Below are a list of products that I highly recommended. Most people
are told to go with storm door closers or PVC air cylinders,
which do work, but are no where near the safety or reliability that a professional
pneumatic cylinder and solenoid/valve can offer.
Also as you progress in your haunting, you will soon find that your requirements
far exceed the possibilities of a "home-made" cylinder.
So check out the below products, and if you have any questions please feel
free to contact me and I
will do my best to help ya out.
There are a ton of pneumatic products and suppliers out their, so this section will hopefully aid you in finding a high quality product at a reasonable price. Many people suggest using PVC pipe cylinders along with washing machine solenoid valves. I strongly disagree with the use of any pressurized PVC air cylinders, and taking into consideration the cost vs. time aspect, for only a couple dollars more, you can have the security of using high quality parts that were manufactured specifically for these types of applications. All of the below parts are from SMC, I do not have any ties with this company and I recommend them solely due to their high quality, reliability, acquirement ease, and reasonable cost. They also have excellent tech support, and can be easily ordered over the internet. SMC stock numbers are listed at the end of this section to aid you in ordering.
The first product I will refer to are pneumatic cylinders. I
have tried a ton of different cylinders from a wide variety of manufacturers.
I was told and have learned that most cylinders are pretty much the exact
same, and usually the price and or sizing is usually the only difference,
so the manufacturer is entirely up to you. Cylinders are sized using 2 measurements:
the bore and the stroke. The bore is the diameter of the cylinder which varies
from 1/4” – 3” (these are available in much bigger sizes,
but don’t apply in most haunt related props). The bore sizes should
be calculated using the approximate weight of the prop you will be moving.
If you want to skip the calculations, I suggest using a 7/8”-1 1/4”
bore as a standard.
The next measurement (stroke) is the length of the cylinder rod or the cylinders
throw. These range greatly in size, but most manufacturers stock standard
sizes such as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, and can be special ordered up to
48”.
The next important ordering option is the mounting availabilities. I strongly suggest using double end mounting cylinders. These can be attached via the front or end of the cylinder. The rear mount will have a hole that can be used as a pivot point. By purchasing this option it will offer you the greatest flexibility as well as be the easiest to implement (the picture above is of a front only mount cylinder, but it gives you the idea). The last thing I should inform you about is the action of the cylinder. I personally like the option of controlling the accent as well as the decent, so I only use double acting cylinders. What this means is that the air is forced into one side of the cylinder which causes the opposing sides air to exit and extend or retract. When the air is reversed the same thing happens, but on the opposite side. You may wish to only use one port and have the weight of the prop retract the cylinder, but at least with the option of 2 ports, if you do decide to have control over all movements, you won’t have to order another cylinder.
The next product is the valve and manifold. The valves I suggest
are 110v 3 way 5 port valves. These are what will control the cylinders actions
via an electrical charge.
There are many different configuration options, but I will only discuss the
basic options to control a double acting cylinder.
The valve (as pictured below) is mounted to a manifold that switches the air flow via the electrical current. Air is hooked up to one side of the manifold, and the two air lines are hooked up on the opposite side. When pressurized the manifold works much like a door that swings 2 ways. With the power off the air will flow freely out of one port, which you would hook up to the cylinder to keep the prop in resting position. When charged the door switches to the opposite position and the air flows out of a second port and will extend the cylinder. The air that was previously in the cylinder exits out of another port in the manifold.
Now that we have the means of controlling the cylinders action, we will need to control the speed. The easiest way to accomplish this is by the use of flow controls. Flow controls are simple port regulators that will restrict the air from entering or exiting the cylinder by the adjustment of the screw. These are most commonly 1/8” NPT threads (to match the cylinder) and the other sizing is the tubing diameter your using. I use 1/4” polyethylene tubing which is cheap, extremely reliable, and highly recommended by the manufacturer when using push in fittings. These flow controls can be screwed right into the cylinder or if you want to control the prop from a distance, they can be screwed into the manifold. You will need 2 of these for each cylinder, but if you plan to have the extension and retraction of the cylinder the same, 1 can be used. These can also be purchased in in-line versions, which are much easier to use and very convenient when your looking to adjust the speed from a distance.
