Dome Top and Upper HP Mounting

Tonight I set out to tackle two problems. First was mounting my upper HP and second was looking for an alternative way to finish top exterior of my dome.

My 300mm dome originally came with a brass ring and a Volvo upholstery fastener to complete the top of the dome exterior. The brass clashed with the aluminum color of the other dome parts and the upholstery plug seemed to be a tough part to get painted and in place.

The solution was found in a trip to Ace Hardware with my dome in hand. I tried various bolts in the top of the dome to plug the hole and came away with the pin pictured below (it now has the top painted to match my panels).

By adding the appropriate pin to go with it, I also became the top fastener for my HP bracket made from ABS plastic.













Once I had the bracket placed with the pin, I drilled out a hole in the dome and used Chris James' "shoulder puller" to create a countersink dimple the same as on my other panels.

With the screw JB welded in place the bracket was tested out and seemed to work well. In the picture below there is a bit of a gap between the bracket and the HP due to there not being enough relief in one of the holes. Once I expanded the hole to allow a little play it fell into place.













Having completed that I just had to find a replacement for the brass ring. Ace didnt have any washers that fit the description, so I used the center tab that was on the outer dome when I got it. Originally, the tab was meant to be thrown away. It was scarred up from the lathe and was not punched exactly in the center.

My solution was to hold it with channel locks and drill it out with my largest bit and then expand the rest by hand with my Dremel tool.
Here is a pic of the final product with the HP, small ring and center plug (pin) in place. (Its not a bad shot of my color change paint either).

Dave Shaw's HP's

As the work on my dome nears completion, I wanted to take time to show off the HP's that I got from Dave Shaw in the fall.

It was interesting to get a pretty package with each part in its own little box with a silver Builders Logo on it, but the parts inside were definitely a work of art deserving of such a presentation.

The parts looked great and came with the clear cabochons already installed.













When broken down, the outer rings revealed that they had been lined with felt tabs for smoother rotation.

There was also an optional spacer ring added to help set the movement to "hand tight" or loose for servo movement.













The back plate was well put together and has the center punched with a dimple for later servo placement.













The best part was that when opened there was a lining tube that helped add reflection of the lights. The tube was needed because the entire inside of the HP was hollowed out. I dont have an exact weight comparison, but these HP's definitely qualify for the "Diet" Label.
























I'm really pleased with the craftsmanship on these and I cant wait to be sporting them on my completed dome soon.

Cutting Casters

Today I paid a visit to Chris. We used his band saw and cut my casters down so that they will be ready to install once I have my center foot plates.

First I taped the space over the bearings. It kept them clean and kept the wheel locked in place so that it didn't get in the way.

Once they were marked with a straight edge and sharpie it was time to get to work.































When I finished that, we talked about electronics and the wiring that I will soon be doing.

Thanks to some Christmas gifts from my in-laws I was able to get my NPC motors ordered and my Robteq Speed Controller.

My list of things to do before WonderCon is getting much shorter. I'm almost done mounting the Logic Surrounds and PSI's on my dome plates. I have a few items left to paint and then I have the feet and electronics to conquer.

I think I'm going to make it on time!

Beautiful Legs

Today was a better day than Monday. Thanks to those who gave their encouragement during my frustrations.

Earlier in the year I was on the leg run from Ryan. The legs had a lot of heavy grind marks from the welder not taking pride in his work. When a friend of mine saw them he really wanted to take them and clean them up for me.

He took them to "Revive Customs", his muscle car restoration shop in San Bruno where he used red finishing putty and a heavy dose of filler primer on them. Below is the result:













Now they just need a wet sand with 400 and a few coats of white paint!

Special thanks to Ron Gomez of Revive Customs in San Bruno, CA.

Frustrations

Most of the time people post about all their successes and the great work that is being done. Its great to share those things, but why doesn't anyone share their failures and frustrations?

R2 Building is not easy. It takes a lot of time and it takes some failures along the way. Today was one of those days. It was the single most frustrating day in my build so far.

Lets start with this crappy rust bucket car in my garage. Its not mine, its for a "Youth project" which is never going to happen. It crowds my workspace so that I have less than 2.5x3 feet of space in front of my work bench, and I have to crawl over the hood to get there. Just tonight it has been responsible for the loss of 3 screws and a small wrench. It has also torn some of my better jeans with its rusty snags.

As I continued work on my dome plates, I blew out one of the JB welded screws (one of the lost) and had a heck of a time getting the dome plates in place once the HP's and logics were involved.

So, I tried a hand at getting the PSI's set up. I couldn't get the PVC assembly right for holding the lenses and attaching to the plate. I guess I just realized how little I know on the subject, which left me throwing my hands in the air with resignation.

If all that wasn't enough, I found out that my green LED's on my rear PSI have a short and like to go out on me.

Dome Ring and Component Plates

I have been working on R2 in the evenings over the last few days and I was finally able to get the HDPE ring and lower ring installed on my 300mm dome.













I also continued work on my "Component Plates" that will be mounted inside the dome. Each plate holds the components for the dome (HP's, Logics, PSIs ,etc.) in either the front or the back. Theoretically this makes it easier to install and remove things for working on them and maintaining them later.

Below you can see the various component holes cut from the plates and how the plates fit in the dome.

Dome Electronics Mounting

As I looked at the various methods that people have used to mount their HP's, Logics and various electronic boards into their domes, I found that I prefer to give Chris James' method a try.

First thing I did was put my HDPE ring in the dome and mark the upper edge with a marker so that I would know where my panel was supposed to sit.

I bought 2 pieces of 1/4" ABS that were 6"x20". These dimensions were greater than Chris' recommendation, but I wanted to be sure there was plenty of extra plastic hanging out the sides. This gives me a place to mount some servos and boards as needed.

The heat gun wasn't working well because of the volume of plastic, so I had to heat it in the oven.

My broiler wasn't working well (top heating) so I turned the oven on bake. Also the sheets were too long for my cookie sheets so I had to put two side by side. I also had to set the temp to 350 to get much of a result.














After minute I could see the plastic sagging and tried to move it. I found it sticking to one cookie sheet and that the side over the other sheet was still firm. I flipped it around to even out the heat and that did the trick.

Once I got it heated it formed in the dome really well. Results did vary though. The second sheet was problematic and burnt a little on one side. It also got a little deformed, but nothing that I cant fix with a heat gun applied to small areas.














The next step is drilling and countersinking holes so that the plastic can be mounted. With it firmly in place, I can mark the ares where it will need to be cut to allow pass through, such as the PSI's, Logics and the back end of the HP's.

I will continue to post progress as I make the remaining modifications.