Scene Machines

What are Scene Machines?

Animate a scene with a hand-powered mechanism! Learners engineer an automata — a historic folk-engineering invention that uses rotational motion, cams, and followers to make a sculpture move and tell a story. Every Scene Machine starts with a laser-cut cardboard frame, special foam wheels and cams, and paper straws, and grows into a one-of-a-kind animated scene when learners add their own art, characters, and story. It's engineering, visual art, and language arts in one spinning sculpture.

Time Needed:
45-60 minutes. Can be used as a 45-minute activity-station build or a 60-minute classroom project with brainstorm, prototype, and finalize stages.
Grade Level:
Grade 2 and up
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Scene Machines Quick Start Guide

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Overview

Scene Machines introduce learners to automata — hand-powered mechanisms that turn rotational motion into animated scenes. Inspired by the automata collections at the Exploratorium and the Cabaret Mechanical Theater at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, this Spark combines mechanical engineering, storytelling, and visual art into a single build.

Each learner receives a laser-cut cardboard sheet (which folds into an automata frame), four standard paper straws, one jumbo paper straw, a set of special foam followers and cams, and a visual instruction sheet. Using those parts and a guide tube cut from the jumbo straw, learners build a working round-and-round mechanism with a cam, a cam follower, and an aligned axle system.

The build follows nine steps: explore the kit, fold the automata frame, cut and install a guide tube, insert the axles and cam, test how the round-and-round mechanism rotates, brainstorm a story, prototype a scene with paper and tape, finalize by disguising the frame with art, then iterate with new mechanisms or added parts. Advanced learners can unlock intermediate (up-and-down via offset cams) and advanced (side-to-side via linkages) mechanisms to bring more complex scenes to life.

Materials

Each learner recieves
  • One laser-cut cardboard sheet (folds into the automata frame with corner and wheel shapes that pop out)
  • Four standard paper straws (for axles)
  • One jumbo paper straw (for the guide tube)
  • A set of special foam followers and cams — two small stoppers, a large disc, a medium disc, plus additional wheels for offset cams and linkages
  • A visual instruction sheet
  • A reusable reclosable bag
What you need to provide

Scissors for cutting the jumbo straw to pinky-length for the guide tube and for cutting paper, cardboard, and linkage straws.

Tape for attaching prototype pieces, reinforcing slipping cams, and holding scene elements in place.

Drawing materials (pencils, markers, crayons) for sketching brainstorms and adding color to final scene components.

Paper and thin cardboard for prototyping and building the final scene components that disguise the frame.

Optional resources
  • Printable Scene Machine Planning Sheet (brainstorm / prototype / final plan with labeled mechanisms)
  • Colored paper, construction paper, and craft supplies for scene features
  • Extra straws and foam wheels for learners who want to add a second round-and-round mechanism or try the intermediate / advanced builds
  • A reference image or short clip of an automata from the Exploratorium or the Cabaret Mechanical Theater at the American Visionary Art Museum to seed the Big Idea discussion

Key Challenges

  1. Fold a working automata frame. Learners remove corner pieces, fold long sides up on perforations, and lock short sides in with tabs-and-slots to build the cardboard frame that will hold every moving part.
  2. Engineer a round-and-round mechanism. Learners install a guide tube, axles, a cam, and a follower so turning one axle makes the other rotate — the beginner automata mechanism that drives the whole scene.
  3. Design and engineer a story. This is primarily a visual-storytelling challenge. Learners brainstorm a scene in one sentence, prototype it with paper and tape, then finalize their design by disguising the frame and adding art that brings the scene to life.
  4. Iterate and unlock new mechanisms. Once the beginner mechanism works, learners can add a second round-and-round, try an intermediate up-and-down offset cam, or tackle the advanced side-to-side linkage — each unlocking new scene possibilities.

