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The Humster Wheel

If you're ever wondering how woodworkers blow off some steam, then you found your answer. We build stuff. Stuff that's different. Stuff because we can. Stuff that is fun. Just like you, we too can get caught in the monotony of the daily grind. Our solution is to build something as a team that is just for fun. In this Just For Fun project we built a giant sized hamster wheel for humans! But instead of calling it a hamster wheel, we've dubbed this as the Hūmster Wheel. Did you see what we did there? Don't forget to notice the little horizontal line above the "ū". It just looks cool!

Inspiration Strikes

Several months ago, Russ, our resident designer, was working on an idea he had that could shrink wrap our pallets faster when inspiration struck. Following his line of thought, which was basically a circular ring that would hold shrink wrap and rotate around our pallets, Russ noticed how the design looked a lot like a hamster wheel but on its side. Bam! The idea of the Hūmster Wheel was born.

how we built the humster wheel

Design & Production

Okay, now that we had the idea, how to design and make it? The first design and conceptual drawings were on a grandiose scale. It was going to be over 13 foot tall and 11 foot wide. This posed a problem as we wouldn't be able to get it out our overhead doors. D'oh! We'll, what would you expect from Texans? Go big or go home! So, we went back to the drawing board and designed it just small enough to fit out our 10 foot overhead doors. As the design was finalized, for the briefest of moments a small voice in the back of our heads wondered if the centripetal force that the Hūmster would create would unbalance the design and cause it to flip or tip. We shrugged and decided to go for it.

humster wheel build

The actual building process took a little over three days as we CNC'd plywood forms to create the frame and made a series of arches that would house the heavy duty casters. Once this was complete, it took about another day to assemble. It went together surprisingly easier than we anticipated. The only thing left was to try it. While we were hesitant at first, it only took a moment before we were all began piling on and giving the Hūmster Wheel a run for its money.

An Interstellar Spinning Dock Parody

We're movie buffs if you haven't notice. Not only do we love watching a good movie, but we also have fun making them. In the movie Interstellar, Cooper and Brand are trying to dock to their damaged station that is spinning and falling out of orbit. It's one of our favorite scenes. This inspired us to make a parody using the Hūmster Wheel. Let's us know what you think.

A special thanks to "The 440 Alliance" for creating a perfect sound for our project!

What Should We Build for Our Next Just For Fun Project?

We've been spit balling a few different ideas for our next Just for Fun project, but we would like your opinion. Cast your vote below. What better way to blow off steam and break the daily grind than this? We hope you enjoyed this project as much as we did making and filming it.>

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