PROJECTS: MAKEY ROBOT
MAKE IT.
makezine.com/19/makey
BUILD YOUR
MAKEY ROBOT
START>>
Time: 2-3 Weekends Complexity: Difficult
1. MAKE THE BODY
The body consists of 2 pieces of sheet aluminum. You can cut, drill, and bend one piece at a time, or do
both at once to minimize switching tool stations; see Step 1h.
1a. Download the 5 Makey templates from makezine.com/19/makey and print them out full-size. Cut out
the base cutting template, and cut holes in the blank area of each panel. Securely tape the template to the
aluminum sheet with double-stick tape on the back and regular tape over the holes.
1b. With a band saw, cut the aluminum roughly to size around the
template, then cut the perimeter just outside the lines.
TIP: For inside corners, first cut a gradual curve close to the corner,
then back up and cut into the corner’s point from each direction.
1c. Use a center punch and small hammer to punch through the
template at the 17 crosshairs (for drilling in the next step) and at
the corners of the rectangles around the large holes.
1d. Drill the holes at the crosshairs following the sizes marked
on the template. Remove (but keep) the paper first, to line up on
the punch marks more accurately. Clamp the metal tightly onto
scrap wood, and wherever possible use the unibit, which makes
cleaner holes in thin metal than a twist drill. For the starter holes
inside the rectangles, you may need to adjust the diameter
smaller or larger to reach the rectangle edges.
80 Make: Volume 19
