[Grimmy GB]

In case you didn't notice, I have loads of little projects going. When one hits a snag, I can work on another in a nice rotation. This one seems to be my favorite so far
I found an Iona on Ebay for a good price. I started by ripping the guts out and removing the sticker. Mine had the sticker on back instead of the molded print.


When I first received it


Dremeled the hump off


Quick comparison of dremeling down one side


Bottom view (getting close before step sanding and using filler)


Top view (getting there)


Not TOO bad looking thus far



This is going to be pretty cool. I'm definitely going to have tons of questions to ask you gurus!

[halliwax]

I'm getting excited! What are you using for a face plate?! You did a excellent job with that handle!

[Grimmy GB]

I'm getting excited! What are you using for a face plate?! You did a excellent job with that handle!

halliwax...you're too kind amigo! I was hoping to find a cast, but if not, I'm going to be using styrene and piece it together using plastic bond. I bought a huge sheet ("for rent" sign *lol*) of .04" from the Home Depot so I'm thinking that will be my source
Are you by chance seeing any dimensions on the face plate anywhere at all?

[halliwax]

I'm getting excited! What are you using for a face plate?! You did a excellent job with that handle!

halliwax...you're too kind amigo! I was hoping to find a cast, but if not, I'm going to be using styrene and piece it together using plastic bond. I bought a huge sheet ("for rent" sign *lol*) of .04" from the Home Depot so I'm thinking that will be my source
Are you by chance seeing any dimensions on the face plate anywhere at all?

sadly i have never seen PKE measurements online. do u own a matty pke? i can mic up mine if you need me too.

[Grimmy GB]

sadly i have never seen PKE measurements online. do u own a matty pke? i can mic up mine if you need me too.

That...would be amazing and GREATLY appreciated! I didn't get a chance to get a matty one

[syckotheklown]

Looking great brother. Take lots of pics. I'll be using this as I guideline for when I build mine. Sadly I too didn't get a chance to grab a Matty pke.

[Grimmy GB]

Looking great brother. Take lots of pics. I'll be using this as I guideline for when I build mine. Sadly I too didn't get a chance to grab a Matty pke.

You know I will I'm starting to ask myself why I didn't get one when they were still for sale with Matty Collector. I guess I assumed that they would never sell out. Now that I see them selling for almost 3 times their MSRP, I'm kicking myself in the butt. BUT, I guess if I had to spend that money somewhere, it might as well be on something that I built lol

[syckotheklown]

Exactly. For me it was a toss up. Wand or pke. But because I wanted to build a pack, I chose the wand thinking hey, ill grab a pke in a few months. Bwahaha jokes on you sycko lol. Now I beating myself up about it. Lol. BUT if your pke comes out as good as its looking already. I'll be excited to build one.

[Grimmy GB]

Exactly. For me it was a toss up. Wand or pke. But because I wanted to build a pack, I chose the wand thinking hey, ill grab a pke in a few months. Bwahaha jokes on you sycko lol. Now I beating myself up about it. Lol. BUT if your pke comes out as good as its looking already. I'll be excited to build one.

You're still one up on me! lol... I have zero of Matty Stuff. Dropping like $1,800 on a pack build shrinks more than your testicles.
So, yeah, the only thing with this meter build that I'm a little worried about is getting all of the electronics working. I will likely be making the "electronics call" in the form of a Tarzanish bellow.

[syckotheklown]

Found this while looking for pics of every angle of the pke. This guy got to spend time documenting IN DETAIL, the original pke meter. Inside and out. It's a great reference for your build. Check it out.

http://www.cylandprops.com/PKEmeterp1.html

[syckotheklown]

My apologies for posting a link to that guys page to anyone I might offend. Didn't realize until reading more on his site that he was a blatant badmouther of some great guys on this site. If I could delete the post I would, I wouldn't want to promote him.

[Grimmy GB]

Found this while looking for pics of every angle of the pke. This guy got to spend time documenting IN DETAIL, the original pke meter. Inside and out. It's a great reference for your build. Check it out.

http://www.cylandprops.com/PKEmeterp1.html

I think i was looking at this about a month ago (when I first joined this forum). The funny part is that I didn't wanna read it all lol. Thanks, sycko, for posting this for reference. I will definitely be using it ^^
I definitely wish there were some place to get the internals and wings for about $200. That is definitely the modern day justification for purchasing a matty one, even at $200 (3X mark up).

