Steampunk Gatling Gun Arm

I often get excited about Halloween. Nothing is cooler than dressing up in your favorite outlandish style (creepy or not) and collecting a bag full of free candy!
This Halloween, the coolest ideas for costumes are anything Steampunk. And if that Steampunk costume has this gun as part of it, your coolness level will be boosted by +4, Lightning Element.
The following is my journey through crafting this beast.

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Step 1: Materials and Tools

For this project, you will need a host of materials. One of the main parts about Steampunk I like best is its versatility. “Junk” becomes “structure and design,” and “Victorian” becomes “GQ.” Now go, and gather:

Materials:
- PVC pipe – some your arm can fit into (around two feet long), and then some you can comfortably grasp (around 12 feet of it).
- Spray paint -- lack, gold, and silver. Copper would work as well.
- Spray paint drop-cloth or guard (to avoid tagging your driveway with the outline of your pieces)
- Junk, A.K.A. Vital Functional Parts.
- A Hose, preferably with ribbing for effect
- A spare gauge
- Momentary switch
- Wire, paired, approximately 6 feet (12 feet total wire if single-stranded)
- 3 AA Batteries and 3x-battery holder
- Several LEDs (as many as you will have barrels in the gun. I had 16).

Tools:
- Hacksaw, bandsaw, or your preferred PVC-cutting tool (I used an angle grinder, which is quite ill-advised).
- Super glue, putty epoxy, or even silicon caulk (which is what I had readily available)
- Hot glue and gun
- Drill and many assorted bits, hopefully with one close to the same diameter as the thinner PVC
- Rotary file, in case you don't have the huge drill bit
- Measuring tape
- Solder and soldering iron

If you want to skip the electronics part, it will make this piece much more simple. You can omit the switch, wire, batteries and holder, LEDs, and the solder.

ekobor says: Feb 27, 2010. 3:07 PM

If the light on the indicator is too bright you could always place a piece of transparent plastic over it to diffuse the light?

gnewton says: Mar 29, 2012. 7:29 PM

Or what you can do if thats the case, You can stick a resistor before the light. its easier to do that than to place a piece of plastic over the liht which could possibly melt and ruin this fantastic piece.

weeeezzll says: Aug 19, 2011. 8:10 AM

Yes, diffused light in general looks better than hot point for steampunk themes. Gives the light a warmth similar to light produced by incandescent bulbs

V-Man737 (author) says: Feb 27, 2010. 4:15 PM

Yes, cellophane probably would have come in handy.

ihaveguitarskills! says: Jul 20, 2011. 11:58 AM

FRIKIN AWESOME!!! I am using this for Halloween(plus a few modifications)

arbeture says: Feb 25, 2011. 5:13 AM

why not add lasers instead of led's in the tubes then cut the thing in half just before it reach;s the tubes, put the tube half on a plate with a hole then do the same to the other except adding a motor or something that can fit in ther with a usable power source externally somewhere with a button leading on the inside u can use to make it rotate, ofcourse keeping in mind to find a way to avoid the wires from twisting around the body work, maybe a wireless connection that tells the led's to turn on when u push a button or something

ljones6 says: May 29, 2011. 6:38 PM

awesome. not detailed but awesome idea :)

happyloser says: Apr 26, 2011. 5:36 PM

does it work?

noahh says: Nov 26, 2010. 12:06 PM

I started on something quite similar to this a few months before Halloween. The main body was a trash bin, and it span with an electric screwdriver. In the end, the barrels wouldn't stay on the circular plate that was supposed to spin. After that stopped working, I tried to turn it into a spinning boring drill bit. That also didn't work. It was so close, though.

V-Man737 (author) says: Nov 26, 2010. 2:53 PM

I find that, sometimes, hitting a dead end with ideas isn't actually the end if I set it aside for a little while. Eventually I can come back to it with a fresh brain and new ideas come to me. Even just picking up what you've got and looking at it from different angles can really give you the new perspective you need for that.

noahh says: Nov 26, 2010. 3:52 PM

Yeah, It's still lying around in my workshop. Maybe I'll bring it back for next year.

