Problems, Pandemics, and Power Swords
It’s been a while since I updated my progress and a lot has changed since then. The world is now in a global pandemic and the rest of the semester is now online. Which means that we won’t be having the big senior showcase at the end of the year anymore. As we seniors hunker down in our homes trying to follow our prescribed social distancing, our thesis’ have been affected in various ways. Some are still able to carry on while others can’t access the tools they need. Regardless of our condition, I feel that all seniors are disappointed we can’t show off like we wanted to. Its a demotivating thing indeed, but we have to press on and salvage what we can. As for me, I have to count myself lucky. I can still work on my thesis without much hindrance beyond my own motivation to keep working.
As for the status of my thesis, Myrtenaster, the sword I had been working on for the most part is actually finished. Finished in the sense that all parts are printed in the correct color. The only part left is to assemble the sword together with magnets and adhesives. The only reason its not all together right now is because I have only one shot at this. With non essential items delayed in shipping and many sites out of stock of filaments, screwing up is not an option. It pains me that the parts are all in a pile, but I need to find a time where I feel ready to take those last leaps and do it smoothly. If there’s any benefit to not having in person classes, its that I have a lot more time to work on my Fusion 360 skills and explore more ideas than I could before.
Enter the POWER SWORD
In my boredom last week, I decided to make something that I thought would be a nice change of pace while still be challenging in a way. So I decided to make the Power Rangers Red Ranger Power Sword. Trying to replicate the design using Fusion’s tools was quite fun to do. It’s not 100 the same and I did take a bunch of design liberties, but I can say that its something I’m proud of.
Myrtenaster was a big step into Fusion design and I had a lot of pitfalls as I was unaccustomed to the program. Now that I’ve had more practice, I’ve managed to do things faster and more efficiently. I still do have a lot to go and I’m excited what this will look in hand. For this one, I want to make it easier on my machine and print more efficiently as well. Wasting precious filament on test prints is not the best idea right now so I’ll get this design perfect enough to print in the least times as a possible.I might even try doing multi color prints on this one too. The possibilities are endless and I’ve got a lot of time on my hands now. Might as well use it.
