Fixing, building, and having fun. https://rubenfixit.com/ Ruben Fixit 2026-08-22T16:18:57.190Z https://rubenfixit.com/posts/exploring-the-galaxy-of-lightsaber-props/ 2025-01-14T00:00:00.000Z 2025-01-14T00:00:00.000Z

Exploring the galaxy has taken many forms for fans of the iconic Star Wars franchise, including cosplay, props, and the growing world of lightsaber collecting.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/binocular-lens-holder-with-openscad/ 2023-09-25T00:00:00.000Z 2023-09-25T00:00:00.000Z

In preparation for the October 14, 2023 annular eclipse, I wanted to use my binoculars to get a close look at the sun during the eclipse.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/millennium-falcon-waffle-maker/ 2023-06-18T00:00:00.000Z 2023-06-18T00:00:00.000Z

My kids got me this for Father's Day!

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/star-trek-away-mission-escape-box/ 2022-04-29T00:00:00.000Z 2022-04-29T00:00:00.000Z

I'd been wanting to build this for a long time, and I finally did it! As a bonus, it was one of the 2022 Hackaday Sci-Fi Contest winners.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/remote-firework-rocket-igniter/ 2021-07-03T00:00:00.000Z 2021-07-03T00:00:00.000Z

Have you ever wanted to remotely launch a model rocket or some fireworks safely? I came up with this method using an RC airplane transmitter and receiver.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/mega-button-remote-wireless-charger/ 2021-06-18T00:00:00.000Z 2021-06-18T00:00:00.000Z

As a simple upgrade to the Megabutton Universal Remote Mk II+ / Adaptive Universal Remote, here is a simple way to add wireless charging to almost any project.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/pump-sprayer-upgrade/ 2021-05-05T00:00:00.000Z 2021-05-05T00:00:00.000Z

I use this pump sprayer only for water, as it is my water supply for a water bottle rocket launcher. I got tired of constantly having to manually pump the

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/mark-robers-creative-engineering-course/ 2021-04-27T00:00:00.000Z 2021-04-27T00:00:00.000Z

Taking Mark Rober's Creative Engineering Course on studio.com, and what it revealed about the gap between engineering and content creation.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/diy-usb-c-hub/ 2021-04-14T00:00:00.000Z 2021-04-14T00:00:00.000Z

A practical workaround for connecting several USB-C devices through a conventional USB hub.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/stem-capsule-first-step/ 2020-11-16T00:00:00.000Z 2020-11-16T00:00:00.000Z

For the longest time I've been wanting to build an interactive spaceship console for my kids. My father had built one for me and my brother when we were kids.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/adaptive-universal-remote/ 2020-09-22T00:00:00.000Z 2020-09-22T00:00:00.000Z

I was finally able to make another revision of the Universal Megabutton Remote after my brother-in-law Jacob asked me to upgrade his current box.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/office-busy-signal-stoplight/ 2020-03-26T00:00:00.000Z 2020-03-26T00:00:00.000Z

Rebuilding my Dad's old office stoplight with LEDs and an ESP8266, so the kids can tell when I'm busy working from home.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/finishing-my-basement/ 2019-10-05T00:00:00.000Z 2019-10-05T00:00:00.000Z

In case anyone has been wondering why I haven't been posting as much, I've been finishing my own basement for the past year and a half and counting.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/growing-up-with-a-space-ship/ 2019-09-18T00:00:00.000Z 2019-09-18T00:00:00.000Z

I was looking through my photos and came across a spaceship console my dad built for us kids. I remember it being one of the coolest things ever.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/power-wheel-hacks/ 2019-07-12T00:00:00.000Z 2019-07-12T00:00:00.000Z

Everything I've done to an inherited Power Wheels ATV - an 18V drill battery, a PVC trailer hitch, bike tire treads, and a parade float.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/sparkfun-grocery-scanner/ 2018-10-19T00:00:00.000Z 2018-10-19T00:00:00.000Z

This one isn't one of my projects, but it was cool enough to share. My wife sent me this picture of the inside of a grocery scanner that was set up at the

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/repairing-the-ac/ 2018-06-16T00:00:00.000Z 2018-06-16T00:00:00.000Z

Oh fun, the AC died on us in the middle of the hot season. It seems to want to run, but doesn't kick on properly.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/star-wars-thermal-detonator/ 2017-11-15T00:00:00.000Z 2017-11-15T00:00:00.000Z

This is a repair job my brother came across. Apparently there were a few of these replica Star Wars Thermal Detonators made with lights and sound.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/lets-play-kerbal/ 2017-05-21T00:00:00.000Z 2017-05-21T00:00:00.000Z

