The rings are finally cut! The template jig worked like a charm, and everything looks like its spot on.



All that was left to do was to cut the 45-degree bevels and the it was time to start getting this thing assembled. Tricky stuff, these plans - Such strange slight angles to construct with. I started with the base rings that sit on top of the shoulder section. On the Supreme Dalek, there is this special two tier ring that gives him height above the other Daleks. I wanted to make sure that these rings are secured together, and then have them directly linked to the remainder of the neck assembly. This would insure its security and stability while roaming about the convention halls.



I cut notches into the the clock positions 12-1:30-3-4:30-6-7:30-9-10:30. I tried the best I could getting them evenly spaced. A large protractor and compass helped. Next I cut miniature slats to hold the base ring, upper base ring, the two mini-rings, and the fat one-inch ring on neck section.



Next, I added the detail bevel spacers. Since they're in front of the slats, it worked out. I can go back in and sand and blend any seams lines that might appear afterwards.



The next ring had notches cut and then settled into place on top of the previous section.



I had a mild fit issue, so I had to modify the slats by cutting a notch.The base upper ring sits back further than I though, so I cut the slat to accommodate.



At last, the mini rings, and the bottom neck ring are joined together!



A nice profile results.

Moving up into the neck section, its time to get these pieces together along with the setting up the dome. As I said, I wanted a very stable solid construction for the neck... it might result in a heavier piece, but that's okay. The neck section has four "clamps" that hold the neck section to the shoulders. There are four bases that are interlaced into this section. I started construction with some MDF scrap pieces, and constructed them in layers. After the angles were cut, I glued them together.











After looking back at promotional photos, I noticed a few flaws. Bondo to the rescue.

I got the spacing of each neck ring and then began cutting the MDF clamp bases to match the measurements. There is a twist. The bases sit at an angle, and even from the pictures a precise measurement is impossible. You can guess and get an approximation. So at this point, its time to make an educated guess. From the rings, being that they are centered to each other, and even though the inner diameters get smaller as you progress upwards, you can still get a good guess at the angle which the clamp bases sit at. It is quite strange that even after twenty years, I can still remember all my trigonometry as if it was yesterday. The math says: roughly 5.5 -degrees. The reference picture and a protractor says about 6-degrees. I think I've got a good point to start with. When I started cutting up the bases, I cut them at the 6 degree angle. The angled cut blocks, when in position, would provide a flat surface for the next ring to rest on.



And finally, we start to see the neck clamp bases within the neck. I still have to cut the top section of the neck clamp bases, but I want to look at a few more pictures before making the final cut. I think that last section before the dome may be higher up that I originally thought. The clues in the reference photos are what gives up tantalizing clue to heights and measures. I have a few things to double check.

I received my Dalek dome from my good friend and fellow Dalek builder Acrodome a month back. Looks beautiful!

What's coming up in the next few weeks? More details on the neck section to be worked out, and then... hopefully securing everything together with wood dowels and dry wall screws. Then its moving to the top with adding the special details to dome: installing the light base "plinths," and constructing the eye. Its proving to be an exciting summer!

Last month was hell at work, and there was no time to play. This week things slightly simmered, the weather improved into the 80's, and then I got sick. Sinus infection most likely.

What have I been up to? Dalek work mostly. Although, I will be he first to admit that I am very close to the next stage of making my armor. The problem is getting a few extra hands to help me out. That has been the toughest part of advancing onward.




This is where it starts... plaster bandages. Get yourself a t0-shirt that is formfitting, and then, have a friend help you cover the whole surface with duct tape. This will make an excellent surface to remove the plaster bandage buck for your frame. Next, add a light coat of Vaseline to the duct tape surface. While you strike a pose, hands at your side, letting your gut hang out naturally, your aid will start wetting the plaster bandages that you have previous cut into more manageable sizes, and then applying them to the duct tape surface. This will be messy, so you might want to have some plastic sheeting covering your legs from the waste down. While you are applying the bandages, you will need an "escape" route. On one of your sides, keep a good size gap so that you can slip sideways out of the plaster cast. It will be impossibly to cut without a cast saw, so REMEMBER this fun fact. Afterward, you will patch the gaps. with plaster bandages. It might take about four to five layers, but you should have a good copy of your chest. After it is thoroughly dry (about an hour depending on the setting speed of the bandages), you assistant will start prying up the cast. With some fancy footwork, you'll slide out of the side with the gap. Your duct taped t-shirt can be cut off with scissors, and thrown away. It has served its purpose. The next step will be to bridge the exit gap with more plaster bandages. After it has set over night, start back filling the cast with expanding foam and any sort of rigid ballast to make the cast a rigid sturdy form to sculpt on top of. Then you are ready to start sculpting your chest armor with clay, car body filler,.. whatever make you most comfortable sculpting with. It is an easy, but time consuming process, but well worth having a custom fit armor chest and back plates! --- And what of Dalek Construction? The machine shop pulled through with my ring cutting template!





