I was poking around in the box of junk in the linen press in preparation for cleaning it out when I came across the bits and pieces of this old toy jet.
Now, I knew they were there, I just hadn’t got around to doing anything about them but on a whim I decided to put them back together.
This jet was one I had made as a teenager. If I remember correctly, I found some sheet metal at the tip and brought it home. I can’t remember my design process but maybe I made a mockup with cardboard. I also suspect I did some of the work at school because I can’t see how I would have been able to make the neat bends without access to a bending machine.
The original had a collection of LEDs powered by a 9v battery and a digital watch mechanism in the instrument panel.
Some time ago I had tried rewiring the jet but clearly hadn’t finished and when I tried turning it on nothing was working. I stripped out the circuitry and put the jet back together without it.
Which of course got me wondering. Could I make a reproduction? I have the metal. The challenge will be making the bends, but with the right clamping, who knows? And could I bring the model into the 21st century? The nose area has more than enough room for a Raspberry Pi Pico. The Instrument panel is large enough to fit an OLED display. The engine area could easily house a couple of lithium ion batteries.
Add an accelerometer and some code to make the instrument display interactive and, who knows? Might be a fun little project. It will need some thought.