I think that I will leave the design as is for now, the extra weight allowance will just be a cushion to ensure that it's under 1lb with all the screws and everything, because as anyone who has ever designed and built something using CAD will tell you, it's never perfect. If I build it and it turns out to still be underweight I'm considering adding steel sheets to the outside to provide a little more durability, or maybe a sacrificial wedge that can be put on for some of the nasty ant weight spinners like DDT.
I hope to have this design built and ready for HORD on Oct. 17, but there's a problem with the 3D printing. My University is doing some remodeling so I won't have access to the 3D printers until Oct 1, which is cutting it close. But worst case scenario I hope to be able to at least bring Hercules, and hopefully Barrel Roll, to Franklin Institute on Oct. 24.