Pee Wee's Playhouse Scooter and Helmet
- Thread starter nick daring
- Start date
killer3k
Active Member
The only bulldogs I've found that look loosely similar are:
Bottle opener:
Door knocker:
I doubt that a hat pin would be a large enough size, but...
Hat pin:
However, none of them are a match. Perhaps the ones on the helmet were inspired by something like this? It seems bulldog heads were a trend once upon a time. To me, the dog heads on the helmet look more like something that could be bought at Mario's Magic Shop on Pee Wee's Big adventure lol.
Regarding the reverse mold, I've read someone's idea on another thread that seemed to be interesting. Username T_bone9600 suggested that perhaps one could make a silicone mold, turn it inside out, fill the backside with something for support, then use fiberglass to copy the inverted mold. Seems like a good idea to me.
Another possibility is that they reproduced it by sculpting a new one while looking at the original in a mirror. I found a reverse version of the flying wall ducks made by a Japanese company but they are NOT identical to the ones on the helmet. There are obvious differences:
Genuine Vintage Set 3 Flying Ducks Japan Retro Chic for Your Wall | eBay
Perhaps the same company that made the ones that were used on the helmet also made a mirror image version of the ducks???
In any case, I would assume that the artists working on the helmet made a mold and recreated the ducks in plastic because I can't see anyone using ceramic due to fragility. Plus, as you've pointed out, it's possible that they have shaped the ducks to the contour of the helmet. In some pictures I see what you're talking about, but in other pictures it seem like it could be an optical illusion (but considering the roundness of the helmet, one would thing these 'flat' ducks would need to be shaped to fit the contour of the helmet, so that's why I'm inclined to believe you are right about that). Another possibility is that they had cut or filed the ducks to fit the contour of the helmet. Who knows. We'll have to figure it out ourselves unless someone is able to contact the artists who made the helmet or the art director. But it's been so many years they might not remember much about it. I've written to Gary Panter (assuming I've found the right Gary Panter) but I haven't heard back from him yet. He's someone who might know something about this stuff since he worked on the set.
NOTE: The backs of ceramic wall ducks are sometimes hollow (the bodies aren't solid). But I've seen others that are solid but the back is flat. I don't know how this info could help, but there it is.
As for the cowboys, now that a clearer image has been posted I think it will help with the identification. But I still can't tell if my theory is right about one cowboy facing forward and the other one facing backwards. I think they must have been custom painted for the helmet. If one is forward facing and the other backwards, they could have painted them to give the appearance that they are both facing forward for the sake of consistency.
Or, if they've managed to make an exact mirror image copy of the mold, then perhaps they've done it with the ducks and the cowboys.
I agree with the headlight thing.
Bottle opener:
Door knocker:
I doubt that a hat pin would be a large enough size, but...
Hat pin:
However, none of them are a match. Perhaps the ones on the helmet were inspired by something like this? It seems bulldog heads were a trend once upon a time. To me, the dog heads on the helmet look more like something that could be bought at Mario's Magic Shop on Pee Wee's Big adventure lol.
Regarding the reverse mold, I've read someone's idea on another thread that seemed to be interesting. Username T_bone9600 suggested that perhaps one could make a silicone mold, turn it inside out, fill the backside with something for support, then use fiberglass to copy the inverted mold. Seems like a good idea to me.
Another possibility is that they reproduced it by sculpting a new one while looking at the original in a mirror. I found a reverse version of the flying wall ducks made by a Japanese company but they are NOT identical to the ones on the helmet. There are obvious differences:
Genuine Vintage Set 3 Flying Ducks Japan Retro Chic for Your Wall | eBay
Perhaps the same company that made the ones that were used on the helmet also made a mirror image version of the ducks???
In any case, I would assume that the artists working on the helmet made a mold and recreated the ducks in plastic because I can't see anyone using ceramic due to fragility. Plus, as you've pointed out, it's possible that they have shaped the ducks to the contour of the helmet. In some pictures I see what you're talking about, but in other pictures it seem like it could be an optical illusion (but considering the roundness of the helmet, one would thing these 'flat' ducks would need to be shaped to fit the contour of the helmet, so that's why I'm inclined to believe you are right about that). Another possibility is that they had cut or filed the ducks to fit the contour of the helmet. Who knows. We'll have to figure it out ourselves unless someone is able to contact the artists who made the helmet or the art director. But it's been so many years they might not remember much about it. I've written to Gary Panter (assuming I've found the right Gary Panter) but I haven't heard back from him yet. He's someone who might know something about this stuff since he worked on the set.
