A Maker's Guide to Creating Modern Artifacts - Steampunk Gear

The ideas are interesting, and I believe the steps that need to be followed to get the goggles of your dreams are explained quite well and detailed, however I did not realise that a fully equipped garage with hecksaws, welding tools and other heavy equipment for metal cutting and processing are necessary. So, I have to say, unfortunately, it is quite useless for me.

While Mr Willeford does some amazing work, this book is NOT IT. I was hoping for something new and different but found very few projects and nothing special. There is nothing contained in this book you cannot find or find better for free online. Overall, sorely disappointed.

This is not an introductory craft book for newbies to Steampunk. Many of the pieces are very advanced and while the steps are detailed, they are still not designed for people who do not regularly use clock pieces and tools to make costume pieces. I will probably resell the book, since I am not skilled enough to replicate the costume pieces.

I purchased this book hoping it would give more tips on how to find and identify items, parts or junk that can be used to craft steam punk items. It did have a bit on that subject, but it was mostly a how to guide, on building several projects presented in the book. The projects are an awesome guide on how to modify materials to fit together and to create new items from single parts.

Steampunk Gear, Gadgets, and Gizmos ; A Maker's Guide to Creating Modern Artifacts by Thomas Willeford has a stated intention of teaching you to make you own retro futuristic accessories.

This is the book you're looking for if you're ready to take that next step into steampunk. If jewelry collage assemblages made with watch parts and sewing miniature top hats isn't doing it for you and you want to go bigger.

The author starts by explaining a bit about steampunk, it's origins and what it is stylistically speaking, and also what it is not.

He explains the tools and skills you'll need and how to find some of the tools less expensively . He tells you what tools will be necessary and which tools are wonderful to have if you can find room and afford them.

Then he goes into wonderful amounts of detail about how to find the pieces you need for your projects through thrift stores and other second hand dealers and what you can buy new. How to look in hardware stores for inspiration and using things in new unexpected ways. To me, this isn't just about steampunk, but it's the heart of crafting and the D.I.Y. ethic, to see creatively how things can be re-purposed and recycled.

A very practical chapter on taking apart an old clock for parts comes next.

The projects! Starting with the one thing everyone needs, goggles and ending with a cyber arm that looks like it might have come off a cylon if the cylon was built in Victoria's England. They have imagination inspiring names like "Aetheric Ray Deflector Solid Brass Goggles" which can be just a little scary. Don't worry. While this book has "only" 8 projects, those projects are explained and photographed in exhausting detail. This is a primer to various methods of making things and using things. The information will be used in other projects you think of yourself.

Some power tools are helpful, as well as knowing how to use them. If you're not comfortable with serious tools, almost everything in the book can be done with hand held manual tools and small easy to use power tools like rotary tools and power drills.

What I like most about this book is how much it inspires my 20 year old son. He's been reading steampunk for a few years and getting more interested in making himself costumes and other things that follow that aesthetic.

I definitely recommend this book. It's well written and accessible with great projects.

My reviews are always my personal and honest opinion. I received this book for free from the publisher for review purposes because of my interest in steampunk.

I stumbled into "Steampunk" while shopping for Victorian clothing for another reason and when I did, I felt like I'd fallen into something familiar: that insane and wonderful creativity that always stirs me. At once I thought this is what the Victorian sensibility looks like applied to modern science fiction. (Or the work of a 19th century Steve Jobs?) I was hooked. I've you've ever wanted to participate in that fantasy world, costumes are easy to come by, but ACCESSORIES? Not always so.

If you're visiting this page, then you're already probably one of the people who love Steampunk. If you want to join in and look your best at a Steampunk gathering or other costume event, then you'll love this book. If you've ever been the kid on the block that had the coolest junk drawer for making STUFF out of, you'll love it. (Today, my "junk drawer" is in categorized plastic shoe boxes on my studio shelves.) And if you're relatively handy at "making stuff," you're absolutely going to flip out over this book.

This book will serve you no matter what your skill levels. If you try even one of these, your skills will increase. Wandering through a crafts and hardware stores, flea markets and yard sales will never be the same as you develop "the eye" for things that you can turn into Steampunk accessories. The author's advice about scavenging for parts and his tips on the use of tools you might not have known about is superb. Although you can create the objects in the book following the directions, the true value of it is opening your mind to possibilities for accessories of your own design. I've been an artist for my whole life, and now have my work in two art museums, but while reading this book, I discovered tools and techniques that I never knew about or thought about, and probably can't do without now.

Soon you'll be at an event and hiding your 21st century iPhone in a "Tesla-pod chrono-static field generator" rather than have new technology destroy your "look."

