Project: Plasma Cannon
- Thread starter Samaus
- Start date
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man this thing is looking insain!! great job!
id kill to have some of your equipment!
id kill to have some of your equipment!
I am doing exactly this you can see some of the pipes on the 3D sketches including the clear res that will be outside the body of the case
Soldato
Subbed.
Speechless, very ambitious.
Speechless, very ambitious.
Associate
Awesome Samaus!!! - I was skeptical when I saw the CAD drawings 
but scrolled down and was pleasantly surprised!!
Are you going to make it look battle worn and weathered with the final paint job by any chance????
- I'm subbed now and cannot wait to see the next installment.
but scrolled down and was pleasantly surprised!!Are you going to make it look battle worn and weathered with the final paint job by any chance????
- I'm subbed now and cannot wait to see the next installment.
Thanks dude, Its a bit early to tell at the moment but I would like to try it out. its one of those things that once done you cant undo it. Once all the parts are polished/brushed/anodized I will decide then (before I apply protective coatings). I think the best way would be airbrushing but I am no artist
though airbrushing is something I always wanted to try 
.What do you guys think? should I apply a battle worn effect?
Soldato
I think it'd look great with battle scars and weathering
Associate
Thanks dude, Its a bit early to tell at the moment but I would like to try it out. its one of those things that once done you cant undo it. Once all the parts are polished/brushed/anodized I will decide then (before I apply protective coatings). I think the best way would be airbrushing but I am no artist
Yes - kind of reminded me of Volpin Props and his Mass Effect model gun - think he has noted down how he achieved certain effects in his blog -
http://volpinprops.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/mass-effect-m8-avenger-assault-rifle.html
Soldato
Looking awesome man, can't wait to see more updates.
The battle worn effect sounds cool so +1 from me.
If you've always wanted to try airbrushing you should give it a go It looks like it would be a lot of fun to paint.
The battle worn effect sounds cool so +1 from me.
If you've always wanted to try airbrushing you should give it a go
It looks like it would be a lot of fun to paint.
Soldato
- Joined
- 25 Sep 2011
- Posts
- 3,859
Only just found this thread and read from start..
But.. Butt.. No more pages?!?!
NOOOOO!!!
I need finished product now please!
Amazing work!
But.. Butt.. No more pages?!?!
NOOOOO!!!
I need finished product now please!
Amazing work!
Sponsored by
Bit of a short post this as most of the work I have being doing is very similar to the last post as I have 2 panels to make. This is the 2nd panel and will be permanent fixed to the right side of the cannon, the long rectangle opening at the bottom will allow all the connectors to be fixed or allow wires to be passed through and into the back of the motherboard IO ports. Same as the previous post I cut up lots of 25mm box section to construct the outer frame
Same as before a single piece of 30mm box section with the top cut off to allow it to sit flush with the rest of the frame
Now this time I cut lots of 18mm holes in the brazed sections to help with the heat control previously I was getting cool spots inside the frame where the flame/heat couldn’t reach. This worked a dream the aluminium heated up a lot quicker and allowed for a better join.
One bad side due to the heat a lot of the bolts got discoloured shame really but not too costly and there are still good enough to be used where that will be hidden from view. But for this project all the bolts on the side panels are highly visible so ended up buying some more to replace them.
On the side panels there’s a thin sheet of 3mm frosted Red Perspex (looks a little pink due to the protective coating) that gets sandwiched between the aluminium this sheet just squeezed on the two panels I needed with no room to spare.
New blade in the scroll saw and were off!
It was like cutting butter with a hot knife the saw ploughed through the plastic makes a nice change from the 10mm aluminium
Soooooo... close but hit the limits of the scroll saw and ended up cutting this tiny bit my hand only about 30mm
Now in two pieces time to trim them down
Ok bolted the plastic to eh aluminium and started to drill all the holes one by one. You will notise that my plastaic is really roughly cut this is so I can smooth it down level with the aluminium later on.
Pressing a piece of off cut against the back reduces the chance of the Perspex from fracturing as the hole is drilled. This shot doesn’t do the colour justice but it’s nice
Some of the bolts are so hard to get to I ended up using tweezers and the magnetic telescopic pen! And feeding them through the drilled holes
Ok all tightened up and slowly and very careful started to countersink all the holes to get them to the same level. My milling machine is too small for these pieces so had to use a hand drill. That drill is good but the battery is so old now it doesn’t hold its charge at all. Think I charged it 3-4 times during each panel
And here’s one I made earlier
Now the idea behind this is that I'm trying to get a slight glow around the edges remember that aluminium will be red once done and the glow will be mild. Here is a test I put a small torch underneath and switched it on to see the effect.
Sorry for the short post but those panels are surprisingly tedious. Next time I should be getting the angle grinder out and tidying up the plastic edges.
Cheers guys stay tuned for next time.
