[Shark Bait (Stu)]

My main motivation for dabbling in electronics is to construct the dew controller that Al Sheeny has detailed in the Projects & Articles section of the IIS forum. To get there I have picked Jaycar Electronics Short Circuits #1 series and two of the project kits from Short Circuits #2 series. I had never used a soldering iron before, so it took a little while to get the technique right.

Our eldest wanted to be a Dalek, so the first kit was 'Sound like a Dalek'. It works really well and is spot on, especially when run through the guitar amp. Lots of Dr Who goodness. I wanted to run it through the Aux jack on the car stereo to turn the family wagon into the TARDIS but the fun police (SWMBO) canned that idea.

The second was the 3 Digit Counter to use with the slot car racing set (photo attached). With the addition of a reed switch it will automatically count the number of laps and after few small errors we have it up and running.

Each little success gives the confidence to move onto a slightly more complicated task. It is great fun and working through Series #1 is a good way to spend time with my Son and learn some basic electronics as well.

Thanks to all member of IIS who have provided information regarding their electronic projects. It was the main source of encouragement prior to taking the plunge into the 'dark arts'.