We are happy to announce the arrival of the Battery Edition Marble Machine. Starting today it is available at our website for backorder, and will be fully available for purchase starting tomorrow May 16.
You are probably familiar with its older cousin, the Solar Marble Machine that has a clever circuit that delivers short bursts of energy collected by the solar cell to the gear wheel. And while the Solar Marble Machine runs on pure and natural solar energy and is a lot of fun of fun to watch, the Battery Version doesn't depend on the external lighting conditions and will faithfully deliver mesmerizing marble run action in complete darkness if necessary, with just a flip of a switch. On top of that, it is solder-free. In fact, it is so easy to assemble, your cat could build it.
The kit comes to you complete with all the components you need to build your own Marble Machine. The assembly is straightforward and well-documented, and you will only need a few hand tools (no hot melting solder spewing around, expensive tools or motor skills required). The wooden parts come in handy panels with additional instructions, and if you snap a piece during assembly, we'll send you out a replacement part (email sales@solarbotics.com for details). We also have spent a good chunk of engineering time improving the initial layout to make the machine's assembly and performance smoother.
So here you have - you can now populate your desk with a self-sufficient wooden distraction and watch the marbles roll down automagically.
Check out the Marble Machine in action:
We also created a handy assembly video for your cat to refer to:
These motors are simply too cool not to have wheels for, and although you can screw on a wheel to the existing motor output arms, these GM10 wheels are much more convenient. We built a micro-sumo robot ("MicroVore" - yeah, we know it means "micro-eater") for the PDXBot competition last week, and came in third […]
In our continuing quest to find the successor to the Sunceram throne, we invite you to welcome the SCC2433a solarcell! It's the little brother to the SCC3733, with similar polycrystalline & epoxy construction. It's quite the power-house in direct sunlight, but be warned - the cell arrangment is skewed in favour of current generation, not […]
Actually, it's been done, but not this nicely. Those guys at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have a nice report on their "microglider" project. They do some fine work! Bah. That picture is too small! Let's look at a BIG one! Ooo! And they have more big pictures here! This one is nice - […]
Just a quick note to remind everyone that we are closed on Remembrance Day - Tuesday November 11 and will resume responding to phone calls and emails tomorrow.
Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!
Solarbotics, Ltd. is not responsible for misprints or errors on product prices or information. For more information, please see our Terms and Conditions.
Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.