Penguin at the Pole.

"Penguin At The Pole" is a whimsical model inspired by Tim Surtell's "Unicyclist" with the London Meccano Club, and our family!

As usual, I probably forgot a file or two or who knows what else, so if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask as I do make plenty of mistakes.

Designed using Autodesk Fusion 360, sliced using Ultimaker Cura 4.12.1, and 3D printed in PLA on Ultimaker S5s and an Ultimaker 3e.

Soldering Iron and Solder.

Thick cyanoacrylate glue.

Thick double sided tape.

I acquired the following parts:

• One N20 6VDC 70RPM right angle gear motor.
• One twin AAA switched battery pack.
• Two AAA batteries.
• One R21 O-ring.
• One 16mm length of 2mm diameter music wire.

I 3D printed the following parts at .15mm layer height, 20% infill unless otherwise noted:

• One "Base.stl".
• One "Beak.stl".
• One "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 8).stl".
• One "Left Foot.stl".
• One "Penguin Body.3mf".
• One "Penguin Head Left.3mf".
• One "Penguin Head Right.3mf".
• One "Pole Cap.stl".
• One "Pole.3mf", 100% infill.
• One "Right Foot.stl".
• One "Sign NP.3mf".
• One "Sign OB.3mf".
• One "Snow Cap.stl".
• One "Wheel Axle and Pedal.stl".
• Two "Wheel Mount.stl".
• One "Wheel Pedal.stl".
• One "Wheel.stl".
• One "Wing Left.stl".
• One "Wing Right.stl".

This is a high precision large format 3D print and assembly model using at times very small precision parts in very tight spaces. Prior to assembly, test fit and trim, file, sand, polish, etc. all parts as necessary for smooth movement of moving surfaces, and tight fit for non moving surfaces. Depending on you printer, your printer settings and the colors you chose, more or less trimming, filing, sanding and/or polishing may be required. Carefully file all edges that contacted the build plate to make absolutely certain that all build plate "ooze" is removed and that all edges are smooth. I used small jewelers files and plenty of patience to perform this step.

The model also uses threaded assembly thus an M8 by 1.25 tap and die will assist with thread cleaning if necessary.

To assemble the penguin, I performed the following steps:

• Glued "Beak.stl" to "Penguin Head Right.3mf".
• Glued "Penguin Head Left.3mf" to the right head assembly, then glued the head assembly to "Penguin Body.3mf".
• Glued "Wing Left.stl" to the body assembly.
• Glued "Wing Right.stl" to the body assembly.
• Cut two 6mm lengths of piano wire, rounded one end of each and flattened the remaining end, to create two pins.
• Pressed and glued one pin into "Wheel Axle and Pedal.stl" and one into "Wheel Pedal.stl", extending outward.
• Slipped the O-ring onto "Wheel.stl".
• Slid the wheel axle and pedal assembly into one "Wheel Mount.stl", then pressed the assembly into the wheel assembly.
• Slid the wheel pedal assembly into the remaining wheel mount, then pressed the wheel pedal assembly onto the wheel pedal and axle assembly such that the pins where 180 degrees apart.
• Partial pressed the wheel assembly into the penguin assembly.
• Slid "Left Foot.stl" into the left foot slot in the penguin assembly, then slid the left pin into the slot in the left foot.
• Repeated the previous step for the right foot.
• Pressed the wheel assembly fully into the penguin assembly.
• At this point, I made certain the wheel assembly rotated with ease.
• Glued "Sign OB.stl" to the back of "Sign NP.stl".
• Pressed the sign assembly into the hole in the penguin right arm.

For final assembly, I performed the following steps:

• Pressed the gear motor into "Base.stl" making certain the motor shaft was exactly centered in the base center hole.
• After turning the battery pack switch off and installing the two AAA batteries, attached the battery pack to the base assembly using double sided tape, then soldered the battery pack wires to the gear motor such that the motor shaft rotated counter clockwise when viewed from the top of the base.
• Glued "Pole Cap.stl" to "Snow Cap.stl" making certain the pole cap was centered on the snow cap.
• Pressed "Pole.3mf" onto the gear motor shaft.
• Attached the penguin assembly to the pole using one "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 8).stl" making certain a flat on the hexagonal hole faced the penguin.
• Pressed the pole cap and snow assembly onto the bolt.

And that is how I 3D printed and assembled "Penguin At The Pole".

I hope you enjoyed it!