The gouts of steam and mysterious clanking and grinding noises that emanate from the infernal workshop of Thomas Willeford, aka Lord Archibald "Feathers" Featherstone at all hours must intrigue his neighbors. What goes on in the mad scientist's secret lair? Let's sneak a peek.
Willeford, whose background includes an education in physics, Victorian history, and art, sets down easy to follow instructions on how to build eight gorgeous objects any steampunk worth his brass will treasure. In these pages, the author lends his considerable expertise in a way that allows the reader to assemble these "beautiful and slightly dangerous things" without the need for years of experience in machining, metal and leather working, or an engineering degree. We get detailed designs, as well as advice on how to engage our own creativity to make unique and personal objets d'art. My personal favorite are the "Aetheric Ray Deflector Solid Brass Goggles." If you're the tinkering sort, you likely have some of the necessary parts for the goggles lying around the house right now. Obviously, results may vary depending on the skill of the reader, but this stuff is fun regardless of the outcome.
The author provides handy lists of materials and tools needed for each project while keeping in mind that, unlike Lord Featherstone, most of us have neither a mad scientist's workshop, nor an army of steam-powered mechanical men to assist us. There is a list of basic and inexpensive tools to get each job done, as well as a list of "alternative tools" for those who may have access to a better-equipped workshop.
There's a chapter on how and where to scavenge parts for your projects, another on salvaging gears from old clocks, and more on how and where to find the right tools.
There are no hard and fast rules for creating steampunk objects. It's an art, and these things can be functioning devices as well as Hollywood-quality props. Workmanship and quality are what set the real steampunk apart. Willeford steers us in the right direction with simple guidance such as using metal instead of plastic, screws instead of glue, and shows how it's all done with clear color photographs of each project. There's even a pretty good bibliography in the back for reading and viewing entitled "This Way Lies Madness."
This is a beautifully realized maker's guide as well as a thoughtful commentary on creativity from an accomplished artist.

“Steampunk: Gear, Gadgets and Gizmos” with sub-title: “A Maker’s Guide to Creating Modern Artifacts” by Thomas Willeford. McGrawHill, NY 2012. ISBN- 978-0-07-176236-6. SC, 222 Pgs. 10 ¾”x 8 ½”.

This book is hard to digest: its sufficiently vague, authoritarian, and so overly detailed as to make a tool-maker cringe, - nothing is left to the imagination or departure from the rigid design of the maker – yep, we’ve got to drive the original Model T or perish/there is no room for departure from a true Victorian aged Willeford. Although encouraged to be brave and innovative in your machinations, the text is foreboding with numerous “hints” and “notes” that appear to admonish any so brazen as to depart a micron from this Gospel.

The cover design is what sells this “how to” magazine that is dedicated to fine details as disassembling a Mi Ken cuckoo clock, how to use a monkey wrench to undo a nut and use a crow foot pry tool, etc. These parts are for use by makers whose titles are Modders and Assemblagers. Appendix e (For the Brilliant but Mathematically Challenged Mad Scientist) provides 3 full pages of arithmetic conversions from fraction & decimals to mm., 4 places beyond the decimal so we are assured that the fraction 15/16 is decimal 0.9375 or 23.8125 mm. or vice versa.
There may be disagreement with what constitutes the first piece of Steampunk: Willeford states it was the ’65 pilot episode of The Wild Wild West and opines “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea”, a novel written in 1869 and made into a movie in 1954 was written as a novel.

Steampunk remains as a relatively highly imaginative, curious, and highly creative art-form that appeals mainly to those with a creative ”what-if” mind-set extending beyond unnamed gadgets, fashions of wearing apparel, sculpture, and art. What purpose does Steampunk creation play in our technical world is largely appreciation of technical improvisations either witnessed or observed in our museums. Herein lies a certain charm, wit and perhaps chuckle in displaying one’s Steampunk creations or, for those copying of another’s creations. Lets not forget to include that important degree of seriousness that occasioned its original inspiration and/or purchase!

Finis

I've been active in the Steampunk community for a couple of years now, and I think this book is AMAZING. The projects and techniques here are real, hardcore modding, not cheesy craft stuff. I think anyone interested in steampunk should own this book. I'm probably not even going to make any of the projects in the book, but I still have learned a lot from it. And although you can learn some of these techniques from free online tutorials, I've never seen ANY How-to that is as detailed and clear. This really is step-by-step, without skipping any of even the smallest steps. I'm in LOVE with this book.

For anyone who wants to know the essence of what "steampunk" is, look no further. Brute Force Studios is a pioneer of the genre, creating do-it-yourself marvels that really catch the eye. Remarkably, they share some of the secrets of their creativity in this book, hopefully the first of many, teaching the intrepid reader how to replicate amazing "modern artifacts" with inexpensive parts.

Each chapter is prefaced with a short story, bringing the reader into the fiction before demonstrating the tricks behind the magic. Instructions for each project are laid out step-by-step, including recommendations for tools and sources for raw materials, even alternative suggestions for less-commonplace pieces.

