Introduction: LED Throwie Zoetrope

About: Matthew was previously a STEAM integrator with a private K-8 school. He loves taking things apart to see how they work, and will sometimes put those things back together. Much of his time is spent working with…

I've been looking into unique ways of presenting how to make an LED Throwie as part of my research, and this method was just too fun not to share.

Step 1: For Printing

Step 2: Cut Your Print Into Squares

Follow the lines on the print to cut everything to the same size.

Step 3: Tape Cut Papers to Strip

Find a strip of something long enough to attach all of your cut papers too. I went to the dollar store and got a piece of poster board.

Green and white didn't work for me, so I went with Black.

Step 4: Cut Peek Holes

These will be the slits you look through as the zoetrope spins around. Cut then large enough to see the image on the other side, but not so large that you can see multiple images.

In the first four pictures you can see me drawing a line and marking off center points of the image, so I can ensure all of my peek holes are in the exact same position.

Step 5: Tape It in a Circle

round out your flat sheet of paper so it's round. Tape it so the last image, and the first image have the same amount of space between them as all the other images.

Step 6: Let's Make a Stand!

Find something thin, sturdy and light that can hold your zoetrope in place. Cut that object to closely resemble the base of your zoetrope.

Step 7: If at First You Don't Succeed...

My first plan was to have a bolt through the center, washers holding the zoetrope, allowing smooth rotation. In the end, I couldn't find something (perhaps a threaded rod?) to attach to the other end of the bolt. So this idea was scrapped.

Step 8: ...Try Try Again.

With the hole cut, I had a wooden dowel that fit through quite nicely. Grabbing some spare blocks I had lying around to act as risers, I proceeded to glue the dowel in the hole. When it was almost dry, I fliped it over and glued the top, letting the rod hang freely so it would dry as straight as possible.

Step 9: Tape!

Tape your zoetrope to your base. You wouldn't want it flying off.

Step 10: Minor Alterations.

The holes I used were quite the right size, so I spaced them out a tiny bit more.

Step 11: Enjoy

Animated gif of spinning Zoetrope.