The R-Series Interview

NEWS
TIPS
LETTERS
PARTS
INTERVIEWS
DROID PROFILES
ARTICLES
BUILDER BIOS
Your Guide to better Astromeching...
Volume 1
December 2004
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contents
REGULAR FEATURES
because
there’s
only one
letter from the editor
pg. 3
Well... it’s about time!
news
pg. 4
"Chock full o' Droids!" Two new fanfilms to speak of!
way to
mailbag
pg. 4
Read the letters that were never written... huh?
skin a
droid profile
droid
pg. 5
R5-D4... more than just a bad motivator!
builder interview
pgs. 6&7
In-depth Interview with Peter Formosi as
he spills the goods on the F3!
this is my droid
pg. 8
Marco (Xeno Man) Grown shows us his droid
ARTICLES
meet the man from
down under DAVE EVERETT
pg. 9
He founded the group... and brought us all together!
instant messenger
pg. 9
Ever secretly want to read other peoples emails and instant
messages? Well... now you can!
the ups and downs of
being a parts supplier
for more info
visit
astromech.net
Jerry Greene SPEAKS!
PICK THIS UP
Kickin’ Bot... a book all
R2-RC Enthusiasts should
probably pick up...
for more info:
[email protected]
pg. 10&11
Letter from the Editor:
Welcome to
R-Series!
Letter from the Editor
It was just a matter of time... we all knew that eventually
there would be a “speciality magazine” just for us. I mean,
we’ve all read issues of the Star Wars Insider, Toyfare and
Fine Scale Modeler hoping to catch a glimpse of some
new droid or to read an article on building an astromech,
etc... but these segments are few and far between.
I thought to myself one day... “wouldn’t it be cool to go to
the mailbox and pull out an Issue of some Droid Builders
Magazine... and well... decided to start one. With mailing
issues and not actually being affiliated with Lucasfilm or
anything even remotely close... I opted to do the same
thing... but offer it in a totally free, downloadable PDF format for everyone to enjoy.
Every magazine needs to make money... they don’t do it
for fun... well... except this one. R-Series will be a quarterly
issued e-magazine for all builders to download, print, read,
file or use in the bottom of a birdcage. It’s totally up to
you. It’s your magazine. I just work on it.
You’ll see ads throughout the issues. These ads spaces are
FREE to established and honorable parts suppliers. They are
not there so much as to try to get you to buy their product,
as they are there simply to look cool. Isn’t that cool... who
would have ever thought there would be an actual magazine ad for aluminum or resin R2 parts... wow... look how far
we’ve come...
Cory Pacione
Editor in Chief
Do you have a story idea?
Send in your ideas for an article topic
for an upcoming issue! If we use your
idea, we’ll send you a
FREE printed issue of
R-Series!
Email
[email protected]
Subject line: R-Series Idea
Issue 1, December 2004
credits
EDITOR IN CHIEF,
GRAPHIC DESIGN & LAYOUT
cory pacione
ASSISTANT EDITOR
scott powers
COVER AND ASSORTED DROIDS
CG ARTIST
john jongsma
CONTRIBUTORS
dave everett
peter formosi
jerry greene
marco groen
john jongsma
cory pacione
scott powers
mike senna
If you wish to receive a
printed copy of this e-publication*,
paypal 4 bucks
(printing and mailing costs) to
[email protected]
note: credit card payments
cannot be accepted
*This is a non-profit e-magazine
Although most images in this e-publication are either group photos or
renderings, some images have been used without permission from Lucasfilm...
but it’s all for fun... so hopefully... it’s ok!
R-Series, December 2004
3
R.2. The Extra-Special Astromech
what’s the latest in droid building
news
Cory Pacione and friend Kirk
Pennell are in the middle of filming
their short film R.2. The Extra-Special
Astromech.
"Chock full o' Droids!"
“We’re about half way through the
shots, we wanted to make sure we
got all the exterior shots done
while the weather was still what we
were looking for.” says Cory. “The
rest of the shots will be interiors and
we should be finishing those up in
early December. We’d like to
have the film finished by the end
of January.”
