Cardboard Dalek

Back in 2009 I saw a Gold Dalek Cosplayer at fan Expo in Toronto and was interested in building one myself.

I did not have access to wood or wood cutting tools but I did have access to 40x40 sheets of corrugated cardboard and I had a box cutter.

So I became a member of the Dalek Builder's group and downloaded the plans for free.

http://www.projectdalek.co.uk/mainsite/index.php/forum

I did not take a lot of pics as this was my first official cosplay/prop build and did not think about taking pics but I did manage a few of the cardboard construction....no paint or misc pics... :(

So I had am almost unlimited supply of 40x40 or 50x50" sheets.

The plans I downloaded showed the measurements of a Shawcraft Mark III Dalek that I loved from the TV episode 'Genesis of the Daleks"

So I followed the plans and began cutting.

I used liquid nails (No More Nails) as the final glue and used masking tape as the grip to temporarily hold that cardboard pieces together.

For the Shoulder I sliced in between the grain to make an easier curve as can be seen in the pic.

I also double the cardboard walls and fender to create a stronger build.

You can see from the pics the inner support cardboard beams and the amount of glue I used. You can also see the slits to make the cardboard bend and curve easier.

The base and shoulders were all cardboard and built to specs from the plans.

For the hemispheres I had purchased 4" Christmas Balls that came in halves from Michaels. Then I had used a laser balancer to measure out the positions of the hemis....

I primed the finished body with a gray primer Krylon Spray paint (about 3 cans) and then used a gloss Gray (about 4 cans).

The hemi's I primed black then sprayed a gloss black before attaching.

The neck I used a meshed table cloth to see through.

The plunger was attached to a PVC pipe from the dollar store, the death ray was a wooden dowel with cardboard

sheets painted silver

Both plunger and gun were attached to half a 4 inch hemi ball and strapped in with rubber bands.

The eye stalk was built from a tomato plastic holder from the dollar store and the attached to a wooded dowel.

The dome was created from fiberglass following the builder plans. The dome was placed on a last susan with an internal handle for me to move.

The eyes were from a landrover and the led lights were from an automotive led accessory with a trigger button.

The sound system used a car speaker and the voice mod was purchased in the UK to give that wicked Dalek voice.

I had also a motorized cooler that I drove from within that ran off two12 volt batteries... which gave me about 2-3 hours of run time before recharging

I was able to finish and run this little Dalek in 2012 to 2014 - Dalek Simon was able to attend 12 conventions over the course of 2 years.

During that time I split the skid so I could fit it in a Sentra...before I had rented a van which was getting costly...so since it was cardboard I sliced the skirt and saved me some money...

There is a lot more details I did not cover...but if you have any questions please ask away!