This is an extensive and nicely designed sub-site of Hackteria.org that provides much information and a lengthy list of links to specific lab tools and related sites. Definitely visit this site if you are interested in inexpensive, home made laboratory equipment and many other related or even distantly related topics. The primary focus of this site is on the development of individual DIY “open hardware” designs with an emphasis on support equipment such as incubators, centrifuges and tube racks. However, application oriented items such as turbity meters, PCR cyclers and microfluidics are also included. Overall though, the DIY orientation seem somewhat different than the objectives of 5minutelab which is acquiring and using older commercial equipment, actually or potentially operational, for analyses.

GaudiLabs is another very interesting site with a similar focus on open DIY but perhaps with a somewhat greater focus on instrumentation. Several clever, original DIY designs are presented that follow a central theme in design and construction under their Generic Lab Equipment heading. The site also sells products ranging from a 3D printable spectrometer to a highly unsual gcode to 0-5V analog signal converter based on an a grbl implementation on an Arduino Leonardo. Wide ranging but again mainly focused on new builds of DIY designs.

This site is also focused on new designs, mainly using 3D printing, but with a focus on equipment that might be readily used in mainline research. This seems to be a relatively new site with only a few items listed, but the projects are of good quality and as described on site “…results are typically published under an Open Source licence in online repositories such as thingiverse, instructables or Hack-a-day. More mature projects are often also submitted for publication in international peer reviewed open access outlets such as PLoS, Frontiers, eLife or Nature Communications.”

A number of designs of DIY lab equipment can be found here, largely 3D printed, which are mainly STEM and tinkerer oriented. Also includes the usual list of printed tube racks, hand powered centrifuges, and the ubiquitous orbital shaker variations. Many interesting and some useful items, but not really directed towards actual productive laboratory quality equipment.

There are many other sites with similar interests. If there are any that you have found to be particularly useful please leave information in the Comments so that they can be added to this list.