Thread: 2008 Deadman's Party - Graveyardmadness

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Deadman’s Party Update

Halloween is in full swing in my little neighborhood.

This year’s theme is Deadman’s Party.

It’s going to be about the arrival of Lady Linda and welcoming her to the haunted graveyard. The others buried in the graveyard will be “welcoming her” in their own spooky way. The show will last about 8 minutes and the setting will be an old graveyard.

This by all accounts will be the most ambiguous haunt to date. When done there will be fourteen (14) animated skeletons; 4 playing musical instruments (jazz group), 2 dancing, 2 pop-ups from caskets, 4 playing cards on a casket lid, and 2 greeters. Many of these skeletons will have arm and leg movement with four being able to make hand gestures. Six caskets will be used with two of them having pop-ups. In addition to the skeletons I will have a flying watch during the day light hours, 2 talking crows, and a rabid dog.

One skeleton is going to be a deranged gypsy with her crystal ball and crazy cat. She will be the scariest. This prop has to be the most expensive to date: $5,304 so far and I have yet to assemble it. (Running this prop in conjunction with one we are building for Lynn).

HalloweenBob is working on many of the routines for this year’s show. Songs will include Oingo Boingo Deadman’s Party, Skeletons in the Closet, and a few others. Four of the skeletons will be talking among themselves and interacting with the audience.

This year, the hearse is going to be more animated and will include a complete horse skeleton (if it arrives – was to be here two weeks ago.) The driver will be able to stand, rotate the torso as to look back at another prop. The dead women (Lady Linda) in the casket – in the hearse, will raise do a spill about this and that. She is to be the main focal point of the show (I think the jazz quartet will be the main attraction.)

Completed to date: All the stands and frames have been assembled and welded. All the 3-axis skulls have been assembled and tested except four (see them on the trailer)? I plan to use mostly Bucky’s for the heads, but will have 2 Lindberg’s out there.

The next three weeks I plan to age the skeletons and get them in costume and debugged. Start building the casket props and getting the controllers installed as with the pneumatics controlled by them.

Next month, start in on the hearse. This hearse is done – just need to fix it up a bit and update the computerware in it.

If time permits, I want to build a scissor pneumatic extender with a spider at the end. My thought was to have the spider spring out of a large web funnel toward the ToT.








Notice all the boxes? All 4th class buckys!!!! Uggg... An army of Bucky's.

I will continue to post more on this thread as progress goes forward...

Graveyardmadness - Joel

Nice...What are those plates for with the servos on them?

The plates on the trailer are for the props lying horizontally or where there is major movement with the prop itself. I plan to install HS-755HB servos into them. Reasoning being the skulls will not be in true center positions.

Example: the gypsy woman spins around very fast and when she does, her head is going to be shaking back and forth very violently – she is deranged!

The casket jumper is another one that is going to require 755 servos. He will be raising from the casket and will be dancing in his casket. Thus the servos in the skull must be able to take the jolts.

We tried 645 and they worked okay – I wanted better.

The plates on the skeletons themselves are just to help me with alignement. Tonight I plan to install the skulls and cut the spinal rod bar as to bring the skeleton up to the joining bar (where the skull and skeleton are mounted.

Presently I am waiting for the HS 755 to come in. Once I get them, I can start to build those skulls.

Going to be some very long nights ahead...

WOW! Can't wait to see it all in action!

I have to ask, what's in the Phantom Fireworks box? Are you going to use pyros? Or is that just for storage?

-dgm

Fireworks box - ah, fireworks of this caliber are illegal... Seriously, a local band has asked I do some special effects for them. They have some pretty interesting songs and one is about death and destruction. About 30 seconds into their song, some pyro stuff is going to go off. And on another song, two skeletons will be joining ithem, one playing a trumpet and another a bingo. When they are done and go back into their caskets, more fireworks to go off. They are making a few videos. Right now I am working on the skeletons and let me tell you one thing - already +80 hours into programming the skeletons to match their gig and roles.

Should be pretty cool when done.

Joel

Should be pretty intense.

So Joel do you think you'll have this set-up for more than one night? This would certainly be worth the drive to go see. Something tells me a video won't do this justice at all!

I was thinking the same thing Buckaneerbabe

Wow that is amazing. Are you going to be putting up a vid of the big night?
I wana see this really bad. great work.

Quick question for you Gym. We too are working with the Bucky skull as well and I have been debating between 425 or 645, which ones did you decide on for 3 axis was the best? Also, for the mouth servo?

Danandmeg
We use the 645. It is the way to go. Althought expensive, they hold up the best. For the jay, I recommend either a 425 or 325. 425 has a quicker response time.

Good Luck,
GYM