First Thread and First Prop
- Thread starter SandmanWs7
- Start date
SandmanWs7
New Member
Thank you! It's been fun working on it.
The shadow doesn't project on the wall. That's why we went with LEDs to give us the glow. It'll be a great night light.
Figure5901
Well-Known Member
Wow! What are you going to do for your second prop?
SandmanWs7
New Member
A few friends want one so I'll probably make 5 more of these before I get to anything else though. This first one was mainly to get our plans drawn. We have looked at this one and seen some areas that we can improve on. After that, I want to give one of the Iron Man helmets I have seen members on here a try.
SandmanWs7
New Member
Ok so we finished the project. Here are the final build pics and the complete Bat Signal. Hope you guys enjoy!!
We tackled the slab. We used 1 1/2" HDU foam. I was at the hardware store looking for paint to match concrete and found this. It's concrete patching compound, I didn't know this even existed.
So we just started spreading it over the foam to give us a real concrete look.
The final product. Looks like it is made of an actual slab of concrete but only wieghs 3-4 pounds. It is very light. We are very happy that we didn't go with the spatter paint.
These are the pieces of the electrical box that fits under the light tube. We made this from the same material as the tube.
Bent and assembled.
Bolted to the tube.
For the lighting we used an LED strip that we found at our local electronics part store. We added a hole to the back of the box. It gives it a clean look if we do not want it powered up and it makes it easy to plug in our AC adapter for when we do want to give it power. You can also see the final base plate that is screwed to the slab.
And finally the finished product!
and with power
We would like to thank everyone for the kind words and we hope to post future props, what ever they may be. :cool
We tackled the slab. We used 1 1/2" HDU foam. I was at the hardware store looking for paint to match concrete and found this. It's concrete patching compound, I didn't know this even existed.
So we just started spreading it over the foam to give us a real concrete look.
The final product. Looks like it is made of an actual slab of concrete but only wieghs 3-4 pounds. It is very light. We are very happy that we didn't go with the spatter paint.
These are the pieces of the electrical box that fits under the light tube. We made this from the same material as the tube.
Bent and assembled.
Bolted to the tube.
For the lighting we used an LED strip that we found at our local electronics part store. We added a hole to the back of the box. It gives it a clean look if we do not want it powered up and it makes it easy to plug in our AC adapter for when we do want to give it power. You can also see the final base plate that is screwed to the slab.
And finally the finished product!
and with power
We would like to thank everyone for the kind words and we hope to post future props, what ever they may be. :cool
TJSonOfAnder
Member
That looks so awesome outside. Could you imagine having these as flood lights around your house!? Some changes might need to be made to the construction if it was going to be an outdoor item. But I wouldn't want to risk someone running off with my bat signal.
Awesome work, are you thinking about selling them on the forum down the road?
Awesome work, are you thinking about selling them on the forum down the road?
TMNT Fan
New Member
Two things. What is the amount of lumens you've been using? A projector uses anywhere from 1300 to 4500. Also, have you done a multiple LED setup where you can focus, say, 5 sets of 10 LEDS(small flashlight) at the center of the bat logo? Without it being focused you'd have more excess light shining on the spot where the shadow should be.
I'm not a light guy, but it's just a couple of things that came to mind for me.
I'm not a light guy, but it's just a couple of things that came to mind for me.
SandmanWs7
New Member
Thank you!
I have not added up the total cost. All the acrylic used is drop from jobs we have done at work. Same thing with the aluminum.
No, I don't think I'll be selling them. Out of curiosity what would something like this go for? You guys are the pros, I just started.
I used .040 anodized aluminum
Thanks
Thank you.I'm not much of a Batman fan, but this is massively cool.
Im just a newb. I went to an electronics store and saw this strip of LEDs and bought one. i dont know the specs
TMNT Fan
New Member
First: A lumen is a measurement of the total amount of VISIBLE light produced by a light source. 1 Lumen = about the power of a single candle.
Second: I did a little research because I'm really interested in seeing this work for you. I found that in other shadow casting items (like this: Lumen Oil Candle Shadow Projectors) the light source is pretty close to the figure you want to cast as a shadow. Using the Flash light, or a flood light is a good idea, but I think you'd have better luck using something you can focus the beam with. Buying a couple of these (FordEx Group 300lm Adjustable Flashlight) is a relatively inexpensive way to do that. The light source for the size of the bat logo should prolly be about 6-8 inches away. If that. With you being able to focus the beam, it could further back. In theory.
If you have a flood light you could just use that. You'd need to figure out a way to focus it, however, so you could set it back further so it didn't mess with the look of the signal.
Whether you try any of this or not, it's a cool design. Good job.
Second: I did a little research because I'm really interested in seeing this work for you. I found that in other shadow casting items (like this: Lumen Oil Candle Shadow Projectors) the light source is pretty close to the figure you want to cast as a shadow. Using the Flash light, or a flood light is a good idea, but I think you'd have better luck using something you can focus the beam with. Buying a couple of these (FordEx Group 300lm Adjustable Flashlight) is a relatively inexpensive way to do that. The light source for the size of the bat logo should prolly be about 6-8 inches away. If that. With you being able to focus the beam, it could further back. In theory.
If you have a flood light you could just use that. You'd need to figure out a way to focus it, however, so you could set it back further so it didn't mess with the look of the signal.
Whether you try any of this or not, it's a cool design.
Good job.
SandmanWs7
New Member
First: A lumen is a measurement of the total amount of VISIBLE light produced by a light source. 1 Lumen = about the power of a single candle.
Second: I did a little research because I'm really interested in seeing this work for you. I found that in other shadow casting items (like this: Lumen Oil Candle Shadow Projectors) the light source is pretty close to the figure you want to cast as a shadow. Using the Flash light, or a flood light is a good idea, but I think you'd have better luck using something you can focus the beam with. Buying a couple of these (FordEx Group 300lm Adjustable Flashlight) is a relatively inexpensive way to do that. The light source for the size of the bat logo should prolly be about 6-8 inches away. If that. With you being able to focus the beam, it could further back. In theory.
If you have a flood light you could just use that. You'd need to figure out a way to focus it, however, so you could set it back further so it didn't mess with the look of the signal.
Whether you try any of this or not, it's a cool design.
Thank you for this information. I will definitely keep this in mind with the next one we make. :thumbsup
Wow, an outstanding build. Clean and spot-on. Congrats.
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