Start with a regular plastic toy gun, like a squirt gun or NERF gun. Then, spray paint it a matte black. Once it dries, take several different colors of rub'n'buff and apply with your fingers. Now, you have your own steampunk style ray gun! Or, High Velocity Electrochemical Pr ...more
Indy Mogul shows you how to build retro ray gun prop for your next sci-fi epic!
It's funny how unevenly the real world keeps pace with science fiction. Smartphones have capabilities that Gene Roddenberry never imagine a portable device could have, but guns still use tiny powder cartridges to launch hunks of metal at things. The phasers, ray guns, and blas ...more
In this tutorial, Bert will show you quickly how to use a bunch of different layers to create a ray gun shooting and exploding it's target. It will help if you already have some Photoshop knowledge for this one.
If you've ever seen Goldfinger you've probably wondered when we're going to get access to lasers that could cut a man in half. This might be it. Watch on to learn how you can, with some electrical engineering skills, make a DIY blue death ray laser gun that will cut through al ...more
This Steampunk portal gun (from the game Portal) was recently featured on Kotaku, and is really, really beautiful. It's rare that you see such refined woodworking in steampunk props. Now if only it worked ...more
Steampunking Nerf guns by painting them is a pretty common practice among Steampunks, but unfortunately, the really amazing-looking ones involve literally taking the gun apart, painting it, and then screwing it all back together. Well, I'm glad that some people can do that, b ...more
The shrink ray as always been one of the oddest and least-useful sci-fi guns, but alien invaders seem to love them and so we'll keep seeing them. If you want to use a shrink ray in a film you're working on, watch this video. It will teach you how to first make a generic ray / ...more
Like with any shooting game, the gun can make all the difference in Zombies mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. When fighting off a ton of zombies, walking around with a pistol or a shotgun that only holds two rounds can cause some serious issues. Since there are only a few wea ...more
One of the hardest, most intimidating parts of making your own Steampunk guns from scratch is the wooden stock of the gun. To be fair, it's probably the hardest part. It requires the most artistry, and is the easiest to mess up. So, I'm going to give you a guide to making you ...more
As I said in this earlier post, there's no easy way to explain or define the Steampunk aesthetic. There are a large number of Steampunk tropes or "cues", as I call them, that bring to mind the feeling of Steampunk. These cues combine to push past the "not-Steampunk" threshold ...more
Tesla coils are totally insane, yet undeniably captivating. And they can be used for many things, from electric painting to dueling musical battles. But one trigger happy fellow has a different use for Tesla's lightning shooting coil. A weapon. After being inspired by the ste ...more
Iron Man, and to a lesser extent it's sequel, represent the best of the new comic-book-movie boom and have rejuvenated the popularity of one of Marvel's most interesting characters. Do you want to make a Tony Stark costume, or dress someone you know in one for a film or party? ...more
Build your very own Trek-style Blu-Ray laser phaser with this hacker's how-to video from Kip Kay of Make Magazine. To replicate this hack at home, you'll need the following materials: (1) a PS3 Blu-Ray laser assembly (which can be had on eBay for roughly $45), (2) an original ...more
To get the Guerilla Tactics achievement / trophy in Bulletstorm, you must execute 25 skillshots in a single Echoes map. Skillshots are the most fun part Bulletstorm. This video will give you a handy step-by-step guide to getting the achievement in Collapsed Building. From the ...more
If you're going to do this, be careful, as your fingers get close to operating high voltage devices & potentially fatal current! Remember that TV's can store a lot of energy for a long time, so don't be poking your finger everywhere - even if the TV is off. The 9mm headphone ...more
Laser gun + killing mosquitoes = lots of little boy fun, but what's it all about? Quite possibly the most entertaining, thrilling, and well, downright life-saving presentation at this year's TED conference was Intellectual Ventures' mosquito death ray. The mosquito death ray ...more
There is nothing more annoying than a greedy roommate. It's absolutely infuriating to wake up and find the cookies your mother just made for you gone without a trace. Your favorite drink is empty and the homemade meal you worked so hard on the night before is nowhere to be fou ...more
