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Leatt MTB 1.0 DH v21 Full Face Helmet Review: Value Oriented Protection

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In late January 2021, Leatt unveiled in their lineup a new entry level downhill helmet, the MTB 1.0 DH. It comes in 5 different colors, and MSRPs at exactly $100. I was in the market for a full face helmet to supplement my regular half shell, and after looking at a few options, I decided on this one for its price and certifications. This helmet was purchased late February, 2021.  TLDR Pros: ASTM F1952-10 Downhill Certified, a rarity at this price point Amazing price for protection Cons: Comparably heavy, poor ventilation Decent construction, although some corners cut in build and functionality Should You Buy It? If you're looking for an affordable downhill full face helmet, this is the helmet to get. However, temper your expectations on weight and ventilation, as it's still only a $100 helmet when most DH helmets are $200+, and compromises had to be made somewhere.  Stats I picked up the XL model (61-62cm) in Steel Gray, so these specs are based off that size. Certifications: 
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Quick Review: Pittsburgh Automatic Center Punch

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The Pittsburgh Automatic Center Punch is a cheap automatic center punch found at Harbor Freight. Like other automatic center punches, you simply press the handle down on the place you'd like to punch a mark, and an internal spring loaded hammer will drive the tip into the workpiece.  Construction The construction of the center punch is quite solid, and the solid brass handle feels weighty in the hand. The tip is relatively sharp and made of Chrome Vanadium steel, and is more than hard enough for marking most materials. The knurling on the handle offers a good grip. The handle can unscrew into three parts, which allows the user to replace the tip or any other internal components.  Disassembled punch Build quality is pretty good considering the price. The entire handle was turned on a lathe based on the machining marks left over, and the threads and knurling are clean. While there's a few marks and marring on the brass handle, it's not that bad, and is nearly unnoticeable unl
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A Novel Pneumatic Nerf Blaster Mechanism - Recoil Operated Action

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A semi-automatic mag-in-grip Nerf pistol has long been the holy grail in Nerf design. Fortunately, the hobby has come to a point where mag-in-grip pistols are now possible. While many are electronic and rely on tiny flywheels, very few are air powered due to many engineering challenges. This is a prototype design I'm working on that aims to solve some of those challenges in an unusual way. Difficulties with Pneumatic Nerf Pistols So why is it so difficult to design a semi-automatic Nerf pistol? There's a couple of obstacles which make it different and more challenging compared to a larger form factor blaster like a rifle. Dart Size Dart size is a huge constraint to Nerf design. Before the popularization of half darts, it was impossible to fit a magazine in the grip due to the darts being nearly 3 inches long. Half darts make it possible at last for magazines to be able to be held in the grip. Even still, the darts are larger than one of the largest pistol calibers, the .50AE, a
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Modding the Nerf Rapidstrike - A Budget, 16DPS Build

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The Nerf Rapidstrike is one of Nerf's fully automatic flywheel magfed blasters. Released in 2013, it was the first fully automatic flywheel blaster in Nerf's stable, and it remains one of the premier modding platforms for fire rate. While there have been other full auto blasters released later on like the Hyperfire, the Rapidstrike is more preferred for modding because of the pusher system, which can be pushed to very high fire rates without skipping darts, which the conveyor belt systems in later blasters are wont to do.  Target and Parts I am targeting a very budget build, utilizing relatively affordable components compared to what's out there. Battery will be 3S to maintain commonality with my Stryfe, as I plan on using that as my only battery. FPS will be in the 150-ish range, if not slightly lower to stay within the FPS limits of our local group. Fire rate will be as high as possible, and the highest I have seen so far is around 16DPS. Now that's not practical at a
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SE Mesa LW Spec Design

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  LW Spec Front End Coming in at 1.05kg (2.3lb), the original Mesa blaster isn't exactly a heavyweight, but it's no featherlight either, especially compared to other Nerf blasters. There are always benefits in lightness, so it makes sense to try and lighten the Mesa a bit. I'd be happy to get it under 2 pounds, or .91 kilograms. Planned Modifications Since most of the back half of the blaster is pretty buttoned up, there wasn't much I could do in the back to save weight. Thus most of my weight savings came from the front. Now this does affect the center of mass of the blaster to bias it a bit towards the rear, but that seemed like an acceptable change for a few reasons. For one, a lighter front made it a little more maneuverable, as there's less inertia when turning. Also, I wanted to add some side rails for more accessories, which would have cancelled out the weight savings in the front and biased the center of mass anyways.  In the entire blaster, the 3D printed c
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Electric Mountainboard Build Part 8: Summary

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It has been an incredible journey getting the board built, from the initial planning months ago to the relatively quick build time within last month. Almost everything deviated from the original plan at some point, so it is important to always be flexible and adapt to new information and situations.  All Previous Parts: Part 1: Planning/Initial Design Part 2: Parts Changes Part 3: Parts Update Part 4: Drivetrain and Layout Work Part 5: Powertrain and Enclosures Work Part 6: Final Assembly/VESC Programming Part 7: First Ride/Observations Spec Breakdown So how does this board stack up? It certainly isn't the most powerful, or fastest DIY board out there, but even then it punches way above its price class.  Trucks: 16" MBS Matrix II Channel Trucks Wheels: 8" MBS Rockstars with T1 tires Battery: 12S1P 14Ah 622Wh, up to 350A discharge (limited to 100A by XT90 connector) Motors: Dual 6374 7000W Total, Unbottlenecked VESC Version: VESC 75V/300A Range: 20mi (Assumes 20Wh/km) Driv
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Electric Mountainboard Build Part 7: First Ride and Future Improvements

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The board is now complete! All that's left to do is test it and go out for a ride! For the previous part, click here ! First Ride The first thing I notice stepping on the board is that bindings feel very strange. I had to do quite a bit of fiddling to get comfortable, and even after a lot of fiddling, my rear foot kept slipping out. I'll need to spend some time on it to get it right. The board feels a lot lighter strapped onto my feet compared to lifting it with my hands. Jumping in place wasn't as bad as I had thought for all the added extra weight. Landing was fine, none of the enclosures were coming loose, and the motor mounts seemed solid.  First tentative stationary air The first takeoff was extremely tentative and slow. I wasn't sure what the torque curve was, so I tried moving the thumbwheel as slow as possible. The remote was still in UART mode, so there was a considerable deadzone before anything actually happened. Once I reached the break point, it slowly roll
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