Learner Goals

MUST
  • Fold the laser-cut cardboard frame so the tabs lock firmly into the slots and the frame stands sideways or vertically.
  • Cut a pinky-length piece of jumbo straw and install it as the guide tube in the center hole of the frame.
  • Assemble a working round-and-round mechanism with a cam, a cam follower, and stoppers that keep the cam axle aligned.
  • Demonstrate that turning the cam axle makes the follower rotate — the core automata motion.
  • Design a simple scene that uses the rotating mechanism to animate at least one element.
SHOULD
  • Name the key automata vocabulary — cam, cam follower, axle, guide tube, stopper — and explain what each part does in the mechanism.
  • Brainstorm a scene in one sentence, pick an appropriate mechanism for their skill level, and sketch at least one labeled mechanism before building.
  • Prototype the scene with paper and tape before committing to the final build, testing that the mechanism animates their chosen story element.
  • Disguise the cardboard frame so it becomes part of the scene — the mechanism should feel hidden inside a world.
COULD
  • Add a second round-and-round mechanism in a different opening so two elements in the scene move in unison or in opposite directions.
  • Unlock the intermediate mechanism by using the offset hole in the disc to create up-and-down motion — perfect for a bouncing, jumping, or waving element.
  • Attempt the advanced side-to-side linkage — slide a collar onto a wedge, build a rocker, and use paired offset cams to drive side-to-side motion.
  • Reinforce the activity with a printable Scene Machine Planning Sheet — title the machine, list up to three improvements for iteration, and present the final scene to a partner.
  • Use the saved corner scraps from the frame as vertical legs so the automata stands upright like a theater stage.

Extension Activities

  • Offset Cam Challenge: Unlock up-and-down motion. Show learners the offset hole in the disc, insert the axle through it, and watch how the follower now rises and falls as the cam turns. Use different-size cams for different effects. What element in your scene would be perfect for up-and-down motion — a wave, a bouncing character, a rising sun?
  • Side-to-Side Linkage Build: For ambitious builders ready to troubleshoot. Remove the guide tube so a straw can move freely. Slide a collar onto a wedge, insert a straw, and build a rocker. Add a linkage straw between two offset cams on paired axles. Test it — the rocker moves side-to-side instead of around. What story does side-to-side motion bring to life?
  • Two-Mechanism Scene: Use the second and third openings in the frame to add more mechanisms. Run two round-and-round mechanisms in opposite directions to animate two characters in relationship. Stack a round-and-round with an up-and-down for even richer scenes.
  • Automata Research Challenge: Look up historical automata from the Exploratorium or the Cabaret Mechanical Theater at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. What stories did those folk engineers tell with cams and followers? Recreate one scene in your own Scene Machine.
  • Planning-Sheet Gallery Walk: After everyone builds, have learners write a title for their Scene Machine, list the mechanisms they used, and display the Planning Sheet next to the finished machine. Walk the gallery — partners turn each cam and read each story.

Before You Start

Watch Our Educator Guide!
Pre-Activity Questions
Grade 2 - 3rd Grade
  1. What is a cam? Have you ever seen something that spins to make something else move?
  2. When you turn a handle on a toy or a music box, what happens inside to make the parts move?
  3. What's the story you could tell if you had a scene that could spin?
3rd - 5th Grade
  1. What does the word "automata" mean, and where might you have seen an automata before?
  2. How do you think a cam and a follower work together to change rotational motion into another kind of motion?
  3. What's the difference between engineering a thing and engineering a story? Can a project be both?
6th - 8th Grade
  1. Automata are one of the oldest examples of folk engineering — hand-powered sculptures that tell stories. Why do you think cams and followers became such common mechanisms before electricity?
  2. How would you predict the direction of rotation of a follower based on which side of it the cam is on?
  3. If you wanted to add up-and-down motion to a round-and-round mechanism, what single component would you need to change?
Pro Tips
  • Use your pinky to measure the guide tube. The jumbo straw should be cut to the length of a learner's pinky finger — short enough to stay inside the frame, long enough to guide the axle. This is the simplest, most reliable measurement trick for any age, and the narrator calls it out directly in the Educator Video.
  • Pop a cardboard wheel out and reuse it. The small circles that pop out of the frame during Step 2 aren't scraps — they make perfect arrow-marked test discs for watching which direction the follower rotates. The video narrator explicitly says "we're using the cardboard discs from the frame to observe the direction that the follower turns." Save them.
  • The corner pieces become legs. Save the four corner pieces you remove during frame folding. They slot in as vertical feet so the automata can stand upright like a theater stage — the video confirms the pieces with slots are designed to help the frame stand up.
  • Your role is to guide the engineering of a story, not just a mechanism. The mechanisms are only the start — the scene learners design is the bulk of their learning. Keep asking story questions, not only engineering questions.
  • Plan, Prototype, Finalize. Use the two-stage Scene Machine Planning Sheet. Stage one is sketch plus a low-fi paper prototype. Stage two is title, up to three improvements, and the final labeled sketch. The prototype stage alone catches most mechanism problems before they become art-supply problems.
  • Label the mechanisms on every sketch. Before anyone picks up scissors for the final scene, their sketch should clearly show which parts move, what mechanism drives them, and how the frame is disguised. Labels force the engineering thinking.
  • Frame the advanced unlocks as "stretch, troubleshoot, and persevere." The side-to-side linkage and offset-cam builds are meant for ambitious learners who want to push further — the Educator Video calls this out explicitly as "perfect for ambitious learners who want to stretch their skills, troubleshoot and persevere." Name that expectation up front and the advanced builds become an SEL moment, not just a mechanical one.
  • If cams slip, reinforce with stoppers or wrap tape on the axle. Cams sometimes slide along the straw axle because the foam hole stretches. Reinforce by placing stoppers on either side, or wrap a small section of tape around the axle to thicken it so the cam grips again.
  • Keep your example scene simple. When you build your own Scene Machine before class, keep the design basic so your learners can be more creative than you. A single rotating element and a clearly disguised frame is plenty to demonstrate.
  • It's theirs to keep. Remind learners from the start that their Scene Machine belongs to them when they are done. Watch how their engagement increases when they know they get to take it home.
  • Unlock advanced mechanisms only after the basic one works. Offset cams (up-and-down) and linkages (side-to-side) are unlockable — they're rewards for learners who master the round-and-round first and want to push further.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Explore Your Kit

