Introduction: How to Make a Classic Bomb Prop for 7$

About: I love steampunk!

Hi! Bill Citrus here! I was preparing for a silent movie I wanted to make and I needed a bomb prop! it was simple to make and pretty cheap.

Step 1: Matireals:

1 Styrofoam ball 7$ ( what ever size you want. I thought about using an inflatable ball that was 1$, but I didn't want it to deflate).

Black acrylic paint ( spray paint will melt Styrofoam).

Card board roll ( from electrical tape. Any kind will do though).

3 pieces of 7" long cord ( or one 6 inch piece of 1/2'' wide rope).

Elmer's glue (or low temp hot glue).

Step 2: Make Your Bomb Stand Up!

First I wanted to make my bomb stand up instead of rolling over. This will also help in the painting process. But if you don't care, you can skip this step. Now, some times you can place the ball on a table and press down on it, making a flat surface on the bottom. In my case however, I had to take a hammer and make a flat surface on the bottom, checking to see where it wobbled from time to time, then pound out that area. I could have cut the bottom flat, but then I would be left with a huge flaking mess. Also , if you've got your hands on a heat gun , that would make everything a lot easier.

Step 3: Making the Base for the Fuse.

To get the roll to stay on top of the ball, I balanced the ball on top of the roll then pressed down on it to create a grove, you may need to do this several times to get the roll to stay in the grove. I then dug out a hole in the middle of the grove for the fuse to sit. I recommend doing this step before gluing the roll into place. You could use low temp hot glue to glue the roll in place, but I used Elmer's. I also used Elmer's to glue the fuse in the hole.

Step 4: The Fuse.

Because fat rope isn't cheap, I used 3 pieces of cord tide them together at the top, then braided them together. to keep the ends from coming apart I used candle wax to hold them together. BAD IDEA. I would recommend putting hot glue or Elmer's glue on the end of the braid to hold it together. once your glue has dried, glue in the hole in the bomb! To hold the fuse upright in your bomb you should fill the electrical tape roll to the top with low temp hot glue. Why low temp? because it doesn't melt Styrofoam. High temp hot glue does. I just glued in a circular piece of packing foam with a hole in the middle for the fuse to go through.

Step 5: Painting.

For painting I just used black acrylic paint. if you still see the polystyrene texture, just give it another coat of paint. And your done! please post pictures of YOUR bomb, I'm sure it'll be THE BOMB! ha ha... I know, I'm hilarious, but anyway, please post a comment and tell me what else I could have used bedsides a Styrofoam ball! until next time, BillCitrus out!