Using Bike Cable?

[JackGreenman]

Hey Everyone,

As you can see from my profile, I'm VERY new on these boards. But I have been consulting them as a guest for the past few weeks. I'm working on a few puppet related projects for a series of short films I'm pre-producing. Basically, one scene requires 4-5 large, stylized mushrooms, each about 12 inches tall. I would like these mushroom to have one simple bit of articulation... basically the ability to go from standing up straight to bending over, as if bowing.

I have already started fabricating the mushrooms out of foam rubber and plan to insert some type of control into the foam to enable the mushrooms to bend. I have heard that bike cable mechanisms can be used as a cable control for puppets, but havent found any in-depth tutorials describing the process.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be much appreciated... either general suggestions about cable controlling... or any specific thoughts about how to achieve that particular articulation by some other (perhaps simpler) means.


Thanks,

Jack

 

[Jinx]

Whiile you certainly could use bike cable, in this case it might be overkill. If your mushrooms are just made of foam rubber you might be able to simply attach a monofilament line from the brim of the "cap" of the mushroom through the base of the stalk and terminating with a basic split ring. Pull the string, the mushroom bows. It may take some experimentation to get it just right, simple is often best.

Another idea is to make the stalks out of a tube of foam so that a hand can be inserted into the cap and then manipulated as a standard hand puppet.

Just a couple of ideas off the top of my head.

 

[JackGreenman]

Thanks Jinx,

That's actually not a bad idea. And I may try it on one of my mushrooms. My only concern is that these short films will be shot on very hi-res HD and the monofilament might be visible in some of the shots (if I'm understanding your suggestion correctly).

Of course, I can remove the string in the editing room, but I'd like to make the post-production as easy as possible on myself.


-Jack

 

[Teenager's]

I like the hand idea....seems simplest.

 

[Super Scooter]

Whiile you certainly could use bike cable, in this case it might be overkill. If your mushrooms are just made of foam rubber you might be able to simply attach a monofilament line from the brim of the "cap" of the mushroom through the base of the stalk and terminating with a basic split ring. Pull the string, the mushroom bows. It may take some experimentation to get it just right, simple is often best.

While the idea about just using it like a regular hand puppet is good, this particular idea, with the monofilament line, would allow a single puppeteer to, perhaps, control multiple (more than two) mushrooms at once, if it were set up right.

 

[biblebetty]

Wow, this sounds cool, when your finished post pics, I love to see your mushrooms.

 

[JackGreenman]

Thanks for all the advice, guys. As you can probably tell, my replies aren't being posted in real time because I'm a new member.

I will definitely post some pictures when I'm finished, maybe I'll even snap a few process pics along the way.

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Take a look at the Animatronics section on PuppetBuilding.com. Especially helpful might be this animatronic hand tutorial.

 

[practicecactus]

Bike cables are probly too short and adapting the ends are too finicky. But you could also try a manual choke cable older cars need.
I made a simple cable operated puppet using this sink unclogger thing I stumbled upon at a hardware store. It's like a mini version of the big electric eel plumbers use. I took off the knobby end and bought some steel cable that fit inside it. I ended up just using some really thin wire inside it though. The kind that's like fishing line thickness. Worked a treat.
This is how I operate it. Three rings and a cable tie.

 

[JackGreenman]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the replies. Here's a brief update:

I realized that since I only needed a simple articulation, I could easily adapt the method demonstrated in the animatronic hand tutorial that Buck-Beaver linked to. Instead of the thin plastic tubing, I used 3/4'' vinyl tubing. I made v-shaped cuts in the tubing to create joints, then ran a very thin cable through the tubing. It works surprisingly well.

Practicecactus - I may try your method as well on a second mushroom prop. It may give me more versatility of movement.

Thanks again guys.