This one’s for the mech heads and purveyors of fine machinery.

Cornell University’s Reuleaux Collection is a collection of 220 machines.  The machines include various crank mechanisms, couplings, linkages, compound gearing… the list goes on.  The website itself is a catalogue of the 19th century machines - some with accompanying videos and technical documentation.  In my opinion, the machines themselves are functional, beautifully crafted works of art; they deserve some attention.

There are also three books that I highly recommend all mech heads have on a shelf somewhere.  Or in the powder room (your choice, no judgement here).

507 Mechanical Movements__: Mechanisms and Devices by  Henry T. Brown

• This slim paperback from 1868 is as simple as it gets: 507 drawings of various mechanisms, and text that describes their operations and uses.

Machine Devices and Components Illustrated Sourcebook by Robert Parmley

• This bad boy is a compendium of 1,500 different mechanisms.  It’s broken down into assemblies, power transmission, and mechanical components.  A great way to kick start the brain when you need some inspiration.

Mechanisms and Mechanical Devices Sourcebook by Neil Sclater and Nicholas Chironis.

• This 500 page beast is a good companion to the Machine Devices and Components… title listed above.  I like to think of it as the sequel.

Of course there is Mechanical Design for the Stage by Alan Hendrickson, but I know you already own that one, right?

Note that the book links go to Amazon pages, I’m not saying you should buy from Amazon, in fact I recommend saving a few bucks and getting used copies.