Sunday, December 6, 2009

Planning begins

The first thing I did was search around to see if anyone else has done the same thing. I found the Bender PC Case mod and the Bender Brewer Project.

The Bender Brewer was very cool, but didn't actually dispense finished beer. So I set out to make what I think is the first Bender to dispense beer.

The Bender PC case, while cool, seems way off on its proprortions. I used the Bender Brewer Project and several still captures from Futurama to come up with plans. I based the size of his body on the keg I wanted to fit inside. Interestingly, Bender's head is as tall as his body.

I decided he would basically be a big ice bucket, so I could use him anywhere without electricity. I hadn't decided where the beer would come out, but I had some vague ideas of making it come out his hands or cigar.

So I started wandering around Home Depot looking for parts. I found some garbage cans that looked promising, but would have needed a lot of work to smooth out. Then I found a sump pump basin that fit my dimensions precisely! Some spray foam, some aluminum tubes that looked like they might work for arms and I was ready to hit the workshop.

So I had this idea...

I'm a pretty avid homebrewer. I've been brewing for almost 2 years now and have created Man Skirt Brewing Co. for my homebrew. We haven't gone pro yet, but plans are a-brewin'.

I put my beer in 5-gallon soda kegs (known as Cornelius, or Corny kegs) for my home kegerator (see below). I wanted to make a portable kegerator so I could take a keg to parties or events.

Of course I wanted it to be cool looking, so I toyed with ideas. A friend said, "Why don't you do Bender?" And Project Benderator was born.

I'm already pretty well into the build, so I'll be making blog posts as I have time to describe what I've been up to.

Hope you all enjoy!

-Joe