Sonic inspired by totem pole

[steve757]

This design has a totem pole feel to it and the sketch changed a bit when rendering it in Corel.


The body was lathed from the thick wall stock I use for most of these props.  A knerling tool put the crosshatch on the grip.  The ring slots will hold rubber Orings.


The back end gets threaded with a 1/4x20NPT pipe threader

I was working on another project when my 3D printer failed.  The extruder tore up inside, but they aren't too expensive and in a few days I was back up.


I looked at the cold end with its heat sinks and thought "what a great shape for a sonic nosepiece."  It saved me a ton of fine detail lathing from the original design.


All it needed was to be drilled out a bit more and have the tip bored to accept a small lens.  It was soft aluminum, so the metal worked easy.  I'm now thinking of some different features from my original drawing.

[warmcanofcoke]

Wow! I love the metal work.

[The14thDr]

Me too, your builds always continue to astound me, Steve - both in terms of the skill and the design itself. Can't wait to see this one progress.

[elkad]

Looks like a light saber.

[steve757]

Don't they all...

[steve757]

I had a piece of metal yard brass that served as a spline coupler between a motor and transmission.  The gear teeth are cut at each end to fit inside the shaft spline.  I turned one end down to make an end cap.

I was happy to see the slight recesses of the gear teeth stayed in, making a simetrical pattern of pits, saving a lot of detail work with a dremel tool cutter.


A hose adapter provided the threaded male end for the bottom cap.

I just had to trim it down to fit the lathed piece.


A pool of solder in the bottom locked in the threaded piece and a bit of ball point pen spring to press against the batteries.


The end cap is done and fits snug.  I plan on adding a clear cylinder and a large purple crystal CZ between the nose piece and body.

[The14thDr]

I love metal builds like this, and I'm especially jealous of those members who have the tools and skills to build their own sonic completely from scratch.

Keep up the good work!

[galacticprobe]

14th, you took the words right out of my mouth! I've mixed and matched pieces of the Customise Your Own Sonic Screwdriver and Transtemporal Sonic Screwdriver my kids got me a couple of years ago to make a sonic I'm really happy with (and would love to use if I was a British actor lucky enough to land the role of the Doctor). I would love to be able to make it out of metal (and some sort of ivory-looking substance that's tougher than plastic) so it had the heft of a real sonic screwdriver (and of course fit the core of the kit inside it to keep the light and sounds).

Seeing metal sonic builds like this just puts me in awe of the talent these builders have. They have the tools, the knowhow to use them, the skills to (literally) turn a chunk of metal into parts that look like they belong on a sonic screwdriver, and then assemble all of those pieces into a metal work of art.

My hat is off to all metal sonic builders! And I can't wait to see how this one turns out. (Steve, you're doing brilliantly!)

Dino.

[steve757]

Thank you Dino!  I really owe it to being retired and being able to put in the time to practice on a machine to learn its fine points.  A small hobby lathe is a great tool to save up for, right behind a drill press (which I used as a vertical lathe many years ago.....not as accurate, but usable).  There are many materials that work in these small lathes.....aluminum, brass, acrylic and wood.

[steve757]

A short scrap of solid cylinder formed the adapter between the body and the 3D extruder piece that makes up the nose.


A brass garden hose coupler provides a ring with grip texture



This ring will couple the clear acrylic view tube with the main body/handle

[The14thDr]

I love the direction this is headed in! (I'm still amazed at how small yet detailed you can make all these pieces - beautiful, beautiful work!)

[steve757]

Things are coming together.  The acrylic view window was cut and a couple of mounting pieces were made on the 3d printer to hold the big CZ crystal.


The crystal will sit suspended on the three pylons.  I tried every way I could think of to hide the wires from the LED in the nose to the battery compartment, but it looks like they will just ride inside the acrylic tube along the bottom.


The parts are press fit for alignment.  Controls and electrics are next.

[steve757]

A plastic insulator is made on the printer to create the positive terminal for the batteries and isolate the wiring.

Using several size mills, I cut a stepped depression in the body for the trigger and a couple small ones for controls.
The wires from the LED come back to the empty chamber and meet up with the wire from the positive terminal.

[steve757]

A disk of clear blue gel plastic is put behind the small glass lens to tint it and epoxied in place.

[steve757]

the primary switch is installed.



Everything gets a buff and polish.



The nose LED creates a focused dot through the glass lens.



The purple CZ is soundly epoxied and encased in the viewing chamber.  DONE!