We have finally updated our appearances page. It is currently up-to-date with our past events and upcoming events. We'll be super busy this weekend with three events planned out, so be sure to check the appearances page for our locations and come check us out!
We tend to make appearances mostly as the Rocket City Ghostbusters due to the scientific nature of our city (Huntsville, AL) and the child-friendly nature of the Ghostbusters. However, our other projects warrant different types of appearances, and some appearances aren't based on certain projects (such as conventions). If you would like for us to appear in costume at your next event, please send us an email at 2storyprops@gmail.com.
October 29, 2010
October 12, 2010
Ghostbusters: Tainted Love Proton Pack, Part 2
Well now! I didn't get much further on the Tainted Love proton pack before I chose to restart it entirely. Originally, I was basing it off a sketch I made of the pack after reading the comic. There were several details that I overlooked when making that sketch, and my lack of accuracy checking coupled with me thinking of how it should look made the build just wrong in all aspects.
I also ended up briefly chatting with the comic book's artist over Facebook, Salgood Sam, who referred me to his production sketches of the proton pack. The sketches provided details not seen in the comic, and were far more detailed in general. So I decided to start over completely, using only his production sketches to build the pack this time. I also felt like I was spiraling away from my roots as a prop builder with the previous build, so I got back to doing what I use to do in the beginning - sculpting out of MDF.
So far the builder has been extremely simple. Getting back to the basics is an important lesson to any artist, and especially so in this case. Using very simple materials, I have been able to build most of the pack in only a weekend while maintaining attention to detail and accuracy to Salgood Sam's original production sketches. No overthinking, no overdoing, just straightforward prop building.
Right now I'm building this is two main sections: the cyclotron and the motherboard. My original plans were to mold it as two separate components, but I'm currently thinking that I can get them to be one single piece for a single mold. I have to reshape the top portion of the motherboard (the part that sits under the cyclotron), and in doing so I can probably make this into one single piece. If I can do it, it will make for a more simple molding process.
Here is where the proton pack is right now. I've added the little arms that hold on the ion arm. I was going to have the ion arm be a separate PVC piece that I add to the castings, but since I have a little recessed pocket for it to sit in, I might as well add it to the master copy to be molded in as well. The 1/2" PVC pipe brings the total length to 14.5" or so, which is a tad over my initial 14" estimate (Salgood Sam also estimates it to be 14"), but overall I don't think it will detract from the prop too much. I am considering chopping the motherboard in a certain spot to make it a bit shorter, but I haven't decided if it'd be worth it yet.
I'm currently in the hustle to move, so I don't expect to make much more progress on this for a few weeks. I may try to chop the motherboard and shorten it and try to reshape the top of the motherboard before I have to clean out my current work area, but I probably won't get much more than that done before the weekend.
I also ended up briefly chatting with the comic book's artist over Facebook, Salgood Sam, who referred me to his production sketches of the proton pack. The sketches provided details not seen in the comic, and were far more detailed in general. So I decided to start over completely, using only his production sketches to build the pack this time. I also felt like I was spiraling away from my roots as a prop builder with the previous build, so I got back to doing what I use to do in the beginning - sculpting out of MDF.
So far the builder has been extremely simple. Getting back to the basics is an important lesson to any artist, and especially so in this case. Using very simple materials, I have been able to build most of the pack in only a weekend while maintaining attention to detail and accuracy to Salgood Sam's original production sketches. No overthinking, no overdoing, just straightforward prop building.
Construction so far has been with MDF, sintra, PVC, and a few washers.
Right now I'm building this is two main sections: the cyclotron and the motherboard. My original plans were to mold it as two separate components, but I'm currently thinking that I can get them to be one single piece for a single mold. I have to reshape the top portion of the motherboard (the part that sits under the cyclotron), and in doing so I can probably make this into one single piece. If I can do it, it will make for a more simple molding process.
Here is where the proton pack is right now. I've added the little arms that hold on the ion arm. I was going to have the ion arm be a separate PVC piece that I add to the castings, but since I have a little recessed pocket for it to sit in, I might as well add it to the master copy to be molded in as well. The 1/2" PVC pipe brings the total length to 14.5" or so, which is a tad over my initial 14" estimate (Salgood Sam also estimates it to be 14"), but overall I don't think it will detract from the prop too much. I am considering chopping the motherboard in a certain spot to make it a bit shorter, but I haven't decided if it'd be worth it yet.
I'm currently in the hustle to move, so I don't expect to make much more progress on this for a few weeks. I may try to chop the motherboard and shorten it and try to reshape the top of the motherboard before I have to clean out my current work area, but I probably won't get much more than that done before the weekend.
