No, I haven’t disappeared off the Earth.
Just been very busy. My “day job” in working in media, and I live in Wisconsin. The advertising and political events leading up to the U.S. Presidential Election has been insane! My work has mostly been in live event production lately AT those political events. That means long hours, last-minute requests, and general stress and exhaustion…
Of course, I also got sick right after the election, finally recovering about now.
But in the time since I released my last major YouTube video, I HAVE still been working on a few things – just haven’t had time to edit them.
Some of the major projects include interviewing an Electric DeLorean builder, getting a combination lathe/mill with possible CNC controls, and installing a 2″ towing package on my 2013 Tesla Model S.
Not too long ago, Hoffman EV held an open house at their headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin. I was able to attend and got to chat with Geoffrey Hoffman. You might remember him from a video I shot two years ago about a previous DeLorean he converted. This new one has more range, quicker acceleration, and higher top speed. But no, it still doesn’t have a Flux Capacitor…
I also shot some video on an EV VW Thing and an electric race car built by the local University engineering department!
Look for those as upcoming videos!
I was also able to get a new tool! OK, it’s used, and it’s actually on loan from the Milwaukee Makerspace. But it’s in my garage and gives me the ability to turn or mill metal parts. The Smithy Granite is a combination lathe/mill and it has an aftermarket CNC package added to it.
It was quite the challenge transporting a machine like this back to my garage. Once I got it home, there was still quite a bit of setup, maintenance, and testing to do on it. I have been able to do some basic manual lathe and mill work on it. After reading the entire manual and re-watching quite a few YouTube videos, I cut some threads on brass round stock! Pretty cool to be able to do something like that, as I’d never done it before. I also tried out some basic milling moves on a piece of machinable plastic.
The CNC aspect off all this is a little more complicated. I was able to get the CNC controller to communicate with and power the motors. Unfortunately, there seems to be an issue with the software for the x-axis control. The manufacturer is called FlashCutCNC. They are still around, but this software and hardware is OLD! I contacted their support department and was flat-out told that this is no longer supported and that my only option would be to upgrade all the hardware and software. Essentially just buy a complete new CNC system. Knowing what that cost was, it is NOT an option.
I’ll keep chipping away at the CNC system. It would be an absolute blast if I could get it working right!
Even just under the manual controls, having easy access to a lathe and mill greatly expands what I can do on a project. I hope to be able to make a few parts to finish off some old projects.
I also got a 2″ hitch for the Tesla Model S!
This is a Torklift Stealth. Torklift has been making hitches for eco-friendly cars for some time now. I have had their products on our Chevy Volt PHEV and the Mitsubishi iMiEV.
The 2″ hitch wil let me tow or install a bike rack or carrier tray. Probably the main use though will be pulling a 6×10′ utility trailer. No more having to waste gas to move bulky/heavy objects!
Installing the hitch on the car was actually relatively straight-forward. The hardest part really was removing and reinstalling all the plastic panels under the car.
Although the hitch was easy, the wiring was NOT.
I have a Tekonsha ZCI wiring harness, and as of yet, I don’t have it working right. Previously, I had installed one of these on somebody else’s Model Y, and that install went very well. It turns out that HOW the Model S activates the tail lights vs turn signals vs brake light, it actually makes it REALLY hard to work properly with ANY trailer lighting harness. The car was simply NOT designed for it.
I’ll get the video of the hitch installation posted soon, but may have to wait a while for more info on the wiring!
I also received a new 400V inverter board in the mail. This is a replacement/upgrade for the board I was working with on my Tesla V2L project. I accidentally wrecked the original board while I was trying to customize it. This new board is rated for 8,000 watts! We’ll see how much I can actually get out of it, but in theory, I should be able to do vehicle-to-vehicle charging!
Anyways, I just wanted to give you an update on a few projects that HAVE been going on, even if videos about them are not out yet. Look for some of those videos soon!
Until then, stay charged up!
-Ben Nelson
