Pirate Treasure

Hi, I'm planning on making a pirate themed short film and want to make a treasure chest full of treasure. I made the chest already, now I just need something to fill it with and was wondering if anyone on here had any recommendations.

I looked all over amazon and ebay, and the best looking coins by far are the ones based on Spanish doubloons (most others are cheesy looking coins with skulls on them, I want something a bit more realistic)

However, these come in various sizes as well as plastic and metal. I would prefer metal, but I think they are just too expensive. For instance, here are the larger sized coins in metal, they are almost 30 dollars for 20 coins:

https://www.amazon.com/Large-Metal-...rd_wg=dqFBD&psc=1&refRID=0ANZZ8M0C19RNTK9SCDC

There is no way I could buy enough to fill the entire chest. My only option for the metal coins would be to make an insert so the chest would actually be way shallower then it looks. The problem with that is it would make it harder to put other larger objects in the chest (like goblets, gold bars, etc.)

Here are plastic coins in the same size, they are $7.00 for 72 coins.

https://www.amazon.com/Toy-Ancient-...8&qid=1488077730&sr=1-5&keywords=pirate+coins

That is obviously a much better deal, and would be easy to get enough to fill the chest, but I am worried about how they will look on screen. If they are too light weight or fake looking, it might be obvious they aren't real (especially if I have real metal objects mixed in with them) plus they say "made in china" in a large font right on the coins which is obnoxious, and I dont know if that would show up on screen. They look pretty decent in pictures posted in reviews, but I am still unsure how they will hold up in bright, beachy lighting.

So is there anyone who has experience in making/buying fake treasure that could give me a recommendation? any experience with these or similar products? thanks in advance!


And of course I will post the final result when I am done

I have a SMALL chest filled with metal reproduction coins. But it was only partially full and I spent a lot of money on the metal coins.

I think the 72 coin plastic option is going to be your best option. I'm impressed with the customer pictures. They look nearly as good as my metal coins.

How deep do you need to fill the chest? If you don't need to have someone digging around in it, it'd be easy to install a false bottom and just add enough coins so it isn't obvious.

HVF said:

How deep do you need to fill the chest? If you don't need to have someone digging around in it, it'd be easy to install a false bottom and just add enough coins so it isn't obvious.

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Well the interior of the chest is 13" wide x 10" deep x 6" high, the coins only need to come up to 5" high though. I think a false bottom is a possibility, but it greatly limits my ability to put other objects in the chest, and while having the actors dig around in the chest isnt a necessity, i would prefer to have that option open.

Jintosh said:

I have a SMALL chest filled with metal reproduction coins. But it was only partially full and I spent a lot of money on the metal coins.

I think the 72 coin plastic option is going to be your best option. I'm impressed with the customer pictures. They look nearly as good as my metal coins.

Click to expand...

Yeah I think you are right. The way I see it, its the much cheaper option so if it doesn't turn out well its not like I wasted a ton of money.

The only question now is how many i will need. Its not a giant chest by any means but its not super tiny either. The interior dimensions are 13"x10"x6" and the coins are a decent size, plus i will have other objects in there. Im thinking maybe get three packs, which would be a bit over 200 coins. Are your coins the same size as these ones? and if so do you think 200 would be enough to fill in a majority of the dimensions i gave?

Would it be possible to line the bottom three inches of the chest and fill it with sand and use that like a false bottom? then place the plastic coins over the sand; and have the top layer be metal coins? That way the other objects could be placed in through the coins and will submerge in the sand. This might cause the chest to be too heavy to be moved easily; but then again a chest full of metal coins would be very heavy anyway.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001...rate+coins&dpPl=1&dpID=61IzGBV2OcL&ref=plSrch

other metal options are out there. Although reviews say they are small. I like that sand idea for the false bottom.

I would not only do the coins but some of those colored acrylic gems would likely be in a pirate's chest too. There was also an assortment of skeleton keys, that would be a neat addition.

...

It's not as filled as I thought. Guess I never finished.

These are the smaller metal coins. The chest is maybe 11 x 6 x 5.

I think this is 100 of the 1 inch coins. You might need more than 200 of the larger coins. Or false bottom. I added some acrylic gems I got off amazon.

