Building "life size" R2-D2

Now that it's ruined, ever consider making that part out of aluminum flashing? You would be able to shape it better and there are really good glues (or Pop Rivets) you could use to seal the pieces together. Just an idea. :)
 
I made an R2D2 costume for my daugher last Halloween. It was made out of dollar store foamcore and posterboard. The dome was made out of a series of strips, some of them being 2 pieces of posterboard taped together, the whole dome was put together with masking tape and had a foamcore frame to keep it from getting crushed, the dome was finished with silver spray paint with paper details glued on with glue stick.
The body is a foamcore frame wrapped with a posterboard skin also with details printed on paper and attached with gluestick.
Same construction on the legs, but I ran out of time so there are almost no details :( You can see the hot glue gun on the counter just before we went out trick-or-treating

If you would like some interior pictures, I can dig the costume out of storage

FWIW: i used the little R2 as a starting point for my project. but ended up drafting new parts using Qcad
 

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Wow, that must have really made your daughter jump for joy!! Really cool! :)
 
@Dubious, that is BRILLIANT! Kudos :)
@Micha, I might not have had such a good outlook if I was further along, lol.
@Zathros, Ha! I think I would be headed for a divorce if I started getting that involved (good idea, though)
 
ThunderChild said:
That looks pretty cool! Bet she got the most treats that Halloween.
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I designed an R2D2 costume for my daughter way back in 1978 when Star Wars: A New Hope had been released the year prior so it was really big in people's minds. I built it out of corregated cardboard and for the dome panels, I used clear, blue cellophane; this really worked out good to not make her claustrophobic but provided her with a good view outside. She was only 5 years old at the time.

We were stationed in Minot, ND at the time. For the kids trick-or-treating up there, it can be pretty windy and cold and they have to wear coats over their costumes, but my daughter was able to wear her coat on the inside and was nice and toasty, well protected from the wind. You know how important that is if you've ever lived there.

As for getting lots of treats, that is an understatement! People were pretty wowed by it and gave her extra. Because of the R2D2 design, she could not hold a candy bag, so I designed a front opening 'chute' that she could push open and candy would be placed (ok, POURED) down it. I had candy storage along the bottom of the inside, and this helped to keep the center of gravity low so she would not be top heavy.

One of the best I ever designed, that's for sure!

Best Regards,
 
I really do believe the concentric rings is the way to go. You get a much better effect. If you gave me the height of the dome, the radius you are trying to achieve, and the bottom diameter, I will make templates for you to use. I can make them so you can print them out on 8.5 x 11 and tape the segments together, to use as actual templates to trace off of. In short, I need the dimensions in pic below. It appears to me that the radius of the dome is half the diameter of the base, but I am not positive of this. :)
 

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Here is the dxf files I used to build my dome and print the details, they are far from a finished product.

I printed the dome pieces as several parts, taped them together and then cut them out of poster board (taping together pieces of poster-board as needed only a few fit into 22"x28"!).

I did have access to a printer that would do 11"x17", that made things much easier
 

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dubious said:
Here is the dxf files I used to build my dome and print the details, they are far from a finished product.

I printed the dome pieces as several parts, taped them together and then cut them out of poster board (taping together pieces of poster-board as needed only a few fit into 22"x28"!).

I did have access to a printer that would do 11"x17", that made things much easier
Click to expand...

Let me know in a P.M. as I generally don't do stuff in public. I will let you know what I come up with. :)
 
zathros said:
Let me know in a P.M. as I generally don't do stuff in public. I will let you know what I come up with. :)
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I mis-read the post, sorry, but I did look at Dubious's files, they look like just what you need good. If you have the ability to read the files, they would scale up or down to whatever size you need. :)
 
back at it

Well, I've caught back up to where I was before the "unfortunate mishap". Being summer, things will progress rather slowly. Also, I've been distracted by the introduction to another hobby, but that's another post for the Off Topic Lounge ;)

Here we are:
 

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I've come to accept that I have much better success with using scissors than I do with knives. I've been resisting because I felt that somehow I SHOULD be using knives. But with thanks to the many members (dare I say friends?) sharing what works for them, I realized "there is no Should, only DO." (Sorry Yoda) And now I happily do what works best for me.
 
That is correct. Use whatever makes work easier for you. It is the result that counts! :thumb:
 
:thumb:
dubious said:
I made an R2D2 costume for my daugher last Halloween. It was made out of dollar store foamcore and posterboard. The dome was made out of a series of strips, some of them being 2 pieces of posterboard taped together, the whole dome was put together with masking tape and had a foamcore frame to keep it from getting crushed, the dome was finished with silver spray paint with paper details glued on with glue stick.
The body is a foamcore frame wrapped with a posterboard skin also with details printed on paper and attached with gluestick.
Same construction on the legs, but I ran out of time so there are almost no details :( You can see the hot glue gun on the counter just before we went out trick-or-treating

If you would like some interior pictures, I can dig the costume out of storage

FWIW: i used the little R2 as a starting point for my project. but ended up drafting new parts using Qcad
Click to expand...
 
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