Treadwell Droid Build

Paul6700 · Nov 27, 2013

UPDATE: Final droid update on Page 7.

Hi All,

I thought I would create a build log for my WED-15-77 Treadwell Droid from Star Wars, A New Hope. There was a Star Wars Storybook that had shown a great picture of the droid with Luke that made me remember it as if I had seen him in the movie. Ever since then I have wanted my very own Treadwell.

Here is a picture as refresher, he was included in a deleted scene more recently. However he also made into the Jawa Sandcrawler and also as a mechanic on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back.

View attachment 259688

A little about my background, about five years ago I joined the R2 Builders club and built my first droid R2-M5. Basically he is a red version of R2-D2 and shortly there after I built a scaled version of the MSE-6 droid. Now I want to build my own Treadwell. I started by joining the Treadwell Builders group and found that the few members there created several blueprints for the main areas of the droid. I was also able to get a photocopy of an article that was written in 1977 by Electronics Today International. Here is a low rez version of the page I got from the publisher.

View attachment 259689

Now onto the build.

Paul6700 · Nov 27, 2013

The blueprints (found at the Treadwell Builder's Yahoo Group) outlined the basic measurements for seven areas of the droid; the head, the neck, the body, the base, the treads and the wheels. My goal is to create as screen accurate a droid as possible and have it function. So I want it to be able to move on its treads as well as look around with the head. In addition I would like to get some arm movement from his upper arm.

I started with the body as I felt all of these parts could be made with either PVC or ABS pipe from a hardware store. So I printed the blueprint for the body and headed off to the hardware store with a tape measure.

With a variety of fittings and different diameter pipes I was able to piece together the body in one day.

I decided to tackle the head next, using balsa wood and the club blueprints, I created two identical tapered rectangles that are bolted together using 1/4 inch threaded rods and nuts.

Sorry the pictures are not that great as this was done some time ago and I should have taken more pictures. I will get better I promise.

The base I fabricated out of hard wood so that the sides would be as straight as possible. Again following the dimensions provided by the group.

After cutting the sides to the right shape and dimension I used one inch square stock to connect the two sides. I also wanted the top of the base to be mounted into the sides so that there would be plenty of strength. I also finished the bottom so that I can mount batteries and motors inside.

The front and back of the droid is wrapped with sheet aluminum for roofing. It comes in a roll and I cut it to length and screwed it into the one inch square stock. This allowed me to create the shape in the front and back very quickly. In addition to the base I made plate that connects the body to the base using 1/4 inch plywood and the one inch square stock.

Paul6700 · Nov 27, 2013

The base was completely coated in Bondo and sanded smooth. I did not want any of the wood grain showing through since he should be made of metal. I also fabricated the logic housing, which attaches on either side of the body. I reinforced the inside with wood because I figured little kids might think this is a good place to stand.

On the inside of the base I made a spot for the motors to sit and on the opposite side I slotted the sides of the base and created a well for my tension system to be installed. I am using a rubber tread and a friction system, so I need some way to add tension to the track.

Drac · Nov 27, 2013

WOW you have done loads in just an hour!?

I jest of course lol, nice work so far though :thumbsup

Paul6700 · Nov 28, 2013

Thanks Drac, I am extremely speedy!

With the base painted and the body attached it was time to get the neck figured out. I used a caster as the swivel mechanism with a servo mounted in the middle. It was covered with a piece of PVC to hide it.

I fabricated the neck using plywood and aluminum and balsa wood ends to try to make the neck look like what was originally used.

The body and the neck were painted silver as a base coat.

Blaxmyth · Nov 28, 2013

Wow! What a build!

Two points that have fascinated me about this droid are the driving wheels and the 'eyes'.

Are the driving wheels at each end part of some sort of electric motor armature, or are they drive wheels for some type of rubber belt?

And are the eyes really some sort of 35mm slide viewer?

Loving what you have done so far, and am looking forward to lots more pictures, please.

Paul6700 · Nov 28, 2013

Thanks for the kind words Blaxmyth. I ended up custom making the front eye lenses out of styrene because I could not find any information on what was originally used. But you have inspired me to try to find out.

