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[kaijyuu]

Enormous friction problems unless you got them so small they're essentially indistinguishable from a liquid.

An extremely lightweight superfluid would probably be best. Liquid hydrogen sounds good to me.



Side note: You know, you only need to make the legs support themselves, and simply anchor to the body. The body itself could essentially be a zeppelin with some legs attached. This solves a ton of the weight problems.

[Dwarf4Explosives]

Aaaand my joke turns out to be a good idea. I love it when that sort of stuff happens.

About the Zeppelin Spider: That's what I thought I would do initially, but I want to give it relatively realistic biology, so most of it's torso is brain, although the only viable energy sources for something that large (super-efficient solar cells and lots and lots of rest is the only option I can think of. Nuclear reactors would require fresh material, which would be hard for it to acquire.) mean I can remove the digestive tract from the plan almost entirely.

However, this is going off-topic, and with the original issue (locomotion) settled, I'm renaming this topic. Time to start work on one major issue: balance. The abdomen of this spider could be hollow, as the major organs housed in that section are heart and lungs, which with a self-contained cycle of photosynthesis become unnecessary. In areas with greater gravity (and the only places where weight would be much of an issue), this could possibly be filled with hydrogen gas or similar (and providing a back-up supply in case one of its legs gets damaged, although the interconnected nature of a normal spiders pressure system would make this a nearly impossible injury to heal from, even excluding the problems that arise from it being a kaiju, such as toppling to the ground, causing major earthquakes and possibly a small crater).

[Itnetlolor]

What comes to mind to make for a good skeletal structure would be a combination effort of pulley systems and compressed gasses, and to add tensile strength to the structure, a weaved mass of gas pockets that could be lined through the walls of the structure, where the legs are concerned, at least. The remainder would be using lightweight composite materials that have some durability to it, like carbon fiber/nanotubes.

At least, the idea that I have in mind is sorta based on how a king crab is built, of course, post-cooking them and eating them, and now I crave crab. Mmm, butter-based hydraulic fluid...

EDIT: (Weight/Balance)
To further spare materials and excess weight, we can honeycomb the endoskeletal parts (making a balanced framework to house the mechanisms), and plate the exoskeletal parts for external protection from the elements and such. We can then free up some pressure and weight issues so we can add a mighty powerful crane or two for properly weaponized pincers; of course, being structured similarly to be both lightweight and powerful (or at least, retain enough power:weight ratio).

EDIT EDIT: (Gases)
Liquid helium, being a bigger element, would be easier to contain, and unlike hydrogen, less dangerous if a breach were to occur in the structure, as it won't make the thing go the way of the Hindenburg. Plus, as an early-warning system, the crew will sound like chipmunks.

EDIT EDIT EDIT: (Addendum to above, and additional uses)
I think we can supply ourselves with liquid nitrogen as well as a means of further controlling and/of hydraulic pressures, further adding efficiency to pressure containment and such, but considering it would be on the excessive side, as far as I assume, for power, this system would work better for the pincer system, since using such a thing for weaponization especially, it needs the excess torque generated. But if anything, it would mostly be used to augment the containment system to supply the whole beast with adequate (amounts of) gasses.

EDIT EDIT EDIT EDIT: (Mobility and traction)
For mobility and traction, let's look at a spider's foot. If anything, they mostly walk on a series of hairs. We can essentially use series upon series of rebars or at least something similar to that that can be mass-produced as rods, but made of a lightweight enough material that isn't prone to rusting so easily, yet easy to replace and produce, as well as store for maintainence. Naturally, to accomodate for all-terrain purposes (as well as skewering anyone unfortunate enough to be stepped on), we'll need to make all the rods/ribs various lengths, and projecting outward from the straight-most rod center-most on the feet. This can also minimize the square footage of contact, allowing for more precision when moving through cities and such, while possibly minimizing what gets stuck to it's feet as it travels. As long as the structural composition of the rod-materials is similar to how a tree is structured (carbon nanotubes can mold well for that, while being rustproof, but won't be cheap; and if properly molded, should allow for enough structural flexibility for compression reasons on-contact with the ground, while hopefully still being structurally sound enough to be durable. The idea for reinforcing the legs in a jaw-breaker like pattern from core and outwards (cylindrically), can be a good concept start for the solid rods that make up the feet (straights and coils for several hundreds/thousands of layers to make up the rods)), they should last a considerable amount of time, while each one is supporting each other.

