Adam Savage has been operating Boston Dynamics' Spot robot for a few months, getting to know the ins and outs of its capabilities. While more projects with Spot are in the works, Adam today answers questions about how Spot works, showing core features like how it's manually controlled to how it can autonomously navigate planned missions. Its different gaits are mesmerizing!

We shot this piece last month before going into shelter-in-place, in which Adam shows his custom-assembled lightweight iPhone stand he put together to film himself during weekend builds. But now that he's alone in the cave all the time, this rig is proving essential for Adam to document his builds in isolation as well as livestream every week. Hope it helps in giving you inspiration to make your own cameraphone rigs!

Adam talks through how he recently injured his hand in a scary accident involving his workshop lathe. It was an intense experience he's still recovering from, and even talking about it is unsettling!

While sheltering-in-place, Adam is livestreaming every week to work on builds and take questions from the Tested community! In the third part of the Q&A session from 3/31/20, Adam talks about using laser cutters, the props in his cave, storage ideas, and Boston Dynamics' Spot! Join the Tested Discord server to ask questions next time!

While sheltering-in-place, Adam is livestreaming every week to work on builds and take questions from the Tested community! In this second Q&A session from 3/31/20, Adam talks about underapperciated tools, his ruler tattoo, regaining motivation for projects, and how he's coping in isolation. Join the Tested Discord server to ask questions next time!

We chat with Gavin Free of The Slow Mo Guys to learn about their new VR mini-series that lets you watch their experiments in stereo VR180. Joey and Gavin compare notes about the interesting production challenges of filming and editing immersive video, and we marvel at the custom Phantom Flex 4K rig The Slow Mo Guys put together to capture their experiments. Plus, Norm reviews The Room: A Dark Matter, which is one of the best puzzle games made for VR headsets!

While sheltering-in-place, Adam is livestreaming every week to work on builds and take questions from the Tested community! In this first Q&A session from 3/31/20, Adam shows off some tools and artifacts from the shop, talks about skills he's planning on learning, and gives advice for beginning makers! Join the Tested Discord server to ask questions next time!

One of Adam's longstanding cosplay goals is finding a way to stay cool under his costumes while wearing them all day. He's tried a variety of cool suits and hacked-togethered water-circulation units, and today he enlists the help of engineer and scientist Kipp Bradford to build a compact refridgeration system that he can wear. In fact, the system they build is a replica of the cooling unit in the spacesuit simulator used in NASA's HI-SEAS experiment!

This week's show and tell from the cave is inspired by a question from viewers--some of you watching Adam's builds have noticed a mysterious stone head in the back of the cave and wondered about its origin. Adam takes that piece of decor off the back wall and reveals that it's a piece of set decor from an episode of Mythbusters!

Prop builder and Tested's 3D designer/fabricator Sean Charlesworth checks in with some of the projects he's working on from home, including vintage camera repairs, upgrades to his Ghost Trap replica, and new Ghostbuster-inspired prop replicas. Sean also shares some resources for 3D printer owners to print critical equipment needed by health care facilities, like face shields.

While the Tested team is working from home and practicing social distancing, we'll be sharing the projects we're taking on and our own strategies for making the best out of self-isolation. Fabricator Jen Schachter checks in with a toolbox organization project as well as new tools for her home shop for making picture frames.

Adam dives into his love of making boxes and display cases for the objects he builds and collects. These boxes are Adam's way of interacting with the props, costumes, and model miniatures in the cave--a way to contribute to their worldbuilding. And one of the Adam's favorite cases is the one he made for his Chewbacca cosplay mask!

With a shelter-in-place policy in effect in California, the Tested team is working from home sharing their current projects. Norm checks in with his recent testing and research into gaming laptops powerful enough for VR headsets and video editing, using HP's Omen 15 as an example of a system that uses Intel's Coffee Lake H processor and Nvidia's mobile RTX graphics card.

Safety glasses are an essential part of every workshop, and Adam takes issue with the design of those that don't fit well over his glasses. Enter this full-face visor, which Adam was inspired to seek out after seeing them used as a piece of costuming on the TV show Westworld! These sci-fi looking goggles have a great fit and wide near-field visibility--they're by far Adam's favorite safety glasses!

Adam makes use of his new soldering station setup in this assembly of a beautiful Star Wars Thermal Detonator replica prop kit from KR Sabers/One Replicas. Not only is it a beautiful chrome metal kit, but it's designed to work with an intricate electronics system for lights and sound effects! Adam has a blast putting it together and problem-solving through the process!