This week on Maker Update, a giant AT-AT made from foam board, the Goliath CNC robot, embossing your notebook, affordable addressable LED strip, a software update for your knitting machine, and World Maker Faire. This week’s Cool Tool is WS2812b LED strip.

[Editors’ note: This same tutorial was originally published as an Instructable. I’m publishing it here for posterity.]

The quality and design of project boards has become so good in recent years, that I almost feel bad putting them together. In this guide, I’m going to show you a simple soldering technique that can make the back of your boards look as nice as the front. You’ll learn how to make perfectly smooth, consistent solder joints that look impossibly tidy.

This week on Maker Update, a Pi-powered Rubik’s cube-solving robot, hacking your own tabletop pinball machine, a look at Fiber Fix tape, and a new issue of Make magazine. This week’s Cool Tool is Fiber Fix repair tape.

This week on Maker Update, an enchanted talking tiki totem pole, my trip to OSH Park and Metrix Makerspace, a retro lightbox, and why you need flush cutters. This week’s Cool Tool is the Hakko CHP-170 Flush Cutter.

This week on Maker Update, spiral stairs, the Trinket M0, a glove that tracks high-fives, Charlotte the drawbot, an essential bit of road trip tech, and a tip for storing filament. This week’s Cool Tool is the BESTEK 300W Power Inverter.

This week on Maker Update, a servo robot puppet, Raspbian moves to Stretch, a YouTube Live camera, giant gold bricks, trauma shears, and pouring your own knobs. This week’s Cool Tool is a pair of Fluoride Coated Medical Shears.

This week on Maker Update, acoustic levitation, an Arduino made by Sony, a new kit by Anouk Wipprecht, self-centering drill bits, and a turning old monitors into a video wall. This week’s Cool Tool is a self-centering drill bit set.

This week on Maker Update, designing your own bobblehead, a new trick for your Raspberry Pi, what’s so great about deburring tools, McMaster Carr meets Tinkercad, and a roundup of 3D printed Pi cases. This week’s Cool Tool is the General Tools 481 Swivel Head Deburring Tool.

This week on Maker Update, punch-activated flame throwers, interactive laser curtains, Massimo takes back Arduino, some time with a deluxe center punch, 3-color OLED screens, MagPi 60, and the Gemma M0. This week’s Cool Tool is the Rennsteig Adjustable Automatic Center Punch.

This week on Maker Update, an Xbox exercise bike, losing WD Labs and Arduino 101, printing butterflies, a $14 super power, and marking your tools. This week’s Cool Tool is wearable magnifying glasses.