So my wife has gotten our two boys hooked on Dr. Who. Daniel, my younger son, asked to be a Dalek for Halloween. Seeing as there are no easily available costumes out there (and the ones that do exist are goofy), I decided to build one myself.
The design criteria are the following:
1) It must be lightweight. A 7 year old is going to be schlepping around in this.
2) It must allow travel over uneven terrain. We’re in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, so I can’t use casters. Kind of makes getting up stairs a pain.
3) It must be awesome.
First, I had to get some plans. If you’re interested, sign up at this most awesome place. But, be warned. The full build guide is no longer available on line. You have to order it on paper. (I understand their complaint that others were selling it.) Unfortunately, I don’t have enough time to get the plans, so I had to go off a specific model and work my way around issues.
So I selected Sandeply as the base material for most of the “rigid” construction. It’s lightweight, has relatively good strength, and is easy to work with. However, the only problem is that it cuts rough. I didn’t want to spend the money (or time) on fine-toothed blades. Just had to sand down the ripped up parts.
Note that I am not building the skirt.
Here’s the completed bottom section. I used foam posterboard for the panels. It’s lighter and easier to cut. I used finishing nails and glue to secure it in place.
