The Real World Adventures of STEAMBUG

Testing new facebook blog importing tool

2010-02-02T13:10:00.000-08:00

It is called Network Blog, and should automatically import posts to this blog right into the STEAMBUG's facebook status updates. Along with posting status update, you can view basic over view of STEAMBUG's blogger blog posts on the Network Blog application page in facebook (without having to add the app yourself - that is key in my opinion). If you do want to add the application, you can follow STEAMBUG, though I am not what extra features that will get you, but I guess it sounds good to have followers.

Just testing a new apps out,
PyroCelt

Thank you all so much.... not quite yet done

2010-02-02T08:12:00.000-08:00

I will have a better update soon, but we have not purchased an engine yet ...and there are always lots of additional incidentals. If you would still like to contribute, (as the Chipn campaign ended), please do so at with the PayPal donations page or with the "DONATE! ...thank you" button in the upper left corner of this page!

Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

So far so good!

2010-01-29T10:30:00.000-08:00

So far STEAMBUG would like to thank 8 generous doners who have raised $560!

Let see what kind of mischief we can stir up with this...

Thank you all so much,
PyroCelt

Fund Raising for STEAMBUG's new engine

2010-01-25T11:47:00.001-08:00

Dear Lovers of STEAMBUG,

If we want it so see another year of STEAMBUG goodness at local burns, I need your help. Our best bet for a new engine is now, as the Winter Volksfest, the biggest VW show and swap in the South East, is happening this weekend in Greensboro. I would love to go there. I would love to walk off with a new engine. I just need the cash to do it.

Last year I had the pleasure of creating my first Art Car, the STEAMBUG ( www.STEAMBUG.com ). I brought together a dedicated team of misfits, zealots and the generally underemployed, and we made some magic happen. It had wings! They sometimes even flapped! It had a strippers pole sturdily mounted on an airship deck! Not to mention purpleheart wood bumpers, a hand made wooden gear system to drive the wings and a trailer hitch for the not quite completed DJ-on-a-trailer. And all of this was built on the very first car I ever owned, a purple 1969 Volkswagen Beetle.

The STEAMBUG made a debut appearance at Transformus where it was a big hit. Then we took it to Alchemy, where, even with a few technical difficulties, it delighted many. Leaving Alchemy, the breaks went out right before a stoplight. Luckily for STEAMBUG (and myself), the oncoming traffic honked... and let me pass. After renting a tow dolly to drag it home behind my friend's Range Rover, we put a box of books from our free library in the front seat. The books knocked the gearshift into gear. After getting on the highway, the Range Rover tore STEAMBUG's engine to shreds. A new engine runs $1000 - $1200, with $200 - $300 of installation fees. Used engines, in various degrees of working can be found for less, especially if we can get lucky. At a place like the Winter Volksfest we might be able to get lucky with as little as $200.

If you want STEAMBUG to see another year of burns, it will need a new engine. And with the missus getting laid off last fall, I have no extra cash to spare. The creation of this project cost $1200 in Art Car conversion expenses and $800 in vehicle maintenance. With only $700 in Art Grants I footed the rest of the bill. But that cannot happen again. So, dear lovers of the STEAMBUG, if we want it so see another year I need your help. If can, please donate via link below!

Keeping it Lit,
PyroCelt

Maiden Voyage

2009-07-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

The STEAMBUG went on its maiden voyage to Transformus, and ahh what an adventure. Most things went well, a few did not work as planned, and there many little things to improve upon. One of the gears pulleys refused to grip the motor drive pin, and slipped, so the wings only intermittently flapped. Add to this that the inverter was too weak, and the battery might not have been able to power a more powerful inverter, and you have flapping wings only happening off of the mains or a generator. And we did not manage to pull the trailer behind the Beetle... but what that give us is a sturdy dance platform that can drive around and wings that can clip on for stage effects or be left off. It also gave us a stage for both Shibari rope suspension (which went fantastically well) and contact fire to set the laddies (and boys) chests, breasts and titties on fire. Ah - what fun. Not to mention all the dancers we had, both in motion and standing still.