At least 2 fanfilms (that we know of)
are in the works that contain our
favorite droids... both will be submitted
in the AtomFilms/ Star Wars Fan Film
Awards Contest in 2005
The Return of Pink 5
Mike Senna is preparing an R5
droid for what we can only
assume will be the final chapter
in the Pink 5 Series (Original
Trilogy),Return of Pink 5.
You can see the
bushes moving in the
background when
Obi Wan is talking to
Pink Five.
"Pink Five" on Atomfilms just
before the filming of the second
one ("Pink Five Strikes Back").
My R2 was in the second one. I
helped by providing the droid
and by fanning the Dagobah
smoke around in the background with a styrofoam tombstone. You can see the bushes
moving in the background
when Obi Wan is talking to Pink
Five.”
The storyline of the film is still under
wraps, but as the title indicates,
the primary focus of the film will be
on a little blue and white droid!
Great Stuff Mike... can’t wait to
see the next installment.
That’s not to say that there won’t
be a few special effects added to
the film. Our very own Mike Verta
has been working on a
couple of scenes which
will really add a nice
touch to the film.
-Mike Senna
on the set of Pink Five Strikes Back
“I promise that once the
film is complete, I’ll post
the web location for the
builders to check out
first, before posting it to
theforce.net, atomfilms,
etc.” says Cory, “plus...
I’d like to get some
feedback!”
Although the story and even the
details of the droid itself are
tightly under wraps, Mike did
comment on his previous experience with the series.
“I only watched the first one
Estimated Running Time: 10 mins
what YOU have to say
mailbag
Send us your stories
and
4
letters
R-Series, December 2004
“I’m sure this film will really be a big
hit with the builders. It doesn’t rely
on a lot of special effects so much
as it’s really just a cute, humorous
story which digs a little deeper into
what we know as the Star Wars universe.”
This being the premiere issue...
well... we didn’t really have anything from the mailbag... but if
you have a story or letter you’d
like to share with us, please send
it to us.
Actually, that’s not true... but we
will send you a printed copy of
R-Series.
If we use your story, we’ll send
you a FREE SET of 3 ALUMINUM
HOLOPROJECTORS.
So send in your letters and stories
(Hey... what do you expect! It’s
a non-profit magazine). :)
[email protected]
droidprofile: : : :
:::::::
Bad Motivator?
Or self-sacrificing
Astromech?
When the Owen family
Treadwell droid malfunctioned during a routine moisture vaporator maintenance
run, they knew they would
have to replace him with
another droid in time for the
harvest. Fortunately for them
(or was it?) the local band of
Jawa traders arrived with a
wide range of droids to
choose from. Among these
droids was R5-D4, a red R5
series astro-droid. The R5 line
was a cheaper model than
the previous R2
series, which is
likely why Owen
Lars chose it
over the R2 unit
- after all, it was
only going to
be used to
repair moisture
vaporators, not calculate
hyperspace jumps.
When the R5 unit rolled
away from the Jawa
Sandcrawler to his
new employer, he
blew out a motivator in a fiery
explosion. Luke
Skywalker then
relayed to his
uncle Owen that
this R2 unit had
a bad motivator. For this reason, many people refer to this
droid as R2-AG4, but it's
more likely that Luke just
referred to all astromech
series as R2 units - as they are
the series that were the most
successful and popular.
There is also evidence that
he later was used in the
Battle of Yavin as Jek Porkins'
(Red 6) X-Wing fighter, and
The cause of the bad motivator is uncertain. Some
believe R2-D2 sabotaged
poor R5-D4 so that he could
stay with his companion Cmay have caused the death
3PO. Others believe that R2
talked R5-D4 into blowing his of Lieutenant Porkins.
own motivator. However the
probable scenario is that the
cheaper R5 series models just
That’s
don't handle the Tatooine
SO SAD!
climate well and the motivator just blew.