I still have to construct a small table to start cutting the wood with my router. I did trace out some of the ring dimensions on my plywood panels. I finally have a sense of scale with with this project. I am very anxious to get started!



I did shift my attention to the Dalek plunger arm. I am using PVC pipe instead of aluminum. Its cheaper, and I have a ton of different sizes with all the different projects that I have been working on over the past five years. It seems to be the best solution. I got on of my hollow spheres for the ball joint, and cut a hole to accept the PVC pipe. The diameter is a little larger that what the plans called for, but in all honesty, you really can't tell too much. Besides, he's the Supreme Dalek. He's the big guy! I sealed off the front/visible end of the sphere with a combination of superglue and baking powder. The back side, the interior facing side of the sphere, was tacked on one edge. This step is to preserve the look that the pipe is straight through the center of the sphere. It would look way worse of the pipe was wonky, not centered and square to the hole in the sphere! I made a jig with some scrap wood to hold the sphere while the pipe was adjusted, and glued in place. On the back end, after tacking one edge to keep the sphere and pipe square, I used a Dremel to open up a larger hole in the back so that I could pour some expanding urethane foam to capture the pipe in the sphere. Most urethane foams will bond to anything and everything! It became a waiting game, while the foam reacted, and started to "blow." The next part is the messy part. Since I didn't have a formula to use to figure out how much foam I would need to fill the interior of the sphere, I had to wing it. If there was too much foam, it would start to push out of the opening, and then ooze down the side of the sphere. Even though I could easily cut and sand down the spillage, its an extra step. As soon as the foam started to erupt, I held it over a garbage can and let it drain. Once it looked like the chemical reaction was complete, I righted it up back into the jig and let it sit overnight. It was a very minimal clean up with a sharp X-acto, and some 240-grit sand paper.
 

I found three PVC pipes that were very close to the plan dimensions, and that also nested inside each other without too much trouble. The challenge would be to make "stops" so that the pipe would not extend too far and then fall off. That would be rather embarrassing for the Supreme to loose his arm during a convention tour.



For pipes that need to stop at an end, I used some multipurpose PVC cement to clue on some styrene to the PVC. I held the pieces in place using some rubber bands.



I did need to sand down the ends a little so that they would fit, and slide uninhibited. For pipes that need to close the inner diameters, I rolled the plastic in the PVC cement and then applied it to the inside. The cement made the styrene more pliable, and I was able to form it to the inside of the pipe with not much effort. A little sanding and it was ready to go.
 

The interior of the Supreme, as with all Daleks, is its a very cramped space. The plunger arm will not extend very far. From the end of the sphere to the edge of the smallest pipe, before the plunger, it will extend out about three feet. Anything longer will be cumbersome, and could be hazardous to the operator. Imagine some kid pulling on the arm, and then slamming it back in... right into your ribs. No, that would not feel good.



Since today was a sick day... and I had slept enough, I looked for something else to do while waiting for my cold meds to kick in. I did the CAD sketch up of the arm boxes. Hopefully, I can get these cut later next week.


 


So much more to do... and I'm anxious to start. Oh, yeah... I did start a new painting! Weird, eh?




An old old project I though to resurrect. Scorpius from Farscape. How I miss it! Maybe I can get more progress in the weeks to come. Hang tight, everyone,... its starting to get good again!

Nothing much to post this month... except for two things.

Progress on the Supreme Dalek is moving along, albeit slowly. I am gearing up to start cutting the neck rings. Hopefully, I will be able to start getting that assembled within the coming weeks.