STEAMBUG now has a facebook profile, check out all the tagged pictures (you can get there from the "badge" on the left). Also, and seprately, don't forget to become a fan on Paden's amazing fan site ( http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Burning-Town-USA/Steambug/93812799196?ref=search ) - that is the unofficial fan site, but somehow it makes me so happy that it came into being without any help from me!

To Do (from easiest to hardest - maybe):

Drill holes around edge of the platform for the rope lighting - I had thought of doing this before finding the rope lighting clips, but this would work much better and be stronger
Get a deep cycle batter - that can fit in the cars "other" battery compartment (under the rear seat), to power the lighting and hopefully run a powerful inverter off of that could power the wings as well. This being a separate power system would also mean we could kill it and still be able to start the car
Make the attachments of wings to flapping rod stronger and better - current one broke once and looked risky much of the time
Get a telescoping ladder - although the ladder we had was perfect, it had to be carried, especially if someone was dancing ( http://www.target.com/Xtend-Climb-Telescoping-Ladder-Type/dp/B000JIJLT4/sr=1-18/qid=1248384946/ref=sr_1_18/178-4663411-7594729?ie=UTF8&search-alias=tgt-index&frombrowse=0&index=target&rh=k%3Aladder&page=1 )
Change the axle of the gears to metal with a ball bearing that is glued into the wood of the gears - this should get rid of a lot of the shimmy in the gears and make everything run smoother and more reliable
Change the motor and belt system to something with a worm drive - although more powerful trampoline springs made the wings close to balanced, the little motors on there were still shaky when they did work. I think a more powerful motor with a worm drive that was definitely powerful enough to drive the wings would made everything run more confidently
Put in Spot lights - cut holes in the deck, and put in Plexiglas's inserts. Below them but in LED spotlights to light up the dancer(s).
Cut a hole in the roof of the car and put in a sun/moon roof. Then cut a hole in the deck and put in more Plexiglas just above it so the driver and passenger can get a show too. They might actually get the best show of all...
Trailer - either drive around with the current trailer enough to feel confident that it can pull it in rough terrain, or get a smaller trailer for the DJ system to be on
Install a better sound system in the car, make it all switchable to the deep cycle battery as well so it would not drain the starting battery.

Tips for next event:

It takes at least two people to operate this little puppy, especially if going under trees. Plan on multiple teams, so one team can be not sober but the other team can take STEAMBUG can be out and about
If we used a 6 foot pole, there would be almost no problems around Deer Fields. An eight foot pole pushed some of the branches back (and knocked the low and dead ones off), but it would just be a whole lot less to think about with a 6 foot one

Completion

2009-07-13T23:29:00.000-07:00

Exhausted, but it is done. Bumpers - check. Trailer hitch - check. Wings; sewn; constructed; geared; operating - check. Lighting around base of deck (so dancers can see the edge) - check.. T-bar at top of strippers pole for Shibari suspension - check. Trailer reconstructed and coming in at twice allocated budget - check. Trailer awning for rain - check. DJ stand - check. Reuben's Tube to be mounted to DJ stand constructed; tested; installed in nice mounting brackets - check. Uninterrupted Power Supply (to keep the beats pumping while generator is refueled) - check. Approval from the natural Powers That Be in the form of a visitation from a Praying Mantis - check. Actually, it was really outgoing, I put my hand down nice and close to her to for a close up of her checking out a gear, but while I futzed with my camera looking for the macro setting I discovered that before I could find it, she was climbing my camera, heading for my hand. "Are you looking at your camera, or me?" Basically, the STEAMBUG is done... now just to pack my clothes and food. But in the worst case scenario if I arrive at Transformus with my STEAMBUG but no food or clothes, I may be naked, but I don't think I will go hungry...

-PyrocCelt

PS check out the new video in the side bar, it is wingy gearific

Can you say "Purpleheart Wood Bumpers?"

