FAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Profile Log in to check your private messages
 Forum Index      Log in  Register
Mu-TH-UR Computer 6000
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3 ... 15, 16, 17, 18  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic     Forum Index -> Alien Props
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
sethb6025
Community Member


Joined: 22 Dec 2006
Posts: 248
Location: York, PA US

PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Simply amazing, very cool to see it in the original case!
_________________
Wait; I'm having one of those things! You know; a headache with pictures?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail AIM Address Yahoo Messenger
Author Message
stephen210
Community Member


Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Posts: 196

PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 1:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

OUTSTANDING!!
Great work guys.

GREAT JOB!!!
I could go on and on....
Steve
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
andy
Community Guide


Joined: 01 Nov 2006
Posts: 6237
Location: Rochester, NY

PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That is truly awesome. Giving back to the guy who has given so much to this hobby. Very cool.

Andy
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
phase pistol
Community Member


Joined: 04 Nov 2006
Posts: 1147

PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 6:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Now I'm going to have to go back over this entire thread to appreciate what's been done. Shocked

Awesome job! Well done.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
Author Message
FenGiddel
Community Member


Joined: 11 Jul 2009
Posts: 368

PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Great work! Now that you've "got access to MU-TH-UR now", use it wisely... Wink
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
SKIN JOB 66
Community Member


Joined: 16 Jan 2008
Posts: 2724
Location: FRANCE

PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 2:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Completely missed the end of the story, just saw the final pics a minute ago !!!

Shocked

WOW, awesome result !!! Bravo guys !!!

(BTW, did you complete your Mu-TH-UR key box, too ?)

Fred
_________________
THE FUTURE IS A THING OF THE PAST
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mike Rush
Community Member


Joined: 30 Jul 2009
Posts: 184
Location: Hertfordshire, England

PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 2:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks. Smile

I must admit there's been a somewhat slack period where I haven't touched the box for a while. But there are plans to get back on it, don't worry!
_________________
Mike

"We're not heroes - we're from Finchley"
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
SKIN JOB 66
Community Member


Joined: 16 Jan 2008
Posts: 2724
Location: FRANCE

PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 3:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Great news Mike, can't wait to see your next update on the box now !!!



Fred
_________________
THE FUTURE IS A THING OF THE PAST
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mr Webber
Community Member


Joined: 13 Apr 2008
Posts: 1824
Location: Terra Australis

PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 6:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

A benchmark achievment and a great back story, congratulations. Cool
_________________
Formerly offworld66
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
joberg
Community Member


Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 9447

PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 6:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ditto here: eager to see the box being built.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mike Rush
Community Member


Joined: 30 Jul 2009
Posts: 184
Location: Hertfordshire, England

PostPosted: Wed Apr 06, 2011 8:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Okay... I know this has sat around for too long. Embarassed

To open the box, I've never been able to find a spring which is right. (At least, not somewhere that sells them in units of less than 1000!) My research has taught me that the kind in the photos is known as a torsion spring, and also that they come in different configurations: 90º, 180º, etc. I need a 180º type - that is, it tends towards a straight line (and thus opens the lid). I simply haven't found them 'for sale' anywhere though. So that's been a problem.

Recently I was standing at the bathroom sink and I looked down and there was one of my wife's hairgrips. I stared at it for a second. It contained a spring which looked just right!

Obviously I didn't steal it and rip it apart. Wink No, I went out and bought the cheapest, tackiest hairgrips I could find.



There are many shapes and sizes available, with various sizes of spring. I deliberately chose smaller, weaker springs since my box is only foamex. If the spring is too strong, there's a chance that it will rip the foamex apart.

After a little gentle coaxing the springs were removed.



Then, just the other day I was walking in the park and saw this on the ground. It's a broken piece of a much larger grip. What a coincidence! Well, it might not be useful yet but you never know.



Yes, I picked it up. I'm not proud. Wink

To make room for the spring, the hinge will need the centre section removed. That will involve cutting my lovely (expensive) 3D-printed piece!



I removed the hinge from its temporary home, lined it up on a cutting board, and scored both sides with a scalpel.



Soon it was off. I must say this printed plastic is very nice to work with. Not too brittle or too soft.



I then replaced the hinge piece and assembled the box, incorporating a spring onto the hinge rod.



If the plastic hinge looks bent, it is. Those pieces are just lightly stuck down with small pieces of double-sided tape. I don't want to glue them until I know everything is right!

What I found was that the spring was by no means strong enough to open the lid. Sad

I had one more idea. I reassembled everything, this time including three springs.



The result was better, but not enough to reproduce the nice, sharp action seen in the film. I might need to go back and buy larger hairgrips. However I am aware that the temporary fixing and the bending of the plastic may be affecting the results, so I think I'm happy to work around this for now and worry about the spring when everything's a bit more final.