Here's my jig that I will be making this week for my router. I still need to place the template for the routers' plunge base so that it can be secured to the jig. I had to make sure that I separated and labeled all the holes for the outside diameters and the inside diameters. The key is knowing which "side" of the bit is needed for the outside or the inside, and then adjust the center points on the jig. I've seen ready made radius jigs that are nice but expensive, but making you're own can be much more cost effective. And if you're off by a few millimeters, its not going to matter. It's not like were building a car or a rocket.



The second part of getting jiggy with it, the Biker Scout project is on the cusp of moving forward again! I have ordered the gauze plaster bandages to start making a template of my chest, so that I can start making the front and back chest armor. The bandages will make a hollow sculpting base that I can start working off of so that the armor will fit my proportions. I'll post more details and pictures as the progress begins to unfold.

Not much else, I'm afraid... Very, very busy for this time of year. Its not unusual, just peculiar. See you next time.

A good friend gave me a great leg up on some parts for Dalek. The skirt section of the Dalek is covered with 56 hemispheres. On this particular design from 2008, the hemispheres rest on a base. It was a design element that I never realized existed. Another curve ball to handle.

A friend of mine from Skaro hooked me up with the answer. The base on which the hemisphere rests is an oil gasket probably from a British Lorry. He sent me a sample, and some tricks for assembly and attachment.

The gasket is a rubber ring, over 4.5 inches across. The gasket was wrapped around a piece of plastic, with a hole drilled through the exact center. Through that hole, a 1/4-20 bolt was secured in position. Carefully, two solid master patterns were created.



 

The key is to have the bolt in the master. When mold was created there was a slot for a bolt to be placed into the mold. The bolt is captured during the casting process.






Here's a urethane casting. Cast in color so that it will not have to be painted. It will need a quick alcohol bath to clean any mold release agents, and then any flash lines will be carefully sanded/filed, and then buffed out. Now to cast 55 more....



3 days, 28 casting rounds, about half a gallon of resin and 56 bolts later, my work is done.



Here's one of the clear hemispheres placed on a base. It was originally a plastic ornament that was split in half, and could be opened and closed. The hemisphere fits onto base, and then using a strong construction adhesive, like Liquid Nails, it is glued in place. The holes on the bottom of the base allows you to glue the hemisphere from the inside, making for very neat and clean parts without any nasty goop hanging out. Ingenious!

Now moving on to painting the hemispheres....

I originally wanted to paint the interiors of the hemispheres to protect the paint job from being scratched up. However, the nature of how I will be attaching the hemispheres to the bases will prevent me from doing this. Adhesives can eat through paint, and it would be a very weak bond if it did stick. Imagine my surprise, when trundling the hallways of a convention, only to find out my ball.... I mean, HEMISPHERES, are falling off. Not good.

I have been experimenting with many brands of gold pains. I did find one from Dupicolor that best replicates the color I see on the tv and in my photo references.

I tried painting on the inside and the outsides...





I really like this brassy gold color from Duplicolor. If I use it for this project, it comes in a spray can and that could be problematic. Nozzles can get clogged up and cause the paint to spray unevenly, and create a texture (as you can see in the second picture above). Draining the cans into an airbrush will work, but it takes time, and can be messy. A friend I work with is looking into some metallics that have to be hand mixed and are durable. That will be a topic for another time...

Special thanks goes out to ACRODOME of PDF for letting me use his innovative technique to solve this construction dilemma!

That's all for tonight! See you in a few...

I started my search for the 4" spheres... and with some help from my friends, I got the solution. Plastic Ornament balls. So the spheres for the shirt are covered. All too easy. The next part is to cover the ball joints for gun and the plunger. The ornament balls have a joint seam that can weaken with time and pressure. A urethane casting would be seamless and stronger, and wouldn't have a joint that might fail with time, use and abuse.

I already have the sphere....



First part was to fill both halves with expanding foam in each halves. What ever space left over, I used body filler to take up any more space before sealing the seam with water thin superglue. Afterward, a couple passes of primer and sanding out any imperfections. An hour or so, it's ready:



The next step is to make a rotocasting mold. (sometimes called a "slush" mold, too). I made the mold in two separate pours of silicone. Why? I get a lot of people that tell me just to pour it all at once, and just cut to it open. Yeah, that works. I don't like to do that. After you cut the silicone, the two separated pieces relax, and you can lose the proper shape. Pouring in two sections the silicone keeps its shape, and doesn't have to re-relax.



