ShaunPug Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 EDIT July 31st 2017 Damn photobucket...just migrated all the photos to imgur. Hopefully they'll be safe now. Hey everyone! I've been researching a ton to try and figure out what type of cable was used to wrap the TD tube. Well, I think I may have found it! So without further ado, here is what I've discovered. Firstly, the photos of the original prop: The weird thing about these photos is that the cable seems to have an almost trapezoidal shape. Well....I scoured the internet and my local hardware stores and no one could think of a cable that was shaped that way. One gentleman at my local Home Depot suggested it might be cord that had been split. Well that opened up a whole new realm of possibilities! I had an epiphany when I was looking at my wife's straightening iron....I saw the power cord and thought "Wait a minute..." Luckily I had a few of these lying around: I cut the ends off and split the cables apart... Each split cable is different. One side has 3 grooves running along the entirety of the cable....this is NOT the side we want! We want the other side...the details are a little hard to see as my cable is white, so I apologize for that. I then proceeded to wrap my tube and was amazed by what I found! By golly, I think this is it! Here is the finished product... And here is the original: The other part of the puzzle is the type of tube to be wrapped. After coordinating with Strider on a few things we came up with a 1 3/8" tube. I used this one from Home Depot: Here's a shot of the back of my TD: This is by far the most accurate combo I've seen and incredibly easy and cheap to implement. Any Home Depot anywhere will carry the cable. For guys outside the US just look for a 16 gauge combo power cord. It should work perfect. I dare so this may have been the same thing the guys at ILM did (albeit with older style cable, and likely not painted). The effect speaks for itself. Get on it people! 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BikerScout007 Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Great work, man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stroker Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Nice! Keep chipping away at it! I'm doing the same! Funny how something that's so simple be so complexed.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 14, 2017 Author Share Posted February 14, 2017 So true. I keep finding things that just make sense.. I don't think they wrapped their cable quite as tightly as mine either. The tube is definitely black underneath but it seems like they left a tiny space between each wrap to give even more contrast. These details just go to show how amazing costume designers are! Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffin-X Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Ah, very cool Shaun and nicely done. Those extension cables have been around forever and that makes a lot of sense. I have at least 10 at home! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 14, 2017 Author Share Posted February 14, 2017 Ah, very cool Shaun and nicely done. Those extension cables have been around forever and that makes a lot of sense. I have at least 10 at home! It's hard to describe the look and feel through poor pictures, but I encourage everyone to try it for themselves. It just looks so spot on! Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stasz Posted February 15, 2017 Share Posted February 15, 2017 If it's not *exactly* what they used on-screen, it's probably the closest thing I've seen yet. Wrap it like an exhausted prop shop guy eyeballing a deadline and thinking "Seriously George? Wrap a lamp cord around it? And I have to do how many of these?!" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 If it's not *exactly* what they used on-screen, it's probably the closest thing I've seen yet. Wrap it like an exhausted prop shop guy eyeballing a deadline and thinking "Seriously George? Wrap a lamp cord around it? And I have to do how many of these?!" Precisely Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riddeth Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 thanks for sharing Shaun 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 Went to my local home depot to see what other colors were available and unfortunately, the gray version was much too dark. It's kind of a pain, but painting the cable might be the best option after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 What color are you using Shaun? I'm making this upgrade to my TD as well. I was thinking a light grey dusting with Krylon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 What color are you using Shaun? I'm making this upgrade to my TD as well. I was thinking a light grey dusting with Krylon. I used Vallejo Model Air Light Gray, only because it was what I had on hand. I actually would have rather used a rattle can, a primer gray of some sort, like you intend to. I plan on re-doing mine when I find another good option for a tube and I'll likely do the same as you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Yeah the tube is throwing me. I was going to see if I could find a Pex in that diameter to keep the weight down. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 just did a quick search on amazon and there are plently of clear flexible tubing options in 1 1/4" size, but it's in bulk;k so the prices are astronomical haha. My local stores don't have any hoses in that size. Only smaller Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I'm going o hunt around here in Phoenix tonight and try to hunt something down. I gotta troop on Saturday and can't do it without my TD....i'd be out of uniform! If I find something I'll let you know. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 Alright...I deleted my previous post because it was all wrong! I thought I had found a better sized tube, but it ended up being way too small after it was wrapped. So I went on the hunt again. I've tried every size, and I finally found the perfect tube. A clear tube at 1 3/8" from Home Depot. It was enough material to make 2 TDs. It was 5$ And hear it is after wrapping... I need to finish painting the cable, and the end caps need to be smaller...that's why they're missing here, but I'm super happy with this. Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 I went with a 1 1/4" dishwasher hose from HD and I saw that one in the same aisle. This is what mine came out to look like. What do you think? I still need paint and I need to source smaller end caps too. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 I went with a 1 1/4" dishwasher hose from HD and I saw that one in the same aisle. This is what mine came out to look like. What do you think? I still need paint and I need to source smaller end caps too. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Which cable did you end up using here? Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 I finally managed to paint the cable properly. I still need to do a lighter coat on top...this color is a tad too dark. I just wanted to give a sense of the look of the cable and how close it is to the real deal... I need to do a bit more work on my armor but I'll take some more comparison shots then Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 Which cable did you end up using here? Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk I followed your lead and went with two 12ft HDX extension cords cut the ends off and stripped it in half. I think my tube is a tad small though. I looked at the one you're using but it seemed to big of a diameter at the time but I may start over again using that one. I don't think I like the current SC TD box as it seems too big to me so I pinged Strider to see if he would consider making another one of his reworked ones. He said he'll think about it but I hope he does as I think between the wire you came up with and that revised box the TD will be real close to film quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 I followed your lead and went with two 12ft HDX extension cords cut the ends off and stripped it in half. I think my tube is a tad small though. I looked at the one you're using but it seemed to big of a diameter at the time but I may start over again using that one. I don't think I like the current SC TD box as it seems too big to me so I pinged Strider to see if he would consider making another one of his reworked ones. He said he'll think about it but I hope he does as I think between the wire you came up with and that revised box the TD will be real close to film quality. Awesome! I'm using one of Constantins earlier versions of his TD here. The power cables really do have that strange trapezoidal look to them. I'm not a fan of most of the SC pieces, but the TD is one of the worst offenders. The 1 3/8" hose is the perfect size. I highly recommend it Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaunPug Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 Which cable did you end up using here? Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk One more quick note...make sure to twist the cable when you're wrapping it so the the flat side faces up. The split sides should be next to each other. Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted February 20, 2017 Share Posted February 20, 2017 Awesome! I'm using one of Constantins earlier versions of his TD here. The power cables really do have that strange trapezoidal look to them. I'm not a fan of most of the SC pieces, but the TD is one of the worst offenders. The 1 3/8" hose is the perfect size. I highly recommend it Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk Yeah when I saw your latest rework I kicked myself as I had that one in hand but choose poorly. It's the perfect diameter. I'm really hoping Constantine can hook me up. Looking at your TD compared to the SC there is such a significant difference in the size and shape and I want to get it changed out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haribon72 Posted March 10, 2017 Share Posted March 10, 2017 I'm here because Shaun sent me. Time to upgrade this weekend. Gotta find some grey cables and a braided hose. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retrofire Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Shaun is the guy who put me on to going this route with my TD so you're in good company. You can find the hose and the cables at Home Depot. I contacted Constentin and ordered a new belt and TD from him. I want the Lancer app to go as smooth as possible. The cables I went with will need paint and Shaun does has a nice explanation of his technique earlier in this thread. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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