Date: Mon, 1 Nov 1999 10:31:57 -0500
From: heyhoot-AT-mindspring.com (Christopher Hudert)
Subject: PUPT: Re: Rod arm controls?


Tracy,
  There is of course no "one correct answer" to this question. The two
methods we most frequently use depend mostly on whether the hand is soft or
hard but are both really variations on a theme. For hard hands we cut out a
space for the wire in the bottom of the hand (the area between the pinkie
and the wrist) and insert the wire into this slot. The head of the wire is
bent into a circle that is then pinned in place. The cut out space is long
and narrow, much like one of these brackets - ) - turned on its side. The
length of the slot allows the wire to pivot and give the hand movement and
the narrowness allows the wire the ability to move the other direction by
confining its motion. For soft hands we create a pocket from plastic by
just bending a piece of bleach bottle or the like over and pinning the rod
in, then gluing the plastic in place in the hand. We use piano or spring
wire for the control as it has a lot of flex but springs back into
position. The guage of the wire depends on the size and weight of the hand.

 Hope this is clear and helpful. If you need something explained more, let
me know.

Christopher




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