Grrrsect : A partial first glimpse

From Grrrsect : Camp Grrr mutant vehicle sketch up

Well, it has been really slow getting the ball rolling on this project and in my mind, I had already re-allocated the project as my personal year long hobby to be ready for 2011.

Thanks to the enthusiasm and labor of a few members of the camp (and one BM virgin as of yet), I think there is at least some chance we can pull it off ... and as people get excited, the chance goes up!

After some soul searching, some pocket book frowning, and fussing about, I have decided to go ahead with the excitement flow and try to get it back on the 2010 BM track. App submitted (last minute), final materials getting purchased (ouch! - HELP!), and all spare time being allocated.

We are still somewhat under funded (click for our fund raising) , and could really use more labor help, but all in all, we are starting to make real progress and the speed of accomplishment is increasing now that we have a decent work zone, the core crew has been trained in working metal and welding, and as we learn what works the best for each process.

We have the vehicle, it is a BEAST (will grab a pic of it soon)! We have been welding and bending metal like crazy the last couple weeks. Everybody is learning fast and I can happily say that I finally feel like we are on track at last.

Last weekend, I finally got the spare bandwidth as the crew has become more self reliant, to get started on the structural underpinnings of it all: the base steel frames, the new insect robotic legs, and the support steel & pivot mechanics for the wings.

It is my hope, now that the crew has the skillz, the concept, and design templates to work with, that I can spend July finishing the fabrication of these core components, so that August is final assembly, safety device install, lighting, and finishing the wiring.

I will try to update this with more pictures soon, but here is the first salvo: the crew at work (day 1 of teaching the natives to weld, cut, grind, heat bend, cold bend etc) and some of the works in progress (at least example photos of bits that might make some sense to the viewer). We have many more components in the works already and should easily have the entire carapace and wings fully formed by the end of July.

Some example components and parts

Teaching day - Metal 101 !

From Grrrsect : Camp Grrr mutant vehicle sketch up