In body we shall thee create our soul. Ah bollox, we needed some kind of structure that would enable SAM to draw with a tool. Twas however a huge disappointment to realise that what we needed, in terms of basic mechanical parts, wasn't stocked up neatly at the local hardware corner shop. Even a trip to the capital to ask the specialists was a depressing experience. On asking for some cogs in the main hardware store, the shop owner nonchalantly replied, ‘Mister, don’t you know we no longer make anything in this country. We live off tourism, gastronomy and glamour.’ That bitter reality and sad state of affairs conjured thoughts of despair.

Sure, we had access to the BlinkerNet for the more important components - Arduinos, shields and motors. We also came across a few possible solutions for cogs and racks but the little details we had imagined in our design needed specific pieces. To add to the urgency, we were quite eager to knock something together so we could move on in getting SAM to draw. What this essentially boiled down to was the following. We needed to build a first prototype with which we could test out some ideas before moving on to the finer details of brass knobs and golden whistles. A sudden thought entered my mind. What if...

Rough Design - Team SPAM - 2014

What if we could take the necessary materials from another machine? A machine that shared SAM’s principal mechanics. A dilemma emerged. Do I keep a piece of equipment I already have at my disposal, or... do we make a prototype from Muesli boxes quickly amassing the kitchen floor? The answer came after a pure moment of illumination during a terrace coffee drinking session. Kill the 3D printer and turn it into SAM!

So, that was that sorted. What was the next move? We took our parts to our design school and decided to hang out in the wood and metal department. Our intentions were not simply to hang out though. We had a mission that day. SAM was practically before our eyes. Having dismantled the Rep Rap and having gathered a few pieces of spare wood from the cellar, we shared a sense of excitement that today would result in a key moment. Admittedly, not a life changing one but there was literally electricity in the air.

Dead RepRap enters Heaven - Team SPAM - 2014

With big help from Awesome Mr. A. at the school, a quality man who ambles the corridors with smiles abound, we knocked together a basic frame and structure for SAM. A slight problem then occurred. One of the axis was having some trouble moving and more annoyingly, it seemed quite erratic behavior. This was our first lesson in mechanics. At first, we imagined that the reason for this was simply poor materials. After all, the RepRap axis structure was not our main choice for the design. The ‘do we rack it or belt it’ debate came back to haunt us. It was certainly something to take into consideration, however the real answer came with a simple remark from Awesome Mr. A, ‘ ya axis ain’t parallel mate. Here, let me measure... Yep, ya 1mm out on this side. Let me just adjust that.’

Blimey, 1 fuckin’ millimeter out and SAM was a dysfunctional frame with a wonky arm. Sure enough, true and precise measurement along with a slightly less hastily manner of ‘knocking up’ your materials is not to be neglected.

What have we learned ?

Be precise in your measurements and take your time.