Since its a rotocasting mold, I only need one port, and a plug. I do not have access to a rotocasting machine, so I'll have to do this by hand. Thank the urethane gods for materials that set in 70 seconds!



And there you have it.... The master on the left, and my castings on the right. The interior wall thickness is only slightly more than 1/16th of an inch, but it is tough and shatter proof.



What I will have to do is to bore a hole through at the proper center. I will use a lathe to punch the starter hole through to the other side and then widen it to the right diameter for the gun and the plunger arm pipes. I will use an expanding foam to solidify the sphere once the pipe is positioned.

Onward to the next greeblie... the neck blocks! Time for more greeb casting action!



I had the neck blocks printed, and took a day to pattern finish two of them. This was going to be a simple one sided mold - just pour and pressurize. I wanted to preserve the cutout for each casting... even though I will be modifying the castings to fit around the Supreme's neck clamps. I'll tackle that later...



I cut a bar of aluminum to the size of the spacer, and then mounted the Objet masters to it. Next, I used red sculptures wax and a soldering iron to attach them to a plywood platform. I cleaned up any wax splashes with a filed down wood tongue depressor, and used wax and grease removing alcohol to clean off any residue. Next I made a small box out of scrap poplar. I gave the mold some extra width for extra silicone for a buffer for stability.



I used a platinum catalyzed silicone. Tough stuff and will hold up to multiple castings of rapid setting urethanes.



Next morning, I disassembled the box, and got the masters out in one piece. Those will held to the Vault for safe keeping.



The bar easily fits in place, and with a quick spray of mold release, will pop out with the parts attached to it when the resin has cured.



The resin goes in, pressurized, and twenty minutes later, parts! Any spillage on the top of the bar is easily broken, and the parts slide off clean. The parts are right on the money with measurements.



The Supreme has four rings, totaling 24 neck blocks.  Just a couple hours, and I'm done... for now.

Next on the list, maybe its time to start cutting those neck rings, and getting the bin together. I have started finishing up the oil ring masters for a mold for attaching the hemispheres. It's getting exciting! We'll see what happens in the next few weeks.

Until next time, I continued to delve into the intricacies of Kaled science...

My trip to Skaro was way too easy. I was able to smuggle out a bunch of plans of the Kaled cybernetic soldier units. Now its time to build my own. All kidding aside, I have been visiting www.projectdalek.com and gathering all the information I can.

British fans of Doctor Who have been self building Daleks for years. The amount of information is staggering.  Every season's paint scheme, surface detail, and quirk has been collected and referenced for easy of choice.

For myself, this is exercise in honing my building skills, and a little more learning about cutting perfect circles with a router. It should be several interesting months ahead of me. I even snagged a veteran builder who was kind enough to get me a push start. If there is one thing I do like about costuming and prop building, its a great way to network, and exchange methods and ideas.

Which one, you ask? This one:



I did like the redesign of the Dalek when the series was revived by Russel T. Davis and BBC Wales. It's a nice clunky, heavy tank looking. However, rather than just a plain foot soldier, I'm letting my ego go and am starting to build the Supreme Dalek. It should be a very good challenge. I'm being shuffled out of my safe zone with standard Black or white as an overall cover. I mean... look - RED and GOLD! two nice tough colors. Not too mention its weirder than the other Daleks. I guess those clamps are to hold the Supreme's ego in check.

The guys at Project Dalek, have every angle covered. So all I have to do is pick something and start building. I have been working on the greeblie details on this bad boy. There's tons of them. I figured they should be easy busy work while I start gathering materials to start primary construction.

I did start at the top - there are lights on the top of the Dalek's dome that light up when its speaking. They used MoFlash industrial lens in the redesign, and I happened to get a few. This Dalek, however needs three. Surrounding the Lens is the light cage. Simple design I was able to translate into SolidWorks. I was going to hand lathe all the parts, but I didn't have any raw material the correct size. So I went the other route, and had them machined out of ABS. Nice and easy. The top most ring I was able to turn on the lathe. I wasn't all lazy!



and here's the lenses - >



And then combine the two, you get - >



The legs of the cages was cut styrene. I just need to get them sanded, and then get them assembled.