2009-07-13T13:49:00.000-07:00

While I was out in Seattle visiting the family, I made a pair of purpleheart wood bumpers with my pa in our friend, Steve Habersetzer's, shop. Steve could probably be called a master craftsmen (though he certainly would not use the title), and along with being one of the old guard of Luddite back-to-the-earth hippies who settled Eastern Washington State in the seventies (where I was born in a tepee) he also makes amazing cabinets and gorgeously usable Gypsy Wagons (which sell for forty to sixty grand). While staying with pops, I got to sleep in Steve's original Caravan, the one Steve lived in for decades. It was tantalizingly delicious, every timber and corner carefully constructed... and it was beautifully parked in Steve's lush organic garden, where he makes enough off the food he grows to feed himself year round. It was a retreat in and of itself, but on to the bumpers.

It all started when my dad asked if I could believe the price woodworkers get on purpleheart wood, and did I have any use for any? I thought about it, and have never really like the crappy tinny bumpers on my VW Beetle, kinda makes me think of the addage "bumpers take about as many bumps as glove boxes have gloves in them." So, thinking back to my parents '71 Volkswagen van that we lived in while traveling the country for the first few years of my life, and the wooden 4 & 4 oak rear bumper on there we used to keep the propane tank on, well, I thought wooden purpleheart wood bumpers would be nice, and awfully Steampunky to boot!

Luckily for me, I flew Southwest, who reduced their baggage from three seventy-five pound bags to two fifty pound bags. So going out there I hoped I would have enough weight allowance to check the buggers on the way back. Getting out there, we went to Eden Saw (who has these amazing wood cards) and found some wood we liked, an eleven foot two by six. Back at Steve's shop, well, it is not everyday you get to cut into eleven feet of purpleheart wood, ah what an experience.

But I get ahead of myself. When I first arrived, Steve was rather busy with a delivery he needed to make the next day, and suggested he could help me out on my project if I could help him deliver his cabinets in the '54 truck he completely restored himself. So I agreed, and got the adventure of riding around is his old truck. It turned out to be well worth the trade, as he had excellent ideas regarding how to make the bumpers wrap around my Beetle like the originals. When I asked him if he thought they would be strong enough as bumpers, he said my Beetle would break before the purpleheart wood bumpers would break.

It was really good to get into a wood shop again, before taking up IT (and gaining a few pounds) I used to be a finished carpenter with my pa. I still knew how to use all the tools, and even still felt right at home in my pa's tool bag, being able to tell a story about most of the tools in it.

After two days, we got all of the pieces cut - Steve doing the trickiest and most dangerous cuts - and fitted with holes drilled for the bolts. The nice thing about our construction was that it was all collapsible, so I really could check it coming back, and both bumper even weighed in just under 50 pounds.

Over the forth of July weekend we got the bumpers sanded, the holes notched for the carriage bolts, the top corner routed, and they look, well, fantastic! Now I just have to glue them (this is mainly to keep unwanted debris or water that can freeze, out), and finish them. Purpleheart wood is, like the name implies, purple, but it fades with time. There is some discussion about if this is oxidation or UV rays, but in either case a good finish, well although it won't stop the gradual fade to gray / brown, it will prolong it. I went to our local Woodcraft to pick of some Arm-o-Seal, something recommended online for purpleheart wood, but it does not mention UV rays. When I walked in, the nice wood worker there asked if he could help me, and I asked what he would put on purple heart wood that was going outsidee to keep it purple. He said "Armor All," and I said "Arm-o-Seal?" and he said no, "Armor All." I asked where to get that and he said auto stores, and I said, "like Armor All? The stuff you put on... your cars interior.... to... protect... it... from the sun. Gatcha!"

It has been a lovely walk down memory lane, and the bumpers really must be seen to be believed...
Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

PS, I am looking for an old, preferable antique-though-in-great-usable-condition, croze tool which is used for coopering. This is how they cut the groove inside a barrel that the bottom rests in. When I mentioned to my dad that I see a lot of old not too expensive tools in antique shops, he said "oh, that is in the South, they would have lots of great tools there, you should get them." Then I asked Steve if there was anything unusual he was looking for, and we said a croze tool.

