You just know when you see massive chunks of metal and wires attached to a scrap piece of plywood, there’s got to be a story behind it… either that, or you’ve taken a wrong turn down a hillbilly back road where you’ll quickly discover everything is attached to a scrap piece of plywood.

You may have prototyped a design or two of your own, built an engine out of dried mustard and carpet, or learned multiple ways to electrocute yourself while micro-controllers and midi devices melt across your lap. Yet, it’s amazing to think that many a famous product started with a few raw materials, some scrap parts and a few accidental circumstances. Wired has featured six original designs delegated to museum display status, but designs that nonetheless bleed ingenuity. Here’s a little taste.

Perhaps one of the coolest electronic instruments of all time... the original Moog prototype from Herb Deutsch, 1964 (Click to Enlarge)
Perhaps one of the coolest electronic instruments of all time... the original Moog prototype from Herb Deutsch, 1964, Photo: Dan Forbes (Click to Enlarge)
The Super Soaker prototype. An accidental water blast turned success, 1989 (Click to Enlarge)
The Super Soaker prototype. An accidental water blast turned success, 1989, Photo: Dan Forbes (Click to Enlarge)
One slab of plywood and a dream. The original

If anything, this is a testament to not letting your idea die a slow death.

See the rest at Wired

Author

Josh is founder and editor at SolidSmack.com, founder at Aimsift Inc., and co-founder of EvD Media. He is involved in engineering, design, visualization, the technology making it happen, and the content developed around it. He is a SolidWorks Certified Professional and excels at falling awkwardly.