Trossen Robotics challenged the roboticists whom it serves to make junkbots out of grab-bags of surplus parts they had lying around. The three winners are extremely impressive!
Javier Arcos lives in Madrid, where he scouts junk to turn into some of the sweetest, snazziest junkbots I've ever seen (and I've seen a few).
The Zephlaprop is a new piece from found-object sculptor Tinkerbots, AKA Dan Jones of San Diego.
The brilliant found-object/assemblage sculptor Jud Turner (previously) has unveiled two new pieces: Bartholomew the Rhinoceros, a "half-life-size" rhino made from motorcycle and snowmobile parts; and Octoploid, the standout of the two (though it's a close-run thing), which is headed for Reantus's offices.
Etsy seller MechWorld makes beautiful, ~$100 junkbots out of miscellaneous hardware. They're extremely poseable, have functional variations (like holding your phone), and there's even a Wall-E. They're pretty heavy — 2-3lbs — and ship from Zhuhai, China.
In Paging Dr. MacGyver, Julian Smith profiles a wide range of medical makers, from patients to carers to doctors, each of whom has homebrewed some important piece of medical or therapeutic equipment. From DIY prosthetic limbs to the wonderful Dr Oluyombo Awojobi, whose rural Nigerian clinic is graced with a collection of his brilliant improvised devices built from scrap, Smith makes the case for a networked world where medical needs, ingenuity, and a spirit of mutual aid and collaboration are offering new opportunities for making each other healthy.
From San Diego's Dan Jones (aka Tinkerbots), a rather lovely junkbot called HUDSON, found in the Boing Boing Flickr Pool. He's also the guy who gave us these bots and these stellar rayguns. He's got a shop, but it's presently empty (let's hope it gets some stock for Christmas!). — Read the rest
Gille Monte Ruici makes wondrous junkbots. I mean, totally great. He writes adorable little French fairytales about them, too. He sells them in Paris's Brauer Galerie.
Sculptor Nemo Gould sez, "I just finished up a new large scale kinetic sculpture made from found materials called Armed and Dangerous. It is a giant, mulit-armed, multi-faced, dual-zombie-powered, mercury-activated, electro-mechanical monster!" — Read the rest
A group of engineering students (with no stated manufacturing experience — caveat emptor) are kickstarting a series of cute assemble-it-yourself junkbots called "D.Bug"s. You get a kit full of electronic components, instructions for soldering them into cute robots, and a display box for your complete project. — Read the rest
This spectacular C3PO junkbot assemblage was made by junk artist Gabriel Dishaw, and sells for $800. Worth every penny, too. Mr Dishaw's got plenty of other wonderful pieces for sale, too.
(via Neatorama)
Marco Fernandes's R3bots are absolutely sweet little light-up junkbots made from electronics salvage. They're even poseable! They run about €350 each.
(via Colossal)
JM Gershenson-Gates, a sculptor who makes watch-part jewelry, has produced a few watch-part/light-bulb spiders and other crawlies that are nothing short of amazing. He's sold out, but he says he's making more, which is good news for me.
Mark Oliver's Litter Bug series is a collection of assemble-sculpture insects made from urban found objects and laser-cut metal and wood. They're extraordinarily beautiful — right up my street. They don't appear to be for sale, and more's the pity. — Read the rest
Noah sez, "I thought you would appreciate these giant insects made from repurposed materials (including vehicle parts and bits of a blown up toolbox) by metalworker Ben Marcacci, who is currently at Camp Dwyer in Afghanistan."
Noah is correct.
— Read the rest
I started making these types of piece's when I relocated to Camp dwyer (Aug 2011), I had the equipment and scrape material to do so, prior to Dwyer I traveled from base to base.
A welder in Phoenix assembled a robot out of car and motorcycle parts that serves as a wine-rack. It weighs "Approx 1,000lbs," stands six feet high, holds 32 bottles of wine (or other beverage of choice) and is liberally wired up with glowing LEDs. — Read the rest
Kinetic junkbot sculptor Nemo Gould has completed two new, wonderful pieces. First, the Cycloptopus:
— Read the rest
Cycloptopus is a fearsome hybrid of two of my favorite monsters, one real, one mythical. This creature is particularly dangerous because of its irritability. You'd be irritable too if you were powered by an open flame and your body was made of wood.
Now in the Boing Boing Shop, the Robot Tea Infuser, because tea is always better with robots.
Marco sez, "My elementary and middle school friend Tom Samui from Switzerland makes these custom sculptures out of recycled car and motorcycle parts."
— Read the restHe and his team have been perfecting these sculptures over the last ten years. Once a month they go to a junk yard and cart away a truckload of old car and motorcycle parts.
