minirobo.io

Robotics · 3D Printing · One part at a time

Build mini robots
from off-the-shelf parts.

One cheap part per episode — a $5 brain, a servo, a motor driver — and exactly how to build with it. Everything I make lives here, free.

Start with EP #1 → Browse all episodes
3D-printed walker robot with servo-driven legs standing on the workbench

From the workbench

Hi — I build mini robots from cheap parts.

miniRobo is my YouTube series where every episode takes one off-the-shelf part — the kind anyone can order for a few dollars — and I show you exactly how to build with it. No lab, no degree, no $400 kit. An ESP32, a couple of servos, and a willingness to let a little magic smoke out now and then.

Pausing a video to copy code off a screen is miserable. So everything I build on camera lives here — the sketches, the wiring, the 3D-print files, the parts — free, no sign-ups.

Two finished miniRobo builds — a four-legged walker and a rocket-shaped bot — on the bench in front of minirobo.io

The same $5 brain in two very different bodies.

Where to start

Order the $5 brain (sidebar →), watch Episode #1, and get an LED blinking. That sounds small, but it's everything: power over USB, talk to pins, upload code. Blink an LED and you've already used every skill you need to start building a robot.

Episodes 2–4 are in the works — the servo, the motor driver, and the gear motor that turn the brain into something that actually moves. Subscribe on YouTube and you'll catch them the day they land.

The series so far

Watch the episode, then grab everything you need to build it yourself. One out, four on the bench.

EP #1

The $5 Brain

ESP32

The tiny single-core RISC-V brain with Wi-Fi + BLE that runs almost every mini robot — for the price of a coffee.

CodeWiringParts
 EP #2 · in the works

The Metal-Gear Servo

MG90S

Precise, repeatable motion for joints, legs, and grippers — plus a fully 3D-printable pan-tilt head.

Code3D filesParts
 EP #3 · in the works

The Motor Driver

DRV8833

The $1 H-bridge that lets your tiny brain command big, hungry motors — forward, reverse, and speed.

CodeWiringParts
 EP #4 · in the works

The Gear Motor

N20

The thumb-sized powerhouse behind almost every wheeled bot. Pick your RPM, drive it, roll.

CodeWiringParts
 EP #5 · in the works

The First Build

ROVER

No new parts — brain, driver, and two motors combine into one complete, driving robot.

CodeCheat sheetWiring

Everything's here, and everything's free

No paywalls, no sign-ups. If I built it on camera, the files are on that episode's page.

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Source code

Ready-to-flash Arduino sketches for every episode — copy, paste, upload.

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3D-print designs

Parametric OpenSCAD and print-ready files for the brackets and bodies I build on camera.

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Wiring diagrams

Exactly what connects to what — pins, power, and the gotchas that brick beginners.

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Parts lists

The exact off-the-shelf parts for each build, with links to where to buy them.