I keep a short bench list of hardware projects I save for weekends when I get both the time and electronic components in the same place.
The aim is to learn by doing, fix weak spots in my homelab skills, and build small tools I will actually use.
Each project should be cheap, testable with simple gear, and teaches something that carries over to real systems.

Here is the top 5 projects on my list:

1) DIY Stratum 1 NTP server

Motivation: sharpen timing, PPS, and chrony skills I use in my selfhosted networks.

Cheap components:

• SBC (Pi 3/4, Orange Pi, NanoPi) + 16 GB microSD
• GNSS module with PPS (u-blox M8N or similar) and active antenna
• SMA pigtail, 5 V PSU, optional TCXO HAT

Tools and knowledge requirements:

• Linux, chrony with PPS, gpsd
• Light soldering for PPS pin, antenna siting and RF basics
• Verification with chronyc and pps-tools

2) Functional router with OpenWrt

Motivation: practice clean routing, IPv6, and QoS on real traffic.

Cheap components:

• OpenWrt box (MT7621 or MT7622 router, NanoPi R4S, small x86) with 2+ Ethernet
• microSD or SSD, reliable 12 V PSU, small managed switch if needed

Tools and knowledge requirements:

• LuCI and UCI, VLANs, bridges, SQM cake
• DNS with Unbound or AdGuard Home, IPv6, nftables
• Testing with iperf3 and bufferbloat checks

3) SDR spectrum monitor and ADS-B feeder

Motivation: learn RF by observing real signals and building a useful feed.

Cheap components:

• RTL-SDR dongle, 1090 MHz antenna, optional LNA and filter
• Pi-class SBC, coax, 5 V PSU

Tools and knowledge requirements:

• readsb or dump1090, rtl_433, rtl_power
• Safe antenna mounting, simple shell automation
• Optional plots with Python or Grafana

4) USB-C PD bench PSU with simple electronic load

Motivation: power and test small boards without a lab supply.

Cheap components:

• USB-C PD trigger board for 5 to 20 V
• Buck module, INA219 sensor, MOSFET load kit
• Arduino or ESP32, small OLED, 3D printed case

Tools and knowledge requirements:

• Soldering, multimeter use, wiring safety
• Arduino or MicroPython for control and readout
• Thermal management for the load

5) LoRa sensor node and micro gateway

Motivation: explore low power telemetry for homelab monitoring.

Cheap components:

• ESP32 with RFM95 or a Heltec WiFi LoRa 32
• BME280 sensor, 18650 cell, TP4056 charger, small enclosure
• Pi with low-cost LoRa HAT for a single channel gateway

Tools and knowledge requirements:

• Arduino IDE or PlatformIO, sleep modes and power budgeting
• LoRaWAN concepts and The Things Network setup
• Perfboard prototyping and simple enclosures

I hope that one day I will get to do all these things and much more, once I have more stable job.