Step 1: First All Players Get Jug and Flopper pHd with the Gursh Device,Ray Gun and the Thunder Gun. Step 2: Go by the Perk PHd and 3 Players Stay in the Red Room. Step 3: And the Fourth Player with Jug Runs Circles Around the Lander by pHd While the Other Players Shoot O ...more
André Broessel of rawlemon has developed a solar energy generator that can use both sun and moonlight to create usable power. Oh... and it's gorgeous. The device is essentially a huge glass sphere filled with water that uses a ball lens to refract light in a way that increases ...more
Despite the relatively small size of Magic Leap's first annual L.E.A.P. conference, there was a lot to see and experience. Apparently missed by many was one of the best experiences I had at the event: Wingnut AR's unreleased Pest Control game. For those of us who hate bugs, t ...more
What I'm going to do in this tutorial is, as the title implies, teach you how to make nearly anything look like metal. This can especially come in handy in Steampunk, as most of us don't have the ability to machine brass. We do, however, have access to wood, PVC, and spray pai ...more
Thrift stores! As a Steampunk, they can be your best friend, but it's easy to make a tragic mistake. This hands-on guide will help you navigate the murky waters of successful thrifting in order to find the hidden gems that will make your Steampunk outfit complete! Thrift Stor ...more
Over the last few years, the only thing teased by Magic Leap more than the Magic Leap One itself has been the company's flagship gaming title Dr. Grordbort's Invaders. The game, developed by New Zealand studio Weta Workshop, finally got its debut last week during the L.E.A.P. ...more
Say whatever you want, but Steampunk is primarily a maker culture. Consider that Steampunk has existed since the 1960s and yet more or less languished in obscurity until approximately 2005, which is when it made the leap to costuming. That costuming was what provided the leap ...more
This most recent school shooting, one of the worst in history, has devastated our country. That such an act can be performed not by a begrudged child, but by one or more adults, is nearly unthinkable. And yet the idea of school shootings is far from new. In fact, the Victori ...more
I've tried my hand in the past at defining Steampunk, but as anyone else who has made a similar attempt will tell you, there's a significant backlash from the community against working to create a real definition of what Steampunk is. That may sound ridiculous to some, but it' ...more
Ever since the mid-2000s, there's been a lot of bandying back and forth on the Internet over what exactly Steampunk is. Some people think it's one thing, others another thing, and some think that it shouldn't be defined at all. To hell with all of that! I polled some Steampun ...more
Text adventure games, such as the well-known Zork series, were some of the first computer games ever made, second only to the likes of Spacewar! and the better-known Pong. So let's travel back in time for a moment, to a time that never was. Charles Babbage successfully built ...more
There was recently a case that came to national attention where a gentleman was arrested at an airport for having a watch that looked like a bomb, among other things. As it came out, the watch was, in fact, not a bomb, and the man was just an artist who was probably trying to ...more
Many people find Steampunk problematic for a whole host of reasons, not least of which is the glorification of an era of Western history that featured institutionalized slavery, racism, sexism, elitism, and many more -isms. Today, Steampunks frequently get accused of subtly o ...more
As promised last week, Magic Leap has finally released the long-awaited augmented reality game Dr. Grordbort's Invaders. The game, developed by Weta Workshop, is easily the most well known and hyped title among all of the Magic Leap apps (and there aren't many) currently on t ...more
Shoot-em-up games, or shmups, consist of lone or small groups of players shooting at and being shot at by hordes of colorful enemies. The genre is thought to have peaked in the mid-'90s, but recent games in the indie world may be saying otherwise. Geometry Wars and other twin- ...more
Describe this movie in one word? Hilarious! Could you watch this movie again? Without a doubt! Worth watching in theaters? Definitely! This is by far one of the funniest Will Ferrel movies in my book! To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of movies starring Will Ferrel because I f ...more
Oh yeah, this is a big topic, at-least for me. All the frequent flyers will/should be interested in this topic. I'm sure all of you have heard at-least something about the TSA, and most of it should have been bad. Complaints, lawsuits and general disgust surround this organiza ...more
The developing team Techland gets a free pass. Having thoroughly enjoyed their previous title, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, this sequel was bought on day one by good ol' fashion blind faith. After playing for most of today, it's still to early to tell if the game is a mess ...more
