New larger wave machine - from India.
A product whose website rang all the scam alarm bells - so I went ahead and ordered one.
Just a simple video this time. Well it’s simple to watch - the brief outro section took two days to record. I was struggling due to running a temperature. Fortunately I’m back to normal now.
I’ve already got a couple of things recorded and edited together for the next update, so I’ll attempt to put an Oddcast together soon. It will likely be shorter than the last few though as little of note has happened off screen.
I’m sitting in the garden now waiting for the solar eclipse. I believe this is my last chance, so I’m making the effort.
Enjoy the remainder of your week. Take care.
UPDATED: Added a new section towards the end of the video starting at 19:20
Comments (48)
Mat, have seen this: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hvBWFzXW4_A?feature=share
I have https://youtu.be/tM7kj7pgTeU
It seems that acrylic is not compatible with mineral oil at elevated temperatures (https://www.industrialspec.com/resources/acrylic-aka-pmma-chemical-compatiblity-chart/acrylic-aka-pmma-chemical-compatiblity-chart-o-p) so if that is indeed mineral oil, the misting is likely to be permanent.
Eclipse-wise, here in York, it sort of looked a bit like dusk for a bit... then got brighter again. Your incidental music sounded like a cross between some 80s game show hosted by Paul Daniels or Channel 4 breakdown music. Though it needs more Oranges and Lemons. Oh, and I was hoping for a wave effect more like this... https://youtu.be/rjWOEAE5hEw?is=f-C6RITvVGozzk42
The 1980s style fill music medley was the best thing ever. Lots of LOLs and made my day.
As an engineer with a background on fluid dynamics and an inner child... I approve. The wavelets you mention are caused basically by friction between the two fluids. Too fast and you create turbulence, fast enough and you get the perfect effect, for a set of two fluids. An option might be to alter the shape of the cam by adding some material and trying for it to lift faster. Ideally you want to control the speed precisely, so do it slowly in order to avoid turbulence. You may want to increase the fulcrum in order to increase the maximum tilt (if that's what limits it) be aware of slippage though
I've opened it up this evening and I can't see a way to change anything at all - it's set-up the only way it can be. It'd need to be redesigned prior to construction. The only thing I can try if I find the right sized piece of triangular plastic is to raise the fulcrum.
mind blown. I always thought the blue was the oil and the clear was water. If I would have thought about it - oil floats etc - but I didn't. The more you know! By the way - maybe already mentioned - but what about an adjustable voltage power supply to speed (or slow) things up?
I’m no expert but since it’s already running on 220v, I think the only thing I could do would be to supply it with less voltage than it needs.
Hey Mat, maybe you have all the old school wave machine references you need but here's another one all the same. This is from the 1980 Swedish movie Sällskapsresan (UK title "Package Tour or Can You Get Fish and Chips At the Flamenco") which BTW still holds the all time attendance record for any movie in the Swedish cinemas with 2.8 million tickets sold, in a country with (then) a population of just over 8 million. Kind of funny that the design of the "slosh box" looks exactly like your most recent purchase. Either way, it seems that your memory of these being more forceful in the past is not wrong and it seems that the movement of this one is also a bit more brisk. Perhaps the difference could also be that the liquid back then was made from some less foaming but more toxic stuff (since banned)? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXEFg2zs6g4
That link seems to be sending me to a review of the film Dredd. Earlier in the comments it was suggested that these might once have contained The since banded/restricted Carbon Tetrachloride, just like the lava lamps of old, and that sounds quite plausible.
The exciting music had me in stitches. If I might suggest adding it briefly around the 8:00 mark after "give it a bit of a shake," that would be hilarious
I was thinking of going back to that bit with a quick edit if I get the chance, so I’ll see if that works.
You bought from India...lesson learnt
01:11 "I wanted to get hold of a really large one." Don't we all, ducky? Don't we all.
Nudge nudge
In olden times, they had dramatic waves... but then they were only pictures in the Innovations catalogue. I don't know what they were like in real life.
Appropriate musical accompaniment to this video: Catch The Wave https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luhhjNFNn-4
My daughter wants me to ask where you obtained the Distilled water, as it apparently is not something obtained from the Pharmacy in the UK. Her friend who is living there couldn't find a source. In the US, it's readily available in pharmacies and grocery stores.
I’m pretty sure I just got it from Amazon. I know they do sell it there.
So happy to see a new video. I wonder if a couple drops of dish soap would help break the surface tension of the water and make it wave more.
I’m not going to risk knackering it up.
