Dragon Wings

Maysen has decided that she wants to be a dragon for halloween. (surprise). A couple of years ago I showed her these cool wings that someone made and suggested we make some. At the time she passed on the idea, but that was mostly because she didn't want to have to open/close/flap them by having her arms tied to them. She, being my daughter, wanted them to open/close/flap by themselves via some sort of remote control.

So this year, we're going to give that a try. Our wings will be slightly scaled down so that we can make the frame out of those big paint stirring sticks they give out at home depot. (Free stuff is cool!) These should actually be a good size for her.

Today we started putting the different pieces together for the first wing - mostly just roughing out the idea. One of these wings will be hooked to each side of a backpack type thing that we'll make out of PVC pipe or a padded scrap of plywood, which will be strapped to her back.

This is what one of the wings looks like closed...



...and this is what it looks like when opened...




(It reminds me of one of those extend-o-glove thingies they punch each other with in cartoons.)

We'll cover this skeleton with some kind of stretchy fabric. To make it open and close on it's own, we're going to made what is called an air muscle, as described here or here. I think we'll only need one, and by stringing it between the two wings it should open them both when it contracts. We'll find out next week when we give it a try! It means we'll be strapping a paintball tank of air on her back, wiring it up, and letting her open and close the wings with the press of a button.

We're excited to be making them, and I figure it will be a good thing to show/use in the robotics classes I'm hoping to teach soon. Watch for updates soon...

Remodeling a Groovy Tent Trailer

We bought a 1970's StarCraft tent trailer a few months ago for $500 from some friends of ours. So far we've only taken it out once but I'd like to use it more often.



It sleeps 5 - which is one short for our family, and it's decorated in true 70's style - mustard colors, dark wood, yellow linoleum, etc. A bit too retro for my taste. It needs quite a bit of work mechanically as well. The lift mechanism needs to be redone, as raising the tent up is a real chore, and it's got a 2x4 holding part of the tent to the roof.






Lately I've felt the urge to do some remodeling. We've decided to take out the odd fold-up closet and some of the drawers in order to make a second bench/table/bed combination so that it can sit and sleep our whole family. I have left over wood flooring from the bowling alley we made in the basement and that should make quite an improvement. My Home-EC-major sister-in-law volunteered to help sew some new covers for the benches and beds.






I took two-year-old Preston outside to spend some quality time with tools. We're in the process of dismantling everything so that we can redo the floors, replace the dark wood paneling, and rebuild the cabinets. Preston enjoys taking out screws and putting them in a jar for safekeeping.




Here are some additional pictures of the "before". Stay tuned for some "after" in the near future...



Holy 70's flooring batman!

Preston and Stockton exploring the trailer...

There was a old in-wall cooler in this hole. I plan to replace it with a working mini-fridge. Also seen above is a plank of wood flooring to cover up the sins of a past decade.

These cushions are in really good condition, but I think recovering them will add a really nice touch. It will also help make the place smell better...