Today’s homework project 今日の工作

2016-05-29 09.02.40ModWorried about rust of my old Fiat 500, I have searched for an effective rust-prevention means, and remembered an electrical device I used to use for my pickup truck in Hokkaido. That one was really working (so I believe) and the truck never got rusty.
フィアット500のサビが心配で防錆方法をあちこち探していたら、北海道で乗っていたピックアップトラックに着けていた電気の機器を思い出した。あれはよく効いた(と信じてる)ので全然サビが出なかった。

There are various types of the anti-rust device on market, but they are all so expensive that I can’t afford to buy one. On a network auction, I found and bought a secondhand device that was reasonably priced, but unfortunately, it was out of order when arrived, and I had to return it to the seller.
いろんな防錆機器が売られてるけど、どれもこれも値段が高くてちょっと手がでない。ネットオークションで手頃な価格の中古品を買ったけど、着いてみたら壊れていたので結局返品した。

I continued searching and finally found one, which was even more inexpensive than the used one I bought before. It doesn’t look great, comes in a cheapie plastic casing with a simple label on it, and is sold on the website also as simple and plane.
また探し続けていたら、オークションで買った中古よりもっと安いのがついに見つかった。見た目はショボく、ちゃっちいプラスチックの箱に簡素なラベルが貼ってあるだけで、売ってるウェブサイトも同じように単純で質素な作りだ。

However, or therefore, I like that, and somehow feel that the whole business is so honestly run without affectation. The shop carries (and actually manufactures) electrical and electronic apparatuses all of which look as if they are kits of electronic circuits for science-minded high school students.
それでも、ていうか、だからこそ、こいつは気に入った。なんかこう、見かけ倒しじゃない正直な商売してるな、って感じ。この店(Project Dress Co.)は科学好きな高校生のための電子回路工作キットみたいな電子装置を売ってる(ていうか作ってるし)。

In today’s afternoon, I really enjoyed making the insulated anodes, wiring and installing the device to my Cinquecento. I am sure the stuff will work.
絶縁したアノード作って、配線して、チンク嬢にその装置を取り付けて、今日の午後は随分楽しんだ。こいつはきっと効果があるにちがいない。

2016-05-28 18.58.20 HDRMod
電子防錆装置(実は高電圧発生装置)を取り付けた。黄色いステッカーみたいのはアノード(電極)

Sharaku face 写楽の顔

As soon as I arrived at the Triplet cryptomerias, I noticed a green face emerging out of a fork of the trees. I couldn’t help recalling the ukiyoye faces by Sharaku, a famous and mysterious woodprint artist in the Edo period. 三本杉についたとたん、木の叉から緑の顔がのぞいているのに気がついた。江戸時代の謎の浮世絵師写楽が描いた顔を思い出さずにはいられなかった。2016-05-22 17.28.09
2016-05-22 17.29.05Mod

 


The magnificent cryptomerias (台杉と三本杉)

2016-05-22 17.29.42Mod

There are strange things in Kitayama, the northern mountains of Kyoto. Of them, the forest of naturally layered cryptomeras of Katanami (片波伏条台杉群) I some times write about and the Triplet cryptomerias of Daihizan (大悲山の三本杉) are my favorite places. Walking amongst the gigantic trees deformed by the heavy snow repeating for years, and just standing in front of the the mountain temple’s magnificent sacred trees  gravely protected for long time, I feel so good and refreshed as I silently converse with them. 京都北山の山中には不思議なものが数多くある。中でも時々書く片波の巨大伏条台杉群の森と大悲山の三本杉は僕のお気に入りの場所。長年に渡る豪雪により変形した巨人達の間を彼らと静かに対話しながら歩き、古来大切に守られてきた山寺の神木の前にたたずむと、心地よく清新な気分になる。

I brought a friend of mine to the forest the other day. She had been going through the hardship in her stressful work environment. I think she could be released from her stresses– if not perfectly but to a certain extent– after seeing the trees that have persevered the harsh weather for a thousand years or more.

We visited another thousand-year-old giants existing in a different part of Kitayama– the Triplet Cryptomerias of Daihizan, or Sambonsugi (大悲山三本杉) . Unike the ones in Katanami, they are straight and standing upright, but strangely, their trunks share the single base. Deep in the mountains and clad in the solemn air, these sacred trees of nearby Bujo-ji temple (峰定寺) are certainly awe-inspiring.

Through the tacit dialogues with all those giants in the Nature, my fried must feel that her existence was so small and her troubles in the work seemed like just another itty-bitty trifles– if so, I feel good about it, too.


Fixing an LCD 液晶モニター修理

2016-05-25 22.12.59

I got a dead 24″ LCD from my sister. She first brought it to a computer store and was told that it woulf cost so much that she could by new one. Naturally, she purchased a new one.
くたばった24インチ液晶モニターを妹からもらった。コンピューター屋さんに持って行ったら、新しいのを買うほうが安いとのこと。まあ、当然新しいほうを選ぶわな。

I asked her to give it to me, because I knew the problem was most probably in the power circuit, and in that case rotten capacitors would be the main cause, thus easily repairable.
おそらくは電源回路の問題だろうし、その場合たいてはコンデンサーが腐ってることが多いのは想像ついていたので、もらって帰った。

I open up the plastic casing and voila! Six of the capacitors had swollen. I took a memo of their capacities and voltages, and then ran to a electrical parts shop in Teramachi.
ケースを開けてみたら、やっぱ!コンデンサー6個が膨れ上がっていた。容量と電圧をメモって寺町の電子部品屋さんに走った。

The parts– six capacitors and solder absorption chord– cost me 900 yen all together (only 1/20 of the price for cheap LCD of the same size).
部品−−コンデンサー6個とはんだ吸い取り線−−は全部で900円(同サイズの安い液晶モニターのたった20分の1)

The rest was the same old soldering job… nothing special. Then I put everything together, plugged it in, and connected to my ThinkPad. It worked. I also hooked it to my fake Mac notebook just to double check. It worked, too. Uhhh… Too eazy, so the whole thing wasn’t so impressive…
残りの作業はいつものハンダ付け、、、なんということもない。それから復旧して、電源入れて、ThinkPadにつないだ。大成功。偽Macのノートにも、ダブルチェックでつないでみたら、これまた成功。うーん、、、簡単すぎて感動がないなあ。。。