My brother and I love to play video and computer games together. Usually it's Halo, Sins of a Solar Empire, or more recently Kerbal Space Program. Tonight we

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/smart-chicken-coop-light/ 2016-12-11T00:00:00.000Z 2016-12-11T00:00:00.000Z

When we first got chickens, we were trying all kinds of things we read online to get the most out of our laying hens. This project was one of those silly ideas

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/blue-screen-of-death-at-the-pump/ 2016-12-10T00:00:00.000Z 2016-12-10T00:00:00.000Z

This was just too funny. Apparently these additive fuel systems are running Windows. I don't know of any other OS that has the Blue Screen of Death.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/megabutton-universal-remote-mk-ii/ 2016-08-20T00:00:00.000Z 2016-08-20T00:00:00.000Z

My brother-in-law Jake was born with cerebral palsy and has trouble using most everyday things, so I built him a durable, accessible universal remote.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/control-rgb-leds-with-the-wave-of-your-hand/ 2016-06-11T00:00:00.000Z 2016-06-11T00:00:00.000Z

This was a fun project I worked on for Tensegrity Labs: a Leap Motion demo for an upcoming elementary school STEM night.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/led-rgb-stars/ 2015-12-09T00:00:00.000Z 2015-12-09T00:00:00.000Z

It is nearing Christmas time again. Last year, I lived in an apartment complex that held a Christmas light decoration competition.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/mini-iron-man-arc-reactor/ 2015-10-31T00:00:00.000Z 2015-10-31T00:00:00.000Z

This was a costume prop my brother and I made for our nephew Carter.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/toothless-wings/ 2015-10-28T00:00:00.000Z 2015-10-28T00:00:00.000Z

Nothing much to this costume. I just cut up a black fleece blanket into the general shape of Toothless's wings, then used a sewing machine to sew the ridges.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/floodlight-on-tripod/ 2015-02-01T00:00:00.000Z 2015-02-01T00:00:00.000Z

I recently acquired an LED floodlight to help shed some light on my projects. I found that it works best when mounted up high.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/controlling-a-robotic-arm-with-an-xbox-360-wireless-controller/ 2014-12-11T00:00:00.000Z 2014-12-11T00:00:00.000Z

Using a Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and familiar game controller to explore robotic arm control.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/free-xbox-games-with-gold-workaround/ 2014-08-02T00:00:00.000Z 2014-08-02T00:00:00.000Z

EDIT: Now you can start building your Xbox One games library from your Xbox 360. Just go to "Games with Gold" from the Gold tile on Home. For a while now

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/led-desk-lamp-hack/ 2014-08-01T00:00:00.000Z 2014-08-01T00:00:00.000Z

Converting a 40W incandescent desk lamp to run on a grid of eight bright white LEDs, using a salvaged transformer.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/functional-circuit-board-art/ 2014-07-20T00:00:00.000Z 2014-07-20T00:00:00.000Z

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/creative-fatal1ty-gaming-headset-hack/ 2014-06-08T00:00:00.000Z 2014-06-08T00:00:00.000Z

I've been using this headset with my Xbox 360 for a while, but running an extension from the end of its cable to my controller was cumbersome.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/cell-phone-li-ion-battery-tester/ 2014-05-15T00:00:00.000Z 2014-05-15T00:00:00.000Z

A two-LED tester built at Macalegin Electronics to read the charge on a cell phone battery at a glance, without reaching for a multimeter.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/pinewood-derby-propeller-powered/ 2014-03-16T00:00:00.000Z 2014-03-16T00:00:00.000Z

A week ago my brother invited me to join him for an Anything Goes pinewood derby race. I have great memories of building these cars with my Dad and wouldn't

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/no-place-like-localhost/ 2013-06-23T00:00:00.000Z 2013-06-23T00:00:00.000Z

This just made me laugh. And I thought it was worth sharing.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/3-ways-to-free-up-unnecessary-used-hdd-space-on-windows-7/ 2012-01-12T00:00:00.000Z 2012-01-12T00:00:00.000Z

Hibernation reserves drive space up to the amount of memory your system has. To disable hibernation and recover that drive space, type the following command.

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/my-first-car/ 2009-10-24T00:00:00.000Z 2009-10-24T00:00:00.000Z

https://rubenfixit.com/posts/dell-laptop-puzzle/ 2004-06-18T00:00:00.000Z 2004-06-18T00:00:00.000Z

Images from an archived laptop repair guide.