
Welcome to my world! It may be messy and disorganized, but it's amazing! My first project, Fetcher (originally named PianoDog) took a year and a half and debuted on October 31, 2025. There's still lots to be done that can make him better, but he works and blows kids' minds. Today's generation only knows of animatronics in movies and video games; they've never experienced the magic of seeing them in person. Now that he's in storage (temporarily), it's time to work on Robot Combat! Rainbow Unicorn Nightmare will be my daughter and I's first foray into the world of battlebots and sumobots.
02.
I have no formal training or education. Just a 3D printer and a fond memory of Showbiz Pizza Place. When I saw my kids playing Five Nights at Freddy's, I had a crazy idea. I decided to build my own animatronic I could put outside for holidays, block parties, etc.
03.
When Fetcher made his debut on Halloween night 2025, no one asked where I got it, everyone asked how I did it. Adults and kids alike paused and watched him. Most of the kids had never seen real life animatronics before. I decided then and there that I had to share what I created. I'm giving you the Tinkercad files, the Visual Studio files, the Arduino sketch, how-to videos, everything.
04.
My primary focus was getting PianoDog (named "Fetcher" after Aaron Fechter at Creative Engineering) ready for Halloween, so I'm going to have to reverse-engineer my work to remind me what I've done.
05.
Remember, these are Amazon affiliate links. Please use them to get your equipment and help support BETA. Also, these are the items I personally used to build Fetcher, so I know they work! All prices are approximations based on when I wrote this, the price you see on Amazon will be different. The actual consumables are only around $100.
Friskars Paper Trimmer: [$25] When cutting the fur, do not use scissors! Scissors will cut the fur along with the backing. Get this, insert the fur upside down, and apply just enough pressure to cut the backing only.
Lonely Binary ESP32-S3 16MB + Antenna, Gold Edition: [$20] This is the mac daddy of Arduino. Unfortunately, you'll have to solder the header pins yourself (easy but tedious).
MeanWell LRS-350-5 Power Supply - 300W 5V: [$40] Lots of servos need lots of power. This beast will give you power to spare.
USB-C Power Supply: [$10] Any power supply you have laying around the house will do, but if you don't have one, grab this.
Digital Caliper: [$15] If you're going to be doing any modding, you need to be able to measure what you're doing.
FlashForge Adventurer 5M Pro: [$400] Any 3D printer should work for this project, but if you don't already have one, I highly recommend this one. It's the one I use.
5mm x 35mm Dowel Pins: [$10] There's going to be a whole lot of shaking going on, these will make sure all the joints stay joined.
2mm x 20mm Dowel Pins: [$10] I started using these, but had to get the larger version halfway through. The head still uses these original size pins though.
MG996R 55g Servo 4-Pack: [$20] These make all the movement happen. You'll need 3 for the head, and 4 for the arms, so get two of these 4 packs.
16" 3mm Rods: [$10] These are the ones I used, but if you modify the Tinkercad files, you can use any ones you want.
3' Servo Extension Cable: [$20] These might not be strictly necessary, but I hate having cables without slack.
Double Sided Adhesive tape Heavy Duty: [$10] Hot glue and faux fir don't mix. This tape and faux fur are made for each other!
Logitech Extreme 3D Pro Precision Fightstick: [$40] After a year, it's already having problems, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, but this is one I used.
Soldering Iron [$10] Any soldering iron will work, this was the cheapest.
XYK Helping Hands [$20] Totally optional, but nice to have.
14 AWG Electrical Wire [$10] I prefer to use wire that's too big rather than too small.
22 AWG Electrical Wire [$10] I prefer to use wire that's too big rather than too small.
20 AWG Servo Extension [$20] I learned long ago it's easier to buy an extension cable and chop it in half rather than trying to put the proper connectors on my existing wires, but this is optional.
Servo Extension [$10] Like above, these are optional just to cut in half for using the ends.
25v 2200uf Capacitors (5 pack) [$5] There's lots of choices, these are just the ones I picked.
50v .1uf Capacitors (50 pack) [$10] There's lots of choices, these are just the ones I picked.
Wire Stripper [$5], you could use scissors or a knife, but this worth the money.
Also Used:
1/4" Sch 40 PVC available at every hardware store
Faux Fur, available at Superstores and Hobby Shops
06.
This is where you will be modifying and downloading the 3D files to create your custom PianoDog.
If you just want to get busy, go to Tinkercad, create an account, and search for PianoDog in the community. If you want to learn how to use Tinkercad, go to my YouTube videos (link coming)
07.
This is where you'll be downloading and modifying (if you want) the program to record and control PianoDog's movements.
First, you need to make sure you have VisualStudio Community installed, then get the code from github. I haven't figured out how to do the github part yet.
08.
This is where you'll get the code that actually controls PianoDog's movements. I don't remember where to download this, and I don't know how I'm going to get the code out yet.
Right now, all we have is an idea for our Plastic Ant-Weight robot, but I'll be updating this site with both Fetcher and RUN updates.