Makersmiths Inc. - June 2026 Newsletter

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June 2026 Newsletter

June 2026 Newsletter

Leesburg Workday: 5/30/2026 9am-2pm

Purcellville Workday: 5/06/2026 9am - 12pm

(There's something for everyone -get those volunteer hours in!)

Monthly Membership Meeting

Meetings are the first Wednesday of every month at 7:30 PM. Log to:

http://meet.google.com/ubz-ykxr-kiu

Dial-in: (US) +1 304-609-2532

PIN: 114 333 983#

Announcements

Message from the Board of Directors

James Waldron, Secretary

The Makersmiths Board of Directors met on May 27th at 7:00 PM. There was one consent agenda item, appointing Christopher Mead as new Grant committee chairman which passed unanimously. There is a Grant_Writing Slack channel if you want to join this committee or share information or requests.

Voting for the two open directors positions continues. We have received 115 votes so far which meets our quorum. The election will close at the beginning of the member meeting on June 3.

Various committee chairs submitted their reports for the Board of Directors minutes which can be found on the Wiki.

If you have any information or requests to make to the Board of Directors, look for the list of those on the BoD, contact one of them at least one week prior to the next meeting. You can also contact the secretary, James.Waldron@makersmiths.org. The BoD meets the last Wednesday of each month.

News from the 3D Steward

Bryan Daniels

"Out of Order" signs have been cleaned up and placed behind the volunteer board at Makersmiths Leesburg in case anyone needs them. Don't forget that if a machine throws an error or has an issue, make sure you take a picture of the failed print and the error message to help with troubleshooting! Also, don't forget to check out the volunteer board for quick ways to earn your volunteer hours!

At Makersmiths Purcellville, the purge catching shelf is officially installed! Steward storage is the right side drawer, purge catch is the left side drawer. You'll need to pull both drawers out to access the extra build plate. I also dropped off some scrapers and measurers for you guys as well!

The new purge catch system has been installed on X1C-002 for a test period to make sure it's able to work without clogging. Let me know if you run into any errors.

Also, gentle reminder about 3D printing at MSL -- if you use Makersmiths filament please consider making a small donation and/or picking up a new roll to donate. As it stands, it's slim pickings on Makersmiths' filament from the three full spools I placed in there a couple of months ago. Questions? Contact me via Slack.

Education News

Error 404: Team Not Found Come Home World Champions

Makersmiths’ Middle School solar team called Error 404: Team Not Found competed in the KidWind World Challenge from May 17-20 in Madison, Wisconsin at the University of Wisconsin. The team won the Middle School solar division, naming them the KidWind Middle School World Solar Champions. This event had 125 elementary, middle school and high school student teams from 21 U.S. states, Estonia, Taiwan, and Thailand competing in wind and solar events.

During this Kidwind World Challenge, teams completed a knowledge test, two "Instant Challenges" meant to test teams’ problem-solving skills and teamwork, and the students had to explain their project design, their manufacturing and testing processes to a panel of judges from renewable energy industries and education fields. In the solar division, teams showcased their designs under a solar testing rig, with the judges evaluating how their projects generate energy to make something happen on their projects. This year the theme was making a house powered by solar. Error 404: Team Not Found created a laser cut home and 3D printed water wheel powered by solar panels that generate energy to power a water pump and a UV light for water filtration. The filtered water is pumped to a water tower during the day and released water at night to turn the water wheel, which powers a generator. The generator lights an LED in the house, and the tower provides water to the house’s shower.

When asked about their KidWind experiences, team member Masha Nizheberskaya (grade eight) stated:

Our solar home is in Middle America, where many areas fall outside of the power grid. The people who live here want reliable, cheap clean water and electricity that works day and night. The family lives near a lake that provides them with the necessary water for our system. We created the solar system to clean and sanitize the water, and a water tower is for running water. The hydro-battery is better than a traditional lithium battery because it has a low carbon footprint. When the sun goes down, the stored water can power the generator for electricity at night. What did I learn from this project? I learned a lot about circuitry, such as designing PCBs and wiring the systems in our project.

Liam Ro (grade seven) stated, “I learned how to create models in Fusion and 3D printed them. I also learned how to change torque and speed in different water wheel designs to improve efficiency.”

Nick Burrus (grade eight) explained his involvement, “For KidWind this year, I designed and built the water reservoir, house, and scenery for our solar pumped hydro-storage project. I learned how to use a laser cutter and design software to make the parts, running several test prints to get the settings right. I was also in charge of sealing everything with silicone and aquarium glue to make it watertight.

