[frogkid11]

Hi Everyone,
A local haunter has the Gemmy Dead Eye Jake animated skeleton prop for sale for $40. He's still in working condition and in the original box and I think he is a good buy at that price. Can anyone tell me if he's a quality prop or if you have had trouble with him in the past?

 

[TNBrad]

I have one and I use him, alot for Halloween and Pirate themed events.
and the kids like to scare each other with him LOL
the only trouble I have had is him springing out of the box at me, guess he is just excited about Halloween too.

 

[Danski]

Shoot- I would buy it in a hot second. Don't know much about them though.

 

[pumpkinpie]

Omg frogkid...great find

 

[frogkid11]

I have one and I use him, alot for Halloween and Pirate themed events.
and the kids like to scare each other with him LOL
the only trouble I have had is him springing out of the box at me, guess he is just excited about Halloween too.

That last comment is awesome, Brad! Thanks for replying so quickly - he does seem like a really cool prop based on the videos I have seen posted to YouTube. I want to do a Disney theme for 2015 focused on the spooky side and I thought he would be a nice addition to my tribute to the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.

 

[mickkell]

Wow,I'll give you 50.00 + shipping right now.

 

[HallowweenKat]

Buy it. Even if it doesn't completely work & has original box you can resell it at that price if you don't like it. You could probably even turn a profit or sell to another haunter for what you've got invested in it.

 

[Excogitate]

Yes grab him up!

 

[Penumbra]

Get him! I have one that unfortunately broke recently, but he still makes a great prop regardless.

 

[punkineater]

Run, run as fast as you can & buy him!!! That's a smokin deal.

 

[frogkid11]

Thanks everyone! I did buy him afterall. It wasn't until I got him home and could try him out that I discovered his arm with the sword is broken where it's supposed to clip into the mechanism that makes it move . His head and torso move sideways as expected, his mouth moves to the sayings, his eye lights up, and he came with the original microphone - it's just that one arm. I may have an idea of how to fix it so that it does work but I still like him for his size and overall presence for such a small amount of money. Thanks for all of the experiences and encouragement - I'm glad I got him.

 

[The Halloween Lady]

I hope that your able to fix him because he looks like an awesome prop!

 

[matrixmom]

I have one with the same prob and hubby said he could fix...I paid $100 used. I will post a video if hubby tells me when he's going to fix it.
I will be selling him after Oct 13 if anyone wants him.

 

[frogkid11]

I have one with the same prob and hubby said he could fix...I paid $100 used. I will post a video if hubby tells me when he's going to fix it.

That would be great, matrixmom. I'm hoping to find a small tube of some sort that I could insert both broken pieces into and them screw them into the pipe (like small PVC or something) to give it strength and connect the two pieces. The seller has agreed to give me back half of the money because she didn't know he was broken, so he will wind up being only $20 in the end.

 

[matrixmom]

That would be great, matrixmom. I'm hoping to find a small tube of some sort that I could insert both broken pieces into and them screw them into the pipe (like small PVC or something) to give it strength and connect the two pieces. The seller has agreed to give me back half of the money because she didn't know he was broken, so he will wind up being only $20 in the end.

What a deal. I wouldnt hold your breath. My DH is a big procrastinator unlike MOI.

 

[frogkid11]

What a deal. I wouldnt hold your breath. My DH is a big procrastinator unlike MOI.

That's funny, matrixmom! Well, I searched online last night at it appears there were versions of Dead Eye Drake and then there is just a skeleton pirate that is still on Gemmy website for sale and they all use the same motion and the same arm lifts. I emailed Gemmy last night with a plea to let me purchase the mechanism that provides the rotation and lift - now I'm just biting my nails until I hear from them....hopefully it will be good news

 

[ChrisW]

Frogkid11 - Good luck, but don't bite your nails, they'll be long gone before you get a part from Gemmy. They're good if you contact them within 30 days and have a receipt. After that, I've never heard of someone getting parts or support, especially on a second-hand purchased item.
I'm not familiar with the mechanism, but is it either something a local welding shop could fix, or a piece that could be recreated using a 3D printer? Some schools around the country have 3D printing programs and you could approach them for a student to take it on as a project.

BTW, $40.00 was a great price, it may be worth some extra $ to get him in 100% working order.

WOAH! I just re-read your post - $20.00!?!?!?! SCORE!!!

 

[frogkid11]

Chris W, you were right - I heard back from Gemmy and they said that "they don't receive any replacement parts from the manufacturer (motors, gears, etc.)" which means that they are all assembled in China and shipped to Gemmy (if they are even shipped to them at all) for sales or shows.

Well, I decided to ask for some help from some of my local friends with ingenuity and they came up with the perfect solution to fix his arm. We went to Lowes and found some aluminum "U" channel and used it to bridge the two pieces that broke apart and now the arm raises and lowers as expected. I'm so pumped that he works exactly as expected.

 

[ChrisW]

It's great when ingenuity and a little work pays off! Good luck with it. I saw your post about the volume, issue, sorry I can't help you with it.

 

[frogkid11]

It's great when ingenuity and a little work pays off! Good luck with it. I saw your post about the volume, issue, sorry I can't help you with it.

Thanks Chris. I posted the volume in a different thread hoping to catch the eyes of other Gemmy prop owners besides those that own Dead Eye. They brought up a good point that if the volume changes when he moves, it's very likely one of the little wires is getting pinched and the signal is interrupted. I'm hoping to get inside of the cavity of the figure soon and trace the wires but since I just got the mechanical pieces working, I'm enjoying watching him work