The next "oddity" on the Supreme are these "plinths" that the light cages rest on. I am afraid of too much weight on the dome piece. I started making a master pattern of the plinth out of RenWood.



Mapped it out and started the cuts on the table saw. Nothings' perfect, so I needed to use a finer and safer tool... a Mill.



Even the best plans  have mistakes. I had to sheath a couple of sides with plastic to get the measurements right.








Lookin' good... just need some primer and lets see what it looks like with the light cage on it.



I still need to get a dome to really finish it. I will make a rotocast mold of the part out of a lightweight urethane resin. Being that it will be a hollow cast part, it will be even lighter.

The neck section has all this blocks with a ball bearing stuck in it. This was another easy part to make. I made a CAD model, and then had them printed on a 3D printer.



Pattern finish and then make a simple mold. More on the mold making a little later....

I was also blessed to get a few extra pieces for the Dalek Gun.



All I needed to do was bend the wires and get everything positioned. So much more to do though. I need to paint it silver so that it looks like machined aluminum. Then it will be time to tackle the four inch ball joint on the one end.

So much more to do! That's enough for tonight..

What little progress can be said for 2010. Started an R2 Unit, and got a little work done on the Biker Scout's Holster last year. Looks like I have been asleep. Hibernation is a better word to describe it.

So what's looking up for next year? It's time to reorganize the project list, and get rid of some of the drag.

The Biker Scout project will be moving forward this year. I talked it over with a few fellow costumer to get a new perspective and more thinking out of the box. The chest armor and back tank are the last three pieces to be completed to make this project real. I will post progress photos and entries as they happen. The bigger problem with this project is getting my vacuforming table back up and running. The oven was not generating enough heat last time, and the plastic holder is going to get a redesign. I have doubled the size of the oven depth and I have made to separate heating zones with their own electrical outlets. This should help heat the oven evenly. With the proximity of two separate and dedicated 125V lines for the machine, there will be no problems with tripping any circuit breakers.

The R2 Project is officially on hold. There are a few things I want to iron out design wise before proceeding forward. I will restart this one 2012, with occasional work on greeblies and other what not when I'm frustrated with other things. All in all, the legs were the hardest part because I decided to go with ABS. Mental note - machine them by CNC, not by hand.

Darth Vader - my favorite project is still on the back burner... but still on the look out for odds and ends to make it look better. I cleaned out the locker of all non-essential, and WRONG parts. A long way to go on this one.

---

The new year? UUUUhhhhhh....I can explain. A good friend from across the pond threw down a challenge. It's time for me to visit Skaro.

So that it for January. Maybe in a week or so, an entry about Kaled science and technology.

Happy New Year, to you and yours, and success to all of your projects this year.

Here we go! My digital camera decided to eat some of my photos over the past few days of construction. I lost part of a whole day! So forgive me now if this entry goes a little stray.

Where to start? I got all the leg panels cut and was starting the glue up process. I first drilled two reference holes so that each piece would line up perfectly as I glued the segments together. I used a steel dowel pin as a key. I glued two sections together at a time. Each group was test fitted, and then properly marked for LEFT or RIGHT.

Now, each ABS sheet was 1/2-inch thick, with four panels making one leg. So one of the glue sections would have to be fly cut down so that would be the proper 1-3/4 inch thickness.



I got a little over zealous, and started drilling holes for the shoulder bolts. I used my MDF template to line everything up before drilling. Thankfully, everything STILL lined up in the end.



Cementing is an intensive process!

To get the holes for the shoulder hub I had to use a hole cutter on the drill press. I used my existing horseshoe part templates to help find a center point and drilled first the larger diameter. But I was unable to drill the smaller hole without damaging the the top surface of the leg. The cutter is only made for drilling holes that are only one inch deep. Any deeper, and the specialty bit will get wrecked... as will your part, your drill press, and possibly you HAND! I resorted to my previous method of drilling holes along a scribe line for the second smaller hole, and then using an oscillating sander to clean it up. I will need to make the shoulder hub very soon to check that the hole is the proper size. Measurements are one thing. Fit is another, as is cosmetics!