Question: What do you notice about the different pieces in your kit? Which ones do you think will move, and which ones will hold everything in place?

  • Have learners open the reclosable bag and lay out all components: the laser-cut cardboard sheet, four standard paper straws, one jumbo paper straw, the foam followers and cams sheet, and the visual instruction sheet.
  • Ask learners to identify each piece before you name it — which pieces do they think will spin? Which will stay still? Which might get cut?
  • Point out that they will also need scissors, tape, and drawing materials, which are not included in the kit.
  • Remind learners from the start that this project will belong to them when they are done — watch how their engagement increases!
  • Tell them Scene Machines sometimes smell a little like a campfire — because they are made with lasers. (It's a fun way to introduce how the cardboard sheet is cut.)

Step 2: Fold the Automata Frame

Question: Which parts of this cardboard sheet are meant to come off, and which parts need to stay connected for the frame to hold together?

  • Carefully remove the corner pieces from the cardboard sheet and set them aside — these will become feet for standing the frame vertically or can be reused as scraps for the rotation test.
  • Pop out the small circles too; these can become cam reinforcers or observation discs later. Do not take apart any other pieces.
  • Point out the perforated lines — these are the fold lines. Leave the tabs and slots attached; you'll need them to lock the frame together.
  • Fold both long sides up along the perforations. Hold them steady and fold one short side so its slots align with two tabs, then lock them together. Repeat on the opposite side.
  • If the tabs don't lock easily, bend them gently to help them slip into the slots — but don't force them or the cardboard will tear.
  • The frame can stand sideways right away. To stand it vertically, attach the saved cardboard corner pieces as feet.

Step 3: Cut and Insert the Guide Tube

Question: Why do you think one straw is wider than the others? What job might a "guide tube" do inside the mechanism?

  • Introduce the vocabulary: the guide tube is the larger jumbo straw that holds a thinner axle steady so the axle spins smoothly without wobbling.
  • Measure the jumbo straw against a learner's pinky finger and cut it to pinky length. This is the perfect length — short enough to stay inside the frame, long enough to guide the axle.
  • Carefully press and twist the cut piece of jumbo straw into the center hole of the frame. A push-and-twist is easier than a straight push, and the fit should feel snug.
  • If a learner struggles with the push-and-twist, encourage them to hold the frame steady and twist firmly — avoid doing it for them unless absolutely necessary.

Step 4: Install the Axles and Cam

Question: If a cam is the piece that drives the motion, and a follower is the piece that rolls along the cam, where in your frame do you think each one should go?