Most of us don't have a lathe for tooling brass parts nor watchmaker kits, and Thomas Willeford shows that we really don't need them to be true DIY engineers: all of these projects can be done with common tools, patience, and imagination. Have fun, and please only use this book for good. Or if not for good, for SCIENCE!

Willeford provides a wonderful analysis of the entire process of DIY costuming within the Steampunk genre (what he calls subculture). Beginning with a definition of exactly what Steampunk is, how it functions, and ways to jump start your own imagination. He provides a wonderful breakdown of where to find pieces, what you might need and how to begin the process of re purposing items. Willeford does a fantastic job of differentiating what tools are required for a project and which are time savers. All of the projects in the book are designed to be completed with tools that most people would already have available. The projects themselves range from the most basic flight goggles to the most complex "Replacement Arm with Gatling Gun." But each project is well explained with step by step instructions each accompanied by detailed photographs. Interspersed among these are tips, notes and cautions. All of this is tied together with Willeford's wonderfully engaging prose and slightly dark/sarcastic humor.

Final Thought: Definitely a great book. Even if you are not interested in the actually making these projects, Willeford's writing style and passion for his subject is engaging and wonderfully entertaining.

Ok, the choices offered above don't really fit this work. It isn't fiction. It is a fun introduction to Steampunk projects that anyone can create with a little time and effort. The book is written in a way that is fun and informative and extremely enjoyable to read. For someone new to Steampunk, the book has lessons on just about any accessory one could want to incorporate into their presentment. For the experienced Steampunk enthusiast it may seem basic on the surface, but there are lots of little tricks and tops included which crafters of any level will benefit from.

I have an autographed copy, and am very pleased it is a part of my library.
Highly recommend it.

I have the pleasure of running several Steampunk events, and have had the further pleasure of getting to know Mr. Willeford, and he brings the same level of craftsmanship, humor, and excellence to his writing as he does to all of his other works. This book is highly recommended for anyone looking to make really amazing looking steampunk accessories for very cheap, as well as people just looking to expand their range of DIY skills.

Easy to read and easy to follow, great for making small things or if your more adventurous, take a stab at the bigger projects. Mr. Willeford is an excellent craftsman, writer and Steampunk, sharing is knowledge with the rest of us. Also great for just a read, with quirky stories and a great sense of originality. If you are fortunate to meet the great Lord Featherstone himself then you'll see you there are so many people who think so highly of him......great stuff....looking forward to a next book?

If you have Thomas Willeford's other steampunk crafting book, The Steampunk Adventurers Guide, and are looking for more with just a tiny bump in a challenge, then this is the book for you. Willeford once again proves that he is an authority on steampunk crafting, and with this book you will have an excellent resource on items for yourself or loved ones who enjoy the world of steampunk!

This book is ***** Great for Complex Costume Steampunk.
I wanted great complex jewelry type steampunk.
Just didn't help me at all.

For Jewelry Steampunk I found Steampunkery: Polymer Clay and Mixed Media Projects.

Christi Friesen has a friendly, easy to read style with fun items.
It's step by step with pictures in color.
Very good for beginners.
It's a lot cheaper.

You'll be inspired.
I ended up buying all her books.

I have made several of the projects in this book, and I love it! There are a few items listed to use, but Mr. Willeford makes it easy to either substitute with something else, using my own creativity, or providing the object. For example, the brass plumbing piece used to make the goggles is difficult to find, so he posted on his Facebook page that he would sell that piece! Also, the cannon on the helmet decoration can be substituted with a different item, or you can find a how-to video on YouTube of Mr. W showing how to make a mini cannon out of a brass rod! How awesome is that!

Also, the book has great information on Steampunk. I used the book as a reference for my research paper. Thomas is a great writer, artist, person, and I can't say enough good about him. :D

There were only about 5 or 6 different steampunk items in this book. I was expecting a book full of different ideas but this was very project specific and if you are not a builder or trade person you probably don't have the kind of tools you would need to complete any of these projects. I sold it at a garage sale for a dollar

I had gotten into Steampunk, somewhat, a few years ago. The concept always fascinated me as I grew up a Jules Verne and H.G. Wells fan. Their world of ideas was far-reaching, with wonderous concepts of what the future could be like, from a Victorian perspective. It's really remarkable how some of those concepts eventually materialized (portable wireless communication devices, flying machines, trips into outer space, etc.). The world of Steampunk brings much of that awe and wonder in design to our current modern world. It's nice to see the great "days gone by" living in front of us again. Sometimes, we must remember to give respect to our past, and sometimes, that past may have still bee the best or classiest way.

This book - Steampunk Gear, Gadgets, And Gizmos - is a great look at the designs, and means to create and build your own, Steampunk styled stuff. Very detailed, and nicely put together. I think it had some 16 creation projects, and some other examples. If you're a Steampunk fan - either long term or just getting into it - this book is a nice start into the world of Victorian modernism. Plenty of enjoyment from it.