Remember this picture? (No, not this image of Threepio... this picture!) That was my first dry-fitting of all the parts for my astromech frame.

OK, now picture it completely glued up. Yup... I went ahead today and glued the whole frame up. Talk about commitment. From this point forward, it all either fits, or I have to start over again. (Reason #1 for the Threepio image...)

I also started working on getting the legs attached to the body. There are some pictures coming, but I got the inner shoulders put together. This was essentially attaching galvanized pipe flanges to the inner layer of each leg. It's an ingenius system... one leg gets a 3/4" flange, and the other gets a 1" flange. Then, an 18-inch-long 3/4" piece of iron pipe gets screwed into one leg, while an 18-inch-long piece of 1" pipe gets screwed into the other leg. Because the 3/4" pipe barely fits inside the 1" pipe, they form a single unit that can be connected with a couple of bolts (via holes drilled through the pipes) to lock the legs together. At least, that's the theory. Enough builders have come before me that I'm sure it works, so hopefully I'll have some real pictures of progress in short order.

Before that can happen, though, I need to install the two pieces of 3/4" oak plywood that will support the pipes. (The pipes get slipped together through these plywood supports.) Most people install these plywood supports when they glue up the frame. Me? I forgot... remember that commitment thing? Well, now I have to figure out how to get the supports in the frame. (Reason #2 for the Threepio image...) Most builders use a router to add a channel in the top and bottom rings to hold the supports. I guess I'll have to add in some strips of plywood to hold the supports in place, and use a few more long wood screws to hold it all together.

Also on the subject of legs, I glued up my center leg, and got the basic shape cut and sanded down. This one is much easier than the two outer legs, since it's just two layers of 1/2" plywood sandwiched between two pieces of 3/4" MDF. Now, if only I had some feet...

No new parts yet, other than the pipes and hardware for the legs. So, nothing too sexy or cool.

I'll be back soon, with an update on my pipe support faux pau (sp?) and (hopefully) some completed outer legs. Oh yeah, and more pictures, too!

Bob
August 18, 2007