  • Introduce the vocabulary: a cam is a disc on an axle that drives the mechanism's movement. A cam follower is the disc that rolls when the cam turns. A stopper is a small disc that keeps everything aligned.
  • Remove four foam parts from the sheet: two small stoppers, one large disc, and one medium disc.
  • Slide a standard paper straw down through the jumbo guide tube — this is your vertical follower axle. Press the medium disc onto the bottom end (use the center hole of the disc). This becomes the follower.
  • Insert a second standard straw halfway into one of the side holes of the frame — this is your cam axle. Slide the large disc onto it, then push the axle through the hole on the opposite side so it runs straight across the frame.
  • Add a small stopper to each end of the cam axle on the outside of the frame. The stoppers keep the cam from sliding side-to-side, and you can slide them to adjust how the cam aligns with the follower.
  • Check that the follower sits on top of the cam and makes contact — if they don't touch, the follower won't rotate when the cam turns.

Step 5: Test Your Round-and-Round Mechanism

Question: When you turn the cam axle, which way does the follower spin? What happens if you slide the cam to the other side?

  • Pop one of the small cardboard wheels out of the leftover frame scraps — you'll use it to see the follower's direction of rotation.
  • Draw an arrow on the cardboard wheel and place it on top of the vertical follower axle so you can clearly see which way the follower turns.
  • Slowly turn the cam axle forward. The follower should rotate smoothly as the cam passes underneath. Which way is the arrow pointing now?
  • Now slide the cam along the axle to the opposite side of the follower and turn again. The arrow should reverse direction — a great cause-and-effect moment.
  • If the follower doesn't move, check three things: the follower axle may be sticking out too far and blocking the cam, the cam and follower may not be making contact, or the stoppers may need a small slide to re-align the cam.

Step 6: Brainstorm Your Scene

Question: What is the one-sentence story you want your Scene Machine to tell? What needs to move to bring that story to life?

  • Pause the building. This is where Scene Machines becomes a storytelling challenge as much as an engineering one.
  • Ask learners to describe their scene in one sentence. The Scene Machine Planning Sheet is the perfect tool — stage one is Brainstorm and Prototype.
  • Pick one or two mechanisms at a level that's right for them. A single round-and-round is plenty for a first build.
  • Imagine how they will disguise the frame so the cardboard becomes part of the scene — a stage, a landscape, a building — instead of looking like a mechanical box.
  • Sketch two or more ideas. Label the mechanisms in the sketch so it's clear how elements will move.

Step 7: Prototype with Paper

Question: Before you commit to the final scene, how can you quickly test whether your mechanism will actually move the part of the story you want to animate?

  • Build a low-fi prototype first. Use tape and scrap paper with quick sketches to create a simple test version of the scene on the machine.
  • Attach the paper prototype lightly to the follower and any stationary parts of the frame. Turn the cam axle and see whether the animated element moves the way the story needs it to.
  • If something doesn't work, the prototype is cheap to change — reposition, re-cut, re-tape. This is exactly the point of a low-fi stage.
  • Encourage learners to test two or three prototype variations before picking the best one. Engineering a story is an iterative process, not a single sketch.
  • When the prototype moves the way the story needs, flip the Planning Sheet over and create the final sketch with all mechanisms clearly labeled.

Step 8: Finalize and Disguise the Frame

Question: How will you turn your cardboard frame into a place — a landscape, a stage, a room — so your scene feels complete?

  • This is stage two of the design process: Final Plan. Give the Scene Machine a title, list up to three improvements learners want to make, and use the final sketch as the blueprint.
  • Break out the real art and craft supplies. Learners draw, cut, and build the scene features that will disguise the frame — grass, sky, buildings, water, characters — whatever their story needs.
  • Remind learners that the goal is a scene, not a visible mechanism. The frame should feel hidden inside a world.
  • Attach characters, props, and scenery to the frame and to the follower where motion is wanted. Check the mechanism still turns smoothly after everything is attached.
  • Have extra paper and cardboard available for learners who want to redesign a piece or try a different approach.

Step 9: Iterate!

Question: Now that your Scene Machine is telling a story, what could you add, change, or unlock to take the scene further?

