Makers Central 2023 Part 3

May 30, 2023

Earlier in the month, I had the opportunity to visit MakersCentral at the Birmingham NEC. Having last visited 5 years ago, I thought it was worth a revisit and I was not disappointed.

In part 1, I looked at the Makers and Robots, part 2 was Crazy Inventions, CNC and Woodworking and in this last part is the remainder.

Tools

One thing I always enjoy about an exhibition is the tools on sale. Vintage Tool Shop were back for another year with a great range of refurbished woodworking tools and more.

Metal Craft were demonstrating and letting people try their rolling, punching, twisting and shearing tools. By the end of the weekend, many people were carrying their metal projects around the show.

There were also sewing machines, lights, laser cutters, sharpening systems, Bessey clamps, cutting knives and leather working machines on show.

Materials

There were a large number of materials on sale, Rapid Metals had a great range of metal in stock and also told me about their custom cutting service. Wood workers also had their choice of sellers with Woodshop Direct and Surrey Timbers both showcasing both excellent materials and the projects you could make from them.

There were also a great range of finishing products such as oils, waxes and stains. As well as craft materials such as paints, card and laser cut build parts for creating D&D sets.

There were also some less conventional materials such as Shadow Foam who provide foam inserts for housing your projects or tools in cases and boxes.

And also the British Polymer Clay Guild were there with a great range of items that you can make from this colourful clay replacements.

Bentley Advanced Materials had a range of foams, resins and paints that could be used to make moulds or projects. They were very helpful advising on the right materials for an up coming project.

LoreCraft showcased the kinds of things you can make with these materials, with flexible faces and realistic eyes.

Making

There were several opportunities to get making your self at the show. From making a wood sign, carving different materials with Dremel, forging metal or even building a drone.

I chose to do a bit of soldering and create electronic bagpipes at the MadLab area. Clear instructions and a well designed PCB meant that this was an achievable project for all of the attendees.

For bigger projects The Quiet Workshop was showing the kind of chairs you could make on their courses and Crimson Guitars were there to talk about making your own guitar.

Dev255 was there explaining how they’ve been making a CNC machine, 24 motor electric car modification and solar powered workshop.

Art

By the entrance of the show was a live mural being painted by Roo Art. It was just about finished by the time I left.

The Museum of Impossible Things was also exhibiting with their combination of modern materials and high tech with a cabinet of curiosities style. The stained glass window and tree well were augmented by lighting effects, the divers helmet was created from foam so could be worn with muscles of iron.

And also

There were many more exhibitors there and I didn’t have chance to write about all of them. Hopefully the are shown on the sticker wall below. I’ve a bunch of stickers I’ve collected so will be adding them to my project drawers before too long.

By Andy from Workshopshed Add Comment

  Posted in: Exhibition Tags: MakersCentral