Lifesize ED-209 Build. NOW WITH EVEN MORE ED on p.23!!!

Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

Its amazing how you're getting every single detail and dimension bang on!! This is a build people will talk about for a long time to come.

That's me. I'm in the amazing business. Though I'm not sure about people talking about it. There's not been a heck of a lot of traffic on my blog posts over at MAKE. Here's the latest in case you missed it: Building Up to Maker Faire: Shawn Thorsson Brings ED-209 to Life, Part 2 | MAKE I really wish I could figure out a way to get more folks to read the articles.

Today we got started on the pelvis section:


It's a good start, but the chamfered edges still need filling:


I also managed to get a good start on the mold for the gun pod:


I really need to clear out some space in the shop:


Seriously, it's getting ridiculous:


More great things to come tomorrow.

Stay tuned...
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

One method of attracting traffic to a blog is to include tags which have a high popularity. Adding Justin Bieber or any such name would attract the wrong crowd, as would Ukraine, Taliban etc.

Other than that I have only the suggestion of posting frequently. My highest trafficked months were when I had multiple posts per day.

There is also the option of brib- eer paying Google to promote your blog.
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

If you want to make some space in your workshop then I am sure your will get lots of offers for anything that you have made and have lying around :)
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

Will this build have any sort of mobility, or will it be a statue?
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

Will this build have any sort of mobility, or will it be a statue?

It won't walk, but I'm hoping to build some movement into it.

In other news, I laid up the 2nd part of the 3-part gun pod mold yesterday:




It's pretty to look at:
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

KILLER, you Sir have that thing by the .... parts.

Nice work
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

That shot is hilarious :lol

But wait! There's more!

Yesterday a couple of friends stopped by to help out with the main body:


My friend Matt (above) managed to get most of the back end put together while I focused on getting all of the steps on the top in the right place:


His wife filled in all of the curved surfaces.


It was a pretty productive day. Silliness and all:


Hopefully we'll have the whole thing ready for molding in a couple of weeks. I should have the gun pods out of the molds this coming week. I also need to get a start on the elbows.

Stay tuned...
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

You Thir are Sthupendhous (Daffy Duck) Amazing once again and one way to have more space is to build...another work shop:D What's your total budget for that baby btw?
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

I'll take one, what the shipping cost? Lol.:D
 
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I suppose I'm trying to keep the cost of materials under $3,000US. I'll probably fail in that goal.

could you tell us what materials you are using?
kinda like a shopping list?
like what type of gel coat? what kind of mold release? wax? where you get the fiberglass matting? when i look for fiber glass in store it looks weird in a clear type package. so what is your setup?
sorry if it seems newbish..
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

While I have never undertaken a project of any magnitude approaching this, I would say that it is a good policy to estimate an approximate cost to three times what you really think you'll need, the same comes to materials.

As an additional remark I'll state the following; you could possibly afford two or three used cars of acceptable quality for the same cost ... O_O
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

My god. The scale of this thing is simply mind-blowing.
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

could you tell us what materials you are using?

I'm getting my gelcoat by the gallon, 3/4 oz. fiberglass mat by the yard, and PVA mold release by the quart at the local TAP Plastics. They have a website at TAP Plastics : TAP Plastics.
I've been getting fiberglass resin by the gallon from Lowe's. I've been looking for a better price, but even buying 5-gallon buckets from other suppliers ends up costing more by the time I pay for shipping. The other day I ordered 15 gallons from an outfit called Online Composites and it should arrive this week.

For the smaller parts I'm making molds with Mold Max 30 RTV silicone rubber and casting parts in Smooth-Cast 325 which I source (in 5-gallon and 110-gallon kits respectively) from Reynold's Advanced Materials.

There's also a lot of things going into the build which I just happen to have lying around the workshop. The first half of the lumber that went into building the prototypes was mostly scraps leftover from other projects, for example.

As an additional remark I'll state the following; you could possibly afford two or three used cars of acceptable quality for the same cost ... O_O

But I've already got a car.

My god. The scale of this thing is simply mind-blowing.

It'll get better.

UPDATE:
The mold for the gun pod is done. Here's the last part with the gelcoat laid up:


And here's the finished mold:

The new part is the greenish section on the right, AKA the worst job of fiberglass work I've ever done. I guess I was tired or something.

More progress to come today, stay tuned...
 
Re: Lifesize ED-209 Build. Check it out. You have twenty seconds to comply...

In terms of detail quality, do you prefer silicone or gelcoat? I assume that since silicone is flexible it is easier to remove castings from the mold, especially for oddly shaped greeblies. I've been contemplating making a few sets of Stormtrooper armour for some time. Now I'm considering either building a vacformer or making gelcoat molds, just wondering if you have any thoughts to share.
Thanks for posting frequent updates, your posts always make my day!
 
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