Friday, August 31, 2007

Little Progress





I installed that 3rd panel near the rear Logics and that finishes the panels.

The blue on the ring sure made R2 look different with the dome mounted. Yeah I guess you noticed I knocked the front Holo out. I was moving him around and my big behind made contact with the Holo and it was on the floor. J.B. Weld don't have nothing on my rear end.

More work to come, SeeYa soon!!!

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Ring Painting



Ok, I finally painted that dreaded ring!!!

I was not looking forward to this part because it was the biggest area for a mistake to happen.

It took a while to tape and I also used liquid tape down in that tiny groove so the blue stayed where I wanted it to stay. I've seen some of the rings painted down in that groove and I didn't like it.

The only thing that might bite me in the butt is:

I was unable to prime the ring before painting. I was worried about paint build up and getting the liquid tape out of the groove. I plan to seal the edges with some clear fingernail polish, That stuff sticks to about anything. Hopefully this part will never get painted again, If it gets banged up then it will be time to dirty up R2 all over and he'll look like he's been in battle.

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Dome Work





Finally the paint cured and I was able to install a few more dome parts.

Below the rear logic I installed the thin blue ring. Now I left the split between the panels silver, Because there are different opinions about this area being all blue or having the silver splits and I like the silver showing. The other part for this area, I will install after I fix that little bad spot with some paint.

The front logic bevel and the parts on each side I also installed today. I have the Logic's that the club built and I have the same problem about mounting them. They're suppose to stick out more than what mine are showing, But the Logic pc boards are too large for this tiny area and they bump into each other. Some of the other builders have solved this problem by reworking the boards, But I don't have the soldering skills to go this far into the logic's. So I'll have to settle with how they look.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

More Progress



I got some more parts painted and now I will complete the front skins and then I'll post some more pics.

The painting process takes time and I'll be glad when it's over.

Anyway, It's starting to come together and hopefully be complete soon.

You'll notice in the pics the paint has a little orange peel look to it, But once it cures for 30 days I can polish and buff it smooth.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Center Ankle Mounts



These are the Jag mounts for the Center Foot wheels. The pic probly does'nt show the texture paint I used, But it looks GREAT!!!

This is the 1st time I've used texture paint and I really like it. These mount up inside the Center Foot and the Omniwheels mount to these plates.

No More Rust





Look Ma, I aint got no rust on me!!!

I got a chance to get some work done today and I took care of that Rust problem.

I can't put the Ankle on the foot yet, Because the paint is still tacky. So I'll wait about 1 week for the paint to cure and then I'll show the finished product. I did have a couple of Boo-Boo's on the blue area on the cylinder and when I can I'll do some touch up in this area.

The only thing I'll hate, When I put the 2 together they will rub in the Ankle area and that pretty white paint will get scratches.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Watto Again!!!



I got Watto mounted , But I still have some work to do to this project.

I also managed to get the Center Foot painted and I'll post some pics soon.

Brenda got a lot done to her R3, But you'll have to visit her Blog for the updates.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

I Have Returned!!!





Ok, Now the updates will start happening again.

I don't have alot to show right now, But some parts have started coming in and I stuck a few together for this post. I need to get the Jag foot sanded and painted soon, Because you can see the surface rust starting.

I will be posting more regular from here on out, So seeya soon.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

I'm a GHOST!!!!

I have been invisible here on my Blog lately, But it's not that I'm not doing R2 work.
I'm busy doing R3 work. Once Brenda catches up with me, I'll get back to work.
The only thing is, That she'll actually pass me by when she catches up.
So, Don't give up on me guys :) I'll be reborn someday!!!!

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Trial Fitting

Just doing a little fitting on the legs.
Everything seems to be working at O.K.
so far and the Ankle Braclets I got from Jag for FREE!!! Thank you Jag!!!
The center Hydraulic seems to be off center for some reason, But I'll fix that.
This is the right leg and I'm not sure if the buttons go up front or the Hydro, So I'll have to research this problem.
Down inside the area where the Hub sets is where I'll have the steel plate. This will add even more strength to this area and there will be a steel plate under the round shoulder on the backside of the leg. So I don't expect any problems with this area not holding. Also the round shoulder will be bolted to the leg so it will also add even more strength to this area. I've got to get the mounts I need for my mill and mill the backside of the hub and the round shoulder, I'll mill the holes out alittle for the lock nuts to fit down inside the round shoulders.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Slow Pace

Man, I got to get myself in gear!!!!!!
All I did today was work on 1 leg in the Undershoulder detail area.
It looks alot better now, I got all 3 layers of wood in this area to match.
I did discover one thing though. I thought my idea for bolting the legs on kinda stunk,
But I looked at a pair of A&A legs and they bolt up just like mine do, So I guess it's not to bad.
I did cut alittle deeper in the bolt area, But it's still not enough for the hub to set down.
So I'll get the vise for my Mill and mill the hub to fit.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

R2 Progress



Not really much, But got the dome back on R2 and man is this thing getting bigger.

