![witch it witches cauldron witch it witches cauldron](https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1LbprXLLsK1Rjy0Fbq6xSEXXa8/Giant-Halloween-Inflatable-Witch-Inflatable-Witches-for-halloween-Halloween-Inflatable-Witch-with-Cauldron.jpg)
Recycling batteries into packs could be a whole article of itself. It consists of Lithium-Ion battery packs built from recycled cells, some buck converters, and an ESPixelStick V3 running 4.x alpha firmware playing back a local xLights sequence from the SD card. This is what makes the cauldron come to life. It also houses a waterproof switch to turn the prop on. The top is finished off with a piece of acrylic resting on some PVC standoffs. The ultrasonic misters run on 24V and are typical of what you would find in an essential oils diffuser. The design includes a splash guard as well to help keep the mess down. The top holds 5 of these misting assemblies which consists of a dollar tree Tupperware container and 3D printed inserts to hold the mister at an optimal height in the water. The silver cans you see are the misters, we’re getting to those next. Oops, nothing some sanding won’t take care of.Ĩ8 WS2811 bullet nodes ready for action.
#Witch it witches cauldron registration#
The stock is then rotated and re-aligned with the registration marks to perform the second half of the cut.Īnd now I’m up to mistake #4 – spend a little more time making sure the laser and alignment laser are actually aligned with each other. The magnets work great for keeping everything flat and the Lightburn camera support helps make me make sure they aren’t in the cut path of the laser. The top of course is bigger than my laser cutter, so it was time for me learn about using registration marks in Lightburn for doing multi-cut alignment. A little modelling and 3D printing rectified the problem with some brackets for the top to rest on. This is where I noticed mistake #3… I should have made my top ring a little wider inward so that the top could sit on it. The top consists of 88 12V WS2811 bullet nodes inserted into a 1/8″ plywood cutout, topped with an acrylic sheet and 5 24V ultrasonic misters in 3D printed holders. The Cauldron Top – Pixels and Misters Oh My! The cauldron has its paint and now we’re getting somewhere. It then gets some very light coats of red and black spray paint layered for effect. The shield is cut off, cauldron test-fitted, and foam trimmed to fit. It didn’t matter in the end, but would’ve made things a little cleaner. Mistake #2 – I should have laid down some black paint first. Great stuff foam is then liberally applied around this ring. This way, the pixels should be serviceable down the road if need be. The pixels are then wrapped in plastic and a temporary shield made from poster board so that the foam can be applied. It then gets 96 WS2811 bullet nodes wrapped around it with the help of some pixel strips. I cut some risers from 3/4″ plywood and stapled pipe insulation to them to create a cradle for the cauldron to sit in.
![witch it witches cauldron witch it witches cauldron](https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F67PXA/witchs-cauldron-broomstick-wand-and-hat-isolated-on-a-white-background-F67PXA.jpg)
The base was cut from some scrap OSB that I had from a previous project (reason it’s green) and 3 casters added to the bottom. This will be getting a nice thick coat black latex paint. Also, when it comes to mud, make sure to use the stuff you mix yourself (hot mud) as it sets via chemical reaction and not evaporation like the premixed stuff.Īfter filling the walls with great stuff foam and many (more than I care to count) layers of mud and sanding, a coat of Drylok masonry sealer goes on to give it some texture. The end product would have required less mud and been much easier to shape. This is where I made mistake #1 in this project… It was my intention to add great stuff foam to the internals for rigidity, but I should’ve done it before starting the mud. It is then wrapped in bird netting and cheesecloth using spray adhesive before the layering of drywall mud begins. The plywood skeleton is then glued up and a pool noodle is used to fill out the rim. I had to segment the design since my laser cutter isn’t large enough to do the rings in one piece. Great stuff foam is used to add rigidity. The cauldron body consists of a laser cut skeleton wrapped with bird netting, cheese cloth, and drywall mud. There are many ways you could do this part by hand, but it was nice to visualize the product in Fusion 360 before even starting on it. What follows is what I came up with for a 3′ diameter cauldron, and it all starts with some Fusion 360 modeling and laser cutting 1/8″ plywood. I decided to do a multi-piece design where the cauldron is a shell that sits on a rolling base, and the “brains” can easily be removed for transport and charging. The purpose of the prop was for usage in a Disney “Villains” dance, where it could be rolled around on stage by the dancers during their routine. This is what happens when you’re volunteered to do a prop build for your daughter’s dance team, and you just happen to dabble with electronics, lasers, and 3D printing ?