Hardware & teardowns
Hands-on engineering outside the software: build logs, teardowns, and electronics that goes as deep as sizing an on-chip aluminum resistor at the micron level. Written by someone who ran a manufacturing line, qualified semiconductors, and builds things on weekends anyway.
These posts are restored from my original 2013–2016 blog with their original dates — the robot arena build logs are pure weekend maker energy, the resistor post goes down to micron-scale silicon, and the teardown is an honest story about destroying a phone screen so you do not have to. Together they are the hands-on end of the same instinct that runs through everything I build: take the physical world seriously, measure before you cut, and write down what actually happened, including the failures.
The posts
- June 22, 2016
Thinking about replacing the glass on your Galaxy 5S? DON'T DO IT!
A cautionary teardown: attempting a ten-dollar DIY glass-only replacement on a cracked Galaxy S5 and destroying the LCD in the process. (from the 2013–2016 archive)
- June 7, 2014
Determining trace length for an Aluminum Resistor 1 Micron thick and 10 Microns wide
How long a 1-micron-thick, 10-micron-wide aluminum trace must be to form a 100-ohm on-chip resistor, with scaling math and high-frequency cautions. (from the 2013–2016 archive)
- August 29, 2013
Adding side guards to your giant Arduino Robot Arena (part 2)
Part 2 of the giant robot arena build: acrylic side bumpers mounted with heavy-duty Velcro to keep battling Arduino robots from falling to their doom. (from the 2013–2016 archive)
- August 26, 2013
Building a giant 8 foot by 5.25 foot robot arena! (Part 1)
Build log for an 8-foot by 5.25-foot portable robot battle arena for the Versalino Rove — framing, legs, and whiteboard tabletop from a weekend build. (from the 2013–2016 archive)