Thread: My 1st 2010 Prop: Toepincher Coffin Cooler

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I made these two out of an old fence and have enough scrap wood from some old weather beaten pallets to make at least 2 more ground breaker coffins.

I plan on making one of these full sized coffins into a fully functioning party cooler, with hinges, handles, and maybe some lid designs. I also have a skeleton that I plan on sitting inside the coffin after its been water proofed. The skeleton will be surrounded with Oktoberfest brews and then all of that will be covered with ice.

I also plan on adding some water proof led lights to the mix to add a cool effect that we used to do at HOS for the early guest parties. The led's can be purchased at Michaels in the wedding isle. The coffin will be painted black.

I have not started upgrading the coffin yet and will start this weekend, thus all I have to show now is just a "plain jane" toepincher.

I will post updates as I progress

What a great idea to use as a cooler! How fun.... Looking forward to your updates!!

Looks great! I made a toe pincher coffin cooler a few years ago for a party. I had a hard time completely insulating it but eventually got it water tight. The guests loved it.

I did notice that some guest would open it and let the lid fall completely back, which started to put a lot of strain on the hinges and I was afraid it was going to break the water tight integrity. For the following year, I added a chain to the lid connected to the rest of the coffin to keep it from opening too far and falling completely open, and that did the trick.

Good luck with yours - and Oktoberfest is definitely a great choice!

Another lesson learned... I wish I had lined the whole thing with some kind of foam board to help insulate it before I sealed and water proofed it. I had no problem keeping the drinks inside cold, but did have some condensation build up on the outside dripping onto the floor.

will be interested in your progress

JohnnyD, Thanks for the tips!!

I have been sitting in my garage staring at the coffins, I even crawled into one and laid there for a while, plenty of beer was involved with both brain storming sessions. Here is what I have come up with thus far...

My plan is to use spray foam and just fill up the inside with it. Once dried I plan on trimming it back and carving it out so to speak until I get a good shape. Once insulated I have a gallon of black exterior house paint ready to go and will paint it black. I then plan on using a black tarp, I plan on cutting it to a desired length and shape and then securing it over the foam shell. I'm not too worried about the coffin box being able to hold up because it has been heavily reinforced with bits of wood.

My solution for the lid will be to just keep the lid propped open with the skeleton sitting sort of skewed / up right out of it. Halloween in Florida is typically a bit chilly and very low humidity so it should allow the ice to sit for a while without melting.

I also plan to have the coffin outside on our back patio on top of my beer pong table which will be draped in a black table cover and I plan on creating some PVC candles to place around it for effect. My plan is to make a funeral setting on my back patio and I might even make a cheap funeral flower arrangement to put next to the coffin to further the effect. I can make one of those at Wal-Mart for a few bucks.

I still don't know if I should add a cross, skull, or something else to the lid or not... should I put a decoration on the lid or just keep it plain?

Can't wait to see it.

Grimm,

I stained the exterior of mine a dark brown and it looked really nice, so I didn't add any decorations to it besides a handle. I guess it depends on your own personal tastes. Maybe lay some things out and see how it looks before you permanently attach anything. I prefer to keep my props as "authentic" as opposed to stylized for Halloween, but its really up to you and your preferences.

I think the spray foam is going to be trickier than you think unless you've got a good scouring system already in mind. Not for the sides really, but more for the bottom. You might also consider using 1/4 or 1/2 inch foam board cut into panels and gluing them inside first, and only using the spray foam for the seams. It would be a lot less work to smooth down. I guess I just have bad experiences with spray foam shaping. I guess you could cut away stuff with a knife and then use a hand sander to smooth it all down. Let me know how that works.

Are you going to reseal the surface somehow after you reshape the foam? I guess the house paint should do it. I ended up using a lot of driveway crack sealant. It smelled pretty awful curing, but it dried to a nice rubbery texture. I don't think I would do it that way again - I'd probably try the foam thing like you are doing.

Funny story about coffins - I moved out to California from Maryland last January. When the movers were unloading the truck, they pulled out the coffin, but it was wrapped in several moving blankets to protect it. As they unwrapped it (assuming it was furniture) one of them said "I think this is a coffin..." So a couple of the other guys came over to see them unwrap it. Meanwhile, I'm standing a little off to the side of the house, seeing what's going on but pretending to be looking at the paper work. The movers unwrapped it and laid it on the ground. So there are like 5 of them standing around this thing when one of them reaches down for the lid to open it. At that moment, I screamed "DON'T OPEN IT IN THE SUNLIGHT!!!" They all jumped back about 10 feet and then everyone burst out laughing.

You are going to have so much fun with your coffins...

Awesome story about the movers, I wish I could had been a fly on the wall for that one

I do agree that the spray foam is going to be a pain and I plan on pre-sealing the cracks in the bottom, and on the sides, with pre-painted wood slats. This will keep the foam from oozing through the cracks and getting all over the place.

I hope to spray enough foam into the coffin to end up with a 2 inch think case of foam on the inside (after it has been carved out).

I also plan on painting the foam black. I don't plan on sealing it because I plan on having the foam fill the inside of the coffin entirely with a 2 inch think shell of foam.

I hope to be able to start digging into this project on Sunday... I'm a big college football / USF Bulls fan so tomorrow is going to be nothing but Beer and Bulls

As I progress I will post pictures for all

thats awesome, i want one