Animatronics wizard Mark Setrakian specializes in crafting machines that make you do a double-take, and his latest creation, The Stalker, is a wild showcase of robotic brilliance. This five-legged BattleBot was recently put through its paces by Adam Savage on Tested. “This five-legged robot unfolds to reveal a fascinating walking gait and works as a literal platform!” Savage gushed, barely keeping his excitement in check as he marveled at its design.
Savage, the MythBusters legend and maker extraordinaire, swung by Setrakian’s workshop to get up close with this mechanical wonder, and it left him grinning like a kid. Setrakian’s obsession with the number five isn’t new—he’s a pro at building robotic human hands, so five-point systems are kind of his thing. “I have kind of a history with five-legged robots ‘cause I make hands, like mechanical hands,” Setrakian told Savage during their geek-out session. The Stalker is the evolved sibling of Axis, another five-legged bot that snagged a BattleBots crown back in the day.
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Its five legs, splayed out in a star pattern, keep its center of gravity low, making it a steady platform that can tackle rough ground or, as Savage found out, even support a human’s weight without flinching.
Savage got to see The Stalker in action when Setrakian showed off its party trick: unfolding and locking into a rigid base strong enough to hold a person. “It’s just so cool to see it transform into something that can carry weight like that,” Savage said, clearly blown away by its dual role as both a walker and a stage.
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