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Ben Light’s Wobble Bot is a working, motorized toy assembled from a pineapple can, a spice container, and a weighted half-sphere—not just a decorative can craft. A 555-timer circuit powers a DC motor, whose off-center wheel makes the robot wobble. The build is a substantial maker project: Make: rates it moderate, estimates 38 hours, and lists a $0–$50 price range. Those figures are the project page’s estimates, not a measured time study or a current cost quote.
The project page displays February 17, 2016, and February 1, 2023, without clarifying which is the original publication date and which is an update. See Ben Light’s Wobble Bot project on Make: for the illustrated instructions.
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How the Wobble Bot works
The robot’s motion comes from a motor with an eccentric wheel: its off-center rotation shakes the body. A 555 Timer IC and the other listed circuit parts are assembled on circular perfboard and connected to the motor and a potentiometer. The head turns on the potentiometer shaft, letting the user adjust the robot, while the quantity and weight of washers in the weighted base may need tuning to get the desired wobble.
The main assemblies are the head, body, coupling ring, and bottom half-sphere. The ring joins the can to the weighted base and also supports the perfboard. The battery sits under the board, so the tutorial cautions builders to plan component placement and avoid connections along the center strip that could short against it.
Rank #2
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Parts and tools to plan for
Project parts
Make: lists the following materials and components. It does not specify every component model or electrical rating, so confirm compatibility from the tutorial and component documentation rather than assuming a particular specification.
- Circuit: potentiometer, DC toy motor, 555 Timer IC, two 0.1 µF capacitors, TIP120 transistor, voltage regulator, 9V battery and connector, male headers, circular perfboard, and jumper wires with connectors.
- Body and mechanism: pineapple can (listed as 3.35 inches in diameter by 2 inches tall), half-sphere food form, spice container, knob, motor mount, plastic wheel, O-ring, machine screws, washers, nuts, and coupling-ring material.
- Weighted base and controls: lamp weight, threaded nipple, lamp nuts, a bracket, and an adjustable candelabra socket or suitable strip metal for a bracket.
- Finishing: plastic vellum is listed as an optional material for the eye holes; paint is an alternative to powder coating.
Tools and skills
The listed tools include a hand drill and bits, center finder, smooth-edge can opener, metal lathe, 4-40 and 6-32 taps, powder-coating gun, glue gun, screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers, soldering iron, and solder. The project combines drilling, machining, soldering, and mechanical assembly. If you lack a lathe, Light says smaller weights can be used in place of lathe-modified ones.
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Rank #3
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Choose a coupling-ring approach
The ring needs to fit both the can and the half-sphere, with enough height to join the body and support the perfboard. Light gives approximate fits of about 3.2 inches for the can and about 3.1 inches for the half-sphere, and suggests an overall ring size of 3.45 inches in diameter by 1.25 inches high. These are project-specific approximations; the tutorial notes that actual dimensions may vary, so measure your containers before making the ring.
| Approach | What it involves | Practical consideration |
|---|---|---|
| Turn machinable plastic on a lathe | Machine the ring to fit the containers and board. | Requires a lathe. Light found the machinable plastic finicky and says it melted somewhat; he would likely choose Delrin if making the ring again. |
| 3D print | Make the ring as a printed part. | Requires a suitable printer and a design sized to the measured containers. The project page does not report comparative performance testing. |
| Stack laser-cut rings | Build the ring by stacking cut layers. | Requires access to laser cutting and careful assembly. The project page does not compare its strength or fit with the other approaches. |
Build and assemble the robot
- Prepare the can. Clean the pineapple can, remove its label, and drill the openings needed for the motor, wiring, and attachment to the coupling ring. Use a smooth-edge can opener as listed, and handle cut metal edges carefully.
- Make the coupling ring. Turn, print, or stack the ring, checking its fit against your actual can and half-sphere rather than relying only on the approximate dimensions.
- Prepare the weighted base. Drill the half-sphere for its connection to the ring. Install the lamp weight, washers, threaded nipple, and lamp nuts inside it. The tutorial allows smaller weights where the original weight needs lathe work; washer quantity can be adjusted to tune the motion.
- Build the motor assembly. Fit the motor in its modified plastic mount. The wheel, O-ring, screw, washers, and nut form the eccentric mechanism that produces the wobble.
- Mount the controls and make the head. Attach the potentiometer and switch with a bracket made from a repurposed adjustable candelabra socket bracket or bent strip metal. Make the head from the spice container and attach a knob to the potentiometer shaft. Drill eye holes; vellum behind them is optional.
- Assemble and wire the circuit. Populate the circular perfboard with the listed circuit parts and connect it to the motor and potentiometer. Position components with the battery beneath the board in mind, and avoid center-strip connections that could cause a short.
- Test before closing the base. Check that the motor operates before closing the weighted half-sphere. Then join the head, body, ring, and base, and adjust the number or weight of washers if needed.
- Finish the exterior. Powder coating is one option; Light also suggests painting instead. Choose a finish appropriate to your materials and equipment.
Finishing choices and adaptations
The project leaves room to adapt fabrication to the tools available: the coupling ring can be turned, 3D printed, or built from stacked laser-cut rings; a bracket can be bent from strip metal; and smaller weights can replace lathe-modified ones. These are alternatives described by the project, not tested head-to-head methods. For surface finish, powder coating and paint are both named options; choose based on the equipment and materials you have.
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Light credits Dustyn Roberts’ Making Things Move, pages 159–162, as a major influence on the circuit. His invitation to adapt the build is apt: “There is a lot of machining and electronics work in this project, so feel free to tweak the robot recipe if you have better ideas or techniques.”
Quick Recap
Best Value
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- 📚STEM Educational Toys: The robot set for kids ages 8+ combines the fun of STEM learning. It encourages hands-on learning and early programming as they build, which can spark creativity and imagination and provide hours of screen-free play
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- 🛠️Clear & Colorful Instructions: This robot kit includes 488 pieces, with clear, colorful step-by-step instructions to make assembly easy. Kids can build their own robots independently or with family, enjoying quality time together
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