Ok. Am I the only befuddled one? Why the hinge? Is that a motor in a second can? Are you going to use the motor to “Zappa” the “Crappa”?
Let’s just say that cows and waiters aren’t the only things that are “tipped.”
So it does work. (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-cool.gif)
Well as they, say sort of “If this CAN is rockin don’t come knockin” ? (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-sealed.gif)
Just the detailing left to do. Wll probably set this in a diorama. Sorry about the darkness…, hard to see the startled girl inside. Maybe she gets a lantern making her easier to be seen. I left room on the “bench” for some detail. The “padded” toilet seat she sits on is a grommet.
I wanted to cover it in graffiti but I guess I used it all on the “Low Rider” train. Will probably just give it all a coat of “aluminum” paint.
Still debating on how to do the door. It may be nice to have one “flop open” as the can is tilted, but a curtain would be much easier and there are prototypes that use a curtain. As the door flops open, it could knock over the can, which is already close to the tipping point.
This uses a 24 volt, dc motor so I can wire it directly to the track power. It runs 16 RPM at 24 volts and runs down to ~6 volts. So far, I’ve already had everything (for years) and this has been a “zero outlay.”
lol thats awesome
Hilarious
What is the guy in there taking too long?
What a off the wall idea.
Love it. Adds great touches to a layout.
Eric Schade said:
What is the guy in there taking too long?
Not a guy but a chick…, nuff said! (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
I decided that the best door would be a piece of another can. A dried out contact adhesive can donated a portion of itself to make the door. This was cut out with the Dremel and cutoff wheel.
I want the door to flop open when the can tilts, and a piece of tape as a hinge accomplishes this. But the metal eventually cuts through the tape, so something a bit more permanent was in order.
A piece of brass tube was cut and CA’ed to the door to serve as a hinge. Pieces of brass tube will be CA’d to the can. The “fiddly bits” were necessary to get the pieces to align with the can’s upper and lower lips. Hopefully, when the small brass tubes are glued in place, there is enough contact/surface area to get good adhesion and there is enough free movement so the door easily swings open.
.JPG)
And of course it’s the figures that make the scene. Four of the hundreds of figures on the T&LBRR were repurposed and repainted. The lantern lights up.
The position of the girl works perfectly with the arc of the can as it swings open. If she sat verticle, the can would clip her head as it opens.
I am still debating whether I want someone pulling on a rope to help pull it over. I have a single strand of very thin wire (probably undetectable at 3 feet) that pulls the can and a rope breaks the illusion of nothing pulling on it, just the guy pushing it over. But, I’ve successfully done it with other figures and it could happen.
.JPG)
Todd,
While this may not be a massive build, the idea and concept is over the top. Knowing what I know of your very interactive railroad this piece will fit right in. I love it.
This build is just cool in so many ways, Todd, and hysterical to boot. Thanks for doing this, we all need a good laugh from time to time.
It’s been a challenge making the door open and close reliably as the can tips.
First I had to get the hinge to swing really freely. This was accomplished by just using short pieces of the internal brass tube, rather than letting the tube run the full length of the door into the upper and lower mounts. BTW, the CA held fine and the door swings ever so freely.
Magnets could work. Using a magnet as a doorknob, a magnet mounted to the back of a sign could repell the door closing it as the can levels. When the door comes down, a magnet mounted at the base at/in the floorboards could hold it closed. When the unit tilts up, this magnet is no longer in range and the door can flop open. It usually will, but not always. This works when everything is “just so” but I don’t think it will be reliable and the position of the magnets is very finicky.
But, a fishing line mounted to the bottom of the can, threaded up through a loop, then to the door “can” work. As the can tips up, the line goes slack allowing the door to open. When the can returns, the slack is taken out of the line pulling the door closed. If necessary, a magnet can be mounted to the inside of the door and a repelling magnet to the floor and this will “push” the door open when the tension is removed ensuring that it opens every time. The “loop” is a cotter pin bent appropriately and mounted through the seating area. I may hang the lantern or TP roll from the loop to give it “purpose.” Could even disguise it as a “seat vent.” We’ll see what shakes out.
This has proven much more reliable, though you can see the line a bit if you look closely. But then, lots of doors have “automatic closers” attached to pull them shut.
I’ve got the door to where it reliably opens and closes to expose the interior. If the can tilts too far, the door begins to self-close. This keeps the corner of the door from catching on the base and bending it if the can tilts too far. You can see this in the first “pull” in the video.
This is the kind of thing where people will sit there and watch it just to get a glimse of the interior detail. The lantern lights up. Sorry about the autofocus that the door plays havoc with.
Sorry, double post.
this is a fun little project. Looks like its working good
Todd, thanks again for a model that’s both very humorous and technically challenging! Love it!
This one reminds me of my grandpa, who did some pranks in his youth. His twist on outhouse tipping was to get three buddies and simply move the thing, seat and all, a few feet back from the hole…
If the “Can” is a Rockin’…
Then your “Head” is in the right place.
Just the details now.
Now that’s funny right there (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-laughing.gif)Great work, Todd.
