Nutcracker Pin Walker

https://youtu.be/D1VdomhnReI

Reminiscent of a static Nutcracker model my father and I created in balsa wood using one of my favorite childhood Christmas presents, the “Mattel Power Shop” (circa fifty plus years ago), “Robotic Nutcracker Pin Walker” is a 3D printed recreation in pin walker form of the laminated mustache and lathed arms, hands, body, feet and head nutcracker my father taught me how to mill using my power shop many years ago. I was unable to locate our original plans thus this version was recreated from bits and pieces of memories, family photographs and internet searches.

This 3D printed recreation is designed for single extrusion 3D printers thus some color detail pieces are threaded or glued (I used thick cyanoacrylate glue) in place. I also designed this model to print without requiring support material, however if you have access to a dual extrusion printer with PVA used for support, "Base.stl" will require much less clean up after printing. The mechanism that propels this model is very similar to my previous pin walker designs in both 3D printed and purchased parts.

For both longitudinal and lateral stability of a pin walking model of this size, it is important that the center of mass be located over the center of the elliptical path of the pins (from front to back), and centered between the pins (from left to right). As can be seen in the center of mass images as calculated by Autodesk Fusion 360, the center of mass of this model both front to back and side to side satisfies these conditions, yet is slightly top heavy, so I used a lower RPM gear motor in the design for increased stability. With the battery and gear motor I selected for this model, the average power consumption is around 16MA, so it should run a few hours before needing a recharge.

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.

One final note, I receive no compensation in any form whatsoever for the design, equipment, parts and/or materials used in this model.

Oh and one final, final note, from Lora and I and our entire family, to you and yours, Merry Christmas!

Designed using Autodesk Fusion 360, sliced using Cura 4.4.0, and printed in PLA on an Ultimaker 2+ Extended, an Ultimaker 3 Extended, and an Ultimaker S5.