The last products that are commonly used are the push in fittings. These are the easiest way to hook up all of your pneumatic connections, and are as simple as pushing in the tubing, and to release to tubing all you have to do is push down on the outer ring and pull on the tube. These can be ordered in a wide range of sizes, but the ones you’ll want if you follow my suggestions, are 1/8” NPT threads with 1/4” tubing ports. You can get these in straight body or 90 degree positions. I suggest the bent ones for use in the cylinders and the straight ones in the manifold. SMC also has “T” fittings with threaded body for hooking up multiple cylinders as well as push in “T” fittings which are much easier to use. The only problem with these fittings is that they are usually not cheap and sometimes must be bought in 10’s. If you need to hook up multiple cylinders a much cheaper alternative is to use the drip line watering push in T’s. These are about 3 bucks for a bag of 12.
So hopefully this description will give you a better understanding
of pneumatics and the ways they work. Below is a list of all kinds of different
SMC stock numbers that should aid you in ordering. A good online source for
ordering SMC products is Steven Engineering (www.stevenengineering.com). Unfortunately
they do not have complete online ordering, but they do have a good product
lookup that you can enter in the products you want, and they fax you a quote.
After that it’s a simple phone call with the quote number and payment
info.
 |
SMC Cylinders Double Acting Pneumatic Cylinders Double End mount with 1/8"NPT threads. Below is a list of stock numbers and retail prices. Currently we do not have the ability to purchase these products at cost, so we suggest finding a retailer in your area that carries SMC products. If you cannot find a retailer, then we can get you the products, but the price will be a couple of dollars higher for our time. These prices were supplied from Steven Engineering and can be ordered directly thru them. Prices are subject to change. |
| Cylinders Stock Numbers
and Approx. Cost NCME075-2 Pneumatic Cylinder 3/4in X 2in = $20.48 NCME075-4 Pneumatic Cylinder 3/4in X 4in = $22.95 NCME075-6 Pneumatic Cylinder 3/4in X 6in = $25.42 NCME075-8 Pneumatic Cylinder 3/4in X 8in = $27.89 NCME075-10 Pneumatic Cylinder 3/4in X 10in = $30.36 NCME0125-2 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 4in = $33.07 NCME0125-4 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 6in = $36.30 NCME0125-6 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 6in = $39.53 NCME0125-8 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 8in = $42.75 NCME0125-10 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 10in = $45.98 NCME0125-12 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 12in = $49.22 NCME0125-18 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 18in = $58.9 NCME0125-24 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 24in = $68.59 NCME0125-36 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.25in X 36in = $87.97 NCME0150-6 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 6in = $47.79 NCME0150-8 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 8in = $51.76 NCME0150-10 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 10in = $55.77 NCME0150-12 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 12in = $N/A NCME0150-18 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 18in = $71.73 NCME0150-24 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 24in = $83.70 NCME0150-36 Pneumatic Cylinder 1.5in X 36in = $107.65 |
|
 |
SMC Pneumatics This is a 3 way 5 port manifold and valve combination. It is 110v with 1/4" NPT threads. Minor assembly required and no electrical connections, push in fittings, or compressor fittings not included. SMC Part # (valve) NVFS2100-3FZ (manifold) SPF0191-02 |
 |
SMC Pneumatics Part # (straight) : KQ2HOZ-34 - Right angle: KQ2K07-34 |
 |
SMC Pneumatics |
 |
SMC Pneumatics The rotary cylinders deliver the ability to spin a prop on its cener
axis in either a 45, 90, or 180 degree rotation. Some rotary cylinders
also allow for adjustment, which is a reall nice feature when workign
with neck or waist movement. |
Back to props