Since our project had to run completely off-grid, I learned a lot about renewable energy, specifically that solar power is actually pretty cheap, but also that energy is the expensive part. Most importantly, I learned how to collaborate with a team and how to keep pushing forward even when things didn't work right away.”

To learn more about the KidWind Worlds Challenge event and other winning teams, visit https://kidwind.org/worlds/2026-2/

Purcellville Town Council Recognizes Makersmiths’ KidWind Teams

On May 26, the Purcellville Town Council began its town meeting by recognizing Makersmiths’ five KidWind teams. Each team member and coach received a certificate of achievement for their 2025-2026 projects that support sustainability and renewable energy. The council also recognized the Middle School Solar team for its outstanding performance at the KidWind Worlds Challenge on May 20, being recognized as the 2026 KidWind Middle School Solar Champions.

Dane County Wildlife Center Visit

Middle School Solar Teams Visit an Innovative Solar-Powered Enclosure

Diane Painter

During their trip to Wisconsin for the KidWind Worlds Challenge, the Makersmiths Middle School solar team and another Middle School solar team from Shenandoah County, VA visited the Dane County Human Society Wildlife Center on May 20. The purpose of the visit was to see the world’s only 100-foot-long hybrid raptor rehab flight pen powered by 96 bifacial solar panels. Bifacial solar panels absorb sunlight from both the front and rear sides, generating 10% to 30% more energy than traditional single-sided panels. The panels allow natural light to come through the roof, making the light inside the facility the same as outside. This helps create a natural environment for the birds to practice taking flight after they were found injured in the wild and rehabilitated at the center. The 100-foot length of the pen reduces captivity-induced stress and prevents accidental re-injury as the birds learn to fly again, ensuring their journey back to the wild is successful when released back into their natural environment.

During the tour, the two KidWind solar teams learned about this innovative and real-world application of solar power. The flight pen is engineered to operate as a sustainable microgrid within the main facility:

Hybrid System: The 96 panels on the roof (canopy) link directly with 35 additional panels installed on the main Wildlife Center building.
Battery Storage: Energy feeds into a bank of 12 on-site batteries.
Emergency Backup: If the facility experiences a power outage, the battery system automatically kicks in, maintaining uninterrupted power to crucial systems like incubators for wounded wildlife.

Inside the pen, the teams saw a rehabilitated eagle perched inside the pen and a turkey vulture taking flight within the pen. (insert eagle.jpeg)

Outside the facility, one of the team members spotted an injured baby bird that had fallen out of its nest. It was rescued by the wildlife bird rehabilitation staff member, Jackie Edmunds.

Finding this fallen bird gave the team members a chance to see how injured wildlife are brought to the center’s triage center for medical treatment and rehabilitation. Their tour ended by visiting Bindi, a Northern False Map Turtle who serves as the facility's very first official Wildlife Education Ambassador. To learn more, visit https://www.giveshelter.org/news/turtle-in-training-wildlife-center-adds-education-ambassador.

When asked what they learned about their wildlife center tour, Joseph, a KidWind solar team member from Shenandoah County, suggested that his team’s next solar project might be a solar powered wildlife rescue center project!

Looking for Help?

One of many reasons members like Makersmiths is that one can ask for help or guidance on a project through Slack. Here are some requests from members:

Zach DeSmit posted in Slack that he is looking for ideas on how to get started on making fun critters like these from Etsy Craft Sets (insert critters.jpeg)

Several members responded with the following suggestions:

Jon White: You can trace original cartoons in Inkscape, Corel or Illustrator. A YouTube video or two can show you how to do that if you don't already know.

John Carter: You can absolutely take an image from many places and use 'Trace Image' within Lightburn and at this point it's usually right on, but there's a slider if you need it.My two cents would be to remind you to run your engraving lines lite initially if you aren't certain about your design. You can always engrave deeper as needed, then turn your cut lines ON when you're satisfied to make your cookie.If you or someone else is looking to paint after the fact, I'd recommend masking with the lite tack 6-inch masking tape we usually have available. It'll prevent scorching and that's the closest you're going to get to paint-by-numbers.

Brian Melanson posted in Slack that he needed help troubleshooting a Bambu (Personal X1C) project.

He had already disassembled the extruder mech multiple times. Nothing left behind. Then he found this blob of filament under the sleeve and scraped it off but the problem persisted (insert blob.jpeg). Chris Chatfield, Diane Bollinger, and Bryan Daniels all offered suggestions. In the end, Brian thanked everyone for all the suggestions and found that a new nozzle assembly solved his problem. The point is, members responded, offered suggestions and Brian’s problem was solved in the end.

