Mister Jalopy on NPR

(NPR photo by Jolie Myers of Mister Jalopy astride his iron steed at Coco's Variety)

Professional amateur and Make contributor Mister Jalopy was profiled on NPR today.

Like many of his fellow makers, Mr. Jalopy is simultaneously an artist, a tinkerer and a craftsman. For him, it's a lifestyle. His garage is lined with cabinets full of parts, an unimaginable number of widgets, wires and springs. There are broken sculptures, pinball machines and dozens of bicycles and old cars in various states of transformation.

Next to the giant iPod is his version of a drive-in movie theater: a sturdy wooden box, which he has wired with various found parts and mounted on a Schwinn adult tricycle. The result: He can project movies onto a 12-foot surface anywhere within riding distance.

...

Mr. Jalopy has been consulting with Disney, Apple and other major corporations, preaching the gospel of open source manufacturing. He tells them to use screws instead of glue, and to make schematics readily available so consumers can fix and re-imagine the objects they buy. He also urges technology companies to create forums for consumers to share ideas, and pushes car companies to sell patterns so people can create accessories like seat covers.

Mr. Jalopy: Are You Sure You Own Your Stuff? (NPR)

[#1 posted by Stefan Jones, July 14, 2008 1:36 PM]

#^%^$. The segment had just started playing on live radio when a cow orker stopped by to ask questions.

Now I have to wait until tonight to listen to the web version.

[#2 posted by mdhatter, July 14, 2008 1:45 PM]

That was a great piece on NPR. The way he described what an iPod "is" was priceless.

[#3 posted by jphilby, July 14, 2008 1:59 PM]

Just read the Makers Bill of Rights. Mr. Jalopy is a voice of sanity in a consumer world that has supersized madness.

Throw-away lighters, computers with $400 floppy drives (early 90s Macs) used to filter the air, electronics with parts that are more expensive than buying new, portable devices with unreplaceable batteries, cars deliberately made too complex to repair, throw-away water bottles ...

And a country-sized region in the middle of the Pacific Ocean full of unrotting plastic ...

The world wasn't like that 40 years ago. It was made that way. It can be unmade. Every dollar is a vote.