The Shed magazine October/November 2024 issue 117 on sale now
Meet 21st century sheddie, Tim O’Connor of Army Bay Engineering, who has created his own unique brand of mini bikes from his small Whangaparaoa peninsula workshop, Hustler Mini Bikes.
In the true spirit of the Kiwi DIY tradition, Tim rallied from the disappointment of a Covid-related job loss to create his own very successful, satisfying, and special business.
“There is no room for mediocrity nor false modesty in the shed of precision engineer Tim O’Connor. His Instagram tagline is: ‘Maker of the world’s finest minibikes,’ and it would be a hard ask to find someone more motivated and committed to improving their product than this self-confessed perfectionist.
For Tim, designing, building, and marketing his ‘Hustler’ minibikes is not just about selling units. His scaled-down, pocket-rockets have a deeper, almost sentimental significance. He has been riding small bikes since the age of 12, and remembers building minibikes in the garage with his father.
He says, “That is where my love for bikes and engineering started.”
Getting up to speed
As sheddies, we are known to cobble together machines from whatever we have at hand. More often than not these items are less than ideal and a motor of some sort may run at a different speed to what we need. If we are looking to make a spindle moulder, belt sander, garden chipper, wind generator, compressor or similar item then it is likely that some sort of gearing will be necessary to give the right RPM at the business end.
Calculating the sizes of gears, sprockets or pulleys is a relatively simple exercise. Below is an easy reference to save having to work it out from basic principles each time.
A video guide to creating electronic music part one
Introduction to electronic music – part one – instructional video
Have you ever imagined yourself as a John Bonham or a Jimi Hendrix? The magic of electronic music means you can set up your own one-man band, create original masterpieces, or rearrange your favourite instrumental.
In this new series in The Shed magazine, Enrico Miglino shows just how easy this can be with advice on what tools and aids are needed to get you started.
This video is to accompany part one of the series published in the October/November 2024, issue 117.
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