Canadian Digs Out Basement Using Only Radio Controlled Scale Tractors and Trucks

http://carscoop.blogspot.com/2012/02/canadian-digs-out-basement-using-only.html

by pwg • 14 years ago

186 67 14 years ago

carscoop.blogspot.com

moondowner• 14 years ago

7 years playing with RC tractors and trucks? I admire him for simulating a whole digging site, but I hope also that he was doing his hobby just 2-3 hours per day.

wr1472• 14 years ago

Why do you say that? What's wrong with doing a hobby for more that 2-3 hours a day?

B0Z• 14 years ago

Because that's his basement, where his hot water heater is surrounded by dirt where one could also assume the washing machine and clothes dryer is.

One the one hand, the scale of this dirt playground and expensive radio controlled cars would make any grown man weep for a chance to be 10 years old again. On the other hand, you have to hope that this much obsession for 100% perfectly-scaled realism isn't as creepy as it looks.

In any event, this is impressive.

shareme• 14 years ago

weekends during winter as he is busy during crop season.

noelwelsh• 14 years ago

Wow, talk about cognitive surplus. It's also amusing that the article title starts with "Canadian", as if that explains it all. (Insert comment about American parochialism here)

Gaussian• 14 years ago

I know almost nothing about RC gadgets. But those are some badass toys.

Permit• 14 years ago

Oh wow. I don't know about anyone else, but I got impatient just watching the second video. I cannot imagine doing that for six whole years! Haha, unreal! If it's what he has a passion for, however, more power to him.

(I'm still in awe over how long that would have taken and the fact he didn't give in and start shoveling!)

noonespecial• 14 years ago

I'm sure some people think its pointless, but I say it beats the hell out of watching TV.

ebbv3• 14 years ago

Don't be ridiculous. Mad Men, Justified, Breaking Bad, 30 Rock, Community, Boardwalk Empire, Treme, etc. etc. there's tons of really good stuff on TV these days.

VMG3• 14 years ago

I agree, but there still is a qualitative difference between an active an a passive activity.

ImprovedSilence3• 14 years ago

Meh, there's better stuff in real life.

webmonkeyuk• 14 years ago

He seems to have loads of videos on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/LilGiantsConstrCo

singular2• 14 years ago

I'd have preferred it if the trucks/tractors were fully autonomous, now that would have been awesome :)

barefoot• 14 years ago

Or run by mechanical turk HITs...

omegant• 14 years ago

That is what I imagined in the first place. How cool it would be to have your garden or diy proyect being taken care by small autonomous machines like that. No danger of being smashed if something goes wrong, cheaper parts, if one has a mechanical problems not everything is stoped, just a fraction of the work force...

singular2• 14 years ago

And it can be running 24/7 while you're sleeping/playing skyrim/etc./etc. which would be indescribably awesome :)

jxcole• 14 years ago

The fact that he was able to do it at all means that this should be a logical next step. There may even be a business idea here. Program good enough Computer Vision and planning AI you could loan a set of autonomous robots to someone and pick them up after 6 months when the job is complete. It would probably be much cheaper than the human alternative.

marshallp4• 14 years ago

You don't even have to program. Set it up to be controlled by people in india or china. This kind of business could be set up in a few days, and which begs the question - how com no-one is doing this. There's companies trying to sell laptops on a stick (anybots) whereas this is a genuinely useful service. Trevor Blackwell should be able to get something like that up in day, he did a segway clone in a day.

jackalope• 14 years ago

Hmm, with a miniature cement sprayer, he might be able to install the foundation at the same time.

yread2• 14 years ago

Here is the relevant thread http://www.scale4x4rc.org/forums/showthread.php?t=25724

yread2• 14 years ago

quite an expensive hobby

http://www.gardentrucking.com/products.tpl?action=Search&...

the dump truck is 5000$

HeyLaughingBoy2• 14 years ago

You can buy a used Bobcat or 3/4-ton pickup for that much!

hessenwolf• 14 years ago

From a land of people that are obsessed by skiing, this is not the most pointless hobby one can have, and it's probably pretty safe.

lcusack• 14 years ago

How is this different from Minecraft?

xbryanx• 14 years ago

I wonder what the battery capacity is on those things. How often does he need to charge? I'd love to see a record of the electricity cost to excavate a basement with small motors.

evlapix• 14 years ago

Sometimes I come across grand hobbies/challenges like this that inspire me to challenge myself in similar ways..

