Tennant Season 3-4 Sonic finishing line in sight

As some of you already know, I have been very busy of late,  fulfilling orders, prototyping new products, reinventing paint and generally being pretty bloody marvellous.

One project that has dragged on for a bit is the Tennant Sonic Screwdriver. I am a perfectionist and I will never release anything until it is ready, or I deem it up to the requisite standard  for it to be released. If it takes time, we wait.  No use in halfbaking something. A case in point is the Tennant Sonic. Now the cynical amongst you, of which no doubt there are are many, would point out (and quite rightly too) that most of the hard work has already been done and that the Tennant version only requires some minor detail changes. That is true to an extent but it also unduly simplifies the situation. The Tennant Sonic is an entirely different beast and although shares some of the main dimensions of the Eccleston prop, is on closer examination, quite a different beast.

So what have we got? Here's the current unfinished prototype:

There are obvious issues that need correcting and things yet to be added such as the slider block. The first thing is the slider plate. The above slider plate was cobbled from some brass tubing so is a little thicker and less curved and not as finished as the final plate. Here is the production slider plate:

Much nicer no? The shape is more accurate than the MFX, rectangular rather than square and has rounded corners and a more accurate hole placement.

We are also implementing an engineering change for the button and will be installing an extended button microswitch:

The benefits of a microswitch such as this will be apparent to owners of the MFX but will allow the sonic to be held and activated in positions that the MFX cannot be.

One further change we will be making, and this is not shown in the prototype above, is the ridge shape. MFX got it close but not correct. Here is the correct profile for the ridges:

The ridges have been softened and reprofiled to lose the harsh semi circular channel profile that the MFX suffered from. The result is a softer and more accurate shape.

The final touch is I have been secretly developing an industrial powder coat analogue to the screen accurate Plasti-Kote Crackle Touch paint used on the prop and the MFX. The problem with this paint is not only is it a 12 week wait for each consignment to arrive by boat from England, but its deplorable durability. My solution has been to develop an industrial powder coat, matched for both colour and finish, that is tough as old boots. The results, I can reveal, have been astounding. Here is the comparison pic (the MFX on the top in Plasti-Kote, my test piece below it):

I should have the final prototype finished this week and will be taking orders soon after.