NOTE: The backs of ceramic wall ducks are sometimes hollow (the bodies aren't solid). But I've seen others that are solid but the back is flat. I don't know how this info could help, but there it is.
As for the cowboys, now that a clearer image has been posted I think it will help with the identification. But I still can't tell if my theory is right about one cowboy facing forward and the other one facing backwards. I think they must have been custom painted for the helmet. If one is forward facing and the other backwards, they could have painted them to give the appearance that they are both facing forward for the sake of consistency.
Or, if they've managed to make an exact mirror image copy of the mold, then perhaps they've done it with the ducks and the cowboys.
I agree with the headlight thing.
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killer3k
Active Member
This heat lamp looks to be the right shape.
http://www.hansonbrass.com/Heat-Lam...0-RET-Retractable-Heat-Lamp-Brass-Finish.html
The one pictured above has a brass finish but the website says it's available in ANY finish. Pee Wee's has a Chrome finish.
http://www.hansonbrass.com/Heat-Lam...0-RET-Retractable-Heat-Lamp-Brass-Finish.html
The one pictured above has a brass finish but the website says it's available in ANY finish. Pee Wee's has a Chrome finish.
Abelugo
Sr Member
good eye on the heat lamp, but also note that there is a screen cap with the helmet on the lamp, so you can guesstimate the proportion of the lamp to the helmet.
On sculpting, you guys are talking about sculpting a mirrored version of something. You can't just flip a mold. though it is easy to sculpt something if you have the original to begin with. Or if you find the actual bulldog, have it scanned and output it mirrored.
Though I Thing it either got resculpted mirrored or it is an item that would have a laft and right side, like someone suggested a cake decoration.
On sculpting, you guys are talking about sculpting a mirrored version of something. You can't just flip a mold. though it is easy to sculpt something if you have the original to begin with. Or if you find the actual bulldog, have it scanned and output it mirrored.
Though I Thing it either got resculpted mirrored or it is an item that would have a laft and right side, like someone suggested a cake decoration.
killer3k
Active Member
Thanks, but the item that needs to be mirrored is the wall duck, which is only one-sided. That's the problem.
I wasn't talking about just flipping a mold and mounting the mold on the helmet haha. I know it sounded that way from what I wrote.
I meant that if you could flip the silicone inside out and make a resin copy from it, then you would have a mirror image mold to make a copy from.
However, the final product would have inverted details because even though you've flipped the body of the mold inside out, the details probably won't stay flipped so easily even when you create a supporting shell. The resulting duck would also be slightly smaller than the original. But couldn't you just manually add details and correct the size by sculpting on top of the resulting duck and then make a new mold from it and repeat the process? In essence, you'd basically be sculpting a new duck onto a template created by the mold, and then you'd make a new mold from it and a new resin copy from the new mold, resulting in a reversed duck with all the details and size accuracy. I hope my explanation isn't too confusing lol.
I've never attempted anything like this before so I might just be spewing non-sense.
I'm just trying to figure out an inexpensive solution that can be done from home.
Here's something I found online:
Make a very thin latex mold and turn it inside out. I would use
air pressure to "inflate" the mold while you reinforce the thin shell
with another thicker layer of rubber. Mount the thin latex mold to a
flat board that has a 3/8" hole in the bottom with vacuum seal tape
(duct tape might work here). Thread in a nipple to attach to the hole
on the board to attach to an air compressor. Inflate the mold to 15-
30psi. Pour on a thick layer of latex to reinforce the mold Your
mirrored piece will be slightly smaller than the original.
You may want to make a new "original" piece too. You could use the
same latex to make a mold for the original side but add a few drops
of xylene to shrink the original mold. It may take a little
experimentation with the xylene to match the shrinkage that you will
need to match to the mirrored piece..
Either way there may be a decent amount of finishing work involved to
get the pieces to match to your taste. This should get you pretty
close though.
BUT....
I think that both ducks could be hand sculpted in order to make them curve to the shape of the helmet. Then molds made, then resin copies made (if you don't want to use your original sculpts on the helmet).