Bit of a short post this as most of the work I have being doing is very similar to the last post as I have 2 panels to make. This is the 2nd panel and will be permanent fixed to the right side of the cannon, the long rectangle opening at the bottom will allow all the connectors to be fixed or allow wires to be passed through and into the back of the motherboard IO ports. Same as the previous post I cut up lots of 25mm box section to construct the outer frame
Same as before a single piece of 30mm box section with the top cut off to allow it to sit flush with the rest of the frame
Now this time I cut lots of 18mm holes in the brazed sections to help with the heat control previously I was getting cool spots inside the frame where the flame/heat couldn’t reach. This worked a dream the aluminium heated up a lot quicker and allowed for a better join.
One bad side due to the heat a lot of the bolts got discoloured shame really but not too costly and there are still good enough to be used where that will be hidden from view. But for this project all the bolts on the side panels are highly visible so ended up buying some more to replace them.
On the side panels there’s a thin sheet of 3mm frosted Red Perspex (looks a little pink due to the protective coating) that gets sandwiched between the aluminium this sheet just squeezed on the two panels I needed with no room to spare.
New blade in the scroll saw and were off!
It was like cutting butter with a hot knife the saw ploughed through the plastic makes a nice change from the 10mm aluminium
Soooooo... close but hit the limits of the scroll saw and ended up cutting this tiny bit my hand only about 30mm
Now in two pieces time to trim them down
Ok bolted the plastic to eh aluminium and started to drill all the holes one by one. You will notise that my plastaic is really roughly cut this is so I can smooth it down level with the aluminium later on.
Pressing a piece of off cut against the back reduces the chance of the Perspex from fracturing as the hole is drilled. This shot doesn’t do the colour justice but it’s nice
Some of the bolts are so hard to get to I ended up using tweezers and the magnetic telescopic pen! And feeding them through the drilled holes
Ok all tightened up and slowly and very careful started to countersink all the holes to get them to the same level. My milling machine is too small for these pieces so had to use a hand drill. That drill is good but the battery is so old now it doesn’t hold its charge at all. Think I charged it 3-4 times during each panel
And here’s one I made earlier
Now the idea behind this is that I'm trying to get a slight glow around the edges remember that aluminium will be red once done and the glow will be mild. Here is a test I put a small torch underneath and switched it on to see the effect.
Sorry for the short post but those panels are surprisingly tedious. Next time I should be getting the angle grinder out and tidying up the plastic edges.
Cheers guys stay tuned for next time.
Last edited:
Soldato
That is crazy good work man, hugh mirin.
Soldato
Really nice work man. Looking back over your renders and to see it coming together is great. Have you given any more thought to how you're going to paint/coat it?
Associate
It's coming along nicely, keep up the good work! Can't wait to see it finished - it looks like it could be quite heavy though.
Thanks guys for the support
At first I was planning to get the full thing anodised red but due to the mix of aluminium grades in this project I think that may be risky I may end up with different shades of red. So I am going to get the best quality paint spray I can after a ton of testing. The shade is tricky as I don't want it too bright or dark but all so still maintain a metallic feel without being glittery.
Its going to be tricky.
I really need to get some scales at some point . It is starting to worry me that I'm not going to be able to have a clear perspex stand due to the weight. I do have a plan to reduce the weight we will have too see if it works. 
At first I was planning to get the full thing anodised red but due to the mix of aluminium grades in this project I think that may be risky I may end up with different shades of red. So I am going to get the best quality paint spray I can after a ton of testing. The shade is tricky as I don't want it too bright or dark but all so still maintain a metallic feel without being glittery.
Its going to be tricky.I really need to get some scales at some point
. It is starting to worry me that I'm not going to be able to have a clear perspex stand due to the weight. I do have a plan to reduce the weight we will have too see if it works. http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/...h_view_size=10&mode=list&reqType=productsAjax
http://www.wonderlandmodels.com/about-us/downloads/tamiya-paint-charts/
Have a look through the links, you might find the colour you are looking for.
http://www.wonderlandmodels.com/about-us/downloads/tamiya-paint-charts/
Have a look through the links, you might find the colour you are looking for.
Ohhh thanks Idleman
I think I'm going to have to do have to order a collection and do some testing
I do have my eye on this one. but internet photos can only show so much
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DEEP-RED-...440&pid=100005&prg=7496&rk=1&sd=170667813178&
edit: What am I thinking?! I haven't even finished building it yet
I think I'm going to have to do have to order a collection and do some testing
I do have my eye on this one. but internet photos can only show so much
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DEEP-RED-...440&pid=100005&prg=7496&rk=1&sd=170667813178&
edit: What am I thinking?! I haven't even finished building it yet
Associate
Imagine coming to a LAN event with THAT? By the time it's finished you'd probably need a forklift to lug the thing around, not that you would want to!