Fusion Drive Spaceship Carrying Case Nearing Completion Pt. 3

A few months ago I completed this 3D printed model of a spaceship that I call "Titan".  I am very pleased on how the model turned out.  With this model I also planned on building a carrying case for it as it would be a real disaster if it had been damaged in any way shape or form while I move it from my home to a maker fair.  So I am happy to report that my efforts to complete the carrying case are finally nearing an end.  I thought it best to do a bit of a review of how the carrying case has taken shape so that those of you that have just seen this post can get caught up on my latest project.

The carrying case started with a large piece of foam core and an edging of Styrofoam.  This is used for the base of the carrying case.

Next a short wall of wood was glued into place around the perimeter of the base. 

The upper cover and base construction are completed in this photo. 

All of the corners are one inch foam that gave the carrying case a solid base to work on when I started fiberglassing.

Here the carrying case top cover had been sanded into shape and fiberglassed on the exterior.  The case at this point is  roughly 15 by 15 by 30 inches long. 

The bottom of the base has mounting points for the cradles that will hold the spaceship model securely in place while the case is being moved from place to place. 

Here the interior of the top cover has been fiberglassed and the mountings for the carrying handles have been installed.

Next the outer surfaces of the carrying case were wrapped in Styrofoam strips to match up to the wooden latching mounts that are needed to secure the top cover to the base. 

After the base had been fiberglassed and smoothed out it was time for the first coats of primer so that it could be painting. Sanding and priming over and over to get the surfaces smooth enough to paint were the order of the day.

Once I was happy with the priming on the top cover  I taped off the areas that I did not want to paint white and then sprayed the handle areas and outer bands that would run around the outer surface of the case. 

When the white paint had dried I removed all of the tape and paper from the top of the case to get it ready for the next step in my painting. Already the case is starting to look a lot better than just being in primer.

I taped off the white areas now so that a nice coat or two of red paint could be applied to the case. 

I was surprised to find that the case at this point had turned out better than I had hoped.  Nice and glossy when dry. Always a good sign when working on any project.

An excellent effort if I do say so myself.  I have all of the mounting hardware and holes already set up for the carrying case so it will be an easy task to complete the carrying case when I start the final assembly.  The painting on the carrying case top cover is completed and I will add a small black pin stripe that will be added to put a nice finishing touch to the paint edges where the white and red meet.  

The base for the carrying case will be completed over the weekend and then final assembly can start. The interior of the case will be lined with gray felt and then the mounting of the spaceship cradles, carrying handles, and cover latches will be added.  Lastly I plan on small felt pads to be added to the base of the carrying case to protect the paint on the bottom surfaces when it is in use.   I suspect that the case will show some where over time but that is the purpose of the case in the first place. So I was not overly concerned that the case be in absolutely pristine condition when I completed this project.  Still I think at this point it is far better looking than I had originally planned.  I'll post the more pictures of the carrying case and the spaceship model together once I am happy with the project and I put the final touches to the carrying case. 

Blender 3D Motorcycle Concept and Animation Video

Around a month ago I completed a Blender 3D model of a three wheeled enclosed motorcycle that I had been working on.  One thing that I did not have time to post about is the evolution of the design along with the short animation that I had created for the single seat version of the design.  I had completed the animation but had been away on vacation so I thought I should get this out as soon as I could once I had returned. Thus the reason for this post.  Below is the completed four and a half minute long video that includes the animation.  If you have any suggestions of comments about the design please let me know. I would be happy to hear from you.

I may work on the design more some time in the future to refine it for at least a radio controlled model.  The real thing would be great but a ton of work would need to be done to design and build it properly, safely, and economically.  All issues that would have to be considered for any experimental vehicle like this to be sure.  In the meantime enjoy the video. 

For a larger view of the video select the YouTube icon.

I'm Still Here...... Still Designing And Building

I am sure a lot of you wonder what has happened to me over the past three weeks or better.  Rest assured I am still here and still designing, building, and finally getting back to posting new projects for my blog.  The reason for my absence these past few weeks has been because I have just completed a trip that I promised myself 43 years ago.  I returned to Hawaii after all that time and took a major vacation with my sister who had never been there.  While I was in the Navy 43 years ago I was discharged from the service after serving for four years. My ship was home ported in Pearl Harbor and I always swore that I would return to one of the most beautiful places in the world.  This year I finally made that happen.  My sister and I spent five days in Oahu  and another five days in Maui. What a trip! So just to brighten your spirits as much as mine has been these past weeks here are just a couple of the photos I took from the trip.

So back to the matter at hand.  I have several projects planned that I managed to get halfway worked out while I was resting on the beach that will be coming up soon.  The first project that is currently on my workbench is a carrying case for the spaceship that I completed a couple of months ago.  I still have a little tweaking to do on the case before I can finish painting it and then final assembly will wrap things up in short order.  Hopefully in the next week or so.  

I also have a new British flag display that has been rolling around in my head that I thought I would put together to hang in my garage being as I am a big British car nut and drive a Mini Cooper to prove it.  Also I have plans for a small light display for a glass world globe.  The globe is not very large. Maybe the size of a baseball but having it sit on a base that is lit up would show it off nicely on a desktop. 

Along with these projects I have thought also about redoing my 3D printed iPad video teleprompter.  The one I originally build a number of years ago is to small to be used with my iPad Pro so again this would be a nice project to revisit. 

So as I said earlier I have not disappeared and the blog is still alive and well. All I have to do is get back to work in the shop and start posting on a regular basis again. After all of the driving, air miles, and walking I have done over the past few weeks it is great to be back home once again to my sleepy little town and a nice workshop.  I'll be posting about new projects very soon so be assured that everything is back to normal as usual.  Enjoy the photos.