Periscope Topper

I added 4 small magnets on the Pie Panel and 2 metal rods inside the Periscope.

I got this idea from Wayne Orr. This will give me a way to remove the Pie so the dome can be removed.

As you can see I have'nt cleaned the inside of the Pie yet, But I will get it soon.

If you look at this Pie very close, You can see 2 small paint chips on the Pie.

This happened at a 501st meeting, 1 little boy was doing his best to remove the panel when it was taped to the dome. And I got 2 battle damage scars from his efforts.

Oh Well, ( That's not I was really thinking ) But it will happen and when it's bad enough, R2 will get his dirty paint job.

Fx Show in Orlando

We had a GREAT time at the show!!!!
We ran into Trent a fellow R2 Builder and we missed Redeye from the 501st.
There was several things that I was disapointed about though.
They had downsized the area it was in and the signatures were too high.
Adam West was one I wanted to get for Jason and he wanted $50.00 for the Sig.
and $20.00 for the pic. That was too much!!!
Last time I was there it was $20.00 for anyone and that's what it should have been this time.
We found some nice items for sale and we will post the pics on Brenda's R3 site.

Next year I will be there with R2, Unless the Megacon is better.
The Megacon comes in March and we'll be there to see which is better for R2.

Comments

Something I want to get of my chest.
I think I made Chris mad and I'm sorry if I did.
My Blog is a learning tool for me and anyone that uses this Blog. As I've stated before, Not everything I do works out and some ideas I get may work for me and not for others.
I welcome everyone to comment as you please. That's why I do not edit any comments made on this site, Unless they are dirty or spam.
I really do value all comments made and to me, There is no negative comments only teaching tools.
I've made some very GREAT friendships here and hope to make more freinds.
Oneday I will find my big contribution to the R2 Builders group, But until then I'm just having fun building my R2.

Anyway, If I ever post anything that offends anyone or I disagree with something posted.
It's just me trying to learn from my mistakes.
I hope to hear from everyone and have fun building your R2D2.
Calvin

Channel Selection

Now that I have more than enough channels, I need to figure out the mapping.
This is what I may go with:
Vex remote side A
Ch. 1/2 = Foot Drives
Ch. 3 = Periscope
Ch. 4 = Dome Rotation
Ch. 5 = Top Utility Arm
Ch. 6 = Lower Arm

Vex Remote side B
Ch. 1 = Right Door
Ch. 2 = Left Door

I'm trying to keep secondary items on side B of the Vex remote.
This way if I have a problem with interfering with someone else it's no big deal for me to stop using this channel.
Also, I noticed if I switch channels during a servo movement it freezes in that position and once I return to that Channel it returns to normal position. This is good for somethings like the doors, But a BAD thing for the foot motors. So I will have to look into a Failsafe for the foot motors.
Some of the Servo's will need a Servo Slower, This will keep things like the Arms, Doors and other things from opening too fast. But this may be something I can slow down with programming.

The 12 Ch. Remote from Ebay:
Ch. 1 = Front Logics
Ch. 2 = Rear Logic
Ch. 3 = PSI Lights
Ch. 4 = Holo Movement
Ch. 5 = Holo Light
Ch. 6 = Side Panel on Dome for Fogger
Ch. 7 = Fogger Spray
Ch. 8 = Automated Pie Panels

Vex Remote Mod Revised

When Chris questioned the purpose behind adding the extra FM board to the Vex remote he gave me a better idea.

As you can see on the back of the remote, I have marked a black box. The hump in this area will have to be removed with my Dremel to give me a flat area to mount a small box. This is the box from Radio Shack: http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062279&cp=&sr=1&origkw=plastic+box&kw=plastic+box&parentPage=search

The box will become my adapter for the extra crystals, 1 mounted on each side of the box. The white picture shows the layout of the crystals and below them I will mount a mini 3 way switch. The switch will allow me to choose which crystal will be active and which Vex micro I will be controlling at that time. I have allready tried wiring the crystals and they don't seem to know they are being wired different than the way they fit stock.

I will loose 1 Tx crystal, Because I need the plug to fit into the original spot. And you can see the inside of the original crystal in the pic.

Also the box is small enough that it will not get in the way of the 4 digital buttons on the back.

Vex Remote Mod

This shows the guts of the Vex Remote.

My idea is to add to the 1 remote an extra transmitter (it's the big brown board).

I will add a switch to control which board will transmit the signal at any given time.

In Essenes this will leave me with a 12ch remote that I can use to connect to 2 different Vex micros on different Freqs.

I'll use some controls to drive the body, dome, arms, doors. Then flip the switch and I can control the periscope, pie panels, etc.

Since I have incorporated the 12ch Ebay remote to the Vex micro, This gives me additional channels to control things like the lights, holo movement, etc.

Now I have more than enough channels, 16 motor ports, and I/O ports to work with, I'm not worried anymore about controls.

Leg Update

This is how far I got this weekend on 1 of the legs. It's not perfect and I got some paint Boo-Boo's here and there. But it did turn out better than I expected it too.

Once the paint dries, I can clean out the holes in the Horseshoe and add the detail parts.

The main thing I'm glad about is: My legs are wood with a styrene wrap and I got a smooth finish. I still have to cut the line around the lower area where the Booster has a line, But I'll do that later. More work on the small details for this leg will come soon.

Part Primeing

I primed 1 leg and the Periscope.

I found alot of BOO BOO's on the leg, Nothing alittle sanding and glazing putty can't handle.

And I added the rings around the side eye's on the periscope.

Both need more work, But I can see the problems now with the primer.

Servo Trouble

I had to move the Servo to another position.

The A&A frame is really limiting me on where I can place servos.

I also placed a rod between 2 hinges and this closed the door much better.

Servo vs Hinges

Ok, This is kinda embarrassing.
My wife did the video and there I sit holding the servo in place, Big Belly and All.
(Jason stop laughing!!!)

Now that the laughing is over :)

The servo I'm using is very small but it seems to have more than enough power.
I'm not very good at servos, But once I get the alignment correct and make a better
linkage it will work fine.
All the hinges will need work and getting everything to work together will take time.
Anyway, This is a learning curve for me, But I won't give up.
( Thomas, Don't you start giggling either!)

Hinged Doors

Here's the doors as they open.

I still have some work on them and someone gave me an idea on how to open/close the doors.

There's a slip cable system they use in model airplanes and I think it will work for this situation.

The cable will attach to 1 of the hinges and I can place the servo at the other end.

The A&A frame is so limited on space in this area that I just don't see away else to get the servo in this area.

The other thing I'm having a problem with is:

The doors when they open are slightly scratching

the paint on the body. I'm going to see if I can find the clear tape they use on new cars in the fender areas. This tape is very hard to see once applied and may protect they body.

Large Door Hinges

I got the hinges on 1 panel mounted and I noticed a couple of problems.

The hinges work GREAT, But when the panel closes theres a slight gap around the closing side.

It's not bad, But I can see it and it's driving me crazy. The servos may close it tight enough that it may not be a problem.

The next problem, I have very little know how when it comes to servos.

And I may have to get help setting up the servos. Also I found that the A&A frame does limit you to where you can mount servo and other items.

Periscope Production

I've put this off as far as I can.

I was not looking forward to the Periscope and I've got alot of work ahead.

This is the Periscope that Scott made for the club along time ago. It's made from PVC type material and very light weight.

Once the glaze dries I will be able to sand and do more fitting of the goodies that go with it.