| NR1
23-Year-Old Male
Rockwall, TEXAS
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| | This is my first Slime Blower that I started in the summer of 2006; however I abandoned it shortly after starting in favor of a Proton Pack. Now that I have built my Proton Pack after two years, I am finishing what I started with the Blower! It is based off of Slimer7's plans and careful studying of TheWug's slime blower in the message boards. Speedmonkey80 and I were building our blowers at the same time so we provide each other with hints and suggestions along the way.
The main gray tank is an 8-inch concrete form tube that can be purchased at either Lowe's or Home Depot in the Lumber department. The two dome end caps on each end are plastic bowls I found at Hobby Lobby. Other Slime Blower builders have used nice plastic domes located on the Internet at https://barnardltd.com/product.jsp?prodId=3874&catId=703
To give the tank a more smooth and metallic/ plastic appearance, the entire tank (tube and domes) were covered in DAP Vinyl Spackling and then sanded down. Spackling can be located in the paint department of any store.
The two secondary green tanks are 4-inch PVC pipe with divided Christmas ornament balls on either end. Unfortunately, because I was unable to locate domes that were a perfect fit, I was forced to build up the dome sizes with Bondo and spackling. I highly suggest avoiding this option in favor of locating correctly sized plastic spheres from the above mentioned website. Bondo is a pain to work with and very difficult to hand properly. My Christmas ornament balls were also from Hobby Lobby, but most arts and crafts stores sell them year round.
The smaller white box on the left side tank is just a 1x2x3 project enclosure purchased at Radio Shack for about $3 and then painted white. The green and red LED lenses were also purchased from Radio Shack in a two pack (1 green & 1 red). The box was glued onto the PVC pipe with an extremely strong plumbers glue called "Amazing Goop" which can be located on the spray paint/ glue/ tape aisle at Home Depot. In fact, this "Goop" was used for all major gluing parts of this project because it works so well.
The power cell box on the right side tank was a hand built box constructed of 3/4-inch plywood for the top and bottom and 1/4-inch plywood for all the sides. The reason for this was to reduce weight and make it easier to install the lights. Unlike a movie accurate Blower, the black bar beside the orange lens is merely painted on. According to plans, it is suppose to be inset. I don't think it is even noticeable to be honest, and I see no reason for anyone to knock himself or herself out over this minor detail that is quite difficult to include.
The two flashlights on top of each secondary tank are just that: flashlights. Mine are Streamlight flashlights that are designed to be worn on your head with elastic straps. You can find these just about anywhere, but I got mine at Bass Pro Shop. This is a rather expensive option; so let me suggest that anyone reading this to actually use the more movie accurate and far cheaper halogen headlights for a bicycle at http://doitbest.com/Halogen+bulbs-Variflex+Bravo+Cycle+Force-model-B-043-doitbest-sku-804598.dib
Speaking of lights, my blower has been equipped with a modified Exoray Proton Pack light kit. The blue bar graph is obviously being used as the orange bar graph in the power cell, except the orange lens filter make the light appear orange instead of blue from the LEDs. The four red cyclotron lights are powering the four red and green LED lens on the power cell and the smaller white box on the left tank. Because of the nature of red light, when the “green” lights blink on, it actually appears red.
The metal hose connectors that I used were partially suggested by Speedmonkey80. He apparently located his connectors at Home Depot in the Electrical department, but after extensive searching, they could not be found even with the assistance of two employees. I then went next door to Lowe’s and found two separately package items that were when glued together to create a remarkably similar fitting to Speedmonkey80’s.
Part 1 is a NEER 3/4 Compression Connector (Part # 44251) for steel EMT Conduit, Concrete tight.
Part 2 is a NEER 1/2 Watertight Conduit Hub (Part # 44070).
Had I been able to locate both of these parts in the same size, I’m sure I could have screwed them together, but as it stands, I glued them together just as easily with plumber’s Goop. Both parts are located in the electrical department.
The red sphere I used is a Styrofoam ball I got from Wal-Mart's arts and crafts section. Unlike the one in the link below, Wal-mart's are a dark green color. You can also get these at Hobby Lobby, Joann Fabrics, and just about every crafts store under the sun. They are cheap too!
http://www.save-on-crafts.com/styrofoamball5.html
Just like I did with the primary tank, I covered the Styrofoam ball completely with a decent layer of vinyl Spackle and then sanded it down to smooth it over and give it a plastic/ metal appearance. Once you paint it with a high-gloss paint, it starts to look really nice. Almost looks like marble. I used Rust-oleum American Accents Deep Burgundy (Gloss) incase you are interested in the brand/ type. I purchased it at Lowe's.
The two gold intake boxes feature a black Aavid Thermalloy heat sink cut in half that was purchased from Allied Electronics' website. This heat sink was discovered by Goosebuster while building his Slime Blower. Cost me about $25 with tax and shipping.
http://www.alliedelec.com/Search/ProductDetail.aspx?SKU=6190079&MPN=627253B06000&R=6190079&SEARCH=6190079&DESC=627253B06000
For builders in Europe, check out RS Components Ltd:
http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/searchBrowseAction.html?method=getProduct&R=5075087
Details:
(US) Heat Sink, Extrusion, 6 In. L, 0.72 degC/W, 9.750 In. W, 2.280 In. H, 3.5 Lb.
(UK) Heatsink, 200x75x25mm OK278/B/75
Mfr Part#: 627253B06000
(US) Allied Stock#: 619-0079
(UK) RS Stock No. 507-5087
Manufacturer: Aavid Thermalloy
The gun is 4-inch PVC wrapped in 20 inch aluminum flashing purchased at Lowe's. PVC is found in the plumbing section and the flashing is located in the lumber department in rolled sheets that cost about $10 for 10 feet. Speedmonkey80 suggested this method and I have to say that the results are remarkable. Just cut the PVC to the length of the flashing, and you have the perfect size. If you are planning to build your own Slime Blower, then this is the method to go with in regards to the gun section. In addition to the 4-inch diameter pipe, you will also need an "end cap" for the back end of the gun, which will be painted black and have two of the conduit connectors installed on it.
My blower also features a gold piano hinge that is screwed down with Metal-to-Metal silver Phillips head screws. The piano hinge is located in the door handle section of Lowe's and costs around $10. The silver screws cost about $5 on clearance for a package of 100 at Lowe's. They still sell similar screws, but a little more expensive. These screws not only hold the hinge in place, but also the aluminum flashing. On the opposite side of the hinge, there are another row of the silver screws that are merely cosmetic-- they do not have any structural purpose.
The handle is 1/2-inch PVC with a 90-degee-angle joint painted gold. The handle grip is a replacement for a bike handle bar. I got mine at Target in the Sporting Goods section for about $5. If you are interested in movie accurate, then I would suggest locating a reasonably price ball valve. I was more interested in stability and control of the gun, so I used a handle in place of a valve.
The second handle is a U-bracket found in the lumber department at Home Depot. These are used for bracing wood beams in place. I turned it upside down, drilled a bolt through the top half that went through a piece of 1/2-inch PVC pipe.
Two 4 1/2-inch metal hose clamps are attached to the front end near the cone section. These can be located in the plumbing supply section near the air conditioning materials.
Two loop screws are attached to each end of the gun with the ends of a replacement weed whacker strap attached to each. The strap is located in the lawn care section and the loop screws are in the hardware section with all the other nuts, bolts, and screws.
More to come.... |