V-Man737 (author) says: Nov 26, 2010. 8:57 PM

Post an Instructable in progress! With pictures! (I can't say that enough!)

noahh says: Nov 26, 2010. 9:11 PM

I'll see what I can do.

badideasrus says: Dec 27, 2010. 2:10 PM

how did you attach your barrels? indy mogul did something almost exactly like you tried, but they glued wooden dowels into the barrels (the end that attaches to the circle thing...) a couple of wood screws and they should stay.... though, i suggest a second circle thing that your barrels will pass through for extra stability.

noahh says: Oct 8, 2012. 5:41 PM

Mine was a plastic film canister top with spraypaint caps glued to it. The idea was that the tubes would slide into the caps, but the caps couldn't take the weight. Indy Mogul (my main inspiration for this project) cut holes with a hole saw, but I didn't have one and didn't want to buy one. I did have a crudely cut cardboard support, but in the end, the weight and centrifugal force broke the caps off. If I pick this project back up again, I'll consider using the dowel method that you suggest. Thanks, Noahh

badideasrus says: Dec 28, 2010. 12:48 PM

you know, a hole saw aint that expensive..... especally if your just buying one...

good luck, hope you can finish yours. i have a similar project, the only difference being it is concealable. unfortunately, its still in the planning stage.

here's a link to the forum post i made asking for ideas.
http://www.instructables.com/community/want-help-with-a-possible-future-steampunk-instruc/

noahh says: Dec 28, 2010. 5:42 PM

I know, I just don't like buying new tools if I know that I can't use them In many of my projects.

badideasrus says: Feb 11, 2011. 1:30 PM

i now what your saying.

tinkerunique says: Dec 27, 2010. 9:18 PM

Trouble with paint sticking ?? Go to your local hobby store and get spray paint for plasstic modles. OR go to a place like Walmart and get the paint for plastic lawn furniture. IF you want to get "rightious" wipe the pieces down with acetone before painting, or assembly. The "hobby' paint also works on plastic windows (Jeep softtop) for tinting.

legodanny says: Nov 9, 2010. 6:51 AM

dude i made this for halloween! instead of just covering my forearm it went all the way to my shoulder and had tubes going into my back! everyone kept staring at me and pointing! i might post an ible on it!

V-Man737 (author) says: Nov 9, 2010. 1:58 PM

Awesome! Can't wait to see pictures! :D

crickle321 says: Jul 18, 2010. 6:37 AM

You put a lot of nice details into your instructable. To make the gauge more accurate, the zero may need to be removed since there are no roman numerals for that place value. Or just substitute zero with the letter "N" (which is the initial for the Latin word nulla meaning "none").

V-Man737 (author) says: Jul 18, 2010. 11:47 AM

Oh! That's good to know. I do wish I'd spent more time making it look like extra-fancy print instead of marker'd on. Then I might have known about the "N" thing!

sonaps says: Nov 5, 2009. 5:23 PM

The "putty epoxy" quite resembles a certain product that had a television infomercial narrated by the late, great, Billy Mays. Is it in fact that substance?

V-Man737 (author) says: Nov 5, 2009. 9:03 PM

I'm sorry for not showing more detail on how I used it, but it starts out looking like this. I like Billy Mays, too. But out of the millions of brands he sponsored, I'm not sure whether I used a brand with his name behind it.

sonaps says: Nov 6, 2009. 1:01 PM

He did the "mighty putty" infomercial. That stuff is awesome, I've got quite a bit of it around here somewhere. Still though, this is an amazing piece of technical sculpture.

mr. cool 384 says: Jul 14, 2010. 7:55 PM

billy mays i solute you he was my favorite im still loosing sleep over the thought of that o-so-hairy face never to see the light of day again...big city sliders...oxy-clean...kaboom the list goes on rest in peace my friend rest in peace

teddlesruss says: Nov 5, 2009. 6:48 AM

If you want a Gatling gun that actually goes around, and makes a hellacious amount of noise, you might wish to befriend one who has old aircraft electronics or very old TV receiving sets, and ask about a thing called a "ledex motor." It's a rotary solenoid, so it would stop the barrels at properly determined rotations.

And did you get that? Rotary. SOLENOID.

LOUD LOUD clack-clack-clack! noises - you may want to find room for a few 9V batteries and a trigger switch inside the prosthetic.

V-Man737 (author) says: Nov 5, 2009. 9:40 AM

ROTARY?
SOLENOID??
Isn't that what dreams are made of?