Discussion on Zam Tubes within the Zam Wesell Costume forum, part of the Star Wars Universe category; Hmmm...went to Amazon Hose and Rubber. This is the closest
Hmmm...went to Amazon Hose and Rubber. This is the closest they could find to Zam's hose. Let's see if I can turn a blue tube into something more accurate.
So far so good. Mixed black acrylic with a little white to make it not so black. Then added Thistle green to give it a little dirty rusty look. So far so good...Need to let it dry so I can add the rust tones.
Added a burnt umber mixed with pink. Pink, you say? I can't find my red. I think I'm going to have to make a craft store run.
Last edited by ZamStar9; 09-16-2010 at 08:07 PM.
Last thing I have to do is get a flat acrylic sealer to finish it off. We will soon see if it peels and cracks.
If so, I may need to change my method.
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Looks great! I'm crossing my fingers for you, hope it doesn't crack. (I had to paint my Boba knees three times before I got it right with no cracking, very frustrating)
Those look pretty good. Nobody's found an exact match yet. My wife's costume uses hoses from a Bissell Spot Bot. We saw you at CV. If you need any help or you need to buy some new parts for your Zam, send me a PM.
Those are great!!! Wow!! Those look much better than the ones I have on hand... think I need to upgrade! LOL *Ayyyy - the never ending "upgrade" project!*
Re the painting... it'll probably hold for a while. Acrylic is basically plastic, and is pretty flexible. The hoses will bump into people/things and you'll be moving them around... so after some trooping... they may need to be touched up a bit, so just keep that in mind and you'll be fine.
Okay quick question for you ZamStar9: What type of hose was it? A part or order number would be even better! I took a quick look at their website and was overwhelmed by hoses... LOL Thank you!!!!
Hi, MaulMaus,
After an hour of measuring my connectors, researching different hoses and looking in the back, he finally pulled out a couple of different hoses that looked like they might work.
At first we were looking at 1" OD (outside diameter) flexible ducting hose. It was very light and very flexible and relatively inexpensive. It's the black one to the left. It doesn't come any smaller than 1", infortunately. It also looked like it could absorb paint really well.
Then, as we looked closer, I noticed that Zam's tube actually goes inside the reducing bush, the part that sits on top of the threaded nut, not over it, which turned my 1" OD into a 3/4" OD.
So that sent him off into another search and he brought out two different hoses: the blue one that I actually ended up working with and another one that looked really cool. It was a silver and black U2 Vac hose 3/4".
I actually really loved the silver and black against the connectors but it's certainly a deviation from the model. So the guy was so nice and decided to let me have (for free!! Yay!!) a few feet of each tube. He had them in stock. He can order more of the silver and black. The blue tube he said he's had sitting here for years and years and brings to trade shows as examples. I'm not sure if he can get more of it but I'm sure he'll let you have some that he has there. He must have had like 10 feet of it.
Sorry that was so long and convaluded.
His name is Chris Grubbs (407) 843-8190. He knows exactly what we're trying to do. I showed him pics of the Zam hose. Poor guy even sliced a piece of flesh off his finger as he sliced a few feet of the hose for me. I felt so bad.
So, really, the short of it is, it depends on what size you need. I'm not sure where you got your greeblies from or what the diameter of your bushing is. I got mine from JDFett. That would depend on what size you need so that's why I gave you the two options.
It was nice connecting with you and please let me know of your progress!
Last edited by ZamStar9; 09-19-2010 at 08:23 PM.
FYI, here are the four stages that I used to paint my tubes:
Stage one: Prime it. (actually, skipped this step and Deunan reminded me that I should have done that first. Ooops.)
Stage two: Mix these acrylics together: black, a dab of white (so it's not so jet black) and thistle green, to give it a little bit of a gunmetal color.
Stage three: I mixed burnt umber with burgundy so that it was a little more red than brown. I took my brush and wet it and brushed the entire tube, kind of like a watercolor, very light. I emphasized the rust a little more in a few areas.
Stage four: Lightly sprayed a satin finish clear coat on top. I tried gloss and it was way too glossy. Flat was way too flat. Satin seemed to have the right finish.
So far it doesn't show any signs of cracking but I'm sure I'll have to touch up some scratches here and there.
My first troop with half my Zam last night for the Florida Women Federated in Orlando. The Florida Garrison let me tag along, since it was a women's group. Please don't laugh at me. LOL! I have A LOT of work still to do, lots of upgrades and many parts to still get, but there it is...
This is how I connected my greeblies together.
I got a T plate and dremelled off part of the top piece bc it was too long. I used 8x1/2 wood screws. The wood screws have more treading. I used a very small multi-purpose drill bit to start a pilot hole. Before that, I used a dremel with a sanding bit to sand off the excess resin from the greeblies.
I used the same drill bit to screw in and secure the ovary bit to the line. At C5 I lost one of my pieces and didn't notice until it was too late. I only had them attached by glue. This way, I know they are not going anywhere.
I haven't invested in leather yet. That's an upgrade for another day. This is what I have so far.
Thanks for the information! I really do like that hose better than what I have!
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