At least the theory works. Smile
_________________
Mike

"We're not heroes - we're from Finchley"
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
8th_Passenger
Community Member


Joined: 28 Nov 2009
Posts: 443
Location: Hertfordshire, UK

PostPosted: Wed Apr 06, 2011 9:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nice work Mike 'Very Happy'

We have larger crocodile clips at work. I wonder if they are a similar spring.

My initial thought is they may be too big.

Colin
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
joberg
Community Member


Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 9447

PostPosted: Wed Apr 06, 2011 11:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Great stuff Mike (yeah, as for "borrowing" personal objects from the wife is something I don't do anymore...I like my life ).

As for picking stuff off the ground or in garbage cans, there's no shame in my book; as a recycler I've found tresors over the years and a plastic bag will not stop me Laughing

Eager to see the result of your quest for the perfect "spring".
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
SKIN JOB 66
Community Member


Joined: 16 Jan 2008
Posts: 2724
Location: FRANCE

PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 2:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

joberg wrote:
Great stuff Mike (yeah, as for "borrowing" personal objects from the wife is something I don't do anymore...I like my life ).


Same here !



Nice work Mike, hope you'll find the best solution for the door mechanism !

Fred
_________________
THE FUTURE IS A THING OF THE PAST
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mike Rush
Community Member


Joined: 30 Jul 2009
Posts: 184
Location: Hertfordshire, England

PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 5:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Last time you saw the interior it looked like this:



The 'walls' are just loosely tacked in place, and are butt-jointed as you can see. I suppose I should do it 'properly' with mitre joints, so I made four more walls which you can see here, ready to be mitred to length.



One length has had a small section removed; this will be the wall on the right, and the missing section makes room for the little ball which goes on the rod, forming part of the door catch mechanism.

Around the top of these 'walls' there should be an extra, chamfered border which takes it up to the level of the top of the box. Yet again I was unable to find a ready-made 45º extrusion (there's a pattern developing). I thought about converting some square dowel by shaving half of it away, but this was very hard to do neatly.

In the end Colin came to the rescue again! He cleverly made one length at a 45º angle, then moulded it and cast up four pieces in resin for me.



This should be much easier to work with and get a clean finish (provided I don't muck it up). I'm still optimistic that a coat of Hammerite will conceal all kinds of ills, though. Wink
_________________
Mike

"We're not heroes - we're from Finchley"
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
joberg
Community Member


Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 9447

PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 6:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Good stuff (and thanks Collin)...yeah, hammerite should do the trick (to a certain extend, of course)
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mike Rush
Community Member


Joined: 30 Jul 2009
Posts: 184
Location: Hertfordshire, England

PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:46 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I marked up the four 'walls' to just larger than required (to allow for fine tuning). Normally one would use a mitre block for this, but mine is a small one for modelling and so the pieces are too large for it. I'll have to use the sanding disc at work.

Unfortunately the sander here has no guides on it, so I had to knock up a home-made 45º angle and slide the pieces against that. It took some testing but I got there in the end.

I angled all eight corners and everything seems to fit.



The next thing is to add the sloped border around the top. Here's one of Colin's nice resin pieces placed in position.



And then, with the help of my trusty mitre block:



None of this is glued yet... as usual I can't lock it all down until I've made more progress. In this case the rod/ball assembly would have to be in position first.
_________________
Mike

"We're not heroes - we're from Finchley"
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
stephen210
Community Member


Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Posts: 196

PostPosted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Awesome. Is an under statement
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
Mike Rush
Community Member


Joined: 30 Jul 2009
Posts: 184
Location: Hertfordshire, England

PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 5:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

One thing holding me up is that the metal latch rod needs a shorter piece welded (or soldered or whatever) to it, at a right angle. I don't know how I'm going to do that yet. Wink

To get an idea of how it will work, I made a very rushed substitute from plastic rod.

Here you can see the new rod in place, with the short section disappearing into the base.



Another view to make it even more clear.



And here's a view from the back. I added the arrow to show the action required to open the box. This action will be provided by a small solenoid... that's the theory anyway. When this is pulled, the long rod above will turn slightly, causing the flat side on the ball in the centre to disengage from the lid. Phew!



Now I have four pieces of 'faux extrusion' all mitred to fit. Here it all is in position but still nothing fixed! It's quite a delicate balancing act, believe me. I'll be glad when I can fix this thing together.



So this is the 'most complete' it's been to date!



And, just because I can, here's Colin's test key dropped in.



Smile
_________________
Mike

"We're not heroes - we're from Finchley"
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Author Message
joberg
Community Member


Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 9447

PostPosted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 5:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wow Shocked That last pic with the key is a beauty for sure! Keep up the great work mate.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic     Forum Index -> Alien Props All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3 ... 15, 16, 17, 18  Next
Page 16 of 18

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
BBTech Template by © 2003-04 MDesign

Problems Registering Contact: help@propsummit.com