1/4 scale grave digger: http://www.youtube.com/user/rcWizzard/videos?sort=da&vie...

Matthias Wandel's various projects: http://woodgears.ca

Giant robot project: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL13A11662BDE6EB83

But at some point, I end up convincing myself that it's a bad investment of my time. Some examples:

- The above referenced 1/4 grave digger project would be an awesome test of my fabrication skills. But when it's done, I won't enjoy playing with it. 1000's of hours for "push stick forward, vehicle goes foreword". Kind of like lego's, the fun's all in the build.

- I'd love to get into woodworking, but I already have all the furniture I need. Why would I invest in a 1k wood shop (that's CL prices)? What would I create with all the tools and experience? I'm not going to quit my job as a programmer to become an entry-level woodworker.

- I'd love to build my own sawmill (kind of like Jaimie), and build from nature in general. But where would I get wood? Can I make it cheaper than store bought? Do I have the time to invest so that I don't wind up having to go to the store anyway?

- I'm really fascinated by CNC, 3d printers, and metal casting. I want to be able to make my own stuff, and excuse myself from a consumer culture. But those things all involve pretty significant money/time investments. And who are we kidding? After that huge investment, what am I going to print/cast/machine.. that would be worth that investment?

And that's the motivation for my side project.

cadalac• 14 years ago

You could try building a simple CNC machine. Then you could test your fabrication skills and use it afterwards to make cool stuff. It wouldn't have to be anything complicated either. Use a simple drill for the blade and make some sort of arm to move it around. Then write a basic program to run it. Follow YC's style. Make something simple as fast as you can that just works and then as time goes by improve it. Man, I think I know what I'm doing this weekend.

dholowiski• 14 years ago

You don't really do a hobby like this because it will save you money, or because you need the end result, you do it because it's fun. I've just started building a reprap (3d printer) not because I need low-rez cheap plastic thingies, but because it's fun and challenging.

Natsu• 14 years ago

Why not see if there's a MakerBench or other hackerspace near you and just rent some time on the machines rather than buying your own?

ars• 14 years ago

A good motivation is find someone else to buy it from you. Offer to make it for the cost of materials plus a little more.

They get a good deal, and you get some fun (the build) that actually has a purpose.

Or find someone to make it for as a gift.

petenixey• 14 years ago

Makes me wonder whether there's a future business for a Mechanical, Mechanical Turk.

If we've got machines capable of labour but lacking the intelligence and internet connected workers who can provide the intelligence you could use a gig like this to get real-world work done while offshoring the human cost.

Could all get a bit Toy Soliders if you mistreat your workforce but would be pretty epic to watch.

majmun• 14 years ago

was all this automated or he do it by hand?

melling• 14 years ago

I noticed that a few people see little value in this. Some people feel that the time spent would have been just as good watching TV. However, beyond the simple inspiration, consider that even small endeavours are useful because they provide a "set of shoulders" on which the next person can stand.

urbanredneck• 14 years ago

Just think it is a great idea, kudos to him.

Corrado• 14 years ago

I was most impressed by his skill in controlling the vehicles. In one video he loads debris into a dump truck using a front loader with great fineness. I've rarely seen operators of 1:1 scale equipment work with such grace. You may not know it but it's very difficult to load a dump truck efficiently and safely.

Canadian Digs Out Basement Using Only Radio Controlled Scale Tractors and Trucks

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