My 3D printed Proton Pack build

[Galifreyscall]

I've been looking around for a nice tranciever, and I found this for the low low price of nothing:

What is this, a crossover episode? Eh, stranger things have happened...
It's surprisingly dimensionally close to the MT500, coming in at 7.5 x 2.5 x 2.25" but still thicker than the 500 by that extra 1/4". Quite happy with this acquisition, and not not inaccurate depending on the way you look at it

-Galifreyscall

 

[Halliwax]

Of course! I'm a firm believer in freedom of information, so I'm happy to provide any research, tutorials, measurements or techniques that I can.

Dang right, it's also relieving to see that these parts aren't coming out like pack shaped rubbish. Or even worse, one of Videobob's shells-

Lol! Good man!

 

[Galifreyscall]

Took a dremel to the gizmo board, needs a little more trimming to fit in the holster but its looking good! I've also printed the nixie tube holder using the files found here: Belt Gizmo Kit with Circuit Paths by xaviorbat and with everything in place, I'm incredibly satisfied!

Hopefully I'll be getting some filament in soon to continue on the spacer, till then.. well you know:
Progress!

-Galifreyscall

 

[Halliwax]

its taking shape!

 

[Galifreyscall]

Just got in my GB2 name patch from gbfans, I don't have a single complaint with it! Also got some closely matching back thread to hide my terrible hand stitching-

(Twinkie for scale)

 

[Halliwax]

ive never been disappointed with them, what arm patch are you going with?

 

[Galifreyscall]

ive never been disappointed with them, what arm patch are you going with?

Also the gbfans GB2 patch, loving it so far. The iron-on glue and my threadbare stitching held up through a rather rough and tumble airsoft match, so I'm quite confident it'll make it through a con or two-

 

[Halliwax]

What no ghost patch did you end up going with?

 

[joberg]

Just got in my GB2 name patch from gbfans, I don't have a single complaint with it! Also got some closely matching back thread to hide my terrible hand stitching-
View attachment 1550345
(Twinkie for scale)

I'm following your great build, albeit in silence...so far. Couldn't help myself laughing at your "Twinkie Scale" Usually, the RPFers are known to use the "Coke Can Scale" for their pics I think that you're the only one who've used that edible for scale

 

[METATRON]

Slow progress on the pack, but I do have something to report:
My belt is now populated with a new belt gizmo holster!
View attachment 1543640
I found a measuring tape holster on amazon from a company called RJ Leather for about $15 bucks. The shape of the band seemed more accurate than the Klein tools holster, and it was a helluva lot cheaper than one from GBFans, so I hopped on and grabbed it. It came in a few days ago, and I let it sit for a bit before going to my local Tandy leatherworks and picking up some dye. Before, and after:
View attachment 1543637View attachment 1543638
After letting the dye settle and wiping it off the rivets, I was left with a serviceable holster! What I haven't pictured is the state it arrived in, with the strap to keep the measuring tape in, and the lower section which I had to cut off and remove the rivets from. (see the 3 holes in the bottom). Overall I think this is a great cheap belt gizmo holster for the budget savvy buster, just make sure to dye it outside, these fumes are absolutely noxious- Hope to have some work done on the pack done soon, till the next!

-Galifreyscall

I did some little videos some time ago about how to dye and weather leather for a GB belt, because in europe you can´t often get the black stuff:
Part 1:

Part 2:

I never had any rubbing problems. It´s important that you use real leather dye and not just any black paint.
The canvas belt in the video wasn´t white. I bleached an olive one with chlorine, I think that´s way more authentic looking and the rivets will rust during the process, too.

 

[Halliwax]

I did some little videos some time ago about how to dye and weather leather for a GB belt, because in europe you can´t often get the black stuff:
Part 1:

Part 2:

I never had any rubbing problems. It´s important that you use real leather dye and not just any black paint.
The canvas belt in the video wasn´t white. I bleached an olive one with chlorine, I think that´s way more authentic looking and the rivets will rust during the process, too.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Galifreyscall]

The thread's not dead, I'm just out of filament!
Buuut, I did get a bargain! My other hobby is collecting vintage computers, and sometimes this hobby overlaps with my propmaking; like in this case when I found over 2 1/2 yards of GB2 pack cable hanging out the back end of a busted Xerox printer!

This'll set me for about 2 packs, (or knowing me, a pack and a mistake) all for the low low price of free! I'm quite chuffed!

On a lower note, due to some large purchases in other hobbies I might not be able to get more filament for a while, so back into short term hiatus this goes. Thankfully, I'm still nowhere near the deadline of mid/late June, so I can afford to take these breaks. I'll still be active on here though, so if y'all have any tips or advice I'd love to hear it.
Till the next everyone:

-Galifreyscall

 

[Galifreyscall]

I'm following your great build, albeit in silence...so far. Couldn't help myself laughing at your "Twinkie Scale" Usually, the RPFers are known to use the "Coke Can Scale" for their pics I think that you're the only one who've used that edible for scale

Anything else just wouldn't have felt right-

 

[Ned Figglehorn]

The thread's not dead, I'm just out of filament!
Buuut, I did get a bargain! My other hobby is collecting vintage computers, and sometimes this hobby overlaps with my propmaking; like in this case when I found over 2 1/2 yards of GB2 pack cable hanging out the back end of a busted Xerox printer!
View attachment 1552412
This'll set me for about 2 packs, (or knowing me, a pack and a mistake) all for the low low price of free! I'm quite chuffed!

