Stutwo Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 Hello, I'm trying to recreate a magic carpet effect in a blacklight theatre production at Christmas, my first thoughts were to have the carpet on a gimble/universal joint which would be mounted on a sturdy platform which could be moved around the stage. The carpet would only need to tilt a few degrees in any direction controlled by crew in black. Which sounds fine in theory, but sourcing the bits to make it work, namely the joint, is trickier. Does anyone have any ideas on where I might find such a thing? Google is giving me nothing of use as yet. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_s Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 try industrial equipment suppliers such as slingsby or key industrial. I find it's often easier to sit leafing through the paper catalogue thinking "that might do it" rather than googling for something I don't always know the name of, or even looking in on-line catalogues... my pet hate is the RS online - unless you know exactly what it is, it's quite hard to find stuff. or look for a local light engineering company and ask them .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 The Chuckle Brothers had this kind of thing made for their Harry Potter-esk tour - UV scene and a chopped down reliant robin. The crane was steel box section, with big steel weights on the other end - major industrial castors and welding. There was nothing clever about it at all - very simple construction and any light engineering firm could knock one up. The tendency is of course to over engineer, so you end up with something massive and heavy - but if that can be coped with, then all is well. I drew the short straw and ended up as the idiot who was always free to load the damn weights - NOT fun! It did need a big bloke to move it with the load on, but with just a magic carpet and a couple of bodies, maybe not too bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanko Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 I worked on a panto 2 years ago which had a fly carpet in it, |It was owned by the guy doing the magic sketches, his name was Andy Van Buren, http://www.vanburen.org.uk/. Might be worth dropping him a line, I believe he does rent out some of his kit, with a bit of training. taTank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 Did this last panto with a 'rigid' carpet. The 2 cast climbed on and in 'settling down' hung two pairs of fake legs over the front. They then stood up, with their real legs through waist sized holes, picking up the carpet as they did so. A black skirt hid their real legs. They were then able to fly around the whole stage about 3 feet in the air and execute moves which you could never do with a mechanical arrangement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tourbus Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 Are you able to give any ideas on budget? I am sure if you have the money you could have a full penumatic system and get it surface mounted into your stage. Otherwise maybe you could construct something out of office chairs or a small counter weight counter leaver system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutwo Posted October 31, 2006 Author Share Posted October 31, 2006 Excellent info so far, thanks all. As for budget, not much I'm afraid, two hundred max. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GridGirl Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 Might be a shot in the dark, but windsurfers (sailboards) have universal joints where the mast joins the board - don't know if it'd be strong enough for your purposes, but it might be worth a look! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Pearce Posted October 31, 2006 Share Posted October 31, 2006 What about a UJ or CV joint from a car propshaft? Can't be much from a breakers yard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzette Posted November 1, 2006 Share Posted November 1, 2006 Foy's have a flying carpet which is rigged from their flying tracks ... but probably out of your budget. However I thought I would post anyway in case someone is else is following this topic for their own magic carpet and has more money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkPAman Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 How about a low trolley with casters, a large inner tube, and the "carpet" on top of that. You would need to experiment to find the right air pressure, but I think it could work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutwo Posted November 2, 2006 Author Share Posted November 2, 2006 Thanks again all. Am chasing up the surfboard part, but the inner tube is a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w/robe Posted November 2, 2006 Share Posted November 2, 2006 Thanks again all. Am chasing up the surfboard part, but the inner tube is a good idea. Will this take the weight? On a wind surfer it does not take very much weight at all and even the force exerted on it by the wind can be no more than you can hold as if it is greater you let go of the sail before the joint breaks. Even if you are being traditional about your casting you will have 2 young ladies a piece of wood and a pair of thigh high boots to support at which point I would think you would have problems moving the joint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutwo Posted November 2, 2006 Author Share Posted November 2, 2006 Thanks again all. Am chasing up the surfboard part, but the inner tube is a good idea. Will this take the weight? I found and bought one on ebay for a tenner, so it's worth a go for that price. I share your concerns over the load capacity of the thing though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike5 Posted November 5, 2006 Share Posted November 5, 2006 I have got a college pantomime coming up of Aladdin. Like in all pantomimes of Aladdin, we need to get some of the cast flying. this is where our problem lies. We have no fly bars, or bars that are strong enough to get people hung off. Neither have we got a very healthy budget!! How have people got pat the problem of flying in the past and can anyone think of a idea to help us? Thanks. Mike Moderation: this post has been merged into this topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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