Started Drilling Frame for Gas Pipe

Today I decided to drill the holes in the frame that accommodate the gas pipe that is used to attach the legs to the droid.

Matthew's frame kit has marks on it to guide where to drill the holes, but part of the location depends on how well the skins are located on the droid, since the shoulder-to-body hub needs to fit centered through the skins. This is centered around the wooden disc to which the gas pipe attaches, so the location of the disc needs to be centered in the leg hole in the skins.

In order to center the disc in with the skins on, I needed to Dremel out a little bit of material from the frame.



After clearing some room toward the top of the frame, and along one of the vertical ribs, the shoulder discs fit into place.



Next, I attached the inner skins, and clamped down the frame nice and level (using a level, of course).



I centered the wooden disc within the corresponding hole in the skins. I used a ruler with a centering mark to help center the disc on both the x and y axes. A drill bit goes through the center of the shoulder discs.



Once the discs were centered, I tapped the drill bit with a hammer to make a mark on the spot on the frame to start drilling.



I used a 1.25" hole saw to cut the hole that accommodates the larger gas pipe.



The gas pipe diameter is slightly larger than 1.25", so I used the Dremel with the drum sander attachment to widen the hole slightly. The second hole is to allow wiring to pass through the body and down to the legs, when the time comes.



At this point I have to admit... I goofed!! On one side of the frame I properly drilled the 1.25" hole. On the other side, I only drilled a 1.00" hole, thinking that only the smaller pipe would need to fit through it. Considering I had done this before, you'd think I would know what to do, but I still managed to forget.

I need to widen the hole slightly. With nothing to help center the hole saw, this is going to be tricky. I could try marking the target diameter and use the Dremel drum sander to widen the hole. Another option is to just cut the hole wider than 1.25", and then place another piece of plywood over the hole with the proper size hole precut into it. Once that piece is lined up properly, I can screw and/or glue it in place.

I haven't decided yet what I'll do. I'll sleep on it, and then probably stall some more.