September 26, 2010
Video Game Proton Pack: Can You Hear Me Now?
While David is making a lightweight pack I went the complete opposite direction and put more weight on for a good cause; SOUND! With some tips from the Louisiana Ghostbusters I started the process of “turning my pack to 15” by installing sound. I’ll briefly explain the work involved in this post, but if you are a ghosthead looking to add sound to your equipment you need to check out this thread on GBFans.com:
http://www.gbfans.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=14730
Here you will find a break down and links for all the components you’ll need.
The first task for putting sound in my pack was adding a new battery and a speaker to the inside of the pack. Originally I had two 9.6 VDC batteries powering the lights, but the speaker required 12 VDC for proper activation. I purchased a rather large rechargeable battery and put it in the cyclotron area to minimize the loading effect on the pack. For the speaker I used a KFC-1662S Kenwood, which is about the largest speaker I can fit in my pack. The speaker was bolted on about an inch from the base of the motherboard. Two bolts were added as well to connect the motherboard to the frame to help support the extra weight.
Since I have extra room in my thrower compared to movie packs I decided to locate the amp, sound chip, and sound chip power supply in the thrower. The sound chip is connected to a bread board that allows me to connect various switches to the sound chip. The sound is controlled by the two trigger switches on the thrower’s trigger box. Flipping the toggle switch will turn on the gun lights and trigger the pack start sound. Turning it off will shut the lights off and emit the shut down hum. The momentary switch will activate the lights in the thrower tip as well as emit a firing sound.
The video below shows the current state of the pack. I still need to install a light kit in the thrower and a DPDT momentary switch for the thrower (this will allow the pack to make the power down noise after it fires). There is a bit more work to do but this clip should give you an idea how loud and impressive the sound kit can be.
http://www.gbfans.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=14730
Here you will find a break down and links for all the components you’ll need.
The first task for putting sound in my pack was adding a new battery and a speaker to the inside of the pack. Originally I had two 9.6 VDC batteries powering the lights, but the speaker required 12 VDC for proper activation. I purchased a rather large rechargeable battery and put it in the cyclotron area to minimize the loading effect on the pack. For the speaker I used a KFC-1662S Kenwood, which is about the largest speaker I can fit in my pack. The speaker was bolted on about an inch from the base of the motherboard. Two bolts were added as well to connect the motherboard to the frame to help support the extra weight.
Since I have extra room in my thrower compared to movie packs I decided to locate the amp, sound chip, and sound chip power supply in the thrower. The sound chip is connected to a bread board that allows me to connect various switches to the sound chip. The sound is controlled by the two trigger switches on the thrower’s trigger box. Flipping the toggle switch will turn on the gun lights and trigger the pack start sound. Turning it off will shut the lights off and emit the shut down hum. The momentary switch will activate the lights in the thrower tip as well as emit a firing sound.
The video below shows the current state of the pack. I still need to install a light kit in the thrower and a DPDT momentary switch for the thrower (this will allow the pack to make the power down noise after it fires). There is a bit more work to do but this clip should give you an idea how loud and impressive the sound kit can be.
September 23, 2010
Ghostbusters: Tainted Love Proton Pack, Part 1
One thing that Wayne and I have discussed at length is the prospect of having all the main "movie style" proton packs in our RCGB arsenal. By that, we mean we want the movie packs, the video game pack, and the arm-mounted miniaturized proton pack from the Tainted Love comic book. So while Wayne built the game pack, I'm taking on the arm-mounted pack.
In the Tainted Love comic book, our hero Winston seeks to hit it off with a potential client, and offers their services pro bono in order to help woo her over. He also gets Egon to create these smaller proton packs in order to cause less collateral damage than is typical of their other jobs. These smaller packs are less powerful, so the plan is that they all have to work together to wrangle a ghost into the trap, as opposed to one or two of them.
What is appealing about the design, for one, is the significant weight reduction. The big proton packs are mounted to Alice frames, which are specifically designed to reduce the effects of weight on your body. Of course, the weight sets in anyways and we're all sore when the packs come off at the end of the day. The other appealing aspect of the design (at least for me) is that it is a new design but still highly based on the regular proton pack. Plus, because it's small, molding it will be pretty easy and the final build should be rather quick.
Others have built this pack before, so it's not something new to the costuming community. However, in pretty much all instances that I've seen it made, the prop is built way too big. Indeed they are all significantly smaller that the regular proton pack, but once you measure out the proportions from the comic book, the end product should actually be pretty puny compared to its big brother. Remember, the top portion starts above the elbow, covers the upper arm, and just barely peaks above the shoulder. So when you sit down and actually draw it out, it ends up being a lot smaller than you would think.