The original wheels were likely made of wood, however I went with rubber wheels. The very front wheels are the drive wheels and the very rear wheels are used to keep tension on the track. I will post some pictures of that area shortly.

Paul6700 · Nov 28, 2013

I was really concerned about the weight of the head. So I made the eyes as light as possible. I started with a styrene box that I glued together and painted black on the inside.

Next, I painted the inside of a clear medicine cup black and the outside I painted silver to simulate a camera lens on the inside of the eye.

The frame is made of styrene and painted to match the rest of the head.

The medicine cup is glued inside the box and the box and lens was slid into the head. I used high bond tape to affix the frame to the head.

Fuzzual · Nov 29, 2013

This is excellent, great job.

Paul6700 · Nov 29, 2013

Thanks Fuzzual!

Paul6700 · Nov 29, 2013

I used aluminum and attached a standard servo for the up and down head movement.

Then attached that to the neck. You will notice I totally reconfigured the neck. The other neck was just not strong enough.

Here is a close up of the neck motor and gears.

I am not happy with the way it looks, it is not screen accurate. The original was the head of a tripod or camera mount, but can't figure out which one. I may create a 3D model and print one that is closer.

Paul6700 · Nov 29, 2013

The arm brackets are made of sheets of tin. Easy to cut and bend and strong once bent into a shape. Here is a close-up of the finished bracket.

There are five arms total on Treadwell so I made a template based on this simple design.

This is what it looks like with an arm attached. Simply drilled a hole through it and the arm.

I have only made two of the five arms so far. And the word made is a very loose term. I used a Craftsman 26-3/4 Inch Pick-up Tool for one of the arms and I used the temperature gauge from my multi-meter for the other arm. I threaded the sensor for the temperature gauge through two brass tubes that nested together. The portion on the end of the arm is the part that connects to the meter. I can now take Treadwell's temperature whenever I want.

Paul6700 · Nov 29, 2013

The treads have been debated a lot over at the Treadwell Builders group. However I think I figured out what they used on the original. There is a close up of the track in Electronics Today International and here is a picture of mine.

It is a 70 inch 1/2 inch pitch blower belt turned inside out. The 3 inch width of the belt and the 70 inch length fits perfectly. I went with a hard rubber wheel with a outer hub. There are twelve 4-1/2 inch x 1 inch idler wheels and eight 4 inch x 1-1/2 inch drive and tension wheels. I used a cut up fan belt riveted to the blower belt and the wheel straddle the fan belt.

Paul6700 · Nov 29, 2013

This is what Treadwell looks like put together at this point.

Paul6700 · Dec 1, 2013

Treadwell is able to look left and right and is able to look up and down. In addition, he can move around on his tank treads. I am using a 12 volt 25 amp speed controller hooked up to a R/C receiver to drive him around. The eye movement up and down is controlled by a single servo.

The motors are connected to the front wheels via a chain drive.

To look left and right I am using a hobby speed controller connected to a separate battery. Here is the electrical plan for the whole droid.

Paul6700 · Dec 1, 2013

To control Treadwell, I am using a four channel radio and an iPod for sound. I will be expanding his options in the near future, however this is all I need for the moment. I am using an app called LiveTrax on my iPod which I use Bluetooth to connect to a Bluetooth receiver and a low budget amp on the droid. LiveTrax stays on and plays one sound at a time and then waits for your next input.

I used a small strip of aluminum bolted to the front of the transmitter case and a hard case for the iPod.

Blaxmyth · Dec 1, 2013

Wow! Loving the ingenuity with this build!

Treadwell · Dec 4, 2013

Treadwell approved! :thumbsup

xingshen · Dec 4, 2013

Great looking droid

Can you tell where you sourced the drive belts from?

Paul6700 · Dec 5, 2013

Thanks Xingshen, I got the belts from an EBay store called Dale Wilch. He has a website dalewilch.com that sells new and used racing parts. I bought the 70 inch x 3 inch wide square 1/2" pitch supercharger street blower drive belt. You need two.

Treadwell Droid Build

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