Building Tips 1:
This is a fun hobby, using inexpensive or free materials and basic tools. You can really let your imagination and creative ideas flow!
Here are a few questions that have come up most frequently from people asking how to get started on their first project. I hope this Q & A helps.
Please feel free to submit your own queries or suggestions on the contact page.
Q. Where can I find materials?
I’m always on the lookout for interesting objects, in the recycle bin, in the thrift store, and in nature. Wooden puzzle pieces from the thrift store make excellent cams if you don’t have a scroll saw to make your own.
If you gather seed pods, dried weeds, etc., coat them with a layer of ModPodge or spray acrylic sealer to help retain colour and form.
Q. Where can I get gears?
I have an excellent source at our local MAKERSPACE, but if you don’t have that in your community, look for gears in the kids’ toy section at the thrift store.
Q. If I don’t have access to gears, how can I make a pulley system instead?
You can use thread spools or rigid cardboard tubing for the pulley wheels. Different size wheels will give varying speeds, just as gears do, so try experimenting until you get just the speed you want.
Coat the wheels with a layer of rubber cement or Shoe Goo to give good friction.
When I started, I used rubber bands for the belt, but they tend to stretch and break over time. Degradation of the rubber can occur just by being exposed to artificial light or sunlight.
Now I use a length of surgical tubing from the hardware store, which works perfectly, and doesn’t degrade. The tension doesn’t have to be tight. Change the direction of turn by putting one twist in the belt. Tape first to size and then stitch the two ends of tubing together using fishing line.
Q. Is there a particular website that you found useful to help get you started in building simple automata?
Rob Ives makes paper automata and gives excellent directions for assembly.
The talking dinosaur, below, is one of my very beginning pieces. The dinosaurs were made using Ive’s dinosaur cardboard pattern. Then I used black pipe foam insulation bits for the arms and legs, locust seed pods for the scales on his head, and torn egg carton cardboard for the rocky ground. The two axels are powered beneath by a pulley on my model.
From Ive’s excellent website, you can get an idea of how various cardboard box cams can work, and then branch off with your own ideas. View: ROB IVES
Q. What do you use for the invisible thread?
I use clear fishing line if it’s not under much strain or weights. For heavier jobs, it’s best to use the braided fishing line. It’s more expensive, but won’t cause problems by stretching. (I use the braided line when building a sine wave motion, and that will be explained in a future post.)
Q. What do you make the characters’ heads out of?
The air dried terra cotta clay from Michael’s works very well. However, I always give them a finishing coat of matte ModPodge for extra strength.
The hands and shoes are also made from clay.
Q. What are the bodies under the clothes made of?
A 2.5” piece of 1”x2” works for the body, and 18 gauge craft wire for the arms and legs.
Q. Why dress them in clothes rather than making wooden arms and legs and painting the clothes on, as many automata artists do?
I find it much easier, allowing more freedom of movement when using wire instead of wood, for arms and legs. Then they can be hidden inside a cloth sleeve or pant leg.