GB1984 said:

Would it be possible to line the bottom three inches of the chest and fill it with sand and use that like a false bottom? then place the plastic coins over the sand; and have the top layer be metal coins? That way the other objects could be placed in through the coins and will submerge in the sand. This might cause the chest to be too heavy to be moved easily; but then again a chest full of metal coins would be very heavy anyway.

Click to expand...

thats not a bad idea actually. Im not sure about using both plastic and metal coins, if they get mixed up it might just make the plastic ones more obvious, but the sand isnt a bad idea. I already ordered 5 packs of the big plastic ones (so roughly 350 coins) and if they aren't good enough and don't look real i might use just metal ones and do your sand idea for larger objects. Still prevents the actors from digging into the chest, but like i said before that's not a necessity.

Iggy said:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001...rate+coins&dpPl=1&dpID=61IzGBV2OcL&ref=plSrch

other metal options are out there. Although reviews say they are small. I like that sand idea for the false bottom.

Click to expand...

yeah I had looked at those as well, they come in much larger packs but they are much smaller then the other ones, i'm not sure which would be cheaper to try and fill the chest with (either way i think it would be too expensive) I actually have one of each size (as well as a few other sized coins) that i have had since i was a kid, i think they came in a pack. The smallest one (the same that is in the link you posted) is just too small i think. here is a comparison picture of my two coins:

Robiwon said:

I would not only do the coins but some of those colored acrylic gems would likely be in a pirate's chest too. There was also an assortment of skeleton keys, that would be a neat addition.

Click to expand...

Jintosh said:

View attachment 710053...View attachment 710054

It's not as filled as I thought. Guess I never finished.

These are the smaller metal coins. The chest is maybe 11 x 6 x 5.

I think this is 100 of the 1 inch coins. You might need more than 200 of the larger coins. Or false bottom. I added some acrylic gems I got off amazon.

Click to expand...

I actually just bought glass gems from ebay last night. Do you know what size yours are? The ones i ordered were 30mm

http://www.ebay.com/itm/22240279788...49&var=521272486128&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

They would be about this size. I wanted them to be larger to make it just a tad more over the top, but i hope they aren't too large to the point of being comical:



Im thinking that next to the larger coins they will be fine.

Also great looking chest! I was thinking of doing the leather straps on mine, but im not really sure how to do it and i have come to like the more minimal look. I also added large D rings on the side, which might be kind of silly, but i like it lol

I also wanted some smaller jewels to mix in, but so far i haven't found anything thats both cheap and looks good.

something like these look perfect, but they are actual gemstones so its almost 20 dollars and it doesn't seem like you get that many according to the review pictures posted.

https://www.amazon.com/Wholesale-Be...rd_wg=7VVSs&psc=1&refRID=AXPAYY72H418EC32W3ZB

Anyone know where i might be able to get similar looking stones but made from glass/acrylic and cheaper? (also preferably in a larger quantity)

I also ordered the plastic coins last night, and decided to get 5 packs so thats 350 of the larger sized coins. I'm hoping that will be enough to fill most of it

Dollar store gold chains too. Need gold chains!

My gems look slightly larger than the 1 inch coins. But I have some different shapes and some smaller stones.

I could see if I have any left over that I'm not using and send them to you.


** Fair warning : There are some of the CLEAR stones in my chest, and they don't photograph well at all.

They are TOO clear.

What I did on a past project was a false bottom. I then took gold reflective wrapping paper and wrapped the false bottom. I thought that if things shifted a gold glint would give the illusion of more stuff underneath. Another option would be a printout of gold coins attached to the false bottom in the same manner. I did it for Halloween and it looked great! Our treasure chest was much bigger, so we just couldn't fill it, even with the cheap coins.

Since i will be waiting on the gold coins for a few days i decided to try my hand at making gold bars! I wanted them to be more realistic, more like old spanish gold bars as opposed to like fort knox style gold bars. These images were the ones i was going off of:







So i got some scrap wood i had and cut it into 6" long pieces



Then i filed them down unevenly



Sanded smooth



And... holy crap wtf just happened with the Oscars as i'm typing this? wow lol anyway

hammered and sanded again



primed and spray painted gold, and its done



Only finished three so far, will hopefully have all eight done by Tuesday when the coins come in.





