Gorgeous Gramophone

This vintage automaton first rose to popularity during the early 20th century, when wealthy socialites would purchase these intricately detailed robots and have them follow guests around their groups to serenade them with music. Although this papercraft may seem simplistic on the surface, there’s a collection of clever little paper engineering techniques at play internally.

This little steampunk papercraft has been rattling around in my head for a decade, originally designed as part of the book pitch that became ‘Paper Robots’. It felt invigorating to revisit this concept and breath new live into it by implementing all the paper engineering tricks I’ve learn in the last ten years.

Fold Up Club members have exclusive access and can download this model until the 5th of December 2024.

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Download
If you’re already a Fold Up Club member, make sure you’re logged into Patreon and subscribed to the correct reward tier, you can download this model directly by clicking the “download” link, or by visiting the Fold Up Club Patreon page.
Print
Print the template file using your home printer. Most of the designs on Fold Up Toys are designed to work best with 200gsm A4 cardstock, as it’s cheaply available, however the designs should still work with standard printer paper if none is available.
Score Folds (optional)
Using empty ball point pen, bone folder or craft knife, lightly press along the fold lines of the template, with enough force to score the page without cutting all the way through. This will make it easier to fold the page where needed without creasing the page and give a cleaner, more accurate edge. If you are a younger builder, please seek adult supervision.
Cut
Carefully cut out the template along the solid cut lines, some cut lines will shift between two colours to better contrast the texture of the model, be sure to look for smaller cut lines within the model that may require a craft knife. If you are a younger builder, please seek adult supervision.
Fold
Following the folding key found on the bottom of the page, fold along the dotted lines, being sure to fold hill folds downwards and valley folds upwards.
Glue
Carefully glue the tabs, most Fold Up Toy templates use numbered tabs to help show the recommended order that tabs should be glued down in. It’s recommended to use a small amount of PVA glue applied with a small paint brush, apply the glue to the tabs in small, thin layers so that when the tab is pressed down, the glue does not get squeezed out and stain the rest of the model.
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Having Trouble?
If you’re confused or stuck, feel free to reach out the the designer using the contact page on the Fold Up Toys website if you need help.

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