Tron's online!

Yup, this is Me!

...with my head in outlet of a jet engine. But this engine is gonna be bolted to Bloodhound SSC! So that makes my gormless expression ok....right?

So I thought it was about time I got myself a blog, to document all my project and basically share them online, and hopefully part some wisdom to those looking for help on similar projects.

I'm an electronic engineer, budding mechanic, proud father & general tinkerer. My tinkering goes as far back as deconstructing the family toilet cistern.... at the age of 4! Fortunately, my parents stopped me before I caused the house to be flooded. But I was really curious as to how it worked!

Since then, I've left a lot of dismantled things in my wake, most of them went back together again ok....

What I'm doing now.....

Since leaving Uni. with my electronics degree, I've done a lot of jobs:

• Fixed welding equipment
• Been a Lab Technician for a computer science department
• Technician for a company that builds underwater R.O.V's and Submarines
• Operator and Technician for a Ferris Wheel (like London eye, only smaller. Nothing like swaying 80ft in the air at 6am, counting split pins on each spoke of the wheel!)

Right now I'm working on some cool stuff to do with protein and veterinary allergy analysers.

My Electronics skills are somewhat geared toward, analog and linear circuits. I am REALLY experienced with EAGLE and as part of my job, I design PCB's to exacting standards, so I know my way around a circuit board!

About a year ago, I learnt about the Arduino  platform. My Micro-controller skills at the time were, well....crap. I could read C-code, but not very well.

After buying my first Arduino starter kit and a copy of Getting Started with Arduino, I was bang up to speed and really impressed with how versatile the platform was! It opened up a new range of projects that I had stuck in my head, but had no way of bringing it to life.

By looking at projects on hack-a-day,  I got the inspiration to get my arse into gear, AND BUILD SOMETHING!

So why has it taken me nearly a year to get my first project here....

Well in June 2012, my son Hugo was born, and since then I've been concentrating looking after him! Both him and my girlfriend Georgina, are the the best things in my life.

What else am I up to.....

As mentioned, I am a budding mechanic. During a spell of brief depression, I remembered my mate was building a trails off-road vehicle. I am a keen petrol head and pretty good at wiring so offered my services to help.

In turn for electrical know-how, I was taught the ins and outs of repairing and maintaining land rovers and how to weld properly.

Since then I got hooked so bought my own Trails vehicle! A bit of wiring, a few lights added, and some wing-mirrors bolted on, it was on the road in no time....and then back off it!

I'll be posting another blog about the vehicles I helped build at a later date.

Well that me roughly in a nutshell. I hope to update regularly!