John Carter posted in Slack that Makersmiths Leesburg will need a screen drying cabinet for screen printing. He is confident that we already have the components we need in-house, but he would like a second set of eyes on available space and up-scaling as needed. This project will involve building a box with shelves so screens can dry and be kept in darkness, keeping airflow and humidity in mind. Please direct message him if interested in helping.

Christopher Meid completed his first day of a Loudoun County Grant Class. He states that it was especially helpful to gain insights into how to look for viable grants and learning how to develop a needs statement. He is working on a needs draft that aligns with Makersmiths’ goals. He asks, “Do we have budget/wishlist for things along those lines? Also, do we have any data on how many children (scouts, etc.) have participated in different events somewhere? I have an idea as to how to turn that into a proposal, but we'll need the past numbers and the goals of what we want to accomplish. Diane Painter can give him a count of the number of children in STEM activities based on registrants in past workshops. Do we know how many scouts we have served in derby car events, for example?

May Grant Committee Update
Christopher Meid

Grant Chair Christo here! For those that don’t know, grants are a way to receive funding from private foundations, local, state, and federal agencies. What does this mean for Makersmiths? Grants are a way for Makersmiths to finance improvements, equipment purchases, and capability improvements. For instance, the first grant we are developing an application for Capability Expansion of the Makersmiths Classroom. This could be many things, including improved ventilation, additional electronics and robotics equipment and parts, laptops, monitors, software licenses, etc. In addition, the goal is to build out a framework of small, simple projects to take our young Makersmiths participants from ‘zero to hero’ over an extended period of time. That framework could lead to capabilities our adult members could use or adapt to their needs, such as a 3D printing project path that teaches Computer Aided Design (CAD) while moving from simple to more complex 3D printing projects.

That’s just one project. What other capabilities or projects do we want to develop that require additional funding? The Grant Committee will be holding a brainstorming session on Tuesday June 16th at 7PM to talk about other possible grants. It’s open to all Makersmiths members. Bring your ideas and your passion! Contact me via Slack if you have any questions or suggestions to make.

Makersmiths Purcellville News
Dave Painter

Reminder of June 4 Workday

There is a workday coming up this coming Saturday at MSP. We need people with weed whackers, someone to drive the restored lawn mower and we need to make a run to the Metal Recycling Center. Clean up in the shop areas and Green Room, too are on the list of tasks that need to be done.

Upper Building Roof

In late May, we had some brutal storms. Several members reported the upper building roof was leaking in several places. Thank you to those who put tarps over machines and buckets under drips. We notified the Town of Purcellville that the newly patched roof was not working out too well. The roofing company was supposed to check the roof last Tuesday, but it did not come because it was still raining! Isn’t it best to check a roof when it is raining? We are waiting to hear when they will reschedule. The lower building repair date keeps being pushed out. Currently we are hoping for the middle of June when that roof will be replaced.

Lawn Mower

Last week, Jim Waldron and I spent the better part of a day trying to find the electrical gremlin that kept the lawn mower from starting. We finally bypassed some sensors so the lawn mower will start now. Any takers to cut the lawn on June 4, our next workday?

Our August App

This week Charles Makai attempted to open the door at MSP with the August App, which has worked for him without issue for years. The screen, which normally shows a large red donut when the lock is closed, did not appear and the screen was blank. First I tried my iPhone to get the August app to work but got an API error message. Fortunately, I was coming in and used a key to help him enter the building. Once inside, his August App worked correctly. He asked for any suggestions on what he might have to do if this happens again.

My wife, Diane, tells me this happens to her whenever she goes to MSL. The remedy for her is to reboot her iPhone and then the app works as it should. Christopher Meid states that his app at times does not cooperate. He “kills the app” and then restarts it and that seems to work.

The August app turns your smartphone into a virtual key. It communicates with our August Smart Lock via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to let you lock and unlock the door remotely. Between Bluetooth and the building’s Wi-Fi connection, something is amiss. When using the MSP Wi-Fi, you now need to connect to MSP-Wifi. Directions and the password are now listed on the whiteboard in the Green Room. If you continue to have problems and the advice given does not seem to work, please notify Rob Dohahue, our IT steward, directly on Slack.

What’s Wrong with These Pictures?

At first glance, you would think that John Harris is working in the Purcellville woodshop and that is a good thing. But what John is doing is cleaning off SAP from the band saw blade. It is a BAD thing that sap was even on the blade! No one should be cutting sappy wood on any of our equipment. It is a good thing that John noticed and was willing to take the time to clean the blade, a mess left behind by someone else!