  • Every Scene Machine is unique. Challenge learners to take their story further — add a second mechanism, add a new character, or unlock a new motion.
  • Try adding a second round-and-round mechanism in another opening so two parts of the scene move at once, in unison or in opposite directions.
  • Unlock the intermediate up-and-down mechanism by moving the axle to the offset hole in the disc — great for a bouncing, jumping, or waving character.
  • For advanced builders, attempt the side-to-side linkage — a rocker, collar, and pair of offset cams drive side-to-side motion.
  • See Extension Activities for structured challenges including offset-cam scenes, linkage builds, and an automata research challenge that connects the project to real-world folk engineering.
Post-Activity Questions
Grade 2 - 3rd Grade
  1. Which part of your Scene Machine is the cam, and which part is the follower? Can you show me how they touch?
  2. What story does your Scene Machine tell?
  3. What was the hardest part about making your mechanism turn smoothly?
3rd - 5th Grade
  1. What happens when you slide the cam to the other side of the follower? Why does the follower reverse direction?
  2. How did your low-fi paper prototype help you plan the final scene?
  3. If you were going to engineer a new story with a different motion, would you pick round-and-round, up-and-down, or side-to-side — and why?
6th - 8th Grade
  1. How did labeling the mechanisms in your sketch help you build the final version?
  2. What was your troubleshooting process when the follower didn't rotate smoothly? Which variable did you change first, and why?
  3. How does your Scene Machine connect to real-world folk engineering traditions like those at the American Visionary Art Museum or the Exploratorium?

Standards & Goals

Common Core ELA Standards

K-2
3-5
6-8

RI.K-2.7 – Use illustrations and words in a text to describe key ideas: Example: Learners use the visual instruction sheet and the Planning Sheet to identify the parts of their Scene Machine — the cam, the follower, the guide tube, the axle — matching the labeled illustrations to the real foam and cardboard pieces as they fold and build the automata frame.

SL.K-2.1 – Participate in collaborative conversations: Example: Learners describe their Scene Machine's story to a partner in one sentence, using automata vocabulary like "cam," "follower," and "axle" to explain how the mechanism animates the element their story is about — rehearsing the narrative that made them pick a round-and-round motion in the first place.

RI.3-5.3 – Explain relationships between a series of concepts in a text: Example: Learners explain the cause-and-effect relationship between turning the cam axle and the follower's rotation, tracing how the cam on one axle makes contact with the follower on the other — then predicting what happens when the cam is slid to the opposite side of the follower.

W.3-5.3 – Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences: Example: Learners use the Scene Machine Planning Sheet to title their automata and write the one-sentence story it tells, then develop that story into a brief narrative that describes what moves, why it moves, and how the scene changes when the cam turns during the final gallery-walk presentation.

RST.6-8.3 – Follow a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments: Example: Learners follow the nine-step Scene Machines build sequence in order — frame fold, guide tube, axles, cam, rotation test, brainstorm, prototype, finalize, iterate — recognizing that skipping the prototype stage is the single most common reason a final scene's mechanism fails when art supplies are already glued on.

SL.6-8.1 – Engage in collaborative discussions with diverse partners: Example: Learners compare round-and-round, up-and-down, and side-to-side mechanisms during the unlock phase, arguing which mechanism would best animate a particular story element and citing evidence from their prototype test runs to support the engineering decision.

Common Core Math Standards

K-2
3-5
6-8

2.MD.A.1 – Measure the length of an object by selecting and using appropriate tools: Example: Learners use their own pinky finger as a measuring tool to determine the length of the jumbo straw that becomes the guide tube — a real-world moment where an informal unit of length is exactly the right tool for the job, and where measurement directly controls whether the mechanism works.

K.G.A.1 – Describe objects using shape names and relative positions: Example: Learners describe the foam parts using shape vocabulary — the large disc and medium disc (circles), the small stoppers, the rectangular cardboard frame — and use positional language to explain "the follower sits on top of the cam" and "the stoppers go on the outside of the frame" during assembly.

4.MD.C.5 – Recognize angles and understand concepts of angle measurement: Example: Learners observe how the cam rotates through a full 360-degree turn and how the follower rotates in response — tracking the angle of rotation of each axle and noticing how the arrow they drew on the cardboard test disc sweeps through a complete circle every time the cam axle makes one revolution.

