Dear Vendors with Product Search Interfaces,
This list of measurements is complete nonsense. It’s sorted alphabetically, not even numerically (numbers are treated as letters). That’s why “24 inches” comes before “3 inches”, with “27.0 millimeters” in between. It’s not hard to fix. Convert all of…
Thorlabs released a ridiculously sized (264 MB) PDF catalog for their life sciences imaging. Despite the size, I recommend downloading it and checking it out. There are several items and lots of product details…
They motorized a Kopf manipulator and used CNC software to control it. I like the simple mechanics. Here’s one of the parts used to couple the stepper motors to the manipulator:
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This isn’t an advertisement. I wasn’t asked to post this. I just want to let you all know in case it’s useful. Newport is having a sale on optics and many of the discounts…
Neverwet is now available for about $20.
This is a spray-on, 2-part superhydrophobic coating (translucent when dry). What would it be useful for in a lab? For starters, spraying it on anything that needs to be cleaned regularly might make it easier to clean. Also, it can…
I find WPI’s Kwik-Cast handy for some things around the lab. When we were modest users, the price didn’t bother me too much. However, when we started going through so much of it, I…
If you’re like most people, you can get the vast majority of your holiday shopping done at Edmund Optics. They’re having a Cyber Monday sale this Monday, November 26th. Use code Cyber12 at checkout.
Here’s…
Inventables is a web retailer with a decent site that makes it easy to find raw materials and interesting components. E.g., stretch-sensing rubber and conductive velcro.
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Manipulator stands are priced bizarrely high. The Sutter model above starts at $760. If you want a taller one, or one with a linear slide, the price can go up to $1395 (price…
Cage systems, like optical rails, are platforms for constructing custom optical systems.
Thorlabs’ 16 mm, 30 mm, and 60 mm cage systems are well known (shown above)….
Numberfactory is a very useful, clean reference site. Unit conversions, formulas, bolts, nuts, screws, and more.
More…
Bolt sizes
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Thorlabs and Newport have offered 3D models of their products for a long time. However, they’re typically in formats for expensive programs like SolidWorks and AutoCAD. In the past year or two, Newport has been slowly adding to their library of Google SketchUp models.
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