Help me ID these Star Tours robot parts?

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• Aug 9, 2011

• #1

Hello all,

This is my very first post here, but the site comes highly recommended by my nephew.

I'm a huge fan of the Star Tours ride at the Disney Parks. I frequently contribute to EndorExpress.net, and a couple of years ago I authored a 17-page article on the history of the attraction which ran in Star Wars Insider magazine (and was also translated into French for the foreign language version.)

While poring over pics of the newly updated queue at the Anaheim version of the ride, I spotted a droid who used to run around on a little train track. His name is allegedly LGB, and the new pics confirmed an old suspicion of mine...

His body is an old 'Starriors' toy playset!

And as luck would have it, I already own two of that toy, procured as a possible Cobra base for a GIJoe 'Weather Dominator' diorama. So now I want to recreate this droid, life size!

But I'm at a loss as to the other items they used to make LGB. The head is tantalizingly familiar, but I can't place it. The 'arms' resemble model rocket legs or chair legs, but I'm not sure about those, either.

Can anyone identify any other parts used by the Imagineers to kitbash this little guy together?

Thanks!

Alex


(LGB photo by Paul Hruby, Starriors photo found online)

 

Howlrunner

Sr Member

• Aug 10, 2011

• #2

The head looks a bit like some kind of coaxial splitter adapter. Sort of like this:

I can't find pics of any with 4 parts though that look right.
http://i.ebayimg.com/00/$(KGrHqQOKjYE3R-LyrDrBN1RCNhtMQ~~_35.JPG

 

A

asemblyrequired

Well-Known Member

• Aug 10, 2011

• #3

reminds me of major matt mason or revell space model kits , but not sure. great project.


-james

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• Aug 15, 2011

• #4

Keep those theories coming, everyone, and I just got some info from a former Imagineer... he said the droid's name is definitely LGB, because he used to run around the room on an old LGB train track. The kitbash was made by a guy named Chris Tietz, who was still an Imagineer back when I wrote my article for Star Wars Insider a couple of years ago, because he was one of three Imagineers I got to interview at that time.

Gonna see if I can reach Tietz for further info-- wish I'd known to ask him about this back then!

Alex

 

jun

Well-Known Member

• Aug 15, 2011

• #5

Good luck in your search!

Can you remember which issue of Star Wars insider magazine that your article was published? I would like to check it out

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• Aug 15, 2011

• #6

The Star Tours article was in issue 104, and the Holiday Special article was in issue 106. Happy hunting!

Update on the Chris Tietz search: I contacted the press guy at Imagineering, who handled my previous interviews, and was told Chris no longer works there.

But, hey, I love a challenge.

Alex

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• Aug 24, 2011

• #7

Still no luck on tracking down Tietz, but I finally had my electrician Dad come over and look at the pics. He says the head looks like an electrical FSX box, possibly with a dimmer switch glued on top... but we couldn't find any designs that were shaped like this one.

The pigtail he said looks like a spring the diameter of no. 9 wire, and the circular mesh at the front is perforated sheet metal.

Still no concrete info on the arms.

Alex

 

Last edited: Aug 24, 2011

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• Nov 22, 2011

• #8

A few months later and I'm still no further along at identifying parts to this or tracking down Tietz.

I did, however, make myself a set of Ghostbusters Ecto-Goggles for Hallowe'en, and am beginning a KUD Meter soon.

Alex

 

G

gjw

Well-Known Member

• Nov 22, 2011

• #9

Without knowing the scale, the elctrical box just seems kinda large.
To me it looks like an older solenoid valve actuator.

I can't find a pic that looks spot on but I have seen older ones that were more rounded like your mystery part.

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• May 21, 2013

• #10

Different angle of the original droid...

Anyone see anything they can identify?

Alex

 

Kasss Gnarl

Member

• May 21, 2013

• #11

Hi DocNewborn,

Although I don't think it is 100% correct, the head looks a lot like a part from a children's toy called Popoids.

Hopefully this will help a bit.

 

Attachments

• 
  Popoids part.jpg

  97.5 KB · Views: 1,114

Zombie Killer

Master Member

RPF PREMIUM MEMBER

• May 21, 2013

• #12

The arms look like part of an Estes rocket stand.

 

J

JasonCash

Sr Member

• May 21, 2013

• #13

^ exactly what I was thinking it was when I saw the first pic, for the life of me I couldn't think of what the toy was called. Each part attached to that piece in the first pic looks like faucet heads to me.

 

Kris

Sr Member

• May 21, 2013

• #14

Hey Doc,

Great to see you around these parts!


Kris

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• May 21, 2013

• #15

Thank you SO much for the Popoids ID! I really think that's the main part for the head!

Now I'm off to eBay...

Alex

 

Kasss Gnarl

Member

• May 22, 2013

• #16

No problem, always happy to help if I can! :thumbsup

 

jlee562

Sr Member

• May 22, 2013

• #17

Oh, right, the one that was on the LGB train tracks!

 

EvilRocketeer

Master Member

• May 22, 2013

• #18

i agree with zombie killer and jasoncash.....the arms look like estes rocket stand

 

hdtheater

Sr Member

RPF PREMIUM MEMBER

• May 22, 2013

• #19

The inserts in the head look like older sink aerators. Or possibly for a mic on a db meter.

-Eric

 

DocNewborn

Well-Known Member

• May 23, 2013

• #20

Sink aerators make more sense than my first thought...

The microphone inside a telephone handset.

Alex