Little is known about what
happened to R5-D4 after
being taken away from
the Lars Homestead. One
rumor is that he was stolen
from the Jawas by a
mischievous Squib trader
named MacemillianWinduarté.
Did You Know?
In the OT, R5-D4s
body was originally
an R2-D2 with a
new paint job (this
was true for all the
OT units.
R-Series, December 2004
5
The R-Series Interview:
Peter Formosi
this, that
and the
other dome
on
By Cory Pacione
Peter spills the good news on
the long awaited F3 dome...
We contacted Peter and
asked him...
So Peter, When and How did you find
the R2 builders club?
PF. I've actually always been into building things
and working with my hands. One day, about
three years ago now, I was watching a Star
Wars themed episode of The Screensavers on
TechTV and they had a couple of people who
had actually built a full sized R2D2. Needless
to say I was pretty impressed and thought to
myself "that would be a pretty amazing
thing to do." After a little bit of internet
searching I stumbled across the R2Builders
Club. It's sounds really cheesy but it kinda
changed my life. Because of this whole
experience I actually decided to go back to
school for mechanical engineering and am
currently in my second year. Thank you Uncle
George and Dave Everett :)
R. Have you met (m)any of the club members?
PF. Yup, I've met some local builders, Alexander Kung,
Heath Macmillan, Lorenzo D'Allesandro, Jason Ehl, and Willy
Wong. All a great bunch of guys.
6
R-Series, December 2004
Builder: Peter Formosi
R. What R Series Droid are you building and what is it's present status?
PF. I working on an R2-D2. I pretty
much have a completed dome, but
now that I am working on a new
dome run I am gonna be starting
over again. Other than that it pretty
much consists of a bunch of parts
from fellow members.
R. Is this your first droid? If not, how
many have you completed to date?
PF. Yup, this is my first droid.
R. What made you decide to begin
offering spun aluminum domes to the
group years ago?
PF. Actually, at the time I joined the
group there really weren't any domes
available. The D&D domes were
pretty hard to come by, so the only
option was to use a plastic dome or
have a new one spun. I figured I
could handle the latter, so I posted
the question to see if anyone was
interested, and the rest is history.
Robert Jackson was a big help with
the dimensions for the run.
R. What was the initial reaction to
your domes?
PF. Everyone was very happy with
them. There was a lot of positive
comments and I was very happy with
the way everything went.
R. How many domes of yours are out
there (First Gen, Second Gen?)
PF. I believe it's about 100 of the first
generation, and 100 of the second
generation. The people at the post
office always cringe when I walk in
now.
R. Tell us what we are dying to
know... What is the status of the F3
dome?
PF. I actually have some good news
to report. All the blank F3 domes
have been spun. All that has to be
done is to etch the rings in. They
should be ready to go in a couple of
weeks. Once those domes are out I
can begin working on the double layered run.
Age: 25
R. How will this dome (F3) compare
to your previous versions?
PF. I worked with Robert Jackson to
make this dome as accurate as possible. The blank domes will be similar to
my previous runs, that is, a one piece
dome with both rings etched in, but
the dimensions, and curvature have
been tweaked to make it more accurate. I feel this is the best possible
representation of the dome. I am
also looking into having a double layered pre-cut version made but that
part is still in the works. All the details
can be found at www.astromech.net
in the parts listing.
Location: Toronto, Canada
Favorite SW Movie:
The Empire Strikes Back
Favorite Non-R2 Character:
Han Solo
R2 Builders Member Since: 2002
Previous domes
offered by Peter
The First Generation Formosi...
R. Have you encountered any
major challenges in developing this
dome?
PF. The main challenges have been
time, and information. I have been
completely swamped with school
work and trying to find time for the
run whenever possible. Slowly but
surely I have been making progress
though. Also, it's been pretty difficult
trying to find information regarding
the panel dimensions of the dome.
Robert Jackson is currently working on
drawing up a dome file from the R&J
dome scan data. However, I have
also started drawing up my own
dome file. I figure it is a great learning experience, and once it is completed I will be posting it to the
group for anyone who would like to
use the info.
The Second Generation Formosi...
