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Related: designer Thomas Thwaites had the same thought and created a toaster from scratch, starting with iron ore: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14942190

• d--b 3y ago
  > In the end he put together a haggard-looking stripped-down version of something we can buy for the price of a sandwich. It only took him nine months, several trips across country lines, and a many moments of lateral thinking. He did plug it in once, but because he wasn't able to make insulation for the wires, the toaster started melting itself about 5 seconds in. Thwaites considers it a partial success. Sometimes it's equally surprising to me that some people have so much time on their hands to pursue things like this...
  • creativenolo 3y ago
    Or he worked tirelessly on this for 9 months, and had no free time for anything else. But many things came of it for him, and it had an impact (it’s still being quoted now.)
  • michaelt 3y ago
    After sleeping and working, most people have several hours a day left over. Time into which they have to fit eating, cooking, cleaning, showering, laundry, shopping, commuting, exercising, childrearing, family, professional development, dating, socialising, home maintenance, personal paperwork, pursuing hobbies, and relaxing. You can have a lot of time for one of those - if you're willing to prioritise it over all the others.
  • type0 3y ago
    > the toaster started melting itself about 5 seconds in. Thwaites considers it a partial success. and the difference between that diy contraption and this fancy old toaster is like a difference between a skateboard and a car https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfxlSG6q5Y https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfxlSG6q5Y