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Marble Machines

Marble machines are devices or platforms that allow you to build creative paths marbles can roll along, through, and down until they drop into a collector of some sort.  The paths can be made from a combination of tracks, tubes, hoses, funnels, bumpers, and whatever else you can imagine.  

 

Susan Donner and I wanted to build some marble machines to use in our Maker class.  We built ours following the design provided at the Exploratorium website.  On this page I've documented the construction process to show how simple it really is.  Click the Exploratorium button below to be connected to their Marble Machines webpage and assembly instructions.

I used a miter saw to make the cuts for the frame and the base supports. It only required a total of five cuts for the whole project.  You can also use a handsaw to make the cuts, or have the pieces pre-cut at the lumber store.

Here are the pieces ready for assembly, including the two laminated pegboard sides.

The frame can be nailed or screwed together.  Here the assembled frame is shown with the two base supports.

I put the laminated pegboard pieces face down on a blanket while I used finishing nails and glue to attach them to each side of the frame.

The base supports are screwed to the bottom on both sides of the frame to provide support and stability.  The marble machine is now ready for use!  

 

We will post images and videos on this page of marble machines "in action" once our Maker Class students have built their first runs on them.

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