Yoshi AKAI makes beautiful, functional music and audio equipment with a definitely Steamy touch! The photo gallery at his site makes for some beautiful viewing.

The BBC News website’s Technology section has presented us with a very nice article and video on Steampunk, featuring Mr. James Richardson-Brown, Miss Amanda Scrivener, and an inventor and contraptionist whose name escapes me for the moment…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8376028.stm

A very  well produced piece, that shows our little world in a very positive light; I for one think this reason enough for the licence fee!

In keeping with yesterday’s horological goodness, I though I’d share one more example of  “haute horlogerie”, this time by the consortium of MB&F (Maximillian Busser & Friends), which is “based around one very simple and fundamental ideal: to assemble dedicated Collectives of talented horological artisans, artists and professionals – all friends – to design and craft each year a radical and original horological masterpiece.”

So, without delay, I offer the Horological Machine #3:

Prices? Let’s just say $100,000 plus!

Louis Moinet Swiss watchmakers since 1806, have released tow limited edition watches, inspired by Jules Verne’s ‘From Earth to the Moon” Verne refers to chronometers several times in the novel: ““Barbicane had set his chronometer to within a tenth of a second of engineer Murchison’s”, and it was those references that inspired Louis Moinet’s designers to come uip with the Jules Verne Instrument No. 1 and No. 2, Both watches feature a “porthole” on the case side, that displays a piece of lunar rock, taken from the Dhofar 459 lunar meteorite. JV No.1 has an 25 Jewel automatic chronograph movement with a second time zone subdial. The chronograph is operated by a unique set of fold out levers. The case is made of of components in Grade 5 titanium, stainless steel, and rose gold.

JV No.2 is similar, but features a rattrapante split second chronograph.

Both watches are limited edition works, with 120 of each being produced,60 having a white dial, and 60 a black dial.  The JV No. 2 is the current model.  Price? The JV No.2 has a list price of $20,000

Although without question a slot machine can be a VERY steampunk object this one tries really hard but for a purist like myself just misses the mark. (although sweet Clementine, did you see that pot?! 700,000 USD!)

As you can see on the left. The poor thing was in need of an engineer.  Sadly Bally’s of Las Vegas, NV looks down upon guest engineers and prefers them to be of the In-House variety.  Needless to say I could not play it.  Also frustrating was that  it was the only one of it’s kind on the floor.  After going to about 6 casinos that night I discovered (unless I just missed it which is possible) that it’s the only one on the strip!

Summary: I think it was a cheap grab at the aesthetic which is sad because they could have really made a legendary slot machine had they made one more mechanical.  At least give the one-armed bandit it’s one arm!!  sigh This is Shaunathan Sprocket, going back to the Roulette table to win actual money at a game played in the 19th century.  (now where was that European Wheel….)

In keeping with the Raygun theme started yesterday, we’d like to bring to your attention the latest rayguns from Weta, our long-time favourite producer of rayguns for distinguished gentlefolk adventurers.

New from Weta, is the Righteous Bison Indivisible Particle Smasher, touted as: “no ordinary raygun. Far from it….The Righteous Bison can take a fair amount of man-handling. And even more woman-handling! The result, ladies and gentlemen, as I’m sure you agree, is nothing short of pretty good. The gun is about the same weight as a small brown trout (or two pints of Pale Ale) and can be fired continuously without exhausting the sportsman. Much like a good man-servant.”

Also new from Weta, is the Victorious Mongoose – Miniature Edition, which according to Weta is: “Based on the full size Victorious Mongoose, it measures a mere couple-of-thumbs-and-a-bit and is absolutely exquisitely detailed by Minisculisation Virtuoso, Dr Tremont. Made from confoundingly weighty metal, it has some rather uncomfortable-looking protrusions, so we recommend not swallowing. If swallowed, we can only recommend something really strong follows it.”

These two new additions to the Dr. Grordbort line are built with the typical attention to detail and craftsmanship, that are the hallmarks of Weta’s work. Well worth checking out.

 Pheobsky writes:

 

The Science museum (London) is running a poll to decide which out of “10 scientific objects that changed the world” is most favoured in the world- All of the things have a little spiel on them, and inventions include items such as Stevenson’s Rocket, the model T ford and the electric telegraph. It also includes some more recent inventions/discoveries such as penicillin, but compared to the steamy goodness of a clanking engine belching fire and steam, what chance do a couple of microbes have ? See the poll here: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/Centenary/Home/Icons.aspx

Courtesy of Mr. Marrock on the forum, this marvellous piece of field equipment has been brought to our attention, more information from earlytech.com:

“The Swiss Mikiphone, circa 1930, is probably the best of all the miniature gramophones produced in the first half of the twentieth century. The folding pocket gramophone when closed resembles a large pocket watch. All the parts apart from the winding handle are stored inside the case which when closed has a diameter of just 4.5″ (11.5 cm) by under 2″ thick (4.7 cm). The turntable is only just over 4″ in diameter (10.4 cm) and the records are held in place with a push on clamp. The celluloid ‘horn’ is in two parts and is also stored within the case.”