$500 down, $500 to go...

2009-07-06T10:57:00.000-07:00

Dear Philosopherz, Mysterians, Burners, Steampunkers, and People-Intrigued-by-the-Art-Car-Project-STEAMBUG At Large,

Money. Moola. Dinero. Not a fun subject, though sometimes a required one. I have applied for two Art Grants for the STEAMBUG with great success, $599 from Transformus (being used for the bug platform and pole itself) and $111 from Alchemy (being used for the trailer). However, another kind of funding is needed: one that I would not so much call art, but is none the less required for its operation - and that is mechanical. I took my '69 Beetle, which felt like it was running well, into the shop to get it looked over as it had been parked for awhile, and they did $500 dollars worth of repairs on it. All of the repairs were things that needed doing, like tuning it up and replacing what they called the original "firebomb" gas pump, along with all of the aging gas line, and a lot of other things. But alas, this is not everything that needs fixing.

Dollars, I hate talking about them. This is one of the reasons I did not put a budget on this blog (though now I think I possibly should have, it is available online in the Alchemy Art Section if you are interested). This is also one of the reasons I really love burns, there is no cash, no commerce, not even thinking about it, worrying about it, fretting about it, or spending it. But there is also a hard reality, which is that one does need a fair amount of resources to create and bring all the cool things we love to have and play with at these festivals. That is partially where the Art Grants come in, to help offset this paradox. But being grants for art, I really feel they should go into the art part of the project, and not for un-arty things, like mechanics. I was hoping to cover this myself, well, it has turned out to be a little more than expected. And working 50 hours a week (including commute), creating a complicated art project that has a clear deadline, and organizing all of the Theme Camps at Transformus, I have less time to actually get my hands greasy and work on the car my self. So, this is where you, oh wonderful admirer, might come in.

The good news is that everything that ABSOLUTELY needs to be done for the STEAMBUG to come to Transformus is working! The bad news is that the things that probably should be done are going to cost another $500. They are really only two things (that we know about currently) remaining.

A new German muffler, they are the best and quietest ($218 including labor) - the current one is shot. Not only is it loud as all hell, but a good muffler pushes a little back on the engine, which VW cars expect, and the rusted parts could clog the tail pipe and completely stop the car in its tracks. But the main issue is running quiet while at a Burn which I think we all can agree would be best...
Replacing the ball joints in the front steering ($300, including labor) - the mechanic said that this needed replacing soon, but was not urgent. Then he showed me how the rubber balls that usually pad them are totally shot, and how there was some looseness you really did not want there. Worst case scenario, the wheel will fold under the the car - just like those flying cars in Back to The Future - only it would really suck for it to happen on the highway. Considering we will be abusing this car's suspension, with the the addition of a hefty roof rack, stirppers pole, and dancing people up on top of it, I think this is also necessary before a major Burn

So, as a Ren Fair magician once said "and now for my final act I will make the entire audience disappear with one simple word!... ...Donations?" I have set up a paypal account at STEAMBUG at PhilosopherzStone dot com. It would be great if you could chip in. Don't feel that any donation is too small, everything will help, and if a bunch of y'all chip in just a little, we can still cover it. And yes, paypal even accepts VISA.

Humbly Yours,
PyroCelt
www.STEAMBUG.com

PS, I took it for a spin to a party, the girls seemed to like it - I thought you might like the pictures as well *wink* wink * nudge * nudge *

There be gears...

2009-07-04T23:55:00.001-07:00

3am... rather tired - great time to be working with power tools - but it is done. The gears work. They push the the cogs which push the wings. I am so tired, both from the time and from it being a particularly long day, but it all works, and that makes my tired brain happy. We even hooked up a motor, and although it is not quite powerful enough on its own, we have a second of the exact same geared make, and without too much trouble we can hook it up to run in tandem. Posting a few pictures, and a video (also in the side YouTube player) of one side running, and then off to sleep for me.