Giveaway Tuesdays has officially ended! But don't sweat it, WonderHowTo has another World that's taken its place. Every Tuesday, Phone Snap! invites you to show off your cell phone photography skills. Submit your best shot to our weekly competition for a chance to win an awes ...more
ACTION MOVIES The Hunger Games (2012) Set in a future where the Capitol selects a boy and girl from the twelve districts to fight to the death on live television, Katniss Everdeen volunteers to take her younger sister's place for the latest match.Dir: Gary Ross With: Jennife ...more
Kick Ass Review Part 3: Conclusions [Spoiler Alert! Plot points are discussed from the movie and comic in this section!] Big Daddy as a selectable character presents problems for the story in the game. In the movie and in the comic, Bid Daddy dies. As a playable character th ...more
We see Steampunk props all the time and wonder where the maker found all their pieces. In fact, for some people it's almost like a game to examine each prop and see if they can name all of the original parts. However, for a newcomer (or a novice at prop-making), it may be rea ...more
You may or may not have heard the term "greebles" or "kit-bashing" before, but if not, they may sound like nonsense. Particularly 'greebles', which sounds more like the name of a small, gremlin-like creature. However, I assure you that they are very important in prop-making, a ...more
If you're a Steampunk (or costumer of any variety) and you don't know what Rub 'n Buff is, this tutorial will make your life so much easier. You have no idea. So, what is Rub 'n Buff? Well, it's a product made of wax and very, very fine metal grit. You can rub it on any smoot ...more
You may or may not have heard of alt-rock band Panic! at the Disco, but a year and a half ago they released a single called "The Ballad of Mona Lisa", which had an accompanying music video that was Steampunk-themed. In fact, here's the video: Video: . Well, I'm going to give y ...more
Before I really get into this article, it's important to note that you do not need a Steampunk persona (or "steamsona") in order to be a Steampunk, or wear Steampunk clothes. Some people like to pretend to be a different person when dressed up in Steampunk clothing, but that i ...more
Did you know you can help protect yourself when traveling with a gun? No, not like that; and not in any way that's going to land you in prison. Simply by packing a gun, you can ensure that not only will your luggage be safer, but that the airline will make certain that it reac ...more
Now you can watch your old copy of Bridget Jones's Diary anywhere, anytime, on your smartphone. It's a dream come true! (Disclaimer: This dream may oddly specific to me.) Vudu, the digital streaming company owned by Walmart, has taken another step to make its disc-to-digital ...more
Modern warfare takes on a more literal translation with the advent of new augmented reality displays revealed recently by the US Army to improve soldiers' situational awareness on the battlefield. A new helmet-mounted displays, named Tactical Augmented Reality (TAR), integrat ...more
Those of you who have attended a Steampunk convention in the last year or two may have heard of something called "Tea Duelling" and been intrigued. Tea Duelling is an elegant sport for a more civilized age. Instead of hacking away at each other with long, sharp wedges of meta ...more
The holiday season is creeping up fast, and if you're shopping for a Steampunk, it could be almost impossible to find anything for them unless you know exactly where to look. Luckily for you, some of us have done all of the work you'll need. Whether you're Steampunk shopping f ...more
With how quickly technology evolves in this day and age, it's only natural that people replace their computers every couple years—even sooner. It seems that right when you get a new desktop, there's always a faster model with more features released the following week. What do ...more
With the release of the Pixel 2 XL and the iPhone X, smartphones have hit a new high not just in price, but also raw processing power. These new flagships not only cost more than twice as much as an Xbox One or PlayStation 4, they have also become almost as powerful as far as ...more
Will the predicted apocalyptic date—December 21st, 2012—really be the end of the world? In this ongoing five-part series, we examine what would happen if zombies, nuclear weapons, cyber wars, earthquakes, or aliens actually destroyed our planet—and how you might survive. End ...more
I know, "Steamdown" conjures images of a hoedown, but "Steampunk prop breakdown" is a bit of a mouthful, I thought. Anyway, I'm going to show you how I made my very first Steampunk prop! It doesn't require any tools at all, just some glue and some parts from the hardware stor ...more