Alex’s craft-related rant

This week I decided that in keeping with my angsty teenage interest in all things illicit and subversive that I’d learn to open padlocks with a soda can. I’ve seen the instructions floating around the internet before, but took the opportunity to take the time to learn the skill. It turned out to be more difficult than expected, but I eventualy got it to work and am satisfied that in an “emergency” that required a forced entry, (and there were no bolt-cutters lying around) this would do the trick.
The first step is to cut the top and bottom off a soda can. I did the big arizona iced tea because it gives you more material and thus more chances to screw up and ruin your tool

Next, you flatten out the thin sheet of aluminum and cut off the jagged edges so you end up with a nice looking rectangle.

Measure out a bunch of 1 1/4″ X 2 1/2″ rectangles and cut one (or all of them) out.

Next you divide the square into four quarters, and then make kind of a curved “M” shape in the center of the bottom half. I’ve added some extra lines to make it easier to make the “M” nice.


Cut out the “M” and fold down the top quarter of the sheet.

Fold the flaps on the left and right up and around the part that’s allready folded over. Then, wrap the shim around a bic pen to get it into the shape of the loop on the lock.


It takes quite a bit of fiddling to get the shim to fit in between the rod and the clasp, but it can be done. I had to mangle about five of the shims before I got it. It’s a pretty neat trick though…

This version is slightly more boring, I think. Below is a composite image, showing the various parts of the phone.

As we were assigned the project of taking something apart and teaching the rest of the class something about it, it occurred to me how mysterious the workings of so many personal electronics were (to me at least- I know I am at MIT). I know from general knowledge that phones are made up of tons of little integrated circuits and other little electronic components, but I had never actually seen them. So, it was to my delight that when I opened the thing up, sure enough, out of the hollow plastic case spilled about half a handfull of gravel.

Here’s a link about how phones work:

This is the short first post in which I introduce myself. My relationship to craft is a long romance that begins with my father (sounds kind of incestual, but isn’t meant that way). My dad was a furniture maker when I was growing up, so there was always importance placed on how well an object was made. While not perticularly well-to-do, my parents refused to furnish the house with anything other than fine, hand-crafted furniture, some of which had been made by my father. He has sinced changed carreers, but that appreciation has stuck with me. I ended up getting my undergraduate degree in glass. It’s a fine arts program that describes itself as a “material-specific sculpture program.” Glass however, was not until recently a “fine-arts material” and I was introduced to the weird conflict between art (with a capital “A”) and craft. I have since apprenticed under some Italian glassblowers while furthering my knowledge of the craft tradition. That’s good for now I think…

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