Another approach would be to sculpt onto the flat side of the original duck in order to make a WHOLE duck. This way, you could get the dimensions and details accurate very easily by comparing each size and seeing it as a whole duck. Then, create separate silicone molds from each side and then make resin copies from the molds. Just brainstorming again...
Thoughts?
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I'd guess the duck is made from a thin plastic or rubber duck toy that was simply cut in half and glued down to fit the curve.
Nick
Nick
killer3k
Active Member
To simplify things, here is a compiled list of parts that are most likely to be the correct parts:
BMX Strada Scooter
Manufacturer: Veriflex
Vintage flying wall duck plaque
I probably shouldn't list this item yet because it's still unknown as to whether actual ceramic wall ducks were used to make a mold from or if there was a manufacturer of plastic or rubber ducks that looked similar to the wall duck that lostcasket posted on this thread. This item is still in question. The wall duck posted by lostcasket is very close to the wall ducks on pee wee's helmet but may not be identical. Upon close investigation of the feathers (number of feathers, etc based upon what I can tell from the available images) it may not be a perfect match but it's pretty close. Also, the ducks on the helmet seem to bend with the curve of the helmet and the ceramic duck doesn't have that curve. So i guess the reason I'm listing this item is because lostcasket's find is close enough of a match to use as a substitute even if it doesn't turn out to be a perfect match. Even Paul Reubens himself probably wouldn't know the difference as long as they were molded and customized just right lol. But we'll keep looking.
MADBALLS (Oculus Orbus)
Manufacturer: AmToy, a subsidiary company of American Greetings.
Spark Gun
Seems to be from the 1950s-1960s.
(I've seen two versions. One's package says "Mini pistola espacial con destellos" on top. On the bottom left of the packaging it says Lionel's S.r.l. and on the bottom right it says "IND. ARGENTINA".
The other version of the packaging says "LUCES Y SONIDOS del ESPACIO on the top. On the bottom left of the packaging it says "mini pistola con luz y sonido".
Mechanical Boys Tricycle (toy)
vintage clown cake toppers
Flame stickers
(available from the Uxcell website in the wrong color but it's the right design)
Trackball (cut and used to make the 'eyelid' over the eye)
From a Trackball game. Manufacturer: WHAM-O
Wire looms
(These were glued onto the 'eyelid' mechanism)
plastic dinosaur toys
Manufacturer: Ajax / Tootsietoy
I'll update this list as more parts are identified.
BMX Strada Scooter
Manufacturer: Veriflex
Vintage flying wall duck plaque
I probably shouldn't list this item yet because it's still unknown as to whether actual ceramic wall ducks were used to make a mold from or if there was a manufacturer of plastic or rubber ducks that looked similar to the wall duck that lostcasket posted on this thread. This item is still in question. The wall duck posted by lostcasket is very close to the wall ducks on pee wee's helmet but may not be identical. Upon close investigation of the feathers (number of feathers, etc based upon what I can tell from the available images) it may not be a perfect match but it's pretty close. Also, the ducks on the helmet seem to bend with the curve of the helmet and the ceramic duck doesn't have that curve. So i guess the reason I'm listing this item is because lostcasket's find is close enough of a match to use as a substitute even if it doesn't turn out to be a perfect match. Even Paul Reubens himself probably wouldn't know the difference as long as they were molded and customized just right lol. But we'll keep looking.
MADBALLS (Oculus Orbus)
Manufacturer: AmToy, a subsidiary company of American Greetings.
Spark Gun
Seems to be from the 1950s-1960s.
(I've seen two versions. One's package says "Mini pistola espacial con destellos" on top. On the bottom left of the packaging it says Lionel's S.r.l. and on the bottom right it says "IND. ARGENTINA".
The other version of the packaging says "LUCES Y SONIDOS del ESPACIO on the top. On the bottom left of the packaging it says "mini pistola con luz y sonido".
Mechanical Boys Tricycle (toy)
vintage clown cake toppers
Flame stickers
(available from the Uxcell website in the wrong color but it's the right design)
Trackball (cut and used to make the 'eyelid' over the eye)
From a Trackball game. Manufacturer: WHAM-O
Wire looms
(These were glued onto the 'eyelid' mechanism)
plastic dinosaur toys
Manufacturer: Ajax / Tootsietoy
I'll update this list as more parts are identified.
