Props Possible Plasma Grenade Source.

[MandoMan531]

Well i may have finally found a source for a ball that can be used for Plasma grenades. The product that they showed me was of all sizes, but mainly im looking at 70 - 80mm. they are plastic/crystal clear and come apart into 2 halves. i wanted to find complete or near complete spheres but its next to impossible. they want a minimum order of 50 balls for the 70mm and 40 balls for the 80mm, that is ABOUT the size of a tennis ball. Ill probably use, say 10 balls on experimentation, but heres the main idea im going towards.

1. Maybe frost the inside by wetsanding wtih 2500 or up sandpaper.
2. paint them with purple tansparent paint, from the INSIDE.
3 i wll make the orange panel with the green glyph on it, and hide a small pushbutton there to "activate" the grenade.
4. Quite a few leds inside to get that blinding blue glow.

Any ideas you guys may have please let me hear them.

*I am NOT looking for anyone to chip in on the cost of the raw materials, i can cover that cost myself. I just want to see how many ppl would be interested in something like this, and to possibly get the 405th community involved in the actual design.

PS since they are in 2 halves there WILL be a seam, id rather there wasnt, but id imagine itd be better in case you needed to change batteries. Im hoping after the frosting and painting with the transparent dark purple, the seam wont be noticeable. I may even use a spray tint to darken them up after i paint the purple. Im not too worried about it dulling the light, because i have the Signature NSD Powerball and those lights are BRIGHT behind a smoked casing.

I need to get ahold of Gokussjokazu of Okazu mods to see what his thoughts are on the electronics.

So lets hear your thoughts on the size, design etc of the grenades.

 

[Socket]

Have you seen my grenade? It's made of a "make your own Chrismas ornament" thing I got at Michael's. It worked really well, and I got two ninevolts and five leds to fit in.

By socket29, shot with COOLPIX L5 at 2008-08-23
There we go. I made a silver cube to go on the inside, and five of it's six faces have leds. It has a black button on the outside which turns on the lights.

 

[tlither]

Sounds like a good idea. I'm sure you are the one to do it and do it right. I'd be interested in this. Keep us updated on any progress you make.

 

[DogWizard]

I would potentially be interested - any chance of getting a pic or two? How thick is the plastic? Any chance of getting some in the 90-100mm range? I'm just full of questions...

 

[tlither]

I agree with Dog - a larger size would be better (basing that on the wiki). The ingame version is small but the wiki lists a larger size. I'd say around a softball size would be pretty good.

 

[LoneWolf]

By the way, plasma grenades are 15.2 cm in diameter
here's a pic of mine so far:
[attachment=6246:Halo_Airsoft_001.jpg]

 

[MandoMan531]

i wasnt sure if i wanted to go with a "real life size" for it because of how big it is, but something comfortable to hold or carry. looks like i can get anywhere from 50mm to 160mm, so what do you guys think? Id like to see if i can use Rare Earth magnets to attach them to armor, but im not sure how that would go.

Socket- that looks really nice. the only thing that takes away from it a bit is the marker lines lol.

thanks for the positive feedback guys.

Dogwizard- no pics as of right now, it was just a chart of sizes/prices etc through email. btw did u get my PM about the AR kit?

 

[Draconical]

If you do buy these in that kind of bulk- I would like to buy one
Not chip in on the cost of materials, but actually buy one finished grenade

Sounds cool- keep us posted

 

[Overlord Ian]

Buy something called a laser level, it lights up blue, and with slight mods it would be an exact replica.
*edit-heres a link
Cick here

 

[MandoMan531]

Overlord_Ian- no offense but thats not really accurate at all. What im offering to make is a hand-made prop.

Draconical- Thanks alot for the interest, i do plan on buying these soon, and i do have to buy bulk. Ill keep you in mind for sure.

Im making a list of what i need materials-wise. I bought 2 styrofoam balls today to make my frag grenade... one tennis ball sized and one softball sized. the smaller one def seems more comfortable, comparison pics holding each one will be up soon.

Looking at sizing info, the Halo Wiki is very misleading. for Plasma Grenade, the size says "about the same size as a baseball - diameter 15.2cm". Ummm 15.2 centimeters is WAY bigger than a baseball, or a softball. Im thinking im going to make both my Frag and Plasma about baseball/tennis ball sized, for a better look in costume. So for the plasma im looking at the 80-90mm range, what do you guys think about that? Im looking at it more as a costuming standpoint rather than display.

this ball is about 80mm, and is for my frag grenade, Very comfy to hold, looks to be in scale with an averge human.

This ball is about 100mm and i feel looks way too large to be in scale, and is not a realistic grenade size.

 

[tlither]

For the frag (based on real world U.S. Army grenades from when I was in) I'd say about 80 looks good. I'd probably go 90 for the plasma though.

 

[MandoMan531]

thats what i was thinking tlither, since the plasma in game is a bit bigger than the frag. the frag will be a little bigger than the base styrofoam ball, because i need to put something over it to do the detailing. so 90mm for the plasma is definetly looking good.

any other opinions?

 

[tlither]

Not really. Garland did some great PDOs of the nades. His frag is about 85 mm across and is a little big (from my military experience). Possibly go with a 70-75 mm for the frag since you'll be adding to the outside a little.

 

[Overlord Ian]

Overlord_Ian- no offense but thats not really accurate at all. What im offering to make is a hand-made prop.

I said WITH MODIFICATION, I never said you just use it as-is, many people on this forum use these for plasma grenades and I think they look great.

 

[MandoMan531]

yes i understand with modification, but thats not what this thread is about.

 

[Overlord Ian]

yes i understand with modification, but thats not what this thread is about.

sorry, just thought I'd make a suggestion.

 

[tlither]

Be nice guys. Just a misundertanding on the wording.

 

[MandoMan531]

Yes, and the suggestion was appreciated. I dont mean any hostility, im just looking to go more of a scratchbuild route.

 

[Doo 2000]

That is all cool, but...
what if you made a glass or breakable grenade so that when you throw it, it breaks, and smoke fills the air/or you could fill it with those small fireworks that blowup when you hit them on the ground
P.S. how do you import images into here from photobucket? (I have never imported my own image)

 

[MandoMan531]

i dont want to run the risk of using anything combustible. Not that i havent had my fair share of pyrotechnics and explosives as a young adult, but i plan on making these available to the 405th, and glass objects and flammable materials arent exactly on my list of safe items. Maybe i could rig something up for a short film in the future or whatever but as of right now im working on a costuming prop. Plus, taking all the work to make a grenade thats going to break is a bit disconcerting, lol.

log into photobucket, upload your images to photobucket, find the image you want to use and click "IMG Code" under it, it will automatically copy the url and then just paste it in the reply window.

I just ordered some Shell Shock from SmoothOn to see how that works brushed over the styrofoam ball. the product info specifically mentions styrofoam so we'll see. im still trying to make my mind up, i dont want to place my order for the clear (plasma) spheres, before im 100% sure about the size. 90mm isnt doable, i contacted the distributor and my choices are 50, 60, 70, 80, 100, 120, 140 and 160mm. maybe going with the 100mm after all. if i buy the 100mm my minimum order is 3 cases, or 36 balls total. They have to get them imported because its and order item (not in stock) so they said shipping might be a killer.