You're now ready to start applying the chicken wire. Apply the chicken
wire to mimic how a tree stump looks. Once you've completed that you can start
applying your fiberglass cloth, I recommend using 8in strips applied first at
the top and running vertically to the bottom. The coating each one lightly with
your fiberglass resin. You can also use Monster
mud which is cheaper and easier to use. I chose fiberglass for its strength
and in the future I plan on making this one into a mold. Also don't build this
on a desk or counter you want to keep. The fiberglass will adhere to the top
and you have to cut the stump off at the base. I advise a 4x4 sheet of scrap
plywood you can discard later.
Once your first coat of fiberglass/monstermud is dry, apply expandable
foam to create edges and then apply another coat of fiberglass cloth. Once your
fiberglass dries apply one last coat with a brown pigment added.
Once your fiberglass is dry, cut off the base of the stump away from
your plywood base. Now your ready to paint. I advise sanding the fiberglass
first then applying a primer. I airbrushed the entire stump a medium brown,
then went over it with a darker brown and a dark green. Once that paint has
dried go over the entire stump with a lighter brown and drybrush the lines of
the bark. Also apply some moss to the base with spray glue to give it a more
realistic look.
Now that your paint is dry, tip the stump over and paint the inside
of the tube black and if you would like a weird glow, mist the inside top of
the tube with yellow fluorescent paint. Once the paint is dry mount the blacklight
fixture on the opposite side of your pneumatic pump. Make sure noting will hit
it.
We are now going to make our ghost
head. Once you've completed your ghost head(or you can choose to cut up
a old mask and use that instead, just make sure it doesn't rub on anything)
mount it back into the stump and do a few more dry runs. Once you're satisfied
with how it looks and works, mount one of those cheap cauldron's on top and
fill it with candy. You can also make it look less suspicious by covering it
in cob webs.
For an added scare also run a
digital sound recorder with amplified speakers that are tripped by a micro
switch when the lid rises. You're ready to go, have fun with this one.
Back to part 1
Full Instructions available in the
DC Prop Builders Handbook
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to props