Thread: BRAINSTORM: Need Ideas for a Pop up prop!

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So, I have a motion activated pneumatic pop up prop that I have built which consists of:

-A flood light which will shine upon what ever is to pop up.
-A sound which will start as soon as the prop is activated.
-And of course, a Pneumatic cylinder which will pop up about 2 or 3 feet.

So, now my problem. Family members. I was going to go with the typical garbage can style, but in their words it will either look "Stupid" or "Out of place" both of which I disagree. So, I come to the masses of the Halloween Forum to "Pick your brains" over two questions.

- What should I house my Pop Up prop in?
- What should be popping out?

I appreciate any and all suggestions.

Thanks for your time,

MattMacLean

I use a garbage can near our front porch. I have a toxic sticker on the front. It was my first pnuematic prop so just stuck a burnt corpse torso in it because...that is what I had. Works really well and scared the childen a lot! Now I'm thinking of transferring it to a 55 gallon drum for a real toxic look with fog, barrel aging, and other details. The other can was just too shiney and now they know what to look for. If you want to go simple, go with the garbage can BUT, bolt down a candy dish to the top of it. Hot glue small candy bars inside that aren't going to go to the children but, look like they should go up to it and get their candy. Then hit the trigger and scare the heck out of them. lol
If I had a second one, I would do a mib, coffin, or jitb for my clown theme.

Hmm, I've suggested both a garbage can and a barrel to them, neither has gone over well. Ughh. They suggested to build some sort of pillar or column but I'm not too fond of that idea, not much room for something inside.

You could do two posts for your front area, driveway or front porch. Make them about a foot and a half wide on each side and you should have enough room to put at least a head in one with a mask, wig, hat on. Then have them pop up out of the top. What is your theme going to be? What is around your front yard? That might give me an idea they can live with and make you happy too.

We have a rather large front yard, but noone ever really goes there. As for an entrance, we do our haunt in our garage, and we have a car shelter leading up to our garage, we pretty much have an entrance covered, unfortunately.

Do you have oversized flower pots around? Can you get one of the cheapo ones? Two would be perfect since then you just don't have a wierd one sitting there. You can cut a round wooden disk to fit just about an inch down into the flower pot. Screw a small hindge into the board and mount to inside of flower pot. Do the same with the wood thing with the other pot but, make it solid it in and not able to lift up. Screw in a small L bracket into the pop up disk on other pot so the wood has something to sit on when it is flat in the pot. Go to a cheapo flower store/garden center and pick up some of the styrofoam that fake flowers go into. Buy cheapo fowers, plants to poke into foam and hot glue them to the wooden pieces in both pots. One is going to be faux and the other will be your pop up design. Now attach the mechanics into the flower pot and you are good to go for a pop up prop. If you can't get flower pots that large, make a couple square ones out of spare wood and do the same thing. Make them like miniture columns only a couple feet high so they are at the right hight to scare the children. Then place them on each side of the garage.
If that doesn't work...maybe a bench with a sitting area on top that some people have on their front porches. Kind of like a storage box for toys. You can make one in that with plenty of room. If your porch is big enough and you have good lumber you can make one that is really nice and have about 3 heads pop at the people. It would be out of place though sitting in the middle of a driveway. And you really don't want it to be triggered if someone was actually sitting on it. lol

Hmm, that's an idea. There really aren't many options are there?

how about you make an old rotten coffin that looks like its coming out of the ground & have something jump from behind it? you can make just the top of the coffin at an angle out of wood from an old pallet...put a couple colored pin lights in it, a skeleton sitting next to it & then something jumping from it...? Just my first thoughts

Hmm, I like that idea, it's definitely a step away from the traditional pop up prop. I like this outside of the box thinking.

when i say top...i mean the "head" part...not the "door"...or whatever you call it