I ran through two helpers today. After a few days of working on my own, first JP camp over and helped out for a few hours, and then Zac came over, and after both of them working with me together for a very short amount of time, JP left and I worked Zac till a few minutes ago.

Did I mention that we stained the top and grooved it? It is both for traction and to make it look kinda like a pirate ship... I mean airship. Yes, well, it is to look all the better for all that fancy gear work is happening under it.

Sweet dreams,
PyroCelt

It is like reinventing the wheel, I mean gear...

2009-07-04T08:31:00.001-07:00

So, under the roof rack there will be two large gears with pegs sticking down that push a cog in and out (one on each side) which in turn pushes a peg on the bottom of the bar that has a wing on the front and back of it, making the four wings flap in unison. If this was too complicated, all you had to hear was "gears" and "wings," oh my! It will be cool, assuming it works. After messing with making plywood 13 inch diameter gears myself, with a compass (pictures), that did not work very wellI went to the greatest modern oracle of our time, Google, and discovered... *drum roll please* a gear template generator! Designed for wood no less! With lots of other fun projects and tidbits of info on it... much fun indeed, but now I must run to make the gears and hope they work.
Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

PS, In case I should ever need it again (like to make a new template, should anything happen to a gear tooth):

Tooth Spacing: 50mm
Contact Angle (deg): 25mm
Shaft hole diam: 19mm
Gear 1 teeth: 19
Printed page width: 215.9mm

Good god, what will they think of next!

2009-06-22T10:51:00.001-07:00

Ok a few updates here, but first, my friend actually found plans for a conversion to steam power for a VW engine! Simply amazing! ...and no this was not the original idea, but hey, maybe one day...

I drove the STEAMBUG from were I live to Hicks & Son's VW Repair, which is about an hour, to get them to go over it and see how it is running and if it needs any major work after sitting for a few years. I really like them and honestly, I trust them too. There is a much fancier, posher, Foreign Accents in my town, but you walk in and the place is sparkling clean, with a nice counter and large glass picture windows looking out over a spotless repair garage. Although I am sure they do good work, Hicks & Son is not in the best part of town, in a big old corrugated tin building, with a clean area around four car jacks, but then the appropriate piles of old engine part kicking around. On one end of the warehouse there is a proper store front with all those odds and ends I always find hard to get, like a passenger side sun visor clip and new exterior trim we are going to try to paint bronze, all sprinkled in dust. And on the other side of the warehouse there is another room full for steel shelves, and old used parts stacked EVERYWHERE, including a trailer hitch or two (one of which hopefully fits the STEAMBUG - that I plan to purchase for pulling the sound trailer).

Over the weekend we had a Philosopherz Stone meeting and work day, making the kits to make the those little mini top hats and brass goggles for our Steampunk workshop at Transformus. Obviously, the roof rack and pole got lots of play, including two boys climbing the pole and doing dance move off of it, at the same time. There was no unexpected wavers and nothing looked concerning at all. To get the pole off though, we had to have have three big guys unscrew it, the threads tighten a bit with that much pressure on them. Three guys that weigh a combined total of 700 pound! And still the roof and rack are just as steady as can be.

Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

STEAMBUG Google Group

2009-06-19T07:44:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in helping to construct this project, or just want to follow the tedious detail as it gets built, go ahead and join our new Google Groups below

Subscribe to STEAMBUG

Email:

Visit this group

WANTED: Pole Dancers to Volunteer for the Arts - Atlanta Area

2009-06-18T21:19:00.000-07:00

"STEAMBUG is an art car / art project applying for funding from the Alchemy Arts Fundraiser on June 27th. We have a great big and very sturdy pole mounted on top of a winged '69 purple VW Beetle- and we need YOU do dance on it. It will be parked curb side, directly in front of the venue, so flashy is encouraged, though there is regrettably no nudity in public...

Requirements for Dancers:

Must know how dance on a pole
Must feel sexy and inspire lusty feelings in others while dancing
Must be OK with heights (platform is about six-feet off the ground)
Must be sober enough to not fall off
Steampunk attire a bonus!