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killer3k
Active Member
Here's the alternate version of the packaging for the spark gun
Space Mini Ray Gun - SPARKS Friction - Toy in Original Box - Argentina VINTAGE | eBay
Space Mini Ray Gun - SPARKS Friction - Toy in Original Box - Argentina VINTAGE | eBay
killer3k
Active Member
I may have just made a break through on the ducks!!!
Look at the ducks in the pics below and compare the wing of the duck on the left side of the helmet with the wing on the right side. See the difference? It seems obvious to me that the wing on pee wee's right (bottom pic) is facing the wrong way!!!
We are seeing the top of the wing instead of the underside of the wing!!!
So the original duck is the one on Pee Wee's left (top pic) and the one on Pee Wee's right is a mirror image replica of ONLY THE BODY of the duck with a molded copy of the wing from the other duck stuck to it (not mirrored, but flipped around so that the angle of the wing is correct). Or they just reused the wing that they removed from the other duck (wall ducks have two wings even though they are one-sided but on pee wee's helmet there is only one wing per duck - which means there is one unused wing that could be used for the mirrored replica). Hope you understand what I'm saying. Just look at the pics below and you'll see what I'm talking about if you study the wings closely (just look for the ridge of the bird's "arm". It's only on one of the wings)
I think that this confirms that it's a wall duck as lostcasket suggested.
Otherwise they wouldn't have had to do that weird thing with the wing.
So now the question is: How did they replicate the body?
Obviously they must have either made it from scratch or they did something dodgy like flip a silicone mold inside out and made a resin copy in a similar way to what I posted earlier. The body doesn't have much detail, so that MIGHT work. Who knows. But at least now we know how they did the wing.
As for following the curve of the helmet, do you think it's possible that they just cut the heads off at the ring of the neck, glued them to the helmet separately from the bodies and then filled in the cracks?
Additionally, they could have even cut or belt sanded a curve into the duck parts before sticking them to the helmet to ensure a snug fit or instead of cutting/sanding they could have just filled all the cracks. Something to think about.
EDIT:
Just looked at these other pics and they look a little different because they are better quality images. Now I'm starting to wonder if I had it right or not.
The "ridge" on one wing looks more prominent than the ridge on the other wing, so it's hard to say. This could just be a result of the mold or it could be the lighting or the quality/sharpness differences in the images. Or it could be that my theory is right about just flipping a wing around. So I guess now the question is, what do the BACKS of the wall duck wings look like (the side of the wings that face the wall).
Please study these pics (the ones above and the ones below) and let me know what you guys think.
Look at the ducks in the pics below and compare the wing of the duck on the left side of the helmet with the wing on the right side. See the difference? It seems obvious to me that the wing on pee wee's right (bottom pic) is facing the wrong way!!!
We are seeing the top of the wing instead of the underside of the wing!!!
So the original duck is the one on Pee Wee's left (top pic) and the one on Pee Wee's right is a mirror image replica of ONLY THE BODY of the duck with a molded copy of the wing from the other duck stuck to it (not mirrored, but flipped around so that the angle of the wing is correct). Or they just reused the wing that they removed from the other duck (wall ducks have two wings even though they are one-sided but on pee wee's helmet there is only one wing per duck - which means there is one unused wing that could be used for the mirrored replica). Hope you understand what I'm saying. Just look at the pics below and you'll see what I'm talking about if you study the wings closely (just look for the ridge of the bird's "arm". It's only on one of the wings)
I think that this confirms that it's a wall duck as lostcasket suggested.
Otherwise they wouldn't have had to do that weird thing with the wing.
So now the question is: How did they replicate the body?
Obviously they must have either made it from scratch or they did something dodgy like flip a silicone mold inside out and made a resin copy in a similar way to what I posted earlier. The body doesn't have much detail, so that MIGHT work. Who knows. But at least now we know how they did the wing.
As for following the curve of the helmet, do you think it's possible that they just cut the heads off at the ring of the neck, glued them to the helmet separately from the bodies and then filled in the cracks?
Additionally, they could have even cut or belt sanded a curve into the duck parts before sticking them to the helmet to ensure a snug fit or instead of cutting/sanding they could have just filled all the cracks. Something to think about.
