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These Matchstick Models are a homespun meccano
You require Cycle Valve rubber tube, Matchsticks
a long needle and a cutter
First remove the sulfur from the matchsticks
and gently taper both their ends.
These ends will go easily into the tube
Valve tubes are used where
you fill air into the tyres
Cut 2-cm long valve pieces
Push in two matchsticks from the ends
so that the sticks meet in the middle
This joint will become a Universal Joint
You can see an acute angle
a Right angle
an Obtuse angle
and now a Straight angle
Take three matchsticks
three valve pieces
and weave them together
first in a straight line
you see that one end is a stick
and the other end will be a valve tube
and then loop them together
into an Equilateral Triangle
Then make a square
a Pentagon
or a hexagon
These polygons are very wobbly figures
If you distort the pentagon
it becomes an isosceles triangle
it becomes a trapezium
You can make a star out of it!
If you push the square
the square distorts into a rhombus
No more 90 degrees
But if you take the triangle
no matter what you do
a triangle will remain a triangle
The triangle is the strongest polygon.
Now poke a hole in the rubber joint
with a long needle
Remove the needle
In this hole
push in a third matchstick
This will become a T-joint
or a joint-of-three
Also poke holes in the three vertices
of the Equilateral Triangle
and then take the T joint
and then push in the three sticks
to make a nice Tetrahedron.
If you put marbles inside,
you get a Methane molecule model.
Similarly, make a Prism
a Cube
All these shapes
use joints-of-three
To make a joint-of-four
Weave one tube in the needle
Put the other tube cross-wise
Pull both ends
tear a bit of the rubber
Pull the top valve tube piece,
stretch the hole
and slide the lower one inside,
to make a Cross shaped joint-of-four.
With this on the top,
you can make a Pyramid
The joint-of-four is on Top.
You can put the Pyramid
on top of the Cube
to make a house!
Similarly, make a Prismatic house.
This is the Octahedron
...simply two pyramids back to back!
You can put three Tetrahedrons
on its side
and keep one on top
to make a larger Pyramid
To make a joint-of-six
place a third valve tube
in the joint-of-four.
The three pieces will make an ‘H’ shape.
There will be four free legs
of the rubber tube ‘H’
Push a small matchstick
in one free leg
and weave it through the center of the other tube
This way
you will be able to make a...
Star Shape!
Because rubber is flexible
these joints take their own angles.
Here is a use of a joint-of-six
with which you can make an Icosahedron.
Icosi means 20.
...Made of twenty triangles.