I'm sure I remember waves as well, Mat. I also remember one that had a little model ship being tossed around on the waves.
An old clip featuring a wave machine: https://youtu.be/GOBlqjXrsEk?is=YF3r3HIU-QcOVSHN
Thanks for this. That one definitely seems to tilt the vessel quicker and appears to drop it more to the right than the left, perhaps that’s what this needed.
I suspect the older commercial (big) ones were also made of glass - glass is very resistant to staining compared to Acrylic. With regards to behaving differently than old ones I wonder if the old ones used fluids that are no longer easily available which solved the foaming issue at higher speeds - Lava lamps used include carbon tetrachloride in them for example which is just not possible today even for products from China or India. "Carbon tet" or just "tet" used to be a common household cleaner and had other common uses but is now banned for most uses due to being rather toxic, cancerogenic and causes ozone layer depletion. Some of the chemical channels I follow bemoan how hard it is to get "tet" - it's apparently a useful solvent but even lab usage is restricted and needs strict safety precaution to not cause harm. It scores surprisingly high on the nasty-o-meter even for the time period which says a lot. But could be any of a number of other chemicals that are now much less available.
You might well be right about the tet, it’d make a lot of sense. My mum used to keep a bottle under the kitchen sink to get rid of stains on clothing, it worked amazingly well. As an adult I tried to get a bottle for the house and it was impossible to find.
Only partway through, but very much enjoying the dynamic pouring music.
It needed livening up.
"An error occurred. Please try again later."
?
I want a "bucking bronco" setting. I'm always falling for those scammers where you send them money and they send you what you paid for. If they just took my money and didn't send the stuff out like proper scammers, I wouldn't have a space issue in my workshop.
Yes they’re the worst ones. They’re costing me a fortune in storage fees too.
I've just been watching the solar eclipse at Friedrichsplatz in Karlsruhe. The people standing around were so kind as to pass their eclipse glasses round. Even with 90 per cent of the sun obscured, it was still surprisingly bright. I haven't watched the video yet, but I'll do so as soon as I get back to the hotel. Edit: Finally watched the video. Quite a sketchy device, but at least they delivered. I'd be slightly concerned about whether that ominous "clear liquid" poses any kind of health risk. It's a bit alarming that they make such a secret out of it, and that it comes in an assortment of reused bottles. In case that stuff spills on the floor, it would be really nice to know exactly what it is, especially if you have kids or pets around. I'm probably overthinking it, but product safety is a thing, after all. Those 3D-printed end caps add to that backyard "assembly line" feeling. On the other hand, it seems to work as advertised (for now). Please keep us updated if it breaks down unexpectedly (or if green pimples start to form).
I don't know if I'm sharing your looking through 'rose-coloured glasses', but I do remember the old ones that I saw when I was a younger seemed to have more drama in it. Perhaps not as much drama as the "high-energy fill-the-acrylic-motion-container with distilled-water and mineral-oil" music... That made me smile. Good video.
I only have a 30 min lunch break so I cheated and put on 1.15x speed. I'm ashamed. The music sounded like a 70's action hero theme. • You wisely precut part of the box, nice. • Maybe you can speed up the motor to get more wave action? • I'm surprised it actually worked out considering the flimsy plastic thing that broke. • The instructions blowing away amused me. • Enjoy the eclipse; although all of the eclipses I have experienced are very sedate events. I have no more time, take care 🤍
I can still think of better things to be doing on your lunch. By the way the eclipse seemed to coincide perfectly with the sun falling behind the nearest hill. There was an imperceptible difference when it was over.
Ooh lovely but is it a decorative piece like a Lava Lamp? My Internet is limping! Must be the Eclipse 🤣. Whoah there, the next Partial Eclipse is in 2027. Hopefully you'll be still here for that!!!!
Maybe it's relatively easy to add in a combined on/off and speed switch yourself?
I suspect it’s an AC motor, if so it’ll run at 50hz.
I need that! Wonder if they ship to Madeira…
Wait, so this is just an acrylic tube with colored water and mineral oil being swayed by a flimsy motor? Why are these things so expensive?
Apparently sometimes the coloured water uses food colorant, I think that costs a few pence.
With the music thought I was watching a 80s TV show something like chase sequence on CHIPS.
Perhaps the ratio of water to blue stuff (I presume it's a sort of oil) makes a difference? or the viscosity.
Something was definitely better/different once upon a time.
I witnessed a total eclipse two years ago. It was incredible. 🥹
Ride the wave, man!