I purposely did not put the cut outs for the "stablizer" greebs on my router pattern to avoid having another thing that might not line up correctly. This was a thin enough cut that I could live with being a little trashed. A brand new blade was installed on the band saw at work. How could I resist the temptation to break it in?



I did get a little chewed up, but Bondo is our best friend in this situation. I will cut and cement in the side walls later during pattern finishing and prep for paint. A little work with a heavy rasp to take down some of the edges and smooth it out.



Okay here's were I explain stuff that I don't have a picture for. Before starting the final cementing of panels together, I had cut a trough on one side with an endmill so that I could feed wiring for the motors that will be in the feet That square hole runs the length of the leg up to the hub. After the cementing was finished, I made the bottom "true" on the mill, and then manually drilled holes for steel pins lining up and guiding the leg and ankle together. There was a lot of test fitting in the process! A few of the holes weren't drilled to the right depth. I marked the trouble makers. Then I had to check to make sure that the ankle and the leg were square and straight. The good news is that the left leg was 4 for 4! The right, was 3 for 4. Apparently one of the holes was not drilled straight, and the ankle could not fit flush with the leg with the fourth guide pin.



Here's the same holes on the bottom... plus a 1/2 inch through-hole for the wiring. I am not sure if I will have the wiring route through the top of the foot housing, or perhaps go sideways through the "battery box" on the foot and then to the motor. The way I drilled these holes, the wires might be seen from the back. I will look back on this when I start assembling.



I also poked holes so that the wires can be fed through to the main body. I made a cut out of a cross section of the shoulder flange, just to make sure everything has clearance.



A final test fit....



And then... CEMENTING!!!! The parts need a little extra convincing to come together (hence, the mallet). I got out some cargo straps to keep tight pressure while the cement bonded.



Twenty-four hours and six hours of annealing... we have a set of R2 legs!

(applause and cheers!)



I chose to bond the ankle flange into the leg building process. It one less thing I have to worry about, and its safe and sound.



Flat up against the edge... near perfect!



DONE! Finished major construction! I took a measurement and both legs are slightly longer than what is called for in the construction plans - about 1/32-of-an-inch. BUT, both legs have identical measurements.



So what's next? There's a lot of finishing work to complete. Edges need to be crisped, remnants of cement need to be cleared away. Seams need to be made invisible and a nice coat of primer would be nice, too.

There is still loads of details to start applying - the ankle details, the cylinder holders, wedges, and outer ankle details. And then there are several greebs that I need to start making- the leg stabilizers, shoulder hubs, finish working on the horseshoes. The biggest greeb is the booster cover housing, and the metal work associated with it. That one might get molded... as scratch building two has its draw backs. It's just easier to make one and then go with a castings. Still a very long laundry list to do!

I'm not sure if I will paint it now or later. The legs may go into storage while I await milling of the body frame. I will be using an excellent Polyurethane coating called "Polane" in a color called Linear White. It is bright, and is very close to how R2 looked at the award ceremonies on Yavin 4.

For tonight, I think I'll sit back and have a Guinness. Actually, make that TWO. A bird can't fly with one wing, and an astrodroid can't stand up on just one leg.

So more progress reports, eh? Okay, here's a shorty!

We got busy at work ... AGAIN... and my machining time got pushed back a few more weeks. I decided to figure out how to get my upper legs done without having to log CNC time. Half-inch ABS isn't exactly easy to cut with a band saw or a jig saw. The plastic melts and gums up the blade. Time to re-visit the router table option, with a high quality carbide bit.

Like many plans made by other builder, they used a template and layers of plywood, plastics, and MDF together to get the proper 1.75" thickness of the upper leg. I would be doing the same, except with 1/2" thick ABS.

Back to the old idea: I had a brainstorm. I got my template and traced it out on one of my ABS slabs. Then, I went to the drill press and punched out as close as possible a series of holes outlining the shape of the upper leg. I decided to test one ABS slab, which yields two layers of the leg.



I initially used a 3/8" drill bit to cut the outline. and I was able to very easily cut them from the slab with my jig-saw with a carbide blade on it. Less plastic to cut through means less effort and less friction, and no gumming up the blade or the plastic.

