————- | |
| // Ferrule body | |
| module FerruleBody() { | |
| translate([0,0,Ferrule[OD]/2 * cos(180/FerruleSides)]) | |
| rotate([0,-90,0]) rotate(180/FerruleSides) | |
| difference() { | |
| cylinder(d=Ferrule[OD],h=Ferrule[LENGTH],$fn=FerruleSides,center=false); | |
| translate([0,0,StayOffset + Protrusion]) | |
| PolyCyl(Ferrule[ID],Ferrule[LENGTH] – StayOffset + Protrusion,FerruleSides); | |
| } | |
| } | |
| //———————- | |
| // Generate entire clip at mounting angle | |
| module FenderClip() { | |
| difference() { | |
| union() { | |
| translate([FenderR,0,0]) | |
| difference() { // angle and trim clip | |
| rotate([0,StayPitch,0]) | |
| translate([-(FenderR + ClipThick),0,0]) | |
| Profile(2); // scale upward for trimming | |
| translate([0,0,-ClipHeight]) // trim bottom | |
| cube(2*[FenderD,FenderD,ClipHeight],center=true); | |
| translate([0,0,ClipHeight*cos(StayPitch)+ClipHeight]) // trim top | |
| cube(2*[FenderD,FenderD,ClipHeight],center=true); | |
| } | |
| for (j = [-1,1]) // place ferrules | |
| translate([Ferrule[OD]*sin(StayPitch) + (Ferrule[OD]/2)*sin(StaySplay),j*(FenderR – FenderThick/2),0]) | |
| rotate(-j*StaySplay) | |
| FerruleBody(); | |
| } | |
| for (i=[-1,1]) // punch stiffening holes | |
| translate([FenderThick/2,-i*(FenderR – FenderThick/2),Ferrule[OD]/2]) | |
| rotate([0,-90,i*StaySplay]) | |
| PolyCyl(FerruleHoleD,Ferrule[OD],FerruleSides); | |
| } | |
| } | |
| //———————- | |
| // Build it | |
| if (Layout == "Profile") { | |
| Profile(); | |
| } | |
| if (Layout == "Ferrule") { | |
| FerruleBody(); | |
| } | |
| if (Layout == "Clip") { | |
| FenderClip(); | |
| } | |
| if (Layout == "Build") { | |
| FenderClip(); | |
| } |
As a bonus for paging all the way to the end, here’s the descent on the same stairway:
No, I wasn’t even tempted …
The top surface of the Anker LC40 flashlight serving as the daytime running light on Mary’s bike sees plenty of sunlight, particularly when it’s sitting beside her garden plots, and the black anodized finish on the screw-in battery cap has begun fading:
The bottom side of the cap is in fine shape, as is the main case, so the two parts came from different metal finishing lines.
The light on my bike, a marginally newer and essentially identical Bolder LC40, remains all black. I have no idea what “Bolder” means in this context.
Obviously, I must get out more …
Although the pair of Ortlieb Back-Roller packs on Mary’s bike make her look like a long-distance tourist, we’re actually on our way to her garden plot:
The left-side pack suddenly seemed unusually floppy:
One second later:
Another second and it’s visible under my right hand:
The view from her bike at about the same time:
I’m expecting to fall to my right, but it’d have been better if I hadn’t kicked the bag:
The pack went under the rear wheel and out the far side:
Where it came to rest in the middle of the trail:
Elapsed time from the first picture: just under 5 s.
Did you notice the other cyclist in the other pictures? She’s why I veered so hard to my right!
A pair of these latches hold the pack onto the rear rack:
When they’re properly engaged, they look like this:
When they’re not, they look like this:
Which is obvious in the picture and inconspicuous in real life.
The strap emerging from the top of the latch serves as both a carrying handle and latch release: pull upward to open the latches and release them from the bar, lift to remove the pack, and carry it away as you go. Installing the pack proceeds in reverse: lower the pack onto the rack bar, release the handle, and the latches engage.
