Here are some gift suggestions for engineers, though it’s likely even non-engineers would appreciate many of them as well. And if you’ve been good this year and you’re feeling lucky, you can enter a contest to win one of these gifts!
Locomotive and Tender Kit
The Locomotive and Tender model from UGears consists of 443 laser-cut wooden parts that go to together without glue. There’s also a 12-band rubber-band motor that can push the train about 15 ft. Several parts also go into motion when the train moves, including the asynchronous pistons and valves, spinning wheels and gears, and a series of moving rods, linkages, and cranks. The cab is also fully detailed with a retractable ladder, boiler trim, instrument panel, and an opening coal tender. The locomotive measures 12.3 in. long, the tender is 6.3 in. long, and they come with about 2 ft. of track The manufacturer says the train kit can be completed in one sitting but notes that the kit is not for really young children; it is recommended for those ages 14 and up. This one-time Kicksarter project now retails for about $80.
Fluke 3000 FC Digital Multimeter
This lightweight (12 oz.) digital mutlimeter from Fluke Corp. gives true-RMS voltage and current measurements, 6,000-count resolution, manual and automatic ranging, and provides frequency, capacitance, resistance, continuity, and diode measurements. In addition, the Fluke 3000 FC provides 0.09% basic accuracy, a digital display showing up to three secondary measurements from remote modules, and a bright white backlight. The handheld unit has been independently tested as safe for use in CAT IV 600V/CAT III 1000 V environments, and it has all the features needed to troubleshoot and repair many problems in electrical and electronic devices. The meter works with Fluke’s Connect system. This means the meter can serve as a mobile hub, displaying and recording readings from up to three measurement modules up to 69 ft. away. The Fluke 3000 measures ac voltage (from 0-to-600 mV to 0-to-1,000 V), dc voltage from 0-to-600 mV to 0-to-1,000 V, resistance 0-to-600 Ω to 0-to-50 MΩ), and capacitance 0-to-1,000-nF to 0-to-9,999 µF), ac and dc current (from 0-to-60 mA to 0-to-400 mA), and frequency (0-to-99.99 Hz to 0-to 99.99-kHz). It retails for about $270.