My first prop build! A newbie arrives...

Booyotch

Active Member
Hello all!

I've been a lurker for awhile, but this is my first post, about my first prop build.

Sooo... the wife is out of town for the weekend, and I was at work on Thursday and suddenly thought to myself "I need a Ghostbusters Trap". My friends and I (at our weekly gamenight) have been saying "I looked at the trap, Ray!" when one of us does something stupid.

I'm no stranger to building, as I like to paint miniatures and have built my own arcade machine. That build was also a mid-workweek idea out of nowhere.

So I did some research, and built this one based on Sean Bishop's mockup. I knew that trying to build an exact replica would take much longer, and be much harder/more expensive than I had time for, so I attempted to get it as close as I could with materials I already had on hand.

It's made from foamcore, with greebles I had, including some vintage knobs from old hand radios. I still have the front power display to finish, along with the roll plate and some labeling. Total time is somewhere around 16 hours or so.
When i finally got it to where I wanted it, i immediately thought of 100 ways I would have done it differently. That's when I knew I was on the right track for prop making! i know this is probably a common build, but i'm really pleased by it as my first attempt. Maybe someday I'll make one using arduino and some servos.

Anyways, I am super excited about the future, and thanks to my supportive friends, and inspiration from Adam Savage and this board for getting me in front of the work table. Cripes, WHAT TO BUILD NEXT?!?!
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Why stop with just the trap... Go the whole hog Proton pack and Wand.. there is enough information out there about scratch building it :)
 
I feel all scatterbrained about what to do next! I have 3 ideas bouncing around... I built the cyclotron for the Proton pack a couple of years ago, but I'm not sure where it is. But the biggest thing I have bouncing around my head right now is the gimbal heavy machine gun from Aliens. But i need more tools for that ;)
 
Great first build. That seems like one I wouldn't mind attempting in the future. If you don't mind me asking, what was the estimated cost of the build?
 
Great build - especially for a first prop!


I sure hope you set it in the middle of the table at your "weakly game night" and enjoyed the moment!
 
Nice! Makes me want to go watch Ghostbusters... Now you can begin V2.0 incorporating your new ideas and add a remote door release foot trigger and internal glowy light with opening doors! Some "scratch and dent" paint work would also take it to the next level. Awesome Job! :)
 
Oh yeah, this thing is gonna get weathered!

As for the costs question above, I had a few things around, but here's what I spent:
foamboard: $5
Black paint: $3
Wooden dowel: $3
switch: $3
yellow electrical tape: $3
The rest I had around the house...
 
Thanks for that. I have gotten in to budget builds recently and this might be able to fit in to that category with some creativity. If it is ok, I may PM you some time with questions.
 
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