Unless the pack is empty enough to not quite fully open the latches as you carry it, in which case the closed latches simply rest on the bar. We’ve both made that mistake and I generally give her packs a quick glance to ensure sure they’re latched. In this case, the plastic drawer atop the racks (carrying seedling pots on their way to the garden) completely concealed the pack latches.
Tree roots have been creasing the asphalt along that section of the rail trail: the bike finally bounced hard enough to lift the drawer and fall off the rack rod.
Memo to Self: In addition to the visual check, lift the packs using the strap across the middle holding the rolled-down top in place. Remember, don’t check by lifting the carrying handle, because it just releases the latches; another easy mistake to make.
Whew!
Having tired of manually decoding UDEV’s essentially random device names produced for the various USB action cameras and card readers, I put the device UUIDs in /etc/fstab and let the device names fall where they may:
UUID=B40C6DD40C6D9262 /mnt/video ntfs noauto,uid=ed 0 0 UUID=0FC4-01AB /mnt/Fly6 vfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0 UUID=0000-0001 /mnt/M20 vfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0 LABEL=AS30V /mnt/AS30V exfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0
You get those by plugging everything in, running blkid, and sorting out the results.
The 64 GB MicroSD card from the Sony AS30V camera uses Microsoft’s proprietary exfat file system, which apparently doesn’t associate a UUID/GUID with the entire device, so you must use a partition label. The Official SD Card Formatter doesn’t (let you) set one, so:
exfatlabel /dev/sdd1 AS30V
It turns out you can include spaces in the partition label, but there’s no way to escape them (that I know of) in /etc/fstab, so being succinct counts for more than being explanatory.
One could name the partition in the Windows device properties pane, which would make sense if one knew it was necessary while the Token Windows Laptop was booted with the card in place.
I think this is easier then trying to persuade UDEV to create known device names based on the USB hardware characteristics, because those will depend on which USB card / device / reader I use. I can force the UUIDs to be whatever I want, because they’re just bits in the disk image.
With all that in place, you plug in All. The. Gadgets. and run the script (as seen below). The general idea is to verify the bulk video drive mounted OK, attempt to mount each memory card and fire off a corresponding rsync copy, wait until they’re all done, tidy the target filenames, then delete all the source files to get ready for the next ride.
Funneling all three copies to a single USB hard drive probably isn’t the smartest thing, but the overall write ticks along at 18 MB/s, which is Good Enough for my simple needs. If the drive thrashes itself to death, I won’t do it again; I expect it won’t fail until well outside the 1 year limited warranty.
If any of the rsync copies fail, then nothing gets deleted. I’m a little queasy about automagically deleting files, but it’s really just video with very little value. Should something horrible happen, I’d do the copies by hand, taking great care to not screw up.
After all, how many pictures like this do we need?
The Bash script as a GitHub Gist:
| UUID=B40C6DD40C6D9262 /mnt/video ntfs noauto,uid=ed 0 0 | |
| UUID=0FC4-01AB /mnt/Fly6 vfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0 | |
| UUID=0000-0001 /mnt/M20 vfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0 | |
| LABEL=AS30V /mnt/AS30V exfat noauto,nodiratime,uid=ed 0 0 |
| #!/bin/bash | |
| # This uses too many bashisms for dash | |
| thisdate=$(date –rfc-3339=date) | |
| echo Date is $thisdate | |
| date | |
