Matty Matt
Active Hunter
I wanted a stand for my mannequin to raise it up a bit and I figured I'd build something with some style, a lighted carbon freeze chamber base. This was a fun, inexpensive project and I'm very pleased with the results. I did this on a budget, so everything was done pretty much as cheaply as possible.
I started by basically building a wooden box. The display is 2' by 4' with a height of 6". The top is just 1/4" plywood (this comes already 2' by 4', so no cutting). The sides are just poplar boards. Once the basic box was all nailed and glued, I drew a grid pattern on the top so I knew where to make the cuts.
Every box with an X got a pilot hole drilled. Then I drilled out a large hole with a 2 1/4" hole saw.
Lots of holes to drill...this took some time.
Now every row of holes gets a large cutout connecting two holes. I used a jigsaw to make these cuts, very careful to go nice and straight.
Fast forward a bit and this is what it looks like from the underside. All of the holes are cut and sanded smooth.
I decided to design this with an open back so I could access the inside easily. This also helps with ventilation.
The whole thing was sanded and painted in gray primer. I also cut some small wooden supports to go under my mannequin's feet.
A few coats of gloss black...
I ordered a couple sheets of amber acetate online and here I am testing out different materials to diffuse the light.
Whoa...pretty cool!!! I chose to go with the white plastic towards the rear. The stuff towards the front was just parchment paper.
I bought a piece of 1/8" plexiglass for the top. I secured it with some stainless steel bolts in the corners.
The plexiglass gives it a finished look and also helps to support the top. The plywood is very flexible with all those holes cut out.
Here it is with the acetate installed. I just stapled it right in there with the white plastic diffusers behind.
For the lights I used two old lamps I was going to throw out. They are literally just table lamps that I took the bases off of.
I had to rewire them in order to do that, but at least I didn't have to buy lights. And they work great!
Just regular 60 watt bulbs. They get warm but not hot enough to melt anything. This is never on for long periods of time anyway.
And the finished product! The open back has a cool lighting effect I think.
It really ties the room together.
I'm sure I forgot a bunch of details, so If anyone has questions please fire away. Something like this would work great for a Vader or Stormtrooper as well. Thanks for looking!
I started by basically building a wooden box. The display is 2' by 4' with a height of 6". The top is just 1/4" plywood (this comes already 2' by 4', so no cutting). The sides are just poplar boards. Once the basic box was all nailed and glued, I drew a grid pattern on the top so I knew where to make the cuts.
Every box with an X got a pilot hole drilled. Then I drilled out a large hole with a 2 1/4" hole saw.
Lots of holes to drill...this took some time.
Now every row of holes gets a large cutout connecting two holes. I used a jigsaw to make these cuts, very careful to go nice and straight.
Fast forward a bit and this is what it looks like from the underside. All of the holes are cut and sanded smooth.
I decided to design this with an open back so I could access the inside easily. This also helps with ventilation.
The whole thing was sanded and painted in gray primer. I also cut some small wooden supports to go under my mannequin's feet.
A few coats of gloss black...
I ordered a couple sheets of amber acetate online and here I am testing out different materials to diffuse the light.
Whoa...pretty cool!!! I chose to go with the white plastic towards the rear. The stuff towards the front was just parchment paper.
I bought a piece of 1/8" plexiglass for the top. I secured it with some stainless steel bolts in the corners.
The plexiglass gives it a finished look and also helps to support the top. The plywood is very flexible with all those holes cut out.
Here it is with the acetate installed. I just stapled it right in there with the white plastic diffusers behind.
For the lights I used two old lamps I was going to throw out. They are literally just table lamps that I took the bases off of.
I had to rewire them in order to do that, but at least I didn't have to buy lights. And they work great!
Just regular 60 watt bulbs. They get warm but not hot enough to melt anything. This is never on for long periods of time anyway.
And the finished product! The open back has a cool lighting effect I think.
It really ties the room together.
I'm sure I forgot a bunch of details, so If anyone has questions please fire away. Something like this would work great for a Vader or Stormtrooper as well. Thanks for looking!
:cheers
