Making Simple Automata

Features and reviews in Crafts Magazine, British Toymakers Guild Newsletter and Toymaking magazine. Reviews in Craft & Design, Crafts Beautiful and Workshop on the Web.

Magic - an unanalyzable charm, a strong fascination so that the whole is more than the sum of its parts.Designing and making successful automata involves combining materials, mechanisms and magic. Making Simple Automata book explains how to design and construct small scale, simple mechanical devices made for fun. Materials such as paper and card, wood, wire, tinplate and plastics are covered along with mechanisms - levers and linkages, cranks and cams, wheels, gears, pulleys, springs, ratchets and pawls. This wonderful book is illustrated with examples throughout and explains the six golden rules for making automata alongside detailed step-by-step projects.