Friday, February 1, 2013

It's Only Fitting.

On R2's feet, there are 4 hoses.  They are connected to the feet with these little knurled connectors.  They are not things you can get off the shelf.  So, I could either try to buy a set from other R2 builders who've had them made, or figure out something on my own.

I spent a little time at the hardware store getting some bolts- and while there I was looking at these nifty air hose connectors that swivel:






The piece in the middle, I realized, was very very close to what I needed. Unfortunately, they are not knurled.  What the heck is knurling? Good question. It's the pattern on the left that you see here:


I quickly realized that I could make it work.  The diameter of the center piece was a little small, but my solution would fix both issues.  I disconnected the center piece from the other parts, and then mixed up a very small amount of Magic Sculpt epoxy putty.  I rolled it very thin, and then wrapped the base of the connector.  Next, I pulled out my Torque wrench. Torque Wrench? Yes.  It has a large knurled handle.  I rolled the magic sculpt covered piece carefully around the handle...transferring the knurled texture to the putty.

Once it was dry, I beveled the edge on top, and primed and painted it.  3 more to go!  To attach it, I'll simply use the original piece from the bottom, screwed in through the hole in the foot cover, with the hose running through it.


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