EDIT:
Just looked at these other pics and they look a little different because they are better quality images. Now I'm starting to wonder if I had it right or not.
The "ridge" on one wing looks more prominent than the ridge on the other wing, so it's hard to say. This could just be a result of the mold or it could be the lighting or the quality/sharpness differences in the images. Or it could be that my theory is right about just flipping a wing around. So I guess now the question is, what do the BACKS of the wall duck wings look like (the side of the wings that face the wall).
Please study these pics (the ones above and the ones below) and let me know what you guys think.
I'm going to start looking for 'whole' plastic or rubber ducks like Nick suggested. Because now I'm back to being confused lol.
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killer3k
Active Member
I've been searching non-stop but I haven't had any luck finding a 'whole' duck so far. But I have found evidence that at least ONE company made 'mirror image' wall ducks albeit slightly different in size to one another.
But so far, the wall ducks that lostcasket posted are the closest match I've seen. Let's keep looking.
But so far, the wall ducks that lostcasket posted are the closest match I've seen. Let's keep looking.
killer3k
Active Member
Notice how the outer wing has detail on the backside which is similar to what the detail would be on the other side of the same wing. This brings us back to the possibility that they replicated and used the same wing for both ducks by simply flipping the wing around and sticking it onto a hand sculpted 'mirror image' of the body. I don't know what the point of this would be other than to save time and energy on sculpting and detailing a wing by hand and to improve accuracy of the dimensions.
Just a theory.
Also, note how the head is a complete head and the legs/feet are complete too.
One could potentially replicate the head, leg and wing via mold and attach the parts to the hand sculpted 'mirror image' body. If the heads are detached and glued to the helmet separate from the bodies to help match the curve (as mentioned in one of my other recent replies), then this could work too. I know this is a strange approach, and I know that this is a different duck from the one on the helmet. But I'm assuming that most wall ducks are made roughly the same in the fact that the outer wing and the head would need to be complete since they both stuck out from the wall slightly. So both halves of the head, the wing and the feet could be duplicated easily via mold, affixed to the body or the helmet, and then touched up to hide the cracks. This way of doing it isn't very conventional, but it could work.
So really, the only thing that would need to be hand sculpted is the body and tail. Again, just a theory about how they might have done it. Most people would probably just sculpt the whole 'mirror image' duck by hand. But this theory could explain why one wing looks slightly different from the other in the pics.
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killer3k
Active Member
RETRO COIN PURSE:
Retro Coin Purse - Handbags & Wallets - Beauty & Accessories - Walter Drake
I couldn't find a red one, but it can be dyed red and it would still maintain it's translucent properties, much in the same way that it would if you colored it with a red permanent marker (I wouldn't suggest using a marker though lol. I just used that as an example because I'm sure everyone has written on a clear item with a marker before).
1.) First you need to clean the coin purse with windex or any surface cleaner. Be sure to clean it thoroughly.
2.) Fill a pot with water and stir in some red Rit dye, bring it to a boil.
3.) Place the coin purse in the water/dye mixture and keep the water boiling.
The longer you boil it the darker it will get but it does take a while.
Check it in ten minute intervals.
5.) Rinse the coin purse off and set it down someplace to cool on it's own.
In my experience most if not all plastics will hold up in boiling water, but they do get soft so be careful with it just in case. You might want to use a big spoon to handle it rather than tongs or something that could potentially stretch or tear through the plastic.
Another option is to use tint paint.
Tamiya makes a tint paint called "smoke" or "clear red". The more you spray, the darker it gets.
Once you've dyed/tinted your coin purse, you can then paint the chrome parts red and add that cute little pig face onto it. Yay!
Retro Coin Purse - Handbags & Wallets - Beauty & Accessories - Walter Drake
I couldn't find a red one, but it can be dyed red and it would still maintain it's translucent properties, much in the same way that it would if you colored it with a red permanent marker (I wouldn't suggest using a marker though lol. I just used that as an example because I'm sure everyone has written on a clear item with a marker before).
1.) First you need to clean the coin purse with windex or any surface cleaner. Be sure to clean it thoroughly.
2.) Fill a pot with water and stir in some red Rit dye, bring it to a boil.
3.) Place the coin purse in the water/dye mixture and keep the water boiling.
The longer you boil it the darker it will get but it does take a while.
Check it in ten minute intervals.
