Credit: Lucasfilm/Instructables - Tez GelmirNo rocking horse here! Austrian dad, Tez Gelmir, has worked on numerous hand-built projects for his son, but wanted to do something incredibly special for his daughter’s first birthday. Gelmir landed on handcrafting a rocking Star Wars 74-Z speeder bike for his little girl and the results are nothing short of adorable!
Dressed in a baby Princess Leia costume, Gelmir’s daughter is clearly having the time of her life on the Star Wars speeder her dad constructed just for her. Usually ridden by a scout trooper, we think toddler Leia Organa is a much cuter 74-Z pilot.
Gelmir shared some photos of his speeder construction process on Instructables.com, along with full plans for how to build your own rocking Star Wars 74-Z speeder for kids!
Gelmir shared all sorts of information about the DIY Star Wars speeder project on his Instructables profile. Like any parent, his primary concern was “strength and stability for the safety of the little ones, as though this project is for my 1y/o, I also have a 5y/o who no doubt will want a turn.”
He continued, “The need to be strong enough to handle a beating led me to the first part of my design, a rigid backbone with a solid plywood top for the seat platform. This gave me a good foundation for things like the handles and outrigger to mount from, and somewhere to fix the 3D printed hull shell.”
Gelmir also discussed how he constructed the rocker arms on his Star Wars children’s toy, writing, “The rocker arms were the source of great deliberation…My solution was to use the two center rocker arms to clamp either side of the speeder bike’s timber backbone but still have clearance to slide the rockers back and forth 50mm or so to find the center of balance.”
He also shared more high-tech ideas for the do-it-yourself speeder rocker, indicating that “this design also has scope to easily replace the rocker arms with maybe a (motorized?) rolling mobile base.”
He also suggests that faux blasters and other details could be added to the Star Wars speeder bike.
We can’t get over how cute Gelmir’s little galactic princess looks on her custom rocking speeder bike! Check out a video of her below:
Are you going to try to build your own rocking Star Wars speeder? Let us know in the comments!
Get Ready For Star Wars Day
We’re spending the week helping you get ready for Star Wars Day 2020 with all the info you need to know before Monday.
Since the in-person Star Wars Celebration can’t happen this year, the team behind the gathering his hosting a virtual convention instead. There will be Star Wars movie viewings, Q&A sessions with Star Wars fan-favorites like Ashley Eckstein, and more special events.
We’ve also got you covered on the snacks front with great Star Wars-inspired recipes you can try at home on May the 4th! If you’re missing Galaxy’s Edge, make a batch of blue milk or green milk from the Milk Stand in the comfort of your own kitchen.
To celebrate 40 years of The Empire Strikes Back, try your hand at these Millennium Falcon shaped meat pies for Star Wars day dinner.
How are you celebrating Star Wars Day this year?