Steampunk Nerf Maverick I

I've seen a number of varrious things painted up in Steampunk asthetic, and thought I'd give it a go with the Nerf Maveric dart gun. The gun itself has a nice look right out of the box, and painting it up only enhanced this. I chose to do a matte black base coat, with hand done copper details. Before painting, I sanded flat the raised 'Nerf' and 'Made in..." logos on the cocking slide and the 'N-Strike' logos on either side of the muzzle of the gun. The grip of the gun is covered with a nice piece of black leather that I stretched and then tacked to the gun to make a nice contoured grip that is very comfortable and natural feeling. I'm very happy with how this turned out, the pictures really don't do it justice.

*This gun recently sold on ebay.

For comparison, here it is side by side with another Nerf Maverick right out of the box.

Steampunk Wrist Watch II

Last summer I built my first steampunk inspired watch. Since then, it has recieved many comments and confused looks. I have also been mulling over design ideas for a second. The timepiece pictured here is the result of several hours hard work, and countless hours of dreamign and doodling.

I like the idea of a watch that protects the face and opens somehow to reveal it. The first watch opened with a flick of the wrist to swing open a spring loaded arm. This new design opens with a push of a button that keeps the watch locked closed.

The opening sequecne itself is double action. The watch face itself is mounted on two sliders set in parallel, and the spring pulls this slider assembly foreward when the catch is released. As the slider moves foreward, two 'leaves' made from brass (which each cover half of the watch face when closed) slide in opposite directions away from the watch face as the slider moves foreward in a sort of a 'butterfly' motion. These two seperate motions happen simultaneously when the catch is releases. Closing the watch works the same way, except backward, with the slider sliding in and the leaves closing over the watch face.

I was able to fit the whole assembly into a fairly compact profile, actually a little bit smaller than the first (and much more simple by comparison) writst watch design. The watch is held onto one's wrist by means of a leather belt that wraps around twice, keeping the watch from twisting or sliding around the wrist.

As with the first watch, I plan to make more of these and refine the design a little (less excess soldier from the joints, more refined joints, etc). Please contact me through email if you are interested in a watch made to either the old or new design. There will likely be more designs to come, the gears are already turning...

"Steampunk" Remington Typewriter

Remington No. 12 Typewriter
Circa 1910, repaired June 2008

Found in an antique shop, this Remington No.12 manual typewriter was rusted solid, missing bits, and most of the origional paint was rusted out. Over the course of a month, I completely dismantled this machine, and brought it back to perfect working order. I also re-painted it with distressed looking copper and brass paint.

Steampunk Wrist Watch

Steampunk Wrist Watch
Circa May 2008

My steampunk watch, made from brass, copper, and leather. The watch face is inclosed in a copper cup that hinges open and closed via a tension spring. The tube on the side contains a 4 gig micro flash drive.