Now take a look at the chop saw at Leesburg. Yep, Greg Haines found pine or white wood debris left on the equipment. He, too, cleaned up someone else’s mess. As Greg states, “This happens way too much!”

Dave Painter found this mess in the Purcellville metal shop in April!

Whatcha Making at Makersmiths?

Oliver Arend reported that there was a successful Electronics Night May 28. They got the Candy Claw machine working!

Melinda Gretsinger finished her stained glass project that took several months to create!

Mike DeWan may earn grandfather of the year! Look at the pens he created for graduating grandkids!

Chris Chatfield suggests a 3D printed jig and printer router is the better way to cut shelf pin holes. He was worried that runout/tolerances would make the ¼” holes slightly too large, but he found they are perfect snug fits for ¼” shelf pins.

Jon White is working to refine the process and settings for 3D challenge coins using the fiber laser. He will put settings up on the wiki. First two photos of this image are before polishing with the grey scouring pad Dremel tool.

MS-L

June 7 LCL:R100: C02 Laser Basic Red Tool

June 8 UVL-R100: UV Printer Red Tool

June 9 WWL-R100: Woodworking Red Tool

June 9 WTL-R100: Wood Lathe Red Tool

June 9 BNL-R100: BN2-20 Print Vinyl Stickers Red Tool

June 10 SWL-G000: Sewing Social

June 11 WTL-T101: Pen Turning

June 14 3DL-R100: FDM 3D Printing (Bambu) Red Tool

June 27 MSL: G000: Work Day

MS-P

June 6 MSP: G000: Work Day

June 10 MSP-R100: Metal-Working Basics Red Tool

June 11 WWP-R100: Woodworking Basics Red Tool

June 13 EXP-G000: Gourd Group Meeting

June 14 WWP-R200: Woodworking Advanced Red Tool

June 14 3DP-R100: FDM 3D Printing (Bambu) Red Tool

Makersmiths runs on volunteers!

Consider teaching a class or holding a workshop! check out the #class_planning_and_requests channel on Slack and join a meeting to get some help with your idea!

MONTHLY OPEN HOUSES

Every Tuesday In Purcellville from 6pm-8pm

785 South 20th Street Purcellville, Va 20132

Every Thursday In Leesburg from 6pm-8pm

106 South Royal Street SW Leesburg, Va 20175

Tool Authorization Groups

Dean Williamson

Makersmiths has lots of cool and useful tools, machines, and equipment. Many of them require training or authorization before you can use the equipment. The training can be as simple as an orientation, to a more formal “red tool” class, to demonstrating proficiency to the tool steward. Such mandatory training helps ensure that all users understand how to use the equipment properly and safely, thus helping to keep the equipment running smoothly and minimize maintenance downtime as well as ensuring the safety of our members.

Below is a link to the list of tools which require training and authorization from a Steward. Please contact the steward for more information about each tool. This list is not exhaustive of the tools available at Makersmiths and is updated regularly as we get new equipment or as needed:

Tools, Materials & Training

By clicking above, you can view the most current list posted on the Makersmiths wiki. Consider checking it out, you might discover a new tool that you didn’t realize Makersmiths had.

Makersmith Board Officers

Board Name/Officer | Position | Term

Brad Hess | Board Member | 2022 - 2025

Bo Wernick | Board Member| 2024 - 2027

Evin Grano | Board Member/Chairperson | 2023 - 2026

Jennifer Chu | Board Member | 2024 - 2027

Diane Bollinger | President | 2025 - 2026

Mary Waldron | Treasurer | 2025 - 2026

Jim Waldron | Board Member/Secretary | 2025 - 2026

Mike Brady | Webmaster | 2025

Rob Donahue | IT Steward | 2025

Did You Know...

You can find the newsletters from the last several years archived on our website?

Makersmiths also has a Blog, Instagram, and YouTube!

The Newsletter could always use some new blood - share your projects, pitch some article ideas, tell us about something cool you've seen in your Maker travels!

Makersmiths Leesburg: 106 Royal St SW, Leesburg, VA 20175

Makersmiths Purcellville: 785 S. 20th St, Purcellville, VA 20132

Leesburg Location
106 Royal St SW
Leesburg, VA 20175

Open House Every Thursday 6 - 8 PM

Purcellville Location
785 S. 20th St.
Purcellville, VA 20132

Open House Every Tuesday 6 - 8 PM

Makersmiths is a 501(c) non-profit organization

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