Roadrunner Whirligig

thingiverse

Another Whirilgig. This time it's Wile E Coyote chasing Roadrunner. I faced a lot of trouble with the legs. First, figuring out how they had to twist in order to become propellers without hitting anything when rotating was tough. Then, making them do all that while still having both feet pointing in the proper physiological direction so they looked like both feet were facing front was a challenge. After getting that right, they needed so much support due to all the angles that my printer couldn't print decently. At best, they required a lot of cleanup after printing. I finally just printed them flat and then put them in boiling water for a short time to soften before bending them to shape. This works well, and the final product looks much better and works just as well, but it involves some mental gymnastics to figure out which direction to bend which part of the legs. Ymmv. I used ABS for my prints, but this should also work for PLA. Please be careful if you use this method because you know... boiling water! I have included both versions of each set of legs. There is an optional side b for the billboard. It's just a different ACME advertisement that you can glue to the back side of the billboard. Pay close attention to which way the figures face in relation to the billboard when you get ready to glue the swivel mount to the base. The billboard should be on their right. If you get it wrong, the legs will spin backwards. Don't ask me how I know! Assembly diagram is in the Assembly_guide.pdf file. Whirligig in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIgfxB2ZQw0 Print Settings Printer: FlashForge Creator pro Rafts: No Supports: Yes Resolution: .2mm Infill: 15% Notes: Print the billboard support at 100%. It needs the extra strength. Post-Printing Materials needed 2 608zz skateboard bearings 4 5/16" (or M8) nuts 1 length of 5/16 (or M8) threaded rod 2 6-32 (or M3) x 1" (25mm) machine screws 6 6-32 (or M3) nuts Assemble the legs by putting a machine screw through one leg (be sure it's facing the right way). Then add and tighten a nut. Push this assembly through the body and add another nut. Do not tighten this nut. Leave enough space so that it can act as an axle for the legs. Add the second leg, again making sure it faces correctly. Then put on the third nut and tighten to trap the second leg between two nuts while making sure the two legs can still turn freely. For the swivel, press the two bearings into the recesses. Run two nuts onto the threaded rod, then slide the rod into the bearings. Add a nut on top, and tighten to press the bearings flush. Adjust the nuts so the top one is flush with the top of the rod and the bottom ones are just snug against the bottom bearing. The swivel should rotate freely. Add a drop of super glue to lock the top nut in place. Tighten the two bottom nuts against each other with wrenches. Glue all the pieces together and enjoy. How I Designed This I designed this using Inkscape and 123D Design. I made the sketches in Inkscape and exported them as .SVG files. These were imported into 123D Design as sketches, extruded, manipulated, and saved.