whose R2-D2 parts are these?

[zorg]

hi chaps,

i got these r2 parts in a trade a while ago. i have no idea whose run they were from ,anyone know? and what material are the legs and ankle made from? steel or aluminium. i need to know as i might get some welding done.

the foot def looks like steel.

thanks for your help

z

 

[thawn_es]

Are these parts for sale?

The center foot is made of steel and the outer leg with the ankle is made of alum!

 

[Treadwell]

There's always the magnet test.

 

[zorg]

not for sale, i cant find a magnet:redface

 

[ColeHorton]

Off the top of my head, they look like JAG parts. You might want to wait until someone who actually owns one of his legs/ankles can confirm that though.

Did the foot come with any other parts such as side panels? I have his steel center foot, but it came more complete. If it is the same, the center feet are steel.

 

[Got Maul]

Those are not Jag, those are Gary Weaver's aluminum leg run. I have a set.

 

[Pwrsrce]

Yep...Those are Weaver's...All aluminum...

Jason

 

[R2D2_GUY]

Nope, all Gary Weaver. All aluminum. The welds are on the outside and filed rounded. JAG steel feet have the channel welded into them, yours have no channel.

All the welds on the corners of the leg should be reinforced if you plan on RCing the droid. Examine the leg, feet, and ankles for outside welds that are thin due to the grinding.

Mike Senna

 

[zorg]

thanks guys,
they are pretty heavy for aluminium. no offence gary but i was pretty dissapointed with the rounded corners, i think im gonna have to resurface the legs in plastic card to get sharp corners.im a bit anal like that.:redface

the area around the top of the horse shoe is giving me the biggest headache. its not even at all and will require filler or resurfaced with plasticard.

very glad they were made available and glad i own a set just wish they didnt require so much work.

as for the center foot that will be up for sale at some point. it didnt come with center plates but does have the piece that fits inside at the top for attaching the ankle.

thanks again

z

 

[Gary Weaver II]

Well, considering how long ago these were done I still think they are pretty damn good.

These were pretty much the first ever aluminum ANYTHING to be done on the group. The rounded corners were just the nature of how they were made. As for the welding issue - as best I can tell the shop over ground the parts after they were welded. It was something that didn't happen on every part. Try as I did they NEVER got the hard edges on the corners that I wanted.

Good lord that must have been a good 5-6 years ago. I think they were offered right before/after Celebration 2.


-Gary

 

[micdavis]

Yep. Them were damn fine parts back in the day Gary.

People are spoiled now.

 

[Gary Weaver II]

Well.... That and I think some other current suppliers have their own agendas.

I wouldn't really know though. I quite being involved after the Builder's Council Coup

-Gary

Yep. Them were damn fine parts back in the day Gary.

People are spoiled now.

 

[R2D2_GUY]

Hope you don't take the statements I made as a stab at you, Gary. All know the shop ground the edges down too far, not you. I'm sure you wanted the best parts possible.

I like the feet. The welds need to be checked, but I like the floating foot shell design vs the channel welded in. That way the shell acts like a covering instead of a structural component. The inner structure can then be designed more freely. I built my feet using Gary's shells as a template.

I must say I'm not a big fan of any of the two piece leg and ankle designs. For RC droids that is. Too many possible points of failure with the unavoidable outside welds and the bolting of the leg and ankle can be a weak point.

These are just my thoughts and opinions, no better than anyone elses.

Mike Senna

 

[zorg]

hi gary, i hope you were not to offended by my comments. i know legs are a real headache for builders and to have them in metal is great. like i said im glad they were offered and im glad i own them.

i do agree with the comment that builders nowadays are spoilt.

i get the impression these days that the group should be called the r2 assemblers club instead of builders. dont get me wrong , its great just being able to buy parts "off the shelf" (almost)

when i did my dome in my sig it was all dremeled out and everything hand made, now its just a case of how much cash do you have and do you have a couple of spare weekends.

i have over 90 percent of the parts i need now, just a few alu parts i want but they can wait.

again thanks for doing these,its a big piece of the puzzle for me.

zorg

 

[Gary Weaver II]

No worries guys. I'm well good and done with the R2 Stuff aside from some personal projects. I know that a good number of people mean well about their comments on the legs - it is the simple truth about how they were made and it was something I was completely unaware of.

My irritation came about a year or two ago when someone (and I have no idea who) saw fit to privately e-mail anyone showing an interest in my parts with the same stories of parts failures and how they were not a good purchase. That totally reeked to me of a secondary agenda. After the whole BC Creation I have ZERO tolerance for behind the scenes crap from some at R2 Builders. I know others have felt the same way for other reasons.

-Gary

 

[zorg]

well i wish you all the best with whatever projects you do in the future. sorry to hear about the r2 club problems but i think there are people with agendas all over the prop community.

cheers

zorg

 

[Gary Weaver II]

Of that there can be no doubt. For the longest time I thought it was just something I did, but I've seen it in hobby/groups I have nothing to do with as well.

It's a damn shame.

-Gary

well i wish you all the best with whatever projects you do in the future. sorry to hear about the r2 club problems but i think there are people with agendas all over the prop community.

cheers

zorg

 

[Pwrsrce]

Hey Gary...I guess that was 5-6 years ago...Wow

If memory serves me right you did the prototypes for the two alu-droids that you had in our room at C2...You then re-worked them a bit for the 1st run...(which I was proud to be a part of)

Zorg...I cannot remember what the stuff is called, but I remember that someone used a type of putty that sticks to aluminum to sharpen up the edges of his Weaver legs...He basically ran it up the length of the corner, and then sanded it to a nice sharp edge...

It worked VERY well...I just wish I could tell you what it was...Maybe someone else will chime in with the info.

Jason

 

[zorg]

hi jason, was it milliput or chemical metal perhaps?

milliput is probably the best stuff available over here for this type of stuff. sets like rock and as you say can be sanded and tapped. i had concidered something like this but thought if it ever got a knock it could chip off, not sure on the adhesive abilities of it or similar products though.ive never tried the chemical metal so dont know about that.

i could try it on an area to see. maybe give it a knock or 2?

thanks for the advice

zorg

 

[Gary Weaver II]

JB Weld is what I planned to go with. To be honest though. I've built three or four of them and I hardly noticed the slight radius on the leg

The first generation legs were softer than than the second. Of course I think the second gens were more prone to the splits since they overground them to try for a sharper corner.

If you take them in to be re-welded and reinforced just have then add on a couple extra beads of welds then file/grind them to your preference.

-Gary