R. What is the most useful tips you
can give to any newbies who are
just joining the group?
PF. Read, read, read. As far as I am
concerned, the best thing about the
builders club, and the project in general, is just how much can be learned
from the whole experience.
Whether it be technical info, new
building processes, different people's experiences, or about all the
great personalities that belong to
the club. It is all invaluable. It will
make the experience enjoyable
whether your droid costs $600 or
$6000.
... and the Prototype of the soon to
be available F3 dome
R. Any final words?
PF. Nope :)
R-Series, December 2004
7
show us your droid!
Each issue, we will be looking for someone (anyone)
to show us their R-Unit!
It doesn’t matter what stage you’re at... you can send
Did You Know?
in a pic and a few details of your droids status... and
There were 16 R2
Units developed by
Norank for filming
A New Hope
we’ll put you in the mag...
sound good?
This issue, Marco Groen and the R2-D2 he built mostly
from Scratch... yes scratch!
Email
[email protected]
Subject line: R-Series: This Is My Droid!
Meet the Man from DOWN UNDER
R2 Builders Founder
R. What made you decide to start
the R2 Builders Club?
DE. Back in 1999 I had been doing
some design work for a member of
the B9 group, that introduced me to
the possibility of building a replica
robot. Around that time I found Tony
Dyson's website. Tony built about 6
fibreglass R2s for The Empire Strikes
Back. I asked Tony about materials
he used to build R2 and left a message in his guestbook. A few people
contacted me from the guestbook
and pretty soon 5 of us were swapping emails about how to build R2.
Around this
Builder: Dave Everett
time there
Age: 40
Location: Sydney, Australia
What R-Series Droid are you
presently building: R2-D2
What will it's capabilities be:
2-3-2, waddling motion,
periscope, lifeform scanner,
some autonomous operation
but mainly RC.
8
R-Series, December 2004
dave everett
were problems with profiteering in
the B9 group, and I was getting tired
of having to CC so many people. I
always felt I was incorruptible :) so I
decided to create the group right
then. A group was inevitable, but I
was worried it would get commandeered by someone who had dollar
signs in their eyes.
provide parts and other tools for the
club. If all 2400 members were posting it would collapse immediately.
We tend to lose people when there
are large flurries of posts.
R. Where do our "Official
Measurements" come from?
DE. I thought it would probably peak
at about 400 members :) It amazes
me how many people are part of the
club. Obviously many do not post,
and probably many more don't pay
any attention to the list anymore, but
it is impressive to see the size of the
membership. We've had some prestigious members, Don Bies, Tony Dyson,
Adam Savage and some I can't
mention ;)
DE. I can't give you all the details, but
I can say this. The dimensions are the
result of measurements taken from
real droids. Those figures were then
checked by building models of R2
and checking that things fit. There
are still some discrepancies, but
gradually they are being weeded
out. Given that all the early R2s were
handmade, there are differences
from one model to the next. In the
early days of the club this was the
thing we needed the most. It wasn't
until late 2000 that we had our first
true measurements.
R. Do you ever feel that the group is
"out of control" due to it's large membership?
R. How do you feel the establishment
of the Builders Council benefited the
group?
DE. No. The core is much smaller, perhaps 100 people that contribute and
DE. Firstly it had to be done. The club
was in turmoil over bad suppliers, I
R. Did you ever dream there would
be over 2400 members worldwide?
instant messenger:
here’s the message that started the issue!
was very busy at the time and couldn't
be as actively involved as I had been
in the past. I saw profiteering creeping
in and there were some events happening off list that troubled me greatly.
People were screaming out for me to
do something, I needed a quick solution to help clear up these problems
and I needed help to do it. I also wanted to build a council that I felt was
representative of members, but of
people that I could rely on and had
shown commitment to the group in the
past. I stared with 9 members and now
it's down to 5. I pulled no punches in
our discussions and asked that no one
else do so either. I also made it possible
for councillors to say anything even if it
weren't strictly true just so we could get
issues out there for discussion. I think we
racked up about 1000 posts in the first
few weeks to identify the problems,
create a Code and organise ourselves.
