Finished Applying 2K Clearcoat to Dome Panels for Droid #1 and Droid #2

Today I was able to successfully finish applying Spray Max 368-0061 high gloss clear coat to my dome panels.

In the morning I decided to wet-sand all the panels that I had clearcoated yesterday. This was because I felt yesterday's application was a bit uneven, and I wanted to smooth out any rough spots. (The black strip is the wet sandpaper.)



Ok, here are my first two guinea pigs. Let's see how this goes.



Much better. That's more like it!



I had to suffer through clearcoating about 36 of these panels, so you get to too. (Some may look like repeats, but that's because it's two droids-worth.)



Best of all, the snakeskin patten was successfully eradicated, as seen above on the dome pie panels, and here on the radar eye for droid #2.



I'm very happy with how these turned out.



Next I will need to remove all the old 3M Very High Bond tape that is still on the dome and replace it with new tape, in order to affix the panels once again. With any luck I'll finish that tomorrow. Hopefully.

Started Applying 2K Clearcoat to Dome Panels for Droid #1 and Droid #2

Today I worked on applying the first coats of the Spray Max 368-0061 high gloss clearcoat on the blue dome panels for droids #1 and #2. I masked a few things here and there and got ready for the application.



The can says you'd better wear a protective mask, so I wore a protective mask. Plus, it helps keep me warm on a 94º day.



First coat applied.



Second coat applied.



I'll be honest, so far the clearcoat is not looking as shiny as I had hoped. However, I believe the problem is in my application of it.

In the past when I painted and clearcoated these panels, I did not put them on a table and then just shoot downward; rather, I put them on a supporting piece of wood and sprayed at advantageous angles. I sprayed the clearcoat until it looked wet, like a very thin layer of water. So tomorrow I plan to come back and try that.

Lightly Sanded Snakeskin Pattern on Droid #2 Dome Panels, Removed Droid #1 Dome Panels

Yesterday I mentioned that I am re-clearcoating droid #2's blue dome panels due to a snakeskin pattern that got imprinted into the original clearcoat in a few places on the dome a couple years ago. Today I lightly sanded those areas with 2000 grit sandpaper. My goal was to eliminate the snakeskin pattern in the clearcoat, but to not sand so deep as to hit the layers of color underneath the clearcoat.



I decided that since I was going to the trouble and expense of re-clearcoating one of the droid's blue dome panels with a high-end 2K clearcoat, I might as well do both droids, since I want to protect them both from future damage when they are covered. So, pulled off almost all the blue panels on droid #1 as well.

A couple of panels are siliconed onto the dome rather than being attached with 3M Very High Bond tape, so I decided to leave those in place. They are not at high risk for having an imprinted pattern when the dome is covered.



Two bald droids.



Next up, the first coats of the Spray Max 2K clearcoat.

Pulled Dome Panels on Droid #2 for New Clearcoat

Way back in 2024 I placed a BBQ cover on droid #2 to cover him up. This came back to bite me, as the Rustoleum Crystal Clear Enable clearcoat can get a bit "melty" in the heat, and sure enough it left a snakeskin pattern on some of the dome panels and the radar eye on droid #2.



I'd been putting off addressing this, but now was an opportune time. I had talked to Mike Senna about this when it happened, and he recommended re-clearcoating with SprayMax 368-0061 High Gloss clearcoat, two cans of which I ordered last week. This is a 2-component ("2K") clearcoat that chemically solidifies as it cures.



As much as I hate pulling the dome panels off the droid, I went ahead and did it.



Then I stared at droid #1 for a long time. "You're next."

CHOC Oncology Gala Ball

Tonight R2 and I joined several members of various Star Wars costuming clubs as they helped CHOC celebrate cancer recovery at their Oncology Gala Ball at the Irvine Marriott.



The character appearances were a surprise for the guests. They picked a theme of "Out of this World," but didn't know they'd be getting a bunch of Star Wars characters to join them. We arrived at 6:30pm and gathered in the ballroom to get ready for our 7:30pm-8:30pm appearance.



The ballroom had a dance floor and DJ, and a "casino" for fake gaming.



The characters got ready in our changing room.



As usual with all things patient-related, we weren't able to take pictures of the event itself, but suffice it to say it was a pretty joyous atmosphere, with over 100 former CHOC patients gathering to celebrate their recoveries. Many of these patients weren't able to attend events like their own high school prom and other life-cycle events, so this was a chance for them to have a special dinner, and get lots of pictures with the characters. Any time we can help CHOC out, we're happy to do so.

Re-drilled Hole for Left Battery Box

Today I performed a minor procedure on droid #1. There are two drywall screws that secure the battery boxes to the foot shells. After recently recently addressing some sag on the foot shells, one of those screws started getting a little out of line, to the point that it wanted to pull back out if I hit a bump while driving. I decided to redrill the hole adjacent to the original hole, while also relieving some of the stress.

First, I removed the screw that was just to the right of the dark gray PVC stick.



Next, I clamped the battery box so that it was flush with the foot shell.



I then drilled a pilot hole through the PVC stick on battery box and foot shell behind it.



I then relocated the drywall screw into the new hole. It self-threads as it goes through the PVC battery boxes and foot shells. As I said, this was a minor procedure. Very minor.



Looks good to me.



I'll get a better idea how well this worked the next time I take him on a bumpy drive, but I think this should resolve the issue.

R2LA XX

Today was a big day for R2LA, R2LA XX!



Yes, this was the 20th R2LA gathering at Mike and Amy Senna's house. I've been there for 18 of them (I didn't know about the club or the gatherings for the first two).

As always, there were droids, droids and more droids.



I did so much socializing that I didn't take many more pictures. I got to chat for a while with Science Bob Pflugfelder, prop maker Lee Trujillo, and a few dozen other friends from the club.

Around 2:45pm William Miyamoto and I did a quick presentation thanking Mike and Amy for 20+ years of R2LA and build days.



And a little after that, it was time for the droid parade, where we took over sidewalk and street.



Immediately after the parade we gathered the group photo, both without (see above) and with their human builders.



It was a great time as always. Next year R2LA goes on hiatus due to the Star Wars Celebration convention, but hopefully we'll all be back in 2028!