How to make a TARDIS model

Here is a ~20cm model of the TARDIS (or a police call box) made of the cardboard from cereal (and other food) boxes and plastic packaging*. It also has LED lights and sound effects.

Sorry this won't allow you to travel through space and time, yet.....

*Rather then going out and buying material to build this model, I realized I have a great source of cardboard sitting in my kitchen cupboards. Plus I could also use that annoying PVC packaging that almost any thing you buy these days is sealed in.

Step 1: Materials:

• cardboard -I used cereal/granola bar box cardboard -bonus if it's made from recycled material.
• templates -you can find this in the pdf file in step 2.
• clear plastic (for the widows) -I used the clear plastic (?PVC) that is used as packaging material

.

• blue paint, pen and tape.
• silver paint and paint brushes.
• glue and masking tape.
• ruler and X-acto knife or scissors.
• sandpaper
• small plastic tube or a drinking straw - I used a plastic tube that held erasers for mechanical pencils.
• 2-3 white LEDs, button battery, on/off switch, wire and soldering iron.
• Digital sound recorder.

Comments

[pottsjes]

this is an amazing project but i don't know where i can get the sound recorder... can you help? is it online?

[eburg917]

Thank you SO much for putting this step by step tutorial up! Cut out the pieces and painted them last night and assembled them this morning! Found the roof a little bit tricky but i made it work. Thanks again! I had loads of fun. :)

Heres my finished TARDIS:

[ChrysN]

That looks great!

[unlucky13465]

3 words, mine totally SUX!!!!
the graphics are to grainy, mine when it turned out looked like a little kid named amelia pond made it! Cardboard sticking out and uneven painting. How'd you get yours to look so NICE?

[Catherine Moody]

Thanks Chrys I have made a Tardis using your instructions. If you give me your e-mail then I could send you picturesw of it. My e-mail is [e-mail]

[ChrysN]

Cool. You can post them right here with your comment. Just click on the add images button under the comment editor.

[Catherine Moody]

Hopefully I have put the photo images of the tardis I made with this comment,
Catherine Moody
Thanks again. I am building another one now using wood veneer! And I am making another using card! I have a tardis production line going!

[ChrysN]

Your Tardis looks great! The wood veneer one sounds really cool.

[njc1230]

Would balsa wood work with this as well?

[ChrysN]

Sure that would look great, though you may need to adjust the measurements on the template to accommodate the thicker material.

[Osquar]

Is it ok if I use this as a base for a USB hub that I'm planning to make during the summer?
It's perfect!!!

[ChrysN]

Sure, that would look really cool as a USB hub.

[CoolCarKnee]

I am a REALLY big Dr. Who Fan. This really helped.thnx a lot

[Dusk Shadows]

amazing how did you become so talented

[Atraxi]

What brand/color of paint did you use? Your color choice is really spot on!

[ChrysN]

It's DecoArt Truly Blue.

[Atraxi]

Thanks!

[tutdude98]

nice :D but its better with plastic

[blasdetejas]

Awesome! I'll be starting on this tomorrow!!! Thanks for the instructions!

[blackrider23]

I plan on building this for a tree topper this year :)
Wish me luck! :D

[ChrysN]

Cool idea to use it for a tree topper!

[action pig]

Love this! Much cooler than the paper cut out I was thinking of making. Nice build!

[ChrysN]

Thanks!

[jperkes]

would u sell it

[ChrysN]

Sorry, I am quite attached to it and not looking to sell.

[jperkes]

very complicated but very rewarding

[peepee4]

we have every season of doctor who!
and i made a lego tardis

[sueman2]

can you tell me where i can find an intractable. if you did not use one, can you give me pointers?

[peepee4]

now i have a card board tardis!

[ChrysN]

Cool!

[lockpick]

This is amazing! Seeing as to me being American and a Dr. Who fan I will say that to a lot of Dr. Who memorabilia but this is amazing!

[ChrysN]

Thanks, have you seen caitlinsdad's TARDIS bookcase.

[Grey_valentine]

I had a total geeked out moment when I saw this. Great job. I love it.

[ChrysN]

Thanks!

[jessyratfink]

I somehow missed this version of the TARDIS! I love it! Very detailed, and the color is spot on! :D I'm going to be making a large one out of fabric soon. I'm so excited.

[ChrysN]

Using fabric, that sounds really cool.

[Gothic_Blueberry]

Absolutely Positively Fantastic!!! I have a group of cousins flying down from Scotland today, and I think they will love it!

[neverdrinkoliveoil]

This is an absolutely amazing project!

[ChrysN]

Thanks!

[Loosewire; SOE Operative]

Very well done. I find that the frosted milk jug plastic (HDPE) works quite well for a bubbled/frosted type of glass windows (like the type all of the police Captains have on their office windows in 70's and 80's cop shows).

[ChrysN]

Great idea, thanks for the advice.

[Kiteman]

Excellent - well-deserved "feature".

_{Quietly discards own papercraft Tardis project}

[Bongmaster]

dont give up on it kite :)

[duck-lemon]

That's exactly what i thought when i saw this, but alas papercraft is not as almighty or ever present as man once thought. **sigh

[sir-zeke]

this is most impressive! i'm a big doctor who (hence the name) but this is truly worthy of recognition

[ChrysN]

Thanks!

[Flash Gordon]

OMG Awesome

[ChrysN]

Thanks!

[Flash Gordon]

I wish I had time to make this...

[ChrysN]

Yah, there is a lot of cutting and gluing involved

[Flash Gordon]

Yah seriously

[masynmachien]

My daughter of nine and me both love this. We are both big fans of Doctor Who and love this Instructable. We will give it our vote!
You know, as it happens we were working on a science fiction related project based on a sound recording module ourselves. I just published it. You can check it out at www.instructables.com/id/Star-Trek-communicator-from-a-discarded-mouse/.

[Doctor What]

Yay!

[strumbot]

Brilliant! Its a bit more spacious than I had imagined. I think I'll build mine with a small off balance motor to give it some shake and wobble. I use the Tardis Engines as a ring tone on my mobile.

[Dungeonbrownies]

I really really like this, but beware those crazy folk down at bbc, remember what they did to the fellow knitting Ood? Might want to relabel this "science fiction show television show like police box" or "T@rdis" XP

[ChrysN]

Yes, I was wondering if that might be a problem.

[GameV8]

To quote The Ninth Doctor "Fantastic"

[ChrysN]

Thanks.

[steed1172]

that' s very good...only the light looks slightly different..... other then that GREAT work :)

[ChrysN]

Ya, that light gave me some trouble.

[CameronSS]

That looks great! Now make it fade away when you poke the button..

[ChrysN]

I'm still working on that....

[hellstudios]

I actually Made a Successful Prototype if it.

[cheat]

Long live The Doctor, Long live The Doctor, Long live The Doctor...

[chiok]

This does look pretty darn spot on as a TARDIS, and I've seen a fair few full sized models. Lovely work!

[atombomb1945]

That is just awesome. I love how the paint looks like actual wood.

[gmjhowe]

Nice, i love your use of cereal boxes, the final thing looks pretty official. Then ontop of that you squeezed some sounds and lights in.