Electronic games & toys you can build

130 Pages·1961·16.592 MB·English

by  Len Buckwalter

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by
IENB UCKWAITTN
HolvARD \Y. sAMs & CO., INC.
THE BOBBS.MERRILLC OMPANY' INC.
l ia"dloli! . Neu YolA
FIRST SDITION
FINST PNINTINC. OCTOBER,I 9€I
SECONDP RINTINC_ AUCUST, 1962
THIRD PRINTING_ MAY, 1964
FOURTH PRINTING-MAY, 1965
FIFTH PRINTINC_ JUNE, 1965
ELECTRONICG AMESA ND TOYS
YOU CAN BUILD
CoprrightO 1961b y Iloward W, Sams& Co., Ine., Indian-
aoolis,I ndiaDa.P rintedj n the Unitcd Stateso f Americo.
All rights reselved. Reploduction or use, without expressp er-
nilsior, of edilorial or pictodal content, in Eny mann€r, is pro-
hibited, No paient liability is a$umed with respect to th€ use
of the irfohntion @ntaiDedh erein.
Library of CongessC atalogC ard Nunber. 81-17917
1
l
PREFACN
Visit a large electrcnic exhibition which featuresa
giant computer,a nd you'll ffnd peoples tandingi n line
to play tick-tack-toe against the electronic "biain "
What specialf Ncination attractsb oth professionael n-
ginecl rnd layman to electronicg amcs?T he answer,
we suspect,i s thc sameo ne that has m:rde gamesa
pop lar pastimc for 2,000y ears-a challengingc ombi
Dationo f skill and chance.
What electronicsc an add to a gameo r toy is a spe_
cial "flavor" of its own. Electron currentsa re invisible,
and travel near tbe speedo f light-they can start, stop,
split, and control witlin a b cf instant. With th€se
qualities,a game such as the "Electronic Card Trick"
managedt o conforrnda gr'oupo f ffve engineolsw llo
work with thesc p nciples daily. The "Mind Readnrg
Act," wl ch usesa n extremelys imple setup,h as con_
sistcntlyc reatcda stattliDgi llusion of mental telepathy
wlrenp , rlormedi r hont ol cn audience
Thc list lengthenst o includep rojectsw hich will chal-
lengey our mentala nd physicals kills.T here are gadgets
for grorp eDtertainment, or foi the amusement of chil-
dren-all easily constructedi n an evedng or two. In
each case,t he novelty is made possibleb y the remark-
able performance of an electronic circuit.
In general, the more easily constructed projects are
located in the earlier chapters. If vou havc never con-
structed _an electronic ddvicq you'll do better if you
start with one of these, Then you can progress to more
diftcult ones, Any of the units will provide you with
many hours of eniolment and relaxation, and for a
very small cost.
LeN Bucxwer,ren
September,1 96I
I
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
ConsbuctionT echniques
The toob and palts required pluE helpful hldts Io! builtl-
ing the prcjecis in this book.
CHAPTER2
T€st Your Nerve
Seeh ow stesdy yout neNes elFed mtch youB agaiEt
othen'-with ihb easy-to-conatruci 8Efte,
CHAPTER3
ReactionT imer 20
Ce you reaci faster than you! frlen&? You'll know wh€n
you try out the rtTime!."
CHAPTER4
Crack the Combinetion
125d lfeEnt combtnatioE are po$iblHnd it's aU legal.
CHAPTER5
Penny Pitch 34
This gM€ give! the old cahival standby a new ele.tronlc
touch.
CHAITER 6
blecuomc uard lncl( 40
Amaze you Iridds {lth ihi! "Electrcnic BEin," which
helps you picL the li8llt carib every time.
CHA?TEN 7
The-Flipper".
Is b6eba1l o! bssLetba[ your game? You ce practice
both€d the lnipper'' tbross th€ b5l1 fo! you.
CHAPTER 8
Th€ Maze 59
A tesf of mental ability, with a buzzer to tell you when
CHAPTER9
Spdce Shot 66
A new and hodem toy wiih lwo satellites that ffght it out
CIIAPTER 1O