4.OA.C.5 – Generate and analyze patterns: Example: Learners predict the repeating pattern of the round-and-round mechanism — when the cam axle turns forward, the follower axle turns in a predictable direction, and every subsequent revolution produces the same result — recognizing this consistent cyclical pattern as the defining feature of a rotational mechanism.

7.G.B.4 – Know the formulas for the area and circumference of a circle: Example: Learners measure the circumference of the large and medium discs and reason about how circumference relates to the mechanical output of their automata — a larger cam disc sweeps a longer path per rotation, producing a wider up-and-down movement when used with the offset hole in the advanced mechanism.

7.RP.A.2 – Recognize and represent proportional relationships between quantities: Example: Learners investigate the proportional relationship between cam-axle rotations and follower-axle rotations — one full turn of the cam axle produces one full turn of the follower axle in a standard round-and-round — and discuss how changing cam size would change this proportion in a redesigned mechanism.

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

K-2
3-5
6-8

K-PS2-1 – Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions: Example: Learners apply a push and a turn to the cam axle and observe how the follower rotates in response — feeling firsthand that a force applied at one point in a mechanical system causes motion somewhere else, and noticing that the size of their turn determines how far the follower moves.

K-2-ETS1-2 – Engineering Design: Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model: Example: Learners sketch a one-sentence scene on the Brainstorm Sheet before they build, drawing where the moving element will go on the frame and labeling which mechanism will drive it — then building a low-fi paper-and-tape prototype of that sketch to test whether the mechanism animates the story the way they imagined.

3-PS2-1 – Forces and Interactions: Cause and Effect: Example: Learners investigate how the direction and position of the cam cause the follower to rotate one way or the other — sliding the cam from the left of the follower to the right of the follower, then turning the cam axle, and observing that the follower's direction of rotation reverses. A direct, observable cause-and-effect relationship in a mechanical system.

3-5-ETS1-3 – Plan and carry out fair tests to identify failure points: Example: Learners systematically troubleshoot a stuck round-and-round mechanism by isolating one variable at a time: first checking whether the cam and follower are in contact, then whether the stoppers need to slide, then whether the follower axle is sticking out too far and blocking the cam — a textbook failure-point test they can repeat on the up-and-down and side-to-side unlocks.

MS-PS3-2 – Develop a model to describe energy transfer: Example: Learners model how mechanical energy transfers from the cam axle to the follower axle through contact force — the turning hand applies force to the cam, the cam's rotation pushes the follower at the point of contact, and the follower translates that force into its own rotation, animating whatever scene element is attached. A concrete energy-transfer chain they can watch in real time.

MS-ETS1-3 – Analyze data from tests to identify similarities and differences among several design solutions: Example: Learners compare the three mechanism unlocks — round-and-round, up-and-down via offset cam, and side-to-side via linkage — evaluating which mechanism best animates each scene element, documenting trade-offs between mechanical simplicity (round-and-round) and expressive motion (side-to-side linkage), and justifying their choice using observations from their prototype test runs.

Troubleshooting & Pro Tips

The follower won't rotate

Check three things in order: (1) Is the cam actually touching the follower? Slide the stoppers to re-align the cam so the follower sits on top of it. (2) Is the follower axle sticking out too far and blocking the cam's path? Adjust the end of the axle so it doesn't contact the cam. (3) Is the guide tube seated all the way into the frame hole? If it's loose, the axle wobbles and loses contact with the cam.

The cam slips on the axle

Foam holes can stretch. Reinforce by adding stoppers on either side of the cam so it can't slide along the axle, or wrap a small section of tape around the straw axle to thicken it and grip the cam hole again.

The tabs won't lock into the slots

Bend the tabs gently before pushing them into the slots — don't force them or the cardboard will tear. If the tabs keep popping out, double-check the short sides are fully folded along the perforations before trying to lock them.

The frame won't stand vertically

The saved cardboard corner pieces become the feet. If you already tossed them, a piece of tape folded like a triangle can work as a temporary stand, or lay the frame on its side and coach the scene to be read from the side.

The up-and-down mechanism isn't moving enough

The guide tube is probably in the way. Remove the guide tube for the advanced builds so the straw can move freely. Also try using a larger cam — the bigger the cam, the bigger the up-and-down motion.

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