Making Paper Strandbeester

We love the artistry of paper mechanisms.  Simple tools and techniques creating humor, beauty, and amazement.

[Federico Tobon] from [Wolfcat Workshop] makes amazing automata, crosses between cut paper art, origami, and traditional carved wood automata.  He’s put out a useful new video on making linkages in paper parts.

In this short video, [Federico] shows us how to make a paper version of the leg mechanism for [Theo Jansen]’s classic Strandbeest, which we’ve covered in many variations.

Rotating joints in paper automata are sometimes done with a mechanical fastener like a post screw, but it violates the simplicity of the affair and often looks clunky.  [Federico] uses a simple self fastener. A 5 mm hole in one part mates with two “flaps” in the other part. He’s made a separate video covering how to make the fastenings. He’s using a paper crafter’s Cricut-type machine to cut the parts.  Pretty cool.

We’ve covered lots of other cool stuf from [Wolfcat Workshop]. If you want more of his automata eye candy, check out Simple Automata Extravaganza.

Making Paper Strandbeester
Source: Manila Flash Report