First off, I made a drastic turn - I decided to go with an Aluminum Frame. This is a JAG v.4 frame from 2006 purchased from a member of Astromech.net.
I have to tell you, building the A&A frame was a blast, but there were too many inconsistencies for my liking. I was also worried about the weight involved internally with the addition of batteries and all of the electronic goodies. I know many builders have had great success with these frames, and I am going to hang on to mine for..... dare I say it - droid #2. Originally, I feared going the aluminum route due to weight and cost considerations. Not to mention - I have literally zero experience working with aluminum.
Well - once I received the frame, all worries were quelled. An aluminum frame does not offer any margin of error - because there is none. All of the parts fit together without a hitch. Jerry's instructions are short, clean and to the point. No muss, no fuss. After a little cleanup, Dad and I had it assembled in 20 minutes.
Here is what we started with. I cleaned up a good bit of what I assume was JB Weld on the parts. WOW - if you use that adhesive, I don't think you have any worries of anything coming off easily.....ever.
Here we are a scant 20 minutes later. There are Sherman Tanks, then there are these frames. Strong - Sturdy - Heavy. As my droid will be a static three legged mode, I did not need all of the parts for the leg actuation motor mounts. Some members have voiced a concern about the weight of this frame with the PVC legs. Duly noted - I will be watching this with an eagle eye and if needed, I may go with some wooden legs.
Here is a view from the back. TONS of room inside, and easy access from all angles.
Another item procured from the same member is a Fiberglas Skirt. Again - a true work of art. Rumor has it that it's casting lineage hails form a screen-used droid. (I pray that this little tidbit does not get anyone in hot soup - although I have seen a certain shiny Mando helmet supposedly cast from screen-used masters).
The mounting spires were already in the skirt - 4 screws will hold it steady on the bottom of the frame. Again, the fit and finish of the aluminum parts is something to behold. All of the holes are drilled and tapped to perfection.
Below are the legs that I talked about last post. I have sanded the bondo from the outer edges, and applied the 1mm styrene skins. The tape here is holding the styrene skin in place while the epoxy sets. WAIT - WHA ?!?!?? NO CLAMPS ?!?!!?
Another, closer angle : The finishing work will be expedited because of the styrene skins, as all I need to do is fill some minor gaps in his under-arm area.
Here is a little test fit of the now elusive Pittman dome drive motor. This was purchased second hand from another Astromech member, but there were mounting holes in the frame for this particular assembly. The package I purchased has a drive wheel with the builder's club logo on it (from CIV I believe). In this test fit, we discovered that the shaft length is too short for the wheel to meet the dome bearing.
I threw on the A&A Dome Drive Gear. I think I am going to go with the geared drive. I ordered a shaft extension (only need about an inch more height) and a motor hub for the cog seen on the top cross brace. Note - only the drive motor is mounted at this time, the bearing and gear is simply sitting on top of the frame.
Utility arms all sanded and installed. Taped down in case they want to flap about while I am shuffling one of a thousand items around.
Captain ADHD at your service. I have never spent so much time sitting and shuffling amongst boxes, bubble wrap and pieces/parts in my life. I am sure my work area looks like a bomb went off in it every time someone sees it. I want to claim that it is "organized chaos", but alas - I feel like Captain McAllister most of the time:
Captain McCallister: Arr, here be a fine vessel, the yarest river-going boat there be.
(The raft sinks.)
Captain McCallister: (Sadly) Arr, I don't know what I'm doing.
Dry fitting is once again, my main time consuming activity. I have all of the parts in various bins, all bubble-wrapped. I unwrap each part, place it on the assembly, and stare at it for 15 minutes. Put all of the parts back in bubble-wrap - then back in their bins. Moments later, I find myself doing the same thing again.....
But, the results are just too cool to look at.
On the D.L.
Sideways. Note, none of the resin parts have been sanded, so some of them may look a bit wonky.
Close up of the shoulder. New resin shoulders from Wayne Orr, as I totally messed up the A&A shoulder assembly. The top layer slipped a bit during the gluing process, and when using CA cement - you don't have much time to react.... so I had a big ol' pile of fail on one of my shoulders. Problem solved with a set of resin beauties.
Have I shown you my legs yet ? These photos do not do justice to the "dimensionality" of the leg assembly. There is so much going on with the legs alone - just a treat to look at.
After all of the chaos - I actually packed everything back on my temporary workbench. If it looks like a lot...rest assured, it is. I also got the feet sanded and ran another round of bondo on the edges. They are looking mighty fine.
Until next time !
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