Building
The Dalek which you can see here is the first one I made, back in 1992. In 1994 I re-built the midriff section to make it more accurate. You can see from the photo that the structure is basically made from wooden battens. This was then surrounded by a tough card surface, which took paint extremely well.
The arm boxes are plywood, with ball floats forming the ball and socket assembly. A back plate holds the floats in position and can be easily unscrewed for maintenance. The sockets were lined with thick carpet underlay to prevent the paint being scratched off the floats as they moved.
Also note the rods which
hold the hemispheres in position around the
skirt. When I first made the Dalek these were
not in place and the floats kept on falling out
when pressed too hard! This Dalek is now
painted as a “Genesis of the Daleks” model
(see below).
![[Image: Dalek in early stages of construction and two completed ones]](images/dalekconstr3.jpg)
![[Image: Dalek 3 - hemispheres attached with masking tape!]](images/dalek3.jpeg)
The second and third Daleks I have made are constructed in an entirely different way. The basic framework is MDF, with the base composed of two sections which join together at front and back with four bolts and wing nuts. This makes the completed skirt sections very easy to get through a normal doorway, though it has meant that I’ve had to include a removable seat, which fits onto three small supports screwed on to the frame. The flat panels are made from strong card, glued and fixed firmly on to the MDF. When covered with several coats of paint this forms a very sturdy surface.
I’ve been very proud at the exhibitions to have had help from others in providing Daleks. Paul Halliday has provided a superb “Power”/“Evil of the Daleks” version in silver and blue. This Dalek is built almost entirely of fibreglass and is extremely accurate and sturdy. At the next exhibition I’m also hoping to display another silver & blue Dalek, this time built by Derek Halliday. Again, this model is mostly constructed from fibreglass and, from the photos I’ve seen of it, looks to be a marvellous replica. This will bring the total number of Daleks available to five!