R. What has this club given you the
opportunity to do that you might not
have had otherwise?
DE. Firstly, I've met so many great people. None of that would have been
possible without the club. It's also gotten me closer to my own R2 than I
could have by myself. Also I've learnt
so much about casting, molding,
sculpting, CAD drawing, metal work,
SFX, the list goes on.
R. Favorite R2 Builders Group moment?
DE. There have been a few. Seeing
Dave Buckley's logo used in R2-D2
Beneath The Dome was one. The posts
after CII were probably my favourites.
It was nice that people were able to
get together and have such a great
time. After CII they sent me the banner
that was used and every member that
attended had signed it. That banner
has since been to the Star Wars convention in Germany where more
Builders signed it and I plan to send it
to CIII also.
R. Anything else you'd like to say:
artoodeedum: Hi Scott
spastromech: hey cory
artoodeedum: got a second?
spastromech: yeah
artoodeedum: I've got an idea...
spastromech: oh no ?
artoodeedum: I'm thinking of starting a builders magazine
spastromech: builders magazine?
artoodeedum: yeah, you know... something we could upload as a PDF to
astromech.net and have issues
artoodeedum: like every quarter or something like that
spastromech: that sounds like a cool idea
spastromech: just online or print too?
artoodeedum: well, we could offer it online as a PDF to download for
everybody...
artoodeedum: but also offer it as a mailout printed version for a few bucks
artoodeedum: (to cover printing and shipping costs)
spastromech: yeah that sounds like a good idea
spastromech: what would you put in it?
artoodeedum: Interviews, News, Builder Bios, Articles, Mock Ads, etc.
artoodeedum: and of course... lots and lots of droid photos and pics
artoodeedum: I think we could get lots of builders involved... helping with
articles, photos, etc
spastromech: yeah that's a great idea - you think you could handle layout
and that kinda stuff?
artoodeedum: yeah, I do this type of thing for a living... so leave that to
me.... but...?
artoodeedum: I could use your help with a few things ?
spastromech: right!
artoodeedum: wanna be the assistant editor
spastromech: sure, let's get it rolling!
artoodeedum: AWESOME!
spastromech: what to call it?
spastromech: Astromech Monthly?
artoodeedum: I was thinking "R-Series" or "The R-Series"
spastromech: Astro Enquirer ?
artoodeedum: lol
spastromech: yeah I like R-Series
artoodeedum: monthly might be a tad bit too ambitious ?
spastromech: yeah I think you're right
artoodeedum: Yeah, R-Series has a nice ring to it
artoodeedum: R-Series it is then
artoodeedum: I'm thinking of interviewing Peter Formosi for the first issue
artoodeedum: get the scoop on the new dome
spastromech: yeah, maybe do a droid profile every month on a different
astromech
spastromech: well not month of course...
artoodeedum: yeah... you can do that part if you want... which droid do
you want to start with?
spastromech: well, everyone knows R2-D2, how about the second most
(in)famous droid R5-D4
artoodeedum: sounds good
artoodeedum: Well... I've got a meeting soon... I'll get started on the layout
and design tonight... this is going to be sweet!
artoodeedum: Thanks for all your help! This is gonna rock!
spastromech: yeah, great idea - let's make it work
artoodeedum: Cool... I'll be in touch!
artoodeedum: Cya
spastromech: l8r
DE. The club is a team effort. There are
enough motivated people happy to
share, and that is what makes it work.
Dave Everett
R-Series, December 2004
9
the
UPs&
DOWNs
a
of being
parts supplier
by Jerry Greene (a.k.a. JAG)
make me some”, “I want those” and
“Can I buy those off you”. Next
thing I know I’m getting prices from
the shop for large quantity and shipping parts. It hasn’t stopped since.
I stumbled onto Alex Kung’s web
site, and found the R2-D2 Builders
Club. From that point I had to make
me a Droid. Not just any Droid, but
a working piece of machinery.
