BB-8

#NOTBUILDINGBB8 …

Still #NOTBUILDINGBB8 ..

.. but if I was, there might be a few things I could have done..

First off, I would probably have added a few pictures with everything roughly put together, just to get something cool to look at:

How, there would still be a lot of work to do:

The top panel .. well .. I can start with painting that one, so I can fix it to the pie panel ring:

Some filler primer first…. then sanding almost the entire layer of paint down to nothing, then on to the proper colour: The Satin White used on R2-D2.

The pie panels need another round of rub and buff, I think..

Much better. It is still a few things visible where I was rubbing too hard, but it will still be weathered in the end, so I’ll let it be for now.

The top panel has also been fixed to the pie panel ring with my glue gun. Melt glue is perfect for this. It will hold forever.

I remembered (too late) that the top panel still isn’t clear coated, but I can easily mask off the pie panels later on for a quick spray.

I have also drilled and glued magnets all around the pie panel ring and the top of the dome, to make the pie panel and top piece removeable. Works great!

What else.. ?

Well, The dome needs filler in the seams and sanding..

A couple of coats of Tamaiya Putty, scraping with my break blade knife and sanding… and I think the dome is now one more round of putty and sanding away from being pried (with filler primer of course)..

This one will really look cool when it is all done..

The antenna pieces have also been painted flat black. I might have made the antenna a bit too long, but I can easily shorten it, if need be. Or print a new one 😉

Finally, I’ve spend some time with the holo projector, sanding all the small grooves in the rim, and smoothing the sides out. I printed this on 0.05 layer height to really make all the detail come out, and it really does. It has been sanded with 600 grit sand paper, and at the moment, I am unsure if I even have to paint it. Might still dab a few coats if black on it. It feels really smooth to the touch! Picture taken through my magnifying glass.

Next off, is painting the basic dome, but in order to do that, I need to find a decent box and get some time in the yard to do this. After that, the dome skirt needs a bit of TLS, as one part warped slightly and needs to be filled in before assembly.

That’s a project for another day, however! 😀

If i was building BB-8, that is…

By micke|2016-12-06T00:00:08+01:00September 1st, 2015|BB-8, Building|Comments Off

#NOTBUILDINGBB8

I’m not building BB-8!

Nope!

I really didn’t like that droid when I first saw it.

Who’s Bb-8 you might ask?

Well, he’s that little round fella from the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer.

The little round one.

Yes.

THIS one:

There’s only one small problem:

As soon as it rolled out on stage in Anaheim during Celebration VI my jaw dropped.

Up until then, I thought it was nothing but a CGI robot made for comic relief, but to SEE this on stage (even though it was on youtube) blew my mind!

But … still … #NOTMAKINGBB8!

At least not as far as my fiancée is concerned…

The story of BB-8 started back in 1974, when George Lucas still wanted to make “The Star Wars” as it was called back then. Having the Legendary (capital L deserved) Ralph McQuarrie on board to do his visuals, they started an epic journey that… well … I digress.

One of the early designs for R2-D2 by Ralph featured the droid balancing on one wheel.

Something not possible at the time. Fortunately for us, J.J. Abrams took the AWESOME decision to stay true to much of Ralph McQuarries ideas and designs when designing the forthcoming Star Wars films, and so, BB-8 was born.

After seeing it on stage in Anaheim (unfortunately not in person, I watched it on youtube at home), my mind started thinking… how would I build a droid like that… and I soon came up with a blueprint that would explain it all:

Or … well … maybe not. But a fan online had looked at BB-8 and like me (I guess) compared it to the size of R2-D2 and extrapolated and calculated and … guessed.. and came up with this:

Not completely accurate, it was still a very good start.

Thanks to a few very resourceful persons, M & T, you know who you are, I have started on a new journey with this little droid. At the moment, I am content with just doing the dome, but who knows… in the future maybe? I think I have a solution for how it actually works…

It all started with printing a lot of parts on my trust Makergear M2:

A box of parts, really.

The first piece I printed was the front third of the dome: I used PLA for this, as it warps a LOT less and less chance of cracking, like ABS.

I was VERY surprised about the support towers showing in the back. They are standing on nothing (since I forgot to add a helper disk where they start), and was really sturdy!

Thanks to the BuildTak, they managed to stay put the entire print, and made me this lovely piece:

A few more pieces followed, and..

.. we have something that already looks like a dome!

The (almost see through) red PLA was the roll I had that I’ve used the least. I figured if I was going to paint this anyway, why not use a colour I would never use for anything else…

A bit of sanding and some putty..

… and some more printing…

… and gluing … and sanding… part after part..

.. and tweaking the firmware of your 3D printer and modifying layer heights… and print speeds.. and making the best prints you’ve ever made..

…and reprinting…

realizing you just printed something that has a layer height of 0.05 mm.. 1/20th of a millimeter…

.. so I guess … that when almost all parts for the dome are done … like now..

.. i guess that I AM building BB-8 … after all

But still…

If my fiancée asks..

or if anyone asks..

Remember:

#NOTBUILDINGBB8

By micke|2016-12-06T00:00:11+01:00August 26th, 2015|BB-8|Comments Off

–What do you mean “my parts are showing”?

In addition to making the odd compad and some special request, I am also doing some parts for friends.

I am not doing any “runs” of anything, so please don’t ask me. I only have one small printer and I make good use of it for my own projects and do the odd part for friends in need when time allows.

Parts that I’ve done recently: (click for better view)

: LDP (Large Data Port) For R2-D2. This one was made specifically for people using the most excellent Dave E instructions, where the gap for the LDP is somewhat different from the old, legacy specifications.

: Just look at the quality of this LDP. I’ve done nothing with it after ir finished printing! I really LOVE my 3D printer!

: I printed this beautiful Obi-Wan light saber made by Valcrow from redicubricks for a friend who got married.

: The full assembled saber.

: Every part is interlocking..

: Every parts fits precisely..

: I really learned a lot about FDM tolerances and interlocking parts when making this.

: I used the Valcrow Pummel and changed it for a friend who needed an Obi-Wan pummel. This is the rendering

: .. and this is the pummel after print, acetone vapor treatment and sanding

: Looks pretty good!

: I have also experimented with making compads out of flexible filament (rubber)

: Bendable: yes. useable? not for this!

: The best thing I have done with rubber filament is printing out new corner guards for my 3D printer!

: I’ve also made a compad or two..

: The Scout Blaster is something I have spent a LOT of time and effort with perfecting. I’ve got a box full of failed prints at home.

: This, however is a deluxe print from Shapeways that I made!

: A Hollow print. light weight and no need to paint.

: Other side of the blaster

: All parts that makes up this hollow blaster. It wasn’t cheap!

: A quick rendering of my earlier attempts at modelling a Sterling L2A3 Sub Machine Gun. This is the gun that was used when making the Stormtrooper blasters, which is really what I was after. Looks pretty ok, I think. One day I will buy this renderer.