Thursday, December 16, 2010

Dome Ring Test Fit


Looks like two layers of 1mm styrene will work for the dome to fit snugly. I need to trim 3/8" off the height of the dome ring. I initially was going to have the dome overlap 1/2" but upon further consideration, I think that will interfere with getting some of the electronics in place.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Dome Ring and Bearing






Got some time today to work on R2. I finished the interior dome ring whose completion was delayed when the motor on my Dremel tool died. At first I thought the burning smell was the plywood I was cutting, but when the Dremel tool seized up I quickly deduced it was the motor. The warranty must have expired LOL!

I had some scrap 1/2" plywood that I used for the ring since I wanted something thick to which to attach the lower dome rings. The plywood is really quite light. I doubt it is much heavier than the same thickness of styrene. I will use some contact cement to glue the styrene dome rings to the plywood.

My plan is to put two layers of 1mm styrene around the wood ring. That should provide a snug fit inside the dome. I will then glue the dome in place and I will finish dome ring detail with some strips of 1mm styrene.

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Trimming Barnard's Dome





I finally got the chance to trim the flange off of the 18" dome that I got from Barnards in Chicago. I used the flush-cut attachment on my Dremel MultiMax and it made a nice even cut around the flange. There were some plastic goobers from cutting stuck to the dome edge, but they came away easily.

I was going to mount it to a 1/2" plywood dome ring, but the motor burnt out on my Dremel rotary tool. I'll have to finish that up later with a jig saw.