# Leer Ghost V3 WIP



## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

The first leer ghost was a last minute idea...










The second leer ghost was a big hit, but it used eye bolts and spiderwire, so I was always worried about how reliable it would be.










Now, there is leer ghost version 3. All mechanical linkages, simpler design, and hopefully very reliable. The video below shows the basic mechanism in action. If this works well, I hope to make kits.


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

Very cool as always


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## Fiend4Halloween (Aug 28, 2008)

Great design. I'm really needing to remake the design of mine. Fishing wired gets tangled and I don't like the movement. Not as free flowing as yours.


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## The Pod (Sep 15, 2009)

Awesome work as always. Can't wait to see this one completed.


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## deadSusan (Jun 26, 2013)

Your leer ghosts are fantastic! They are so eerie!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

You're a modern day DaVinci


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## Brad Green (Jul 29, 2004)

I had great success with your wall breaker kit, so I am VERY interested in this one! Amazing work!


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## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:undecidekin:^ WAIT!! There is a "Wallbreaker Kit"??? How did I not know about this?!


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## bobzilla (Nov 13, 2008)

Great work as usual


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## GRP (Aug 18, 2009)

Can't wait to see if there is a kit. Great work


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## Howlinmadjack (Jul 20, 2009)

Awesome work, and all from one linkage!! You sir are a master of motion!! I have technical issues with the simplest of motion!! Lol!! My hats off to you!!


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Thank you everyone, I appreciate all the interest in the ghost and the possible kits!



RoxyBlue said:


> You're a modern day DaVinci


Yeah, right, but I appreciate the thought RoxyBlue, may you be blessed with gargoyles.



Pumpkin5 said:


> :undecidekin:^ WAIT!! There is a "Wallbreaker Kit"??? How did I not know about this?!


Yes, there were Wallbreaker kits. I stopped making them because I thought they were to unreliable and didn't want to sell something that might not work. If you don't mind some woodwork, the detailed directions on how to build them are still available on my blog.


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## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

^:jol:Okay, I will check it out. I definitely could use a couple of Wall Breakers on my porch. If other kits become available, please give me a shout. I love a kit.


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

More progress, I think it looks very similar in movement to the last leer ghost. Next step will be to build the forms.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

I love these ghosts no matter what version they are


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

Awesome job as always!! 

Can't wait to make one of these. A question though, does it work if the board is vertical?


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Doc Doom said:


> Awesome job as always!!
> 
> Can't wait to make one of these. A question though, does it work if the board is vertical?


I think so, won't know for sure until it is finished with forms and cheese cloth. If you look at the first video, I run it lying on its back, upright and verticle, and face down as intended. In fact I am real tempted to build a second one to be a skeleton struggling to come out of the ground.


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## Sawtooth Jack (Apr 9, 2011)

Always a treat to see one of your ghost builds HJ...loving the two new builds for this year!


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Sawtooth Jack said:


> Always a treat to see one of your ghost builds HJ...loving the two new builds for this year!


Thanks!


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

can't wait to see the forms.


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## Bilbo (Dec 13, 2007)

I've been stalk... er, watching your builds for quite a while now and I'm thinking I'm ready to give it a try. I was just wondering what you are using to connect the threaded rod to the motor and to the dowels. They look like ring style electrical terminals.

Oh, did I mention I LOVE your work??

I'm hoping to use a wiper motor since I have some lying around and the other popular motors are harder to come by nowadays...


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## Spooky1 (Aug 25, 2008)

You are a mechanical genius. I love the movements you get with your ghosts.


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Bilbo said:


> I've been stalk... er, watching your builds for quite a while now and I'm thinking I'm ready to give it a try. I was just wondering what you are using to connect the threaded rod to the motor and to the dowels. They look like ring style electrical terminals.
> 
> Oh, did I mention I LOVE your work??
> 
> I'm hoping to use a wiper motor since I have some lying around and the other popular motors are harder to come by nowadays...


Yes, those are terminal connectors from Home Depot, AmpRing 22-18 / 4-6. I add a little glue once I get all the rod lengths dial in, otherwise they can pop off. Also, try to use rod ends where you can, you end up with more reliable mechanism.


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

heresjohnny said:


> Yes, those are terminal connectors from Home Depot, AmpRing 22-18 / 4-6. I add a little glue once I get all the rod lengths dial in, otherwise they can pop off. Also, try to use rod ends where you can, you end up with more reliable mechanism.


I used the same terminal connectors, although I'm not sure of the exact size. Thad to remove the yellow plastic sleeve and spread the end open a little in order to get the threaded rod to fit. I simply inserted a tapered punch and tapped it in a little. I used a little glue on the threads and open end, screwed the rod in and then squeezed the bejesus outta the end to crimp it over the threads. So far it appears to be working, although I'll agree the rod ends would probably be better.


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

sorry for the delay in updating, i have been a little under the weather. I have everything ready for the cheesecloth. I realize now why everyone thought the last leer ghost looked like a mantis, it is the orientation of the arms and the way they bend. Leaving it that way for now, might change it to be more human like later.


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

Looking great! Wondering now why I spent so much time making a paper mache skull for a head!


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Oh you can make good use of it. You can either make detailed forms, then go light on the cheese cloth, or if you are going for more of a traditional ghost, then the forms don't need to be detailed. For example, the last leer ghost I built used the first approach, you can see details on the forms here and pictures here. Below is a closeup of what you can do with a good skull form.










I have building cloaked ghosts lately, more of the traditional look without the detailed forms.


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

Looks great! Do you pre treat the cheesecloth? Is it just glued to the black under material ?


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Yes, I pretreat a bunch of cheese cloth in rit. I use stiffy (u can get it at Michael's) to attach smaller prices of cheese cloth directly to the form, then I come back with larger prices that I partially attach with stiffy, but I try to leave a lot of it loose so it will drape, and move in the breeze. The page below shows how I did the cloaked ghost, including a video that shows layering the cheese cloth.

http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=32666&page=5


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

I can't display the page for some reason. Is it just me?

Funny, I can see it now .


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

I fixed the link, try it now.


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Quick update, I am adding cheesecloth, and wanted to capture the first step on video before finishing it.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

He's pretty creepy-looking even in this unfinished state.


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

One last update for the WIP thread. I will try to edit the final video in black light tonight. thanks for watching, feel free to ask questions!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Your ghosts belong in a movie. They're wonderful.


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## Doc Doom (Aug 28, 2008)

Great job!!!! Thanks for the details of your build. Nice touch on the ribs. Are the cheesecloth as well?


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## heresjohnny (Feb 15, 2006)

Doc Doom said:


> Great job!!!! Thanks for the details of your build. Nice touch on the ribs. Are the cheesecloth as well?


Yes


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