I've seen R2 so much, That I did'nt realize how big he really is getting.

Anyway, I'll rip the legs off soon and finish them with the bondo and paint.

Cross your fingers!!!!

Monday, May 28, 2007

Legs Attached











Ok, I ran into a couple of problems with the legs.
The bottom pic shows how I shimmed the A&A leg mounts.
1st - I drilled and tapped the holes in the Sat. motors to use 1/4 rod. The rod also has a nut to tighten the shaft down to the Sat. holes, So no slipping in this area. This was followed by a washer to fill the area between the nut and the A&A - Jag style stops. No play in this area.
I also added white nylon bushings into the holes, So there was no play in this area.
In the next pic, You can see the rods and the legs bolted to the frame.
Now this was my 1st problem area. The nuts barely have enough room to fit down into the leg and I didn't expect this when I was building the legs, But they do the job.
The 2nd problem was in the hubs.
The 3rd pic shows the back of the hub and there is allot of excess Aluminum in the inside of the hub. This area hits the nuts inside the legs and won't allow the hub to slide all the way into the leg. So what I will have to do is mill the area down to a smaller size and then the hub will slide all the way into the leg. I'll post pics after I mill the hubs.
The top pic shows the legs bolted on R2 and I sat the front skin on for looks.
Anyway, If your building your own legs. I suggest you find away around this problem.
It's not a bad solution to building legs, But it causes extra work and may be too much for some people to deal with. Also if your buying the Jag style legs, You may run into a similar problem with bolting the legs to the Sat. motors.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Dome Controller



The SyRen 10 motor controller came in today and I tested it out on the motor for the dome and it works great!!!

I almost wired the thing wrong from the Vex to the SyRen. The wires from the Vex only uses 2 of the 3 wires going to the SyRen.

The black which is the ground and the white which is the signal. I didn't know it does NOT use the red wire coming from the Vex, But everything is OK. I set the pins and in about 2 minutes I had the motor under control by the Vex Micro. I'll get it mounted into the panel and get the motor in place and give it a try at turning the dome. I will have to recode the Vex software to match the new motor drive.

Sunday, May 20, 2007

R2 Leg Work







R2 now has 2 legs, They're not complete yet but they will be soon.


As you can see in the pic, I put the horseshoes on for looks right now and I need to drill the booster bolt screws into 1 leg.
I also drilled the bolts for the shoulder and this will make the area stronger.
The shoulder detail area I still have alot of work to finish. I have enough wood left over that I will start cutting another set for my wife's allwood yellow R2.

Thursday, May 17, 2007

Not Much Today

Not much to add today. I did get the other outer leg together and now I will start squaring and truing the 2 legs. After I get them lined up correctly, I will start with the bondo to work out the low spots and then they'll get the 1st coat of primer.
So it should be soon now that the leg build will be over.

Saturday, May 12, 2007

Electronics Panel




The top pic shows the rear of the removable panel. I added 1 Aluminum angle to each side and these will have slip holes in them so I can remove the panel fairly easy from the A&A frame. The next pic shows the Vex and the terminals that will supply power for my needs.
The terminal on the left will supply 24v.
The terminal on the right will supply 12v.
The terminal on the bottom the Ground. There will be 2 more small terminals that will be regulated. 1 for the Vex and 1 for the Servos.
The last pic shows the panel back in the frame and the little yellow box is my remote receiver.



Friday, May 11, 2007

More R2 Work




The top pic showes the 4 outer holes I drilled into the shoulder. This will provide more strength to this area, Since I have wood legs.
The bolts will go through 2 layers of the legs and bolt the shoulder to the legs, I need to get a mounting kit for my Mill so I can countersink the actual nuts down inside the shoulder. I tried to hold the piece by hand and there was no way I could hold it.
I also worked on the mounting area for my electronics. The pic does not show the Plexiglas to good, But on each side of the marked area is shiny black plexi. And the area that is marked is also the Plexi, But I won't remove the paper until I'm done fitting the electronics. All wiring will be fitted through the Plexi with grommets and attached to the back.


Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Wiring Diagram




I got this idea from one of the other builders and I'm sorry I forgot which builder it was,
But it was a great idea.
I'm not anywhere near this part of the build, But i thought I would work it as I go along.
The color chart shows the definition of what each color and letters stand for on the second chart.
And JASON, You put the bug in my ear about different motor controllers and look what happened. I won't be using the Victors instead I will be using the Syren controllers.
And I THANK YOU very much to get me curious about what else was available.
These are still overkill, But at least I know they won't burn up on me.

E-11 Work








Did some more work on this project and added alittle more detail.


Around the magazine, I had nothing to simulate a seperation point.


So I scribed a line into it.


I also worked on the end and added 2 washer and screws, But I've got more work to do.