MovingM ouse
A lemoie-contlol1ed ioy thai will delighl childlen of aU
CTIAPTERI ]
Party"PoopcI"
Build ihis "gadget" and he the life oI the palty-Iunctions
as e lie detetor. kiss-o-mete.. or handshake tester.
CIIAPTER1 !
Countdown 89
How'sy our senseo f timing?O neo r iwo canl it rheir skill
againsit his elechoDici iher,
CHAPTER1 3
Fjnd tho Airport
Thir game le{3 you navigate under "visibilily-zero" co!-
ditions-uses a radio beacon to guide you to the "air!orl."
CHAPTER1 4
Mind-ReadingA ct . 105
Amaze your fri€nds with your renalkable mind-readse
CHAPTER1 5
TreasureH ut . 112
search lor "buried trcasure" with this electrcnic detector.
CHAPTER1 6
The "Musitrod 191
A deliEhiii nusicsl insttument for children when they
can get i, away lrcm thei I)arenis!
] CONSTRUCTION
Ttr'TJATIA| ftr C
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You can brrilcl a lot of i terestinge lectronicg ames
and toys with just a piece of board, somes imple tools,
anclr coupleo f radio parts.E ven if yorr'ven ever) rrrilta
kit or wiled a crystal sct, you will ffnd the projcctsi n
this book sirnplet o btild and lrrn to [so. Thoy progloss
from casily Rssel bled ur)its in early chapterst o morc
complcxo nesD eart he end.I f you area completen ovicc,
try oneo f thu rrrorcb csic' rnitsS |'stT. ]'en.e \ yo pein
pronciencyi ll wiling and followiug instructioN, tackle
a mole advanccdc irclrit. Nlrmerolrsi llustrations-de-
sigled to aiswer's tch qrestionsa sw heret o plocep arts,
how to wire then togetlrer,a nd how to check out the
conncctiorN-ares plinkledt hroughoute achc hapter.
Schematicd iaglams,a nd explanationso Jh ow the cir-
cuits operute ar'e included for the benefit of thos€ who
are more experiencedE. ach chapter contains all the
informatior yorr need to assemblet he unit described.
Thus,t he experiencedb rdlder can start anywhere,g ov-
erned only by his interest and ability.
7
It's best to rcad over the complete chapter ffrst. Olten
a sedeso f st€ps will be madec learb y a statementn ear
the end of a description. The photos and drawings can
savey ou much time by servinga sa gdde to partsp lace-
ment and hookrD.
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All of the games and to|s in this book can be consttucted.
dlh iust the simple toob shoun here.
8
TOOLS
Little in the way of toolsi s required,T he basicc om-
plement should include a soldering iron or gun of ap-
proximately 100 watts, pliers, screwdrivers,a nd vire
cutters.A ddll (either the "eggb eatei' or elect c t)'pe)
and a saw will alsob e needed.T he wolk will go more
smoothly if you have a ffle and hand reamer for en,
larging holes.
Be sure to use rosin-cores oldero nly, which is made
speciffcallyfo r radio and TV use.T he acid-cores older
used in sheet-metalw ork will conode the leads. A
60%t i]-4l7' Iead solder is recommended-just ask for
"80/40."
No electronict est equipment is neededt o build or
adjust any project. However, in one or two placesa n
ohmmeter is suggestedf or determining whether the
connectionso n a part (usuallya coil) arec o ect. If you
don't o*n one,p erhapsa radio amateuro r other person
interestedi n €lectronics will check the part for you.
CAPACT ORS
rinl-
Pttts do not hane to be eractl! the same as those specifed.
For etumple, yz-uatt resistors arc specilied.,b ut hager @att-
agesu ill uork i6t as ueIL Li.keuise, capacitols malt be ang
tUpe as long as the oal e is coftect an(I the ooltaee ratine
is sufr.ci.ent.