Motivation...

After R2LA... I'm totally motivated to finally finish this build! (Can't you tell? I mean two posts in one day? C'mon!) Guess I just needed to recharge the ol' batt'ries!

Been working on the Skins lately... they still need a bit of re-work, then it's off to gluing and finally on to fitting!

Once I figured out how this Escher-esque puzzle went together, It's finally taking shape!

I'm pretty happy with they way they're turning out, but I still have a bit to do:

Many of the panels need to be re-formed to the body diameter of 18.174", as most of them are now bent out of shape.  Oh, what I'd give for a decent Roll Press right about now. :o)

Also, I'm using a COM-8 A Frame with the full size Rear Door Assembly (ANH style). I still need to cut the Rear Skins to fit... Time to bust out that new Dremel!

SKINS - FRONT

SKINS - REAR

R2LA 9

Recently my little R2 unit made the trek to the South-land and had his debut at the 9th Annual gathering of R2 Builders.

Had a lot of fun, met a lot of long-time club members and had a great time! Nice to finally put some faces to some names!

R2LA - 9.29.2012

R2's were "outshined" (get it?) by a few Wall-E's...

No Updates...?

Anyone who has been following my blog may have noticed the general LACK of updates lately.

I've been pretty occupied getting all the electronics and such installed in my Droid, and I just haven't had the time to sit down and properly document the details.

As for the lack of updates, I think it's just my general dislike for all things "social networking" that keeps me from properly updating my blog.

However... some builders have indicated that my Blog has been somehow useful to them... (Thanks!) SO.... Stay tuned... updates are on the way!

Center Foot Issues

fig. 1

So I had a bit of a problem here.  I purchased this set of Center Foot Side Details (aka Half-Moons) from a now defunct parts supplier... turns out they didn't fit well. At all.


You can see in fig. 1, the top edges of the Moons should be parallel with floor, or 90 degrees from vertical. As you can see, these are not.  Turns out these are actually about 4 degrees off.

fig. 2

After a bit of work, I have a properly made set ...and now the Half-Moons look correct.  Still not perfect, but much, much better.  :o)

On to the Outer Feet!  (Yep... same problem.)

CPU Arm

 

 

Well, it's not much to see... yet, but it is ALUMINUM. I've been evaluating actuators to drive the CPU Arm - Right now I'm taking a good look at Firgelli Technologies L16 Series Actuators.

The L16's have larger motor for faster speeds and heavier loads.  Standard options include: three stroke lengths, three force/speed combinations(gear ratios), Choice of linear position feedback or end of stroke limit switches.

Here's a fine example on YouTube, from LePaul's Build:

R2-D2's CPU Arm and Glipper Claw Actuators in action

Power Couplers Installed

 

I just received and installed a new set of Aluminum Power Couplers from Russell Brown at RB Replicas. Beautiful work from Russ, as usual!

Turns out these aren't quite an exact fit for my COM-8A Frame, But with help from James in Texas, I was able to install these with a pair of adapter brackets shown here.

I'm told the next run of A-Frames has been changed to fit Russell's Couplers.

Blue Harvest V2 plus Special Edition!

Part No. BH-001-V2

Part No. BH-002-V1

Here they are, Just in time for the New Year... my RPF Blue Harvest T-shirts!

Here we have reproductions of both the Classic 1982 Blue Harvest T-Shirt, as well as the 1996 Retro Blue Harvest Special Edition T-Shirt.

I'm considering doing a run of these Replica Prop T-Shirts... If you are interested please drop me an e-mail and let me know which design you'd like, along with your size and quantity desired.  Prices are TBD. My email address is: dse1138@sonic.net

Shirts should be available in standard sizes: S, M, L, XL & XXL.  Also please note your ship to location (Zip or Country Code is fine). 

This run is PRELIMINARY and in the INTEREST ONLY phase. There is no merchandise available, and I am not accepting any payments at this time.

I'll be posting an "Official" announcement on therpf.com as this run progresses.

Thanks!
Dave

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A little history on Blue Harvest Memorabilia:

Blue Harvest T-Shirt

These were worn by the cast and crew of what was then titled Revenge of the Jedi. The crew pretended to be filming a horror movie, Blue Harvest, to reduce the amount of unwanted fan attention. Horror Beyond Imagination was the imaginary slogan for the film.

Retro Blue Harvest Special Edition T-shirt.

This is a recent cast and crew shirt from the team putting together the Star Wars Special Edition movies. It's a nod to the classic Blue Harvest and the logos of the two are identical. Although this shirt says "More Horror Beyond Imagination, Again" and "The Really Big Special Edition".