Unfortunately, I don't have any video just yet as I did this effect for free by having someone ELSE buy the lights as he has other uses for them outside of haunt season. My prototype went a lot like this full post did. I started out with a mirror ball and progressed into a modified worklight with plastic jug and then planned out the fluorescent tubes but ran into intensity issues so went back to the internet for component solutions. I was researching another project with gobos and ran across the Chauvet Roto-Sphere. Eureka! As soon as my buddy gets a spare moment, we're going to do a full-sized demo in an outdoor tent with the lights hung sideways from above. My plan is to have a narrow board directly underneath to provide a visual "shadow bridge" to walk down. Depending on how that looks I may either keep the "bridge" or just hang the lights from overhead. I believe a hazy fog will complete the effect nicely.

Hope this helps illustrate. If anyone takes this effect further, please let me know.

afraid the fog and shadows will cancel out the illusion but noone will know till you Chamorros give it a try!

Shadow and fog are funny things... If this was being envisioned and engineered by a non-haole, I might dismiss the idea as well, but you've got someone that actually does the work and then posts. All the actual Vortex Tunnels use a stationary bridge and most don't use expensive expanded metal decking so you've already got a non-moving bridge disrupting the effect. I can personally attest to the effectiveness of the tunnel with a stationary bridge. In all circumstances, though, I never-the-less wished the effect was longer than the typical 20 or 30 feet. That gets more difficult with a bridge involved. Lights are cheap and they only limit your length to the size of the room you're projecting them in.

As far as the light haze goes, having faint spokes of light spinning all around you instead of just dots on the wall is a more immersive effect, not too unlike scuba diving through a cave with light shafts or walking through a forest canopy in the early morning with sunlight beams fighting to get past the leaves. But, I guess if you've never seen it before and I haven't posted a video....you'll just have to trust a guy who tried to do things the expensive way and found that cheaper is better. As soon as I get a video, I'll post my version 2 of the vortex tunnel effect so we all can enjoy. Thanks for the questions and comments!

thanks for shelling out the $ for both versions.

So are you saying that you only would need the lights and a room instead of having the bridge? Very anxious to see video.

Thanks

I'm likewise very interested in seeing a video, as I've wanted to do a tunnel for a while but found it too time-consuming and cost-prohibitive.

Thanks for your input.

Pretty much that's exactly what I'm saying. Though, lights and a room will only get you the basic effect. It may be that there's a lot more to the effect than just eye candy, at least that's what I believe. My motto has always been to take a great effect and go overboard. I know that a mirror ball (aka Roto-Sphere) turned on its side will give you a great vertigo effect. All the additional things that enhance the feeling of vertigo are what will make Your version of this effect special. I've mentioned a haze will create the look of being inside a spoked wheel and increase the intensity of the effect. I'd like to hear what else this forum can come up with to bring this effect to the next level.

What other things could be added to pile on top of this vertigo-inducing effect? What opportunities does a room like this offer to inject a little bit of scare? My goal with this effect was to hopefully throw the victims 'off-balance and out of sorts'. What are Your suggestions? ..and of course, we'd all like to keep it cheap. )

Video coming soon, hopefully in under 2 weeks.

Just an update to those following the vortex via lights that I had previously posted about. The supplier I mentioned pulled a fast one on us. They showed Roto-spheres in stock and let us believe they'd be in any day and then just let us know that our order was backordered till November! So, I cannot recommend them anymore as this is completely unacceptable for an order placed way back in early August. We reordered via Amazon and are hoping to have them in before the witching hour...cross your fingers and I apologize for the delay in the video.

Hi I've been following this thread and really liked your idea, so I picked up a Chauvet roto-sphere. I only got one b/c I don't plan on making our tunnel too long, but I noticed the roto-sphere seems to move a little slow. Do you know of any way to maybe speed it up just a bit.

You have found the only minor annoyance with this cheap version of the Vortex Tunnel. The best advice I can tell you is to DIY a speed control. If you're comfortable with electronics and circuit boards...you could hack the speed control and maybe solder in one of your own or figure out how to mod theirs. Clearly this will void any warranty, but you're not on this forum if you value someone else's pre-made prop IMO. Low side, you could take it to an electrician that can suggest workarounds for you. If you wanted to go big and completely personalized, you can carefully disassemble the whole mechanism and make one that works exactly the way you want it to for your situation. This could involve some papier mache to custom make an alien head or clown prop or whatever you imagine. Have fun with it. I look forward to hearing about/seeing what you've come up with. Keep us all involved!