5.) Rinse the coin purse off and set it down someplace to cool on it's own.
In my experience most if not all plastics will hold up in boiling water, but they do get soft so be careful with it just in case. You might want to use a big spoon to handle it rather than tongs or something that could potentially stretch or tear through the plastic.
Another option is to use tint paint.
Tamiya makes a tint paint called "smoke" or "clear red". The more you spray, the darker it gets.
Once you've dyed/tinted your coin purse, you can then paint the chrome parts red and add that cute little pig face onto it. Yay!
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killer3k
Active Member
Great suggestion. Thanks!
I've been slaving away at this, so it's awesome to get feedback from others along the way who are more experienced than I. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread and to Nick (the guy who apparently started this killer thread). Because of you guys, it seems I'm finally going to make this freakin helmet and scooter than I've wanted to own since I was a kid lol. I mean, it's only taken 25 years for it to occur to me that I could make one for myself. Jeez.
killer3k
Active Member
The spring that the gun is attached to on the scooter is called a COMPRESSION SPRING.
It's the same type of spring that is found on a jack in the box or a bed.
You can purchase springs from the following link or from any number of other places that sell springs.
Buy Compression Springs Online | Small, Helical & Coil | Century Spring Corp.
It doesn't matter where pee wee's spring came from. A spring is a spring. As long as it's the same size as the one on the scooter that's all that matters. The coils need to be just big enough to fit the handle of the gun. I would order a longer spring than I think I'll need and then count the number of coils on pee wee's scooter and cut mine so that the number of coils matches his. If it's too short at that stage it could always be stretched.
It's the same type of spring that is found on a jack in the box or a bed.
You can purchase springs from the following link or from any number of other places that sell springs.
Buy Compression Springs Online | Small, Helical & Coil | Century Spring Corp.
It doesn't matter where pee wee's spring came from. A spring is a spring. As long as it's the same size as the one on the scooter that's all that matters. The coils need to be just big enough to fit the handle of the gun. I would order a longer spring than I think I'll need and then count the number of coils on pee wee's scooter and cut mine so that the number of coils matches his. If it's too short at that stage it could always be stretched.
killer3k
Active Member
As for the pig on the coin purse, I seriously doubt the purse came with it.
I'll bet it's a pin.
Another likely possibility in my mind is that it's a cake topper like the clown heads. But if that's the case, I'd think the best way to attach it to the bag would be to hot glue it into place. That's what I think anyhow. That should hold pretty well.
I've already looked for pig cake toppers to no avail.
I might take a break from the ducks and start looking for a pig PIN to see what I can find. But that's not gonna happen right now cause I've gotta run.
I'll bet it's a pin.
Another likely possibility in my mind is that it's a cake topper like the clown heads. But if that's the case, I'd think the best way to attach it to the bag would be to hot glue it into place. That's what I think anyhow. That should hold pretty well.
I've already looked for pig cake toppers to no avail.
I might take a break from the ducks and start looking for a pig PIN to see what I can find. But that's not gonna happen right now cause I've gotta run.
The other duck might e just had its wing sticking out at a different angle and the prop builder just cut it off and reattached it at an angle similar to the other.
The construction methods in all the props seem to focus primarily on Assembling and building and very little molding and casting. I saw a cool Wayne White documentary this summer and covered a lot of his work on the pee wee playhouse puppet and set construction. Very primitive stuff by a crew with very little experience.
That was why it was so visually charming though.
Nick
The construction methods in all the props seem to focus primarily on Assembling and building and very little molding and casting. I saw a cool Wayne White documentary this summer and covered a lot of his work on the pee wee playhouse puppet and set construction. Very primitive stuff by a crew with very little experience.
That was why it was so visually charming though.
Nick
lostcasket
Active Member
I just got back from vacation, so much more information!!!
lostcasket
Active Member
Side note: Water Bug Willie from Big Adventure.
Vintage Wham-o Willy Water Bug Sprinkler Toy Boxed! Rare | eBay
From the commentary of the movie, they have to produce something a little larger.
Came across it while searching Tracball from Whamm-o toys
Vintage Wham-o Willy Water Bug Sprinkler Toy Boxed! Rare | eBay
From the commentary of the movie, they have to produce something a little larger.
Came across it while searching Tracball from Whamm-o toys