On a lower note, due to some large purchases in other hobbies I might not be able to get more filament for a while, so back into short term hiatus this goes. Thankfully, I'm still nowhere near the deadline of mid/late June, so I can afford to take these breaks. I'll still be active on here though, so if y'all have any tips or advice I'd love to hear it.
Till the next everyone:

-Galifreyscall

That's awesome! I had something similar happen to me over the weekend, I was checking out this electronics store I had never been to and they had this on their back wall.

I was pretty excited and picked up enough for 2 full scale packs and 2 85% scale packs for the shocking price of $11!

 

[Galifreyscall]

That's awesome! I had something similar happen to me over the weekend, I was checking out this electronics store I had never been to and they had this on their back wall.
View attachment 1560889

I was pretty excited and picked up enough for 2 full scale packs and 2 85% scale packs for the shocking price of $11!

That's a beautiful sight Ned! Sadly the only (and the best) electronic component store near me closed over quarantine, and I miss 'em every day. I've honestly been thinking about laminating my own GB1 cables, if it ever gets off the ground I might do a small run.

In news of the build, I have little news; the major subsections are epoxied together, and I'm waiting for some bondo to come in to fill the gaps. The spacer is still only 2/5ths done, and I haven't even touched the cyclotron yet. I've elected to make a cheap move and use Quentin Machiel's Q-pack model for the cyclotron, seeing as I don't think TinkerCAD is meant for modeling a cylinder with a specific bevel.

I'm trying my best to save up for filament since I've got 81 days, I know I can finish it by then, but I'm coming to to terms with the fact that it wont be as polished as I want it to be.

Till the next-

-Galifreyscall

 

[DinoDino]

Man this is such a great thread. I really enjoyed seeing your progress. One of these days I will make my own pack and be following in your footsteps. Keep of the awesome work.

 

[Galifreyscall]

Man this is such a great thread. I really enjoyed seeing your progress. One of these days I will make my own pack and be following in your footsteps. Keep of the awesome work.

Aw shucks, you'll make me blush- Honestly if I could inspire one person to get a fire lit under them and start making something themself, then I consider my builds successful, quality be damned.

On the topic of footsteps; I was in NYC on a vacation a couple of weeks ago when I spotted an army surplus store on west 42nd st. I went in on a whim and wouldn't you know it, one of the display boots they had was a Corcoran 995 exactly in my size! I asked them if I could buy the display and they happily agreed, but when they went to get the other boot from the back, they found they only had two right footed boots in stock. A little discouraged at the cruel trick the universe played; I ended up buying a pair of Bates 02184 enforcers, which I'm still quite happy with:

These things are comfy as hell with thick socks on, and add about an inch to my humble 5'8" which is never a downside in my eyes.
In more pack-based news, I finally got around to epoxying all the major parts together!

Here's the part of the program where you realize most of your tolerances are off and your printer needs more dialing in- *sigh* Anyways, that's all I have for the moment, tune in next post to find out if I finally can afford more filament!

-Galifreyscall

 

[Galifreyscall]

Stay tuned for more updates; more filament is on the way!

 

[Galifreyscall]

I don't even think I have to say much-

I got more filament finally! Of course, I immediately started printing the spacer again, and after 2 short days and one failed print the main body of the shell (cyclotron excluded) is complete! With 58 days till FanExpo Dallas, (and the recent announcement of Nathan Fillion coming!) my spirits are lifted, my hope is high, I'm finally close to being do- ... oh yeah I have to do the wand too...

Oh well, my confidence is high enough to get this done, albeit with less detail than I'd like due to budget cuts. I've settled on the fact that I'll have to rely on Quentin's Q-Pack files for the cyclotron, bumper, clippards, and a handfull of wand part, so this build wont be entirely my own. In other news, I've dug my lathe out of the garage. After flipping the switch for the first time in 3/4s of my lifetime, it proceeded to spit out one of its jaws at high speed into the wall, and blow its fuse. So that's quite fun-

Welp, I'll get cracking again, I'll keep this updated when I have things to report. Say it with me now: PROGRESS!

-Galifreyscall

 

[Galifreyscall]

So over the course of the week I've made massive leaps; starting with the completion of the shell!

The Q-Pack files print like a dream, certainly leagues better than my own. With this completed and the purchase of some PVC pipe, I felt comfortable enough to start painting. Here it is during:

Priming Semi-gloss and Hammered
masking tape top coat


And that's where we are now, a pack shaped plastic brick on my workbench drenched in rustoleum hammered. Every single step I move forward is a step that boosts my confidence tenfold; and a step that increases my experience. It looks pretty drab but I'm currently in the process of making lenses and printing decals, so it's moving forward in detail steadily. Thank you all for your support, I think I'd lose motivation without y'all so having an active thread here is a real fire under me. 51 days to FanExpo, and I couldn't be more excited.
Side note, my partner who's going to be attending as Kaylee Frye was elated to hear that Nathan Fillion was coming, but still not as excited as me-

With great anticipation:

-Galifreyscall