Category: Crafting

Radar Eye Lens — Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

Thanks for checking out my build! The dome may have its problems, but I am really happy with the radar eye so far.

Mom, Dad and I all went to work with HobbyLite Filler to fill as many of the holes on the dome as possible, then I sand it again and give it two fresh coats of gesso.

I’ve also used HobbyLite Filler to smooth the seams on the radar eye, and it’s time to attach the sidebox.

Tacky Glue is a recent discovery of mine. I like how it holds right away but also lets me reset if I need to. I’m still using lots of paperclips to keep the sidebox square and in place until it’s fully dry.

Then it’s time to cut out that lens!

First step on cutting out the radar eye! A quick test fit suggest that the 2 liter’s curve will work.

Cutting out the lens itself is a bit harder.

Testing the fit of the lens

It looks good on the dome!

Dad throws a sheet of black paper behind the lens, and TADAW! It’s a radar eye!

Final sand of the dome. I hope.


May 23. The dome gets a fresh coat of Metallic Aluminum Rust-Oleum.

And the radar eye gets its first coat of metallic blue.

My mom always calls it a laser eye.

Painting Dome and Work on Radar Eye — Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

May 16. Mom wonders if Mod Podge might fill in the remaining holes on the dome, so I agree to give that I try.

May 20. I decide to give the dome a first layer of paint to see what it looks like.

The single coat of paint (Rust-Oleum Metallic Aluminum) reveals all the remaining lumpiness of the dome! It’s also clear that the paint looks best where the gesso was not removed during sanding.

The radar eye is fully glued. I’m using foam board pieces to build up the detail on the sidebox.

May 22. I decided to use jonny5’s “Radar Eye Lens for FREE‚” except that 3 liter bottles are no longer made, so I’m going to try it with a 2 liter bottle. It took us a week to drink all the root beer, but now the bottle is empty, rinsed and ready to be cut!

And the radar eye looks really nice!

More Sanding — Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

Many layers of gesso later, the dome goes back outside for a fresh sanding.

Dad gets sent to Home Depot to buy more sandpaper, and comes home with 3M Drywall Sanding Screens. It is awesome! It lifts off most of the gesso, but it also cuts through the lumps from the papier-mâché pulp.

It’s still a log of sanding, and sanding, and sanding.

I say, “It’s a good enough.”
Mom says, “Proof of concept.”
Dad says, “How much is that styrene dome?”

Luke’s dad stops by to help with the sanding.

Back to work on the radar eye. It’s all cut out from boxboard, so it’s time to start gluing.

Getting the lens side to curl nicely is a bit of challenge!

Radar Eye Cardstock Mock-Up Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

I had to take a break from R2D2 to complete others projects that were coming due.

I’ve been applying layers of gesso, but it’s not filling in the holes.

I decide to work on something else: the radar eye. I chose Kelly R. Krider’s “main eye temp2” and “main eye sidebox” templates.

To get a sense of it, I made it out of cardstock first.
I used a sheet of scarp cardboard, so the inside is colorful.
It looks great on the lumpy dome!
May 14. I print the templates onto full sheet labels and then apply the labels to box board and cut them out.
This is going to look awesome!

Sanding Paper Pulp — Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

On April 17, I take the dome outside to sand it …
… and sand, and sand, and sand, and sand, and sand. This stuff is hard as rock. I used 40 grit sandpaper, and it hardly making a dent.
Mom goes back online. Reads several blog posts about NOT using papier-mâché pulp to smooth papier-mâché. Seems we should have used gesso instead. The bloggers say that the gesso will fill in the bumps and lumps, while papier-mâché pulp is usually lumpy no matter how much you break it up and mix.

I take a week off from the build to prep for the first Tripoli Minnesota High Power Rocketry Club Launch of the spring — which we then miss for reasons not related to R2D2 building.

On April 18, I get to visit the shop of another local R2D2 builder, AimeeD!

On April 23, I apply a layer of gesso. It fills in the tiny holes, but thick as it is, it’s not going to help with the large lumps.

Paper Pulp — Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

Things go horribly wrong, although I won’t know that for a while yet.

Mom does some quick internet research. Too quick it turns out. She reads ONE blog post about using papier-mâché pulp to smooth the finish of a papier-mâché project, so we walk to Michael’s and back for a box of FastMâché.

It’s goopy and sloppy!

It doesn’t exactly smooth on easily.

It mostly sticks to my hands.

But it does seem to be covering the newspaper with uniform whiteness.

THAT’S NO MOON!

Mom says we can sand it smooth. She reads the instructions and tells me that it’s easiest to sand when it’s “leather dry.”

She will be wrong about this.

Terran Astromech Droid Assembly Works (TADAW)

I have decided to build a full-size functioning astromech droid. This project will take years to complete, so for this spring, I am focusing on getting a functioning radar eye with a hidden camera and getting the dome to rotate via remote control.

But first I needed a dome. Having a tight budget, I decided to make one from papier-mâché. I used my mom’s 18-inch yoga ball as the form.

But she made me cover it in plastic wrap because she says she wants it back.

I used dilute Tacky Glue for the papier-mâché paste.

And I used regular newspaper stripes for the paper.

The first layer looks pretty darn good. I can see R2 hiding in there.