Picked Up Dome Panels, Finished Building Droid Cart

Today I stopped by Mike's house to pick up my dome panels that we painted last weekend.

They look pretty good, they are nice and shiny, and reflective. I accidentally dripped a large glob of blue paint on the pie panel to the left. I didn't even bother to clear coat it, since I will strip it down and start over again. I'll repaint it when I paint the remaining dome panels that I still need to cut from the outer dome.



When I returned home, I got to work on finishing the replica of Mike's droid cart. I have an event coming up next Saturday, and I'll need to be able to cart R2 around at most of these types of events.

First, I cut four blocks from a long strip of 1"x2" wood. A pair of these will go in front of, and behind, each outer foot in order to keep the droid from moving on the cart.




Next, I drilled the holes for the U-bolts that are used to attach the wooden platform to the cart.




I then removed the wooden platform from the cart, and brought it indoors, so I could park R2 on top of it and measure exactly where the blocks needed to be attached.



Once I determined the location of the rear blocks, I drilled pilot holes in the blocks and platform, and then used wood screws to attach the blocks. Then, I set the front blocks down in front of the outer wheels and repeated the process.




Following that, I reattached the platform to the cart to get ready for a test fit with R2.



The wheels fit just where I want them, in between the blocks on both sides.



Yes, I will have to be careful not to tip the cart, but this shouldn't be much of a problem on flat surfaces. I've used Mike's cart several times now at various events with his droid, and at CIV with my droid, so I have a pretty good feeling for how the cart handles. Mike showed me how I can use a U-bolt around the rear axles of the drivetrain to secure R2 to the platform, and I'll probably add that feature in the near-future.

R2 is happy to have a bird's-eye view of the action.