Bridging Nashville fab work to fixing life-support on Mars. CNC hacks and quick fixes that could build a home off-world. I'm Jimmie Williams, and this is where I share the stuff I make, the mistakes I learn from, and the dreams I'm building.
Andre Henriquez showed me the joint that breathes—not a metaphor, a mortise 0.002" deeper than the tenon. I took that 0.002" spec and scaled it to Ti-6Al-4V for Mars solstice thermal swings. At 112°C delta-T, a 3m bracket grows 2.94mm. Rigid welds crack. This joint accommodates.
2019, Nashville fab shop. Tried to weld a bracket for a custom bike frame, rushed the cooling, and the metal warped like a cheap plastic toy. Had to start over, but learned the "slow-cook" method for steel. Now I use this for colony brackets too — patience is the real tool.
Designed for easy swap in zero-g. Slides together like Lego but holds 500kg. Same as Project Hail Mary engineering fixes. I've been testing these with Mars dust simulations and thermal cycles.
Simulated Mars dust and thermal cycles. Held 120% load without warp. Same tolerances as my shop brackets, just gotta tweak the alloy. The dust from the shop floor taught me more than any textbook.
That first time I dropped a bolt because I didn't torque it right taught me more than any class. Numbers don't lie, but you gotta learn to listen. Check out the story and the tools I use now.
Working on more videos, maybe some live demos at Exit/In. If you're into making things, or you just want to learn how to fix stuff without breaking it, check back here. I'll post updates when I get new stuff going.
Got a "First [Something]" story? Hit me up on the timeline. Let's swap war stories.