Unscrewed

June 15, 2011

Sobey (How Kitchens Work, 2010, etc.) provides instructions for dismantling unwanted electronics and offers suggestions on how to repurpose what you mine.

Wondering what to do with your old scanner? Unscrew it piece-by-piece, set the motors aside for future projects and use the remaining parts to construct a desk lamp, of course! Sobey, a master in the art of salvage, has the basics covered with instructions for how to start repurposing more than 50 of your most unwanted possessions, from joysticks to guitars to hairdryers. While the author's intentions are noble, with increasing attention paid to conservation and sustainability, he falls flat with this guide. Sobey thoroughly covers the steps to taking apart the devices, but he fails to provide instructions on how to repurpose them, merely suggesting alternate uses in a lackluster and uninformative conclusion to each chapter. Guiding readers step-by-illustrated-step through stripping a discarded bubble gun for gears, springs and switches, the author then suggests that its pump be retrofitted into a small irrigation system for houseplants. But readers are left to their own devices to figure out how.

Perfect for readers who like to take things apart to see what's inside but useless for those with intentions of putting them back together.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

May 1, 2011
Tinkerers, do-it-yourselfers, and hobbyists will get a kick out of this new book from the author of The Way Toys Work (2008). With clear, step-by-step instructions and some very helpful photographs, Sobey shows readers how to disassemble a variety of electronic gadgets (digital camera, typewriter, floppy drive, piano keyboard, DVD player, etc.) and mine them for the reusable odds and ends within. For example, tiny motors inside a digital camera could be used to power a mechanical sculpture. A typewriters spring-loaded pulley would be a nifty power system for a model car. Ferrite chokesthose little bulby things at the ends of computer power cordscould be made into offbeat jewelry. Sobey is primarily interested in showing readers how to take things apart, but youre more or less on your own when it comes to building something new (he makes suggestions but doesnt show you what to do). But its probably safe to assume that readers with the interest and skills to do the taking-apart should have no trouble finding something to do with the treasures they uncover. Great fun for former readers of the late, lamented Popular Electronics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)