Edit: I am happy with how they turned out overall, but i may repaint them with rust-oleum brand gold spray paint (i was using krylon) this comparison convinced me haha

Jintosh said:

My gems look slightly larger than the 1 inch coins. But I have some different shapes and some smaller stones.

I could see if I have any left over that I'm not using and send them to you.


** Fair warning : There are some of the CLEAR stones in my chest, and they don't photograph well at all.

They are TOO clear.

Click to expand...

oh wow, that would be really awesome if you were willing to do that!

Without getting too complicated, you may want to consider how it's used and when.

e.g.

If your actor is moving/carrying it, you will need it to have heft. Faking movement of a heavy chest will never look right no matter the talent.

If you're capturing sound during any interaction, you will want to make certain all loose coins are metal, and/or that they have an option to lock down and be silent when you don't want sound, or creating the wrong sound entirely (What sounds real isn't always real, and any plastic will always sound plastic). The sound of coins shuffling in an open or closed chest, is easier done as foley rather than during the take. Also, depending on your box construction it could end up sounding like a shipping crate rather than a treasure chest.

For filler, rather than a false bottom (speaking of angry sound engineers), I would suggest using gold/silver painted rocks. They can look like nuggets, while mostly providing an unseen volume which allows the placement of other objects where you want them in the chest without risking a re-take because a filler block was exposed. Your gold bars would work great however you won't want too many of those detracting from the coins.

Speaking of filler, if the chest is too heavy and it's worth the risk of having a filler block, florist foam wrapped in foil will allow a level of believably while keeping things lighter and quieter, with less risk of accidental overt on camera exposure.

Lastly you may look at doing a thin dark brown/black wash over whatever coins/bars you may use. Having that, and or other weathering will bring out a texture that will otherwise disappear on camera. Also, if done by hand on the plastic coins with "made in china", doing a simple wash over everything except the wording ought to make the words disappear and bring out the character of the coin sides. Even your paint may do better not actually looking like gold as it could look too much like brass in camera under filming lights. If time enough, do a quick screen test to see how the coins/bars look.

Also a smattering of "silver" coin/bars may be helpful to add contrast.

A few thoughts I hope may help with the prop and with filming.

I made most of the "Rich Stuff" gold for Goonies and when they they brought in the chest, which was a real 17th century iron "Armada" chest, I was concerned about the weight on set, and if the action called for the actors to pick up the chest. The chest, made of steel/iron, has a complex lock system in the lid and weighed about 60 lbs. and if I remember correctly was approximately 18" x 19" by 34". I pointed out, if filled with gold coins, It would weigh about 5,000 to 6000 lbs. and even with pewter coins it would weigh more than a ton. (Gold is nearly twice the density of pewter.) So we had to make a false bottom. These "Armada" chests, where more for documents than piles of gold and jewels.

The "old spanish gold bars", mrcarkeys42 speaks of are called necessity bars. In the "New world" they did not have coining mints, as this was not allowed, but if the government officials ran out of gold coins to pay their bills with, they could make these necessity bars. Which would have a date, a weight and some official seal/ stamp impression, sometime a partial coin die impression. You can see some of the shorter necessity bars in this shot.

Now, the coins I made where twice to four times as thick as a real coin. This was done to make them read on camera as more substantial, and take up more room. We still made over 2500 coins. (If you have the Goonies" book, they show some of these coins and bars as a boarder around some photos from the film and one of the bars has my initials in it. "CSG")

For another project, an amusement park in Korea, I made "Coin tiles" for their treasure room. This was done by taking a pile of Goonies coins and making a 2 foot by 2 foot flat pile of coins on a board and poured silicon rubber on the pile. Then once cured, I flipped the silicone over, pulled the board off and "excavated" all of the coins using a sharp X-Acto knife. The resulting mold made what looked like a pile surface of coins. The mold was spray pained with Krylon Gold paint, then urethane plastic was slushed into the mold and once cured, but still flexible, the urethane was pulled from the mold. This meant the rubber mold and the urethane part could flex so the casts came out of the mold with little fuss or damage.
Here is the painted coin tile

and here is the tile after being vacuum metalized in gold

We use these as false bottoms in our treasure chests.

Cheers,

Here's what I have left over. You can shoot me a couple bucks in PayPal for shipping if you want them.