The router on the other hand, did not like it so much. I started cutting in, and got a kick back. I knew exactly what I had done wrong - three things in particular. 1)The hole size I used to cut out the parts was too big. 2) I should have drilled my holes much closer to my marker line, and 3) I should have used the jigsaw to cut closer to the outline as well, instead of just cutting straight through the middle of the drill holes. The router bit was grabbing the hole edges and pulling it rather than cutting it. That is a very dangerous situation. Powering down... but they're not gonna get me without a fight.



So back to the drawing board. I got another ABS slab ready with the outline. This time I used a much smaller drill bit, a 1/8". I drilled the outline much closer, in most cases almost halfway up on the paint marker line, and much closer together. Next, the jigsaw was able to cut the parts quickly, and much closer to the part line.

I mounted the template as best that i could onto the cut out, and started up the router. The cutting went smooth as butter. No kickbacks, and no chattering. Perfect!

I set up the remaining ABS pieces, and shaped 'em. I still wanted to salvage the first two with the larger drill holes. I got the jigsaw out and carefully and slowly trimmed the excess plastic, and the drill hole remnants. Took a little time, and it did get a little gummy. Once the plastic cooled, I knocked off the solidified globs with a heavy rasp file.



Would I be able to get a nice clean cut?



All the pieces are cut! Not bad for an evenings worth work. The next step is to start the glue up. I will be setting up a jig so that I can drill pilot holes for metal dowel pins that will help me keep all the pieces aligned as I set them up for cementing. That will come in stages as I will have to mill out a trough for the wires for the motor controls. That is a bit easier to handle, and can be done manually on a regular mill. After that, I can set up and drill through the ankle, a linking hole that will go into the foot modules. Along with all of this, I have to drill out the port for the shoulder hub, and the holes for attaching the shoulder to the body. Then there's the business of getting the ankle and this upper shoulder together. Again, dowel pins and ABS cement. Then a trip to the oven for annealing. Looks like the next few days could be quite productive! More to come... as always.

After getting the proper dimensions of the ankle greebs, I had three choices on how to build them: 1) Machining   2) Printing by SLA  or 3) Scratch build.

 It was pretty simple: Scratch build.

 

The object had some interesting faces on it, so I had to break it down into easier to build pieces, then assemble it together later. The first part was the main body, and the lower section that has the 30-degree slanted cut. I cut the "body" rectangle out of one piece of ABS. Easiest part. I then trimmed down a another scrap piece of ABS for the bottom section. I cut it to size with a table saw, and the very last cut being the 30-degree side. After that, it was mark the measurement on, and cut four. I also cut the curve out of the main body, and smoothed it with an oscillating drum sander.

 

The next parts where the inset box and the top section... a square with three of the sides with a .260" round over. The insets was fairly easy, although I was a bit rushed getting them cut in on my break time. They're a little sloppy, and will need some straightening. I will do that while I crisp up the corners. For the tops I cut the ABS out of scrap .25" and used my dremel router to create the curve. After I got them home, I didn't like the way the round over looked- too shallow.

I ABS-glued the pieces together, mindful that two had to be made for the front of the ankle and two for the back. That's when I found that one piece of scrap I used wasn't quite the full1/2-inch thickness. It was off by .030". I ABS-glued a piece of styrene for the missing height, and sanded down until it was flush... which wasn't much and didn't take much effort.

I checked through my router bits at home and found that i did have a 1/4" round! I taped the tops to a piece of MDF -- and made a shuttle to protect my hands while they cut. I ruined the first four I made because the bit was still too high. So an adjustment....

And perfection! I lined the pieces up to the cutting edge, made a cut, rotated the pieces, and cut again. Not bad!

Time to glue them in place.
 

And done for the evening. The crisping detail will have to wait until tomorrow because the glue needs to set tonight. Minor filling some gaps with some bondo, but it's very little. Another four pieces down. How many more to go?

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In BikerScout Land - Something wonderful has happened. We have a finished forming buck!









Getting ready for a great urethane overcoat! Next in the line up... the final three pieces! The chest armor, and the back tank! (and the shoulder armor too... which needs to be modded and re formed). Time to get it in high gear! So much to do and so little time.