For 2Story Props' version of the arm-mounted pack, I am starting with a 1-gallon Bondo can cap as the starting point. It's within tolerance of the specifications set in my original notes, being 6-3/4" in diameter as opposed to 7". It also has a slight bevel to it instead of straight sides (top diameter is 6-1/2"). But I think that will end up being a non-issue by the end of the project.
The "mother board" here is a sheet of sintra that is exactly 14" long (perfect for my notes' specs) that has been cut to the dimensions from my notes. I've also temporarily mounted the Bondo cap to it so I can build out the rest. The base of this top portion of the pack will mostly be sintra, probably with wood or other sintra details on top. The final prop will be a fiberglass casting, though, as all of this stuff will end up being molded.
EDIT (8:50am, 09-24-10):
Last night I begun framing up the main body of the mini proton pack. Assembly so far has just been with sintra and hot glue. I've probably done about half of the major work right here. Aside from adding those missing panels and permanently fixing the Bondo cap in place, the rest of the work will just be clean up and detailing.
In the Tainted Love comic book, our hero Winston seeks to hit it off with a potential client, and offers their services pro bono in order to help woo her over. He also gets Egon to create these smaller proton packs in order to cause less collateral damage than is typical of their other jobs. These smaller packs are less powerful, so the plan is that they all have to work together to wrangle a ghost into the trap, as opposed to one or two of them.
A scan from the Tainted Love comic book.
What is appealing about the design, for one, is the significant weight reduction. The big proton packs are mounted to Alice frames, which are specifically designed to reduce the effects of weight on your body. Of course, the weight sets in anyways and we're all sore when the packs come off at the end of the day. The other appealing aspect of the design (at least for me) is that it is a new design but still highly based on the regular proton pack. Plus, because it's small, molding it will be pretty easy and the final build should be rather quick.
Others have built this pack before, so it's not something new to the costuming community. However, in pretty much all instances that I've seen it made, the prop is built way too big. Indeed they are all significantly smaller that the regular proton pack, but once you measure out the proportions from the comic book, the end product should actually be pretty puny compared to its big brother. Remember, the top portion starts above the elbow, covers the upper arm, and just barely peaks above the shoulder. So when you sit down and actually draw it out, it ends up being a lot smaller than you would think.
My notes taken from the illustrations in the comic.
For 2Story Props' version of the arm-mounted pack, I am starting with a 1-gallon Bondo can cap as the starting point. It's within tolerance of the specifications set in my original notes, being 6-3/4" in diameter as opposed to 7". It also has a slight bevel to it instead of straight sides (top diameter is 6-1/2"). But I think that will end up being a non-issue by the end of the project.
The miniaturized mother board, drawn to the specifications from my notes.
The "mother board" here is a sheet of sintra that is exactly 14" long (perfect for my notes' specs) that has been cut to the dimensions from my notes. I've also temporarily mounted the Bondo cap to it so I can build out the rest. The base of this top portion of the pack will mostly be sintra, probably with wood or other sintra details on top. The final prop will be a fiberglass casting, though, as all of this stuff will end up being molded.
The Bondo cap taped is taped in place while I flesh out the rest.
EDIT (8:50am, 09-24-10):
Last night I begun framing up the main body of the mini proton pack. Assembly so far has just been with sintra and hot glue. I've probably done about half of the major work right here. Aside from adding those missing panels and permanently fixing the Bondo cap in place, the rest of the work will just be clean up and detailing.
September 22, 2010
Blog Updates
I'm building out some additional pages for the blog. Of the new pages, the big guns will be the Projects page and the Appearances page.
The Projects page is mostly complete. All I have left is to upload the teaser photos for one more project. The Projects page will be updated with each project we finish and each project we start. The works in progress will simply be listed instead of having a descriptive paragraph like the completed projects.
The Appearances page, much like the Projects page, will include past events and upcoming events. I should have our past events up shortly, and we are in the middle of hammering out details on some upcoming events, so those will be posted shortly.
Again, if there is anything you would like to see on the blog, please send us an email (2StoryProps@gmail.com) and we'll see what we can do.
The Projects page is mostly complete. All I have left is to upload the teaser photos for one more project. The Projects page will be updated with each project we finish and each project we start. The works in progress will simply be listed instead of having a descriptive paragraph like the completed projects.
The Appearances page, much like the Projects page, will include past events and upcoming events. I should have our past events up shortly, and we are in the middle of hammering out details on some upcoming events, so those will be posted shortly.
Again, if there is anything you would like to see on the blog, please send us an email (2StoryProps@gmail.com) and we'll see what we can do.
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