Desk Display

 01 | Problem Statement | Designing Terrapin Flyer

• Design Goal: Capture Grateful Dead iconography (dancing bear, terrapin shell) in a desk displace piece.

• Concealed Mechanical Storage: Design a hidden compartment that houses USB drives loaded with concert recordings.

• Material Integration Challenge: Unify a cast bronze bear, machined aluminum, formed steel, and vinyl into a single cohesive assemble.

 02 | Analysis & Design Process | Multi-Material Engineering

• Digital Sculpting to Pattern: Modeled the bear in Blender, 3D printed it, then refined the pattern with clay and hand-sculpted was for clean mold separation.

• Fusion 360 Draft Analysis: Evaluated draft angles on the digital model to ensure the finished part would release from the mold without damage.

• Material Selection: Cast bronze for the bear, 6061 aluminum for the machined base, and 1018 cold-rolled steel for the formed terrapin shell.

 03 | Manufacturing & Results | Multi-Process Manufacturing

• Sand Casting: Rammed a two-part mold with riser, gate, and sprue, then recast the bear a second time to push an already solid result to top quality.

• Precision Machining: Milled the aluminum box to create its curvature and hidden storage pocket using a rotary table and angle rails for precision.

• Finishing & Machining: Hand-sanded and polished both the casting and aluminum box for 24+ hours, then milled and tapped foot mounting holes on the bear.

• Metal Forming & Assembly: Laser-cut and slip-rolled the steel shell to its curvature, secured it with magnets, and applied a custom vinyl decal.

Luke Stratakos | lstratak@stanford.edu | linkedin.com/in/luke-stratakos/