[Grimmy GB]

My apologies for posting a link to that guys page to anyone I might offend. Didn't realize until reading more on his site that he was a blatant badmouther of some great guys on this site. If I could delete the post I would, I wouldn't want to promote him.

CylandProps is brought up a lot on these forums. I'm sure if there's a problem with posting the link, some moderator will remove it. Point being, that is one of the few references that we have. At least it's not VB

[syckotheklown]

Oh god I'd never promote that douche nozzle. I'd rather eat my proton pack plus Alice frame than post anything good about VB

[halliwax]

no problem buddy, ill start cracking at it a few nights this week for you! i need to buy a new protractor

i use to communicate allot back in 01-02 with cyland props ( brent ) and volguus. both of them at that time were building PKE's. they were the first to build them to scale, and with eletronics. brents wings electronics were built the same exact way the originals were. and they are considered the grand fathers to the PKE in my eyes.

i cant find any pictures of volguus's PKE anywhere on the net today. i remember his progress vividly...

anyway cyland might have bumped heads on here but he was always nice to me, and helped me build my gigameter all those years ago. his site has the PKE documented pretty good, explaining the controls and history.

i still cant believe they used 2 servos to control the wings instead of one. which made me believe they planned on having individual controls for each wing, so you could move 1 at a time. but most likely ran out of room inside the shell. thats my theory.

the PKE is one of my all time favorites (gigameter being my first favorite prop) and i've researched her for a long time... still never finished my 2 Iona's. but would like to tackle this project if we could get a electronics kit for the PKE to perform like in the movie and have the same sound

the mattys servos seem to slow for opening and closing the wings, the controls arent exactly the same as the real prop, and the lights on the dash dont blink when selected to the right or left...

theres a few other details, im researching now about the main power button and the screen...

look at me babble, holy cow. back on subject! i look forward to your progress, and glad i can help!

[halliwax]

i dug out my Matty PKE tonight, boy is this going to be alittle harder then i thought...

can you post a picture of the IONA in the same angle as my matty in the pic below


I have my IONA somewhere in storage, god only knows. i still havent gotten the protractor yet, but once i do im going to tackle mapping the faceplate out. give it my best shot

[Grimmy GB]

i dug out my Matty PKE tonight, boy is this going to be alittle harder then i thought...

can you post a picture of the IONA in the same angle as my matty in the pic below


I have my IONA somewhere in storage, god only knows. i still havent gotten the protractor yet, but once i do im going to tackle mapping the faceplate out. give it my best shot

You betcha! I will when I get home from work today. I'll take the picture on the grid mat in my shop.

[Cornelius]

Any more progress (and pics illustrating said progress)? I'm converting my own Iona into a PKE; hence my curiosity!

[Grimmy GB]

Hey Cornelius! I've been focusing on the pack build lately. I got my hands on a Matty PKE but intend on continuing this project. I want to go with a more accurate hood, sounds, and functionality. I have a feeling this might take (possibly) years to complete.

I appreciate the interest

EDIT: Are you looking for anything in particular that I might have already done to the Iona?

[Cornelius]

Grimmy, thanks for the swift response!

Well, since you're asking, I'm wondering to what extent you have modified or will modify the interior 'walls' that create subsections in the original polisher. Also, based on what I've read in the available documentation, the original screw bosses and holes were apparently removed and replaced with alternative holes and screw bosses. This has always puzzled me - the original screws seem to me to be very well placed, especially if I compare them to the final product. Any thoughts on this? Also, what kind of epoxy/filler/putty have you used for the handle? It looks very smooth - I'm considering using Apoxie Sculpt, but it's hard to find (and therefore expensive) in the Netherlands...

[Grimmy GB]

To be honest, I am trying to follow the details listed on CylandProps' website. I do not plan on changing the bosses, but I do plan on altering the counter-sunk screw holes for a smaller diameter to fit smaller head screws in. For this, I plan on using apoxie sculpt. If I have to, I will simply grind down the screw heads that originally came with the Iona.
I don't plan on changing the walls or anything structural as of yet.
For the lower portion of the handle grip, I used Plumber's Epoxy. It dries fast and super hard. It was suggested in a previous thread.
This is what I used...
http://www.acehardware.com/product/inde ... Id=1390295