Spoiler: Despite my arachnophobia, I find this subject interesting. Here's some images to help: (click to show/hide)

I not only want this big sucker to walk across land, I want it to climb mountains, and span across canyons. This should help that be a possibility while still working towards our end-goal.

[wierd]

Liquid Hydrogen wont be a very good choice for a hydraulic transfer fluid, because the atoms are so small that they can easily squeeze through the boundries between metallic crystal grain domains.

EG-- your giant space mecha would be constantly bleeding to death.

Not only that, but because the hydrogen is constantly suffusing between these grain boundries, it pushes them apart mechanically, weakening the metal.

If you are going to be using liquid hydrogen as a hydraulic medium, you are now going to have to use REALLY exotic material, like metallic glasses.

Even then, it is still going to bleed around the piston and charge port seals.

Liquid helium is MUUUUCH easier to contain. And, since this is a space giant mecha, you can get it in copious abundance. (what do you think smaller G type stars like ours are made of?)

[Dwarf4Explosives]

What if this thing was made of carbon nanotubes? Wouldn't the spaces between the atoms be small enough to stop hydrogen from flowing through it? If not, the use of liquid helium sounds like a good idea.

Also, I imagine the most effective pattern for the nanotube exoskeleton would be layers of both spiralling and circular nanotubes that enclose the leg, as the first stops the legs from unraveling vertically, whilst the second type of layer binds the first together.

Also, the image of humanoid mosquitos with squeaky voices is hilarious, even if a hive organism (such as this one) would probably communicate with pheromones rather than vocalizations. They'd probably still smell the helium.

[miauw62]

Liquid helium is MUUUUCH easier to contain. And, since this is a space giant mecha, you can get it in copious abundance. (what do you think smaller G type stars like ours are made of?)

Helium. At temperatures of like a gakazilibillion kelvin.


BURNING PLASMA-POWERED SPACE MECHA!

[wierd]

It also sprays out of said bodies in the form of solar wind, which is ionized by having been plasma just a short while before.

That means magnetic collection using a collector just above the corona of the star is theoretically possible. (But you would need a collector made of some REALLY crazy stuff to survive the radiation there--That includes the light and heat.)

[Sergarr]

Liquid helium can also be a superfluid, which would make it impossible to contain.
And carbon nanotubes don't magically change the sizes of carbon atoms.

AND nothing can burn in space, because there is no oxygen in space.

[Dwarf4Explosives]

Look, this is getting kind of ridiculous. I've already stated that this creature is being designed for, amongst other things, small planetary bodies.

Also, I thought the hydrogen atoms were squeezing between the gaps between atoms, not through the atoms themselves; after all, even though atoms are mostly empty space, electromagnetic force stops atoms from sliding into each other.

[Dutchling]

Where are my Kaijyuu Physics?

This thread is disappoint.

[Itnetlolor]

Okay, what do we already have covered here? We already know it's arachnid in nature. Movement, support, structure, materials... What else?

[wierd]

Power source was given as well, but not well elaborated on.

Nuclear power has many possible implementations.

[kaijyuu]

Where are my Kaijyuu Physics?

This thread is disappoint.

All the jokes about me and large sizes would be NSFW.

[GiglameshDespair]

Where are my Kaijyuu Physics?

This thread is disappoint.

All the jokes about me and large sizes would be NSFW.

They would also, going on from some of the posts in this thread, be unrealistic 

[wierd]

Where are my Kaijyuu Physics?

This thread is disappoint.

All the jokes about me and large sizes would be NSFW.

They would also, going on from some of the posts in this thread, be unrealistic 

Even if they include nuclear power?