Soon afterwards with info from Dave
Everett, we started working on
Official Blueprints. Gary Weaver,
Jason Smith and myself were now
offering aluminum parts. And everyone got the aluminum fever.
Supplying parts has its ups and
downs. It takes a lot of organization
and careful planning. First you need
Back when I first joined the R2-D2
Builders Group there were no
blueprints, and aluminum parts were
unheard of.
One day I was talking with a friend
(sheet metal vendor) and I mentioned my desire to build a R2. He
offered his assistance and I soon
was plugging away at AutoCAD.
I don’t know how it came about that
these were the first parts, but I soon
had an aluminum Octagon Port and
set of Front Vents in my hands.
Shortly afterwards I posted a couple
photos to the Club. Well, that
opened Pandora’s box. The e-mails
started pouring in “Can you please
to determine if a certain part is in
demand. Get you’re drawing info
squared away. Have the shop quote.
Best to get multiple quotes in multiple
quantities. It’s been easier for me
because I do this for a living, and
have sources I deal with on a daily
basis for years. The relationship is
already formed, and they know
what I expect from them. I’m going
to get a quality part in a timely manner.
Collecting funds and keeping everything updated can get very hectic.
Especially at the very beginning
when your mail box gets overloaded
with questions and orders. Not to
10
R-Series, December 2004
mention those one-line e-mails “I
want”. No name, no common sense.
Then there are the last few you have
to chase for funds. I totally understand that for some it takes time to
get the money together, and some of
the parts can get costly and some
people need extra time. And as long
as you communicate with me, I’ll
work with you. I know where you’re
coming from, I’m in the same seat
most the time. Once the order is
placed. It’s just a matter of waiting.
Every once in awhile drop the group
an update. Even if there is no
update, do it. It makes everyone
involved feel better and let’s them
knows you haven’t forgotten them. I
think as a supplier, even though this
is a “hobby”. You are taking peoples well-earned money. It’s your
responsibility to act professionally
and handle it as such.
Now is when making the parts pays
off. That day a large heavy box is
dropped off in your hands. There’s
nothing like seeing your idea transformed into product. From paper into
something you can physically touch,
hold. It has weight, it comes alive so
to speak. That’s when the aluminum
fever takes over.
Boxing and shipping the parts out
isn’t so bad. I usually bribe my fiancé and kids to help
out. It makes it go faster. I always use UPS. Very convenient for me as they deliver and pick up here daily. And I
also feel more secure using them. The package is trackable. It cost a little more than using USPS for smaller
parts. But usually the parts I offer aren’t that small.
The payoff is the thanks you get for making something
someone else couldn’t. Someone who doesn’t have the
know how or sources. You’ve made it possible for someone to make something
they desire. And without
your help it would be difficult for them.
I do this with parts,
drawings, and ideas. If
there is something I can
put out there for someone else to use. What’s
the harm?
The biggest thrill for me
is when someone post a
photo of their Droid and
I see some parts I made.
That’s the coolest!
Seeing your work working. That’s when it’s all worth it.
By Jerry Greene a.k.a. JAG
Jerry Green has been an active member in the R2 Builders
Group since 1999 and has offered such aluminum parts as
Center Vents, Shoulder Horseshoes, Battery Harnesses, and
much more.
He designed the Tom & Jerry Frame (TJ) and is presently in
the process of providing Steel Outer Feet
with Aluminum Battery Boxes.
Jerry lives in Rhode Island,
USA.
For more information on
Jerry Green, visit his
website at:
www.R2-R9.com
This was the status
of Jerry’s Droid as of
Mid-November
for more info:
email: [email protected]
R-Series, December 2004
11
Carefully Mastered...
Hand Poured...
Timeless Classic Pieces...
all mixed together...
with a tiny touch of evil...
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THESE
AND OTHER GREAT PARTS, VISIT
www.astromech.net
Ankle Cylinders
Power Couplers
TO ORDER
EMAIL:
[email protected]
Ankle Wedges
Front Logic Displays
Shoulder Buttons
Octagon Ports