| # MicroSD / readers / USB drive defined in fstab | |
| # … with UUID or PARTID as appropriate | |
| echo Mounting bulk video drive | |
| sudo mount /mnt/video | |
| if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then | |
| echo '** Cannot mount video storage drive' | |
| exit | |
| fi | |
| # Show starting space available | |
| df -h /mnt/video | |
| #– Sony AS30V | |
| printf "\n— AS30V\n" | |
| as30v=/mnt/AS30V | |
| sudo mount $as30v | |
| if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then | |
| echo " start AS30V transfer on $as30v" | |
| mkdir /mnt/video/AS30V/$thisdate | |
| rsync -ahu –progress –exclude "*THM" $as30v/MP_ROOT/100ANV01/ /mnt/video/AS30V/$thisdate & | |
| pid1=$! | |
| echo " PID is $pid1" | |
| else | |
| echo " skipping" | |
| as30v= | |
| fi | |
| #– Cycliq Fly6 | |
| printf "\n— Fly6\n" | |
| fly6=/mnt/Fly6 | |
| sudo mount $fly6 | |
| if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then | |
| echo " start Fly6 transfer on $fly6" | |
| rsync -ahu –progress $fly6 /mnt/video & | |
| pid2=$! | |
| echo " PID is $pid2" | |
| else | |
| echo " skipping" | |
| fly6= | |
| fi | |
| #– SJCAM M20 | |
| printf "\n— M20\n" | |
| m20=/mnt/M20 | |
| sudo mount $m20 | |
| if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then | |
| echo " start M20 transfer on $m20" | |
| mkdir /mnt/video/M20/$thisdate | |
| # See if any still images exist to avoid error messages | |
| n=$( ls $m20/DCIM/Photo/* 2> /dev/null | wc -l ) | |
| if [ $n -gt 0 ] ; then | |
| echo " copy M20 photos first" | |
| rsync -ahu –progress $m20/DCIM/Photo/ /mnt/video/M20/$thisdate | |
| fi | |
| rsync -ahu –progress $m20/DCIM/Movie/ /mnt/video/M20/$thisdate & | |
| pid3=$! | |
| echo " PID is $pid3" | |
| else | |
| echo " skipping" | |
| m20= | |
| fi | |
| printf "\n—– Waiting for all rsync terminations\n" | |
| rc=0 | |
| for p in $pid1 $pid2 $pid3 ; do | |
| wait -n | |
| rc=$(( rc+$? )) | |
| echo RC so far: $rc | |
| done | |
| date | |
| if [ $rc -eq 0 ] ; then | |
| echo '—– Final cleanups' | |
| echo Fix capitalized extensions | |
| find /mnt/video -name \*AVI -print0 | xargs -0 rename -v -f 's/AVI/avi/' | |
| find /mnt/video -name \*MP4 -print0 | xargs -0 rename -v -f 's/MP4/mp4/' | |
| if [ "$as30v" ]; then | |
| echo Remove files on $as30v | |
| rm $as30v/MP_ROOT/100ANV01/* | |
| sudo umount $as30v | |
| fi | |
| if [ "$fly6" ]; then | |
| echo Remove files on $fly6 | |
| rm -rf $fly6/DCIM/* | |
| sudo umount $fly6 | |
| fi | |
| if [ "$m20" ]; then | |
| echo Remove files on $m20 | |
| rm $m20/DCIM/Movie/* $m20/DCIM/Photo/* | |
| sudo umount $m20 | |
| fi | |
| echo '—– Space remaining on video drive' | |
| df -h /mnt/video | |
| sudo umount /mnt/video | |
| echo Done! | |
| else | |
| echo Whoopsie! Total RC: $rc | |
| fi |
For unknown reasons, NYS DOT milled away some of the newly laid asphalt north of Red Oaks Mill:
Then laid it down again:
As far as we can tell, there’s absolutely no difference, other than the opportunity for a huge longitudinal crack between the shoulder and the travel lane.
My guess: the contractor shorted them an inch of asphalt, got caught, and had to do it over again.
It’s only NYS Bike Route 9, so you can’t expect much in the way of bicycle-friendly design or build quality.
I hoped this bit of roadside debris would yield a shiny new amber LED and driver:
But, alas, it uses an ordinary WY5W incandescent bulb:
That whole assembly seems to be the replaceable unit, as the lens is firmly snapped-and-glued to the housing. The white shell used to hold the wires, but those vanished when the collision ripped the mirror off the car.
After I pried off the shattered lens and extracted the bulb, I found a broken filament.
Ah, well, now we won’t be riding through plastic shards along the shoulder.
The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning 