July M&T

[trishaanne]

If we stick with the suggested plan, the next meeting will be July 9. Let's see how that works for everyone.

I know there was some interest in making a "Fester" prop from some of the members. Greg has some suggestions in his post in the "June" thread. If you want to make one, I suggest that you check it out and then post some feedback to see what the interest is.

I kind of liked the meeting yesterday...everyone working on their own stuff. It kind of flowed nicely. However, if you want to do a group project, that works too. Personally, I'll pass on it because I have party details to tend to and probably will be working on stuff for the rest of the make and takes. Having everyone here, working on projects, gives me the incentive to get busy and work on things that I would probably put off a bit.

OK...discussion is on! Please post on whether the date works for you and your idea for the project. If you don't want to make one, please feel free to bring whatever you ARE working on and still join us.

[FRIGHTGUY]

Im in for the Fester build. Great prop and will go nicely with the grave grabber. Looked like everyone had fun yesterday, I'm sorry I missed out but I need to help my dad out with some stuff. I did get some stuff done at night on my own though. My Twisted Toy box is coming along and I started on one of my carnival booths late last night. Pics coming soon.

[NoahFentz]

Okay...I have a wedding on that weekend in upstate NY so its a no go for me. August might be a problem too....

I wasn't going to make a fester anyhoo....

[niblique71]

Here's what I posted in the June thread about a possible "Fester" build. I copied it here so you didn't have to go back and forth.

Please understand that I won't be insulted in the least if a majority decides not to build him. Yes he's cool, but also a much more complicated build than our grabbers were. It will consume at least two meetings and a LOT of my time to get it all together (Which I am Happy to do).

If the majority of us wants to build fester, I might ask that we have our 2nd build meeting at my place. There are two distinct advantages to doing the final assembly at my house: 1) MUCH Less traffic. 2) I won't have to pack 400lbs of tools to make it happen. I live only 5 minutes from rt 78 near Clinton NJ. Oh, and I have a HUGE assortment of screws, Nuts, Bolts, etc, as a back up supply, so No one should have to make an emergency run to HD or Lowes. I also have a large carport for inclimate weather.

Originally Posted by niblique71

For those that want to build a "Fester".

Fester will be a 2 meeting project. It's Highly unlikely we'd be able to finish him in one meeting. So here's what I suggest, Most of us need Hands for the grabbers that we already made and possibly a skull too. Fester also needs two hands and a skull. We can probably make the hands and rough skull(s) in the morning (July MnT). For those that prefer to buy a skull, feel free to do so.
We should also rough out a few of the wooden components for Fester in the afternoon. Having some of the wooden pieces Cut to length will greatly expedite the construction on day#2 (August). Also in our July meeting we should get our "Vent motors" working (they need some minor "Tweaks" to work reliably) and get the basic crank arm attached. That will mean that we'll need to bring our vent motors and a power supply (12V Wall wart), to test them and make sure they are up to the job of making Fester struggle out of his grave for many years to come.

So in Summary, a Fester build will be:

July Meeting- Hands, Skull, Vent motor prep, and cut certain Parts to length and size.

August Meeting- Drill, Cut, Assemble Fester.

All of this of course is subject to majority approval from the group

We can also ask Joe if he has any extra vent motors from that huge order he placed last year. They are much cheaper than the Deer motors at around $3 + S/H.


Let's get some feedback in our July thread (Patty??) as to what everyone wants to do. Fester will be a challenging build even for experianced haunters. He needs some "Tweaking" to make him run smooth and problem free. So we'll need an early start, especially for the Second build day.

[GhoulishCop]

Hey Greg,

I'm definitely down for building Fester (probably a couple of Festers), but is it really a two-session build? I know it would be awesome to actually leave a M&T with a completed project (at least once in awhile), but it seems to me at worst the heads and hands can be worked on at home if not at the M&T itself. How long can cutting pieces to length really take?

Of course, everything always takes longer than imagined (helped along by copious amounts of alcohol...at least for me [no more Four Loko, Sharon! Blech!]), but how many parts are there that they can't be cut relatively quick and the motors tweaked? Certainly no more than an hour or so for everyone, assuming everyone would be making one.

We can plan on a two-meeting build, but I think we should also plan on jumping ahead to the next stage if things go more smoothly than imagined. So, yeah, hump all those tools to Pattie's next month!

I'm just impatient, that's all. I have the attention span of a small marsupial so I like things done right away.

Rich

[niblique71]

Rich, From experiance, it's a two session build. The hands and skull are integrel to the prop and it's motion.

[GhoulishCop]

Greg,

"The hands and skull are integrel to the prop and it's motion."

Do they have to be sized a certain dimension or can it be a $5 foam skull from Walgreens, or even a wighead or paper mache head? Do the hands need to be a certain size?

I'm just thinking that if not then anyone wanting to build Fester could make a set of hands and a head at home to bring with them. I understand they're a key component of the prop, I'm just not sure I want to spend an entire make-and-take making them.

I'm not trying to be a pain in the ass here (not much, anyway), I'm just looking to speed up the process a bit. Want, want, want! More, more, more!

Rich

Who figures if we can't spend endless hours debating what day the next make & take will be we can now endlessly debate the mechanics of each meeting...

[niblique71]

LOL Rich.... Whaa Whaaaaaa Whaaa....

No matter how ya slice it I won't be able to get a Fester build together (The mechanical part) till our August meeting. I will be attending the July meeting, but Might have one of my kids in tow (Up from Arkansas). That's why I suggested what I did. MANY of us (Including you) need a light weight hand for the grabber so why not make a bunch and get a little ahead on the Fester build.

Group build of 3 or 4 hands each---2-3+ hours (Skull not included)
Group tweaking of Gear motor and install main crank 1-2 hours
Group Pre-cutting some parts for Fester 2-3 hours
Group hand carving skull 2-3+ hours

Edit: Yes you can use any foam skull for fester as long as it's not hollow.

That's 8-11 hours of potential build time filled up, depending on weather people want to carve a skull. A VERY Full day if 10 or more people are participating in "Fester related" projects.

Again, I'm flattered that people want to build him, but I also don't want to monopolize the group and thier time. So EVERYONE speak up as to what they want to do.

[GhoulishCop]

Greg,

Fine, be that way! I will test out my new medium of homemade finely ground clay powder to make the the hands. And I'll probably build a paper mache skull. Of course, with all the excess foam we're going to have laying around after Pattie gets down carving her Oscar statue from that big block she's got, there ought to be enough left over to carve some skulls out too.

I'll also be bringing along the next stage of my grave digger prop (the lower extremities) in the event I've got some time left over.

As an early heads up, assuming the weather's nice, I'll probably want to head over to the flea market again. There weren't many vendors there last time due to the threat of rain, but mid-July with nice weather ought to have them out in force.

Pattie, you've been forewarned. I'll be waking you up by 9 a.m.!

Rich

[niblique71]

Originally Posted by GhoulishCop

Greg,

And I'll probably build a paper mache skull.


Rich

Weight is critical with this prop. I suspect that a paper mache' skull might be too heavy, especially after adding something inside it to mount it.

Always have to march to your own drum, Huh Rich?? LOL