[yardhauntjunkie]

How I made my animated Wolf/Dog.

This is just a short video of the progress of my Wolf/Dog. It is called Wolf/Dog because in my videos for some odd reason I would call it a wolf in one step and then a dog in another step. It ended up looking more like a dog, but in my heart he will always be a wolf. Anyways I hope you can find something useful in this. This was actually my first attempt at a mechanical prop so I am pretty happy with how it turned out. I had been doing a yard haunt for over ten years and had always wanted moving props. So he will always be my favorite.

YouTube - Dog Wolf how to

 

[Bubbels]

Excellent! What did you use for the eyes?

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

Excellent! What did you use for the eyes?

Thank you.

Well as with all my props so far they are a conglomeration of appliance parts. In this particular case the eyes are the little red lights on the panel of a kitchen stove that indicate the burner is on. Then I simply caulked around them to sort of form the eyes. He is by no means a masterpiece, but it shows what you can do with little or no money. The only expense was fur, and with a coupon to Joannes the whole thing cost me $5.32.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

Excellent! What did you use for the eyes?

Oh and you can't see it in any of these videos, but I also put the red lights in his mouth as well. So hopefully if I ever get teeth in him they will light them up.

 

[JustWhisper]

That came out great junkie. Not too much info, but you really get the idea without being overwhelmed. I never would have guessed his frame was wood. I like the way you designed his mechanics.. Good video. Thanks.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

That came out great junkie. Not too much info, but you really get the idea without being overwhelmed. I never would have guessed his frame was wood. I like the way you designed his mechanics.. Good video. Thanks.

I am a visual learner so I always just assume other people are as well(its not good to assume as they always say). I see and then I can do by trial and error. So maybe I will have to have someone help me help me make step by step directions. Thanks.

 

[JustWhisper]

I am also a visual learner. They were teasing me on the Christmas Forum because on my Christmas tutorial web site it basically says "look at the pictures and do it", and I told my friends "I think and build, and build and think. No blueprints." I think most of us on here appreciate good pics and video more than detailed written instructions. But I could be wrong.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

I am also a visual learner. They were teasing me on the Christmas Forum because on my Christmas tutorial web site it basically says "look at the pictures and do it", and I told my friends "I think and build, and build and think. No blueprints." I think most of us on here appreciate good pics and video more than detailed written instructions. But I could be wrong.

I definitely need to learn that way. I am having trouble learning about servo control because I have never seen it done before. Not the mechanics because that is just like with motors, but the programing part. Thankfully there are some very patient people on here.

 

[LISA_LISA]

YARD ...... your wolf looked great in person!

 

[Terra]

I really liked this video because I just learned about crank motors and what you can do with them. The way you used the crank here to turn the head was very educational. Great doggie too.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

I really liked this video because I just learned about crank motors and what you can do with them. The way you used the crank here to turn the head was very educational. Great doggie too.

Thank you. I guess that is another vote for Dog.

I am not sure but I think the crank mechanism you did on your peeper is a better mechanism then the ones I have in my dog. But, for some reason the crank mechanism typically used seems to bind for me. Or they can torque out of whack. I really ended up with this slotted mechanism because of desperation when the lear mechanism was giving me fits. It seems to work pretty good though. And I mentioned to someone else that for some reason I think the one I used seemed to be a little more compact(especially the one in the jaw) even though I think they have the same motions.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

I started making teeth for Wolf/Dog. I have two pieces of 1/4 inch copper tubing bent to form the "jaw". One for the upper and one for the lower. This goes along the inside of the mouth in u-shape. Now the question becomes what do I use for teeth. My first inclination is to mold clay to the tubing and then cover the whole thing with epoxy to get it to adhere to the tubing. Then paint them white and wire the pieces to the respective jaws. Another concern is getting the teeth to overlap when the mouth is shut. I also plan to caulk between the teeth and jaw with black caulk so it looks like gums. I accidentally go some caulking around the mouth last year and it looked pretty cool.

 

[Big Nick]

What did you use to open and close the mouth. It didn't look like a servo but it worked well.

 

[yardhauntjunkie]

What did you use to open and close the mouth. It didn't look like a servo but it worked well.

It is a low rpm motor out of an appliance. I wanted to convert Wolf/Dog and some other props I built over to servos. I just haven't figured out the best way for me to control servos yet.