For more information on the project, check out our blog at www.STEAMBUG.com, or to apply email STEAMBUG [at] PhilospherzStone [dot] com"

And the schemes are already a hatching...

2009-06-18T06:50:00.000-07:00

Mental note: don't forget to contact Mariah Rossel (of Boulder, Colorado) about pulling the fuel cart for the playa fire parade at Burning Man in 2010.
-PyroCelt

PS, I got the supports for he edges of the platform all cut, rounded, glued, bolted and screwed in last night, so now it is very sturdy and just down to sanding, staining, cutting the traction grooves in the platform, and then Polyurethaning it all to hell, but that pretty much takes care of the platform.... Oh yeah, then the wings too... and the lights... and maybe some fire just for shits and giggles

Funny things other people do with their VW Bugs

2009-06-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2007/02/what-can-be-done-with-vw-beetle.html

What a busy weekend

2009-06-16T06:42:00.000-07:00

On Friday evening we got the roof rack mainly completed, at least enough to test the pole on it, and with the roof rack on the ground, the flange bolted onto it (with 3/4 inch bolts, those where a challenge to mount into 2x4s without weakening the structural integrity too much) and the eight foot pole screwed into the flange, The FNP could climb the pole while me and another manly man rock back and forth on it, and it was... VERY sturdy. There was a hair of give, as it is steel and even more flexible wood, but really, it was very solid. Not limp at all. No, perfectly erectile. That flange was the ticket and money well spent! It really was not until I actually purchased the 8 foot by 2 inch steel pole and had it in my hand that I realized I would be driving around Transformus with a giant cock coming out of the roof of my car. Mental note: if it takes three strong men to screw the pole into the flange, and then people dance on it, three strong men cannot unscrew it. Luckily on of the boys is local, and has access to his dead grandpa's shop, which includes a three foot pipe wrench, and that is not even his longest!

Anyway, Saturday, after some complications with the curvature of the roof of the Beetle and not planing for enough clearance (notice the 2x8s in the second picture vs. the 2x4s in the first), we finally got the rack mounted on the roof and put the pole back in place. Three of us dudes were up there, and everything held very sturdy! Two of us even tried to tip the car, by hanging onto the pole while stand in the edge of the rack, leaning out and rocking back and forth. We had no luck! Although there was a tiny bit of play between the rack mounts and the rack (that is why I use giant wing nuts with roof racks, so they can be tightened as everything settles), the only spot rocking is where it is supposed to, the shocks and tires - and I might even have a plan for that. There is a jack that fits into the side of the Beetle, and I am going to see if I can find a second one for the other side, not to really take much weight off, but just to stabilize the whole thing if it is parked for while. To be honest though, it was quite a relief to get this tested, and not have my car be destroyed, cave in, or even bend. Phew!

Having the platform up there, we also noticed a number of useful things. The rack is 5 feet wide, as is the widest part of the base of the car. So the roof rack is sticking out over the roof of the car, and is rather challenging to climb up onto without a ladder, which is really good as it should discourage inebriated marauders making use of the pole without someone giving them a ladder. Looking at the roof rack mounted in place, we also figured out all of the technical detail of making the wings flap. And finally we are going to have to do a drive around Deerfields to make sure it has enough clearance to get into most of the neighborhoods. The pole is sturdy, so it should push branches from trees growing on the sides of the road aside, but it is rather tall. If there are neighborhoods we want to go to that we do not have enough clearance, we can simply unscrew the pole, drive in and then screw it back in. But that might mean there will be a lot of screwing going on in the STEAMBUG... *Ahem* Also, I now have it reregistered and insured, though it will be a close call whether or not the custom plate, which say "STEAMBUG" will make it in time for T'fus or not.

Yesterday I got it tuned up and it seems to be running relatively well, though it is always a bit of a touch and go adventure with those old VWs. We are driving it down to the Alchemy Art Fundraiser ( http://www.alchemyfestival.com/participation/art/fundraiser.html ) on the 27th in Atlanta to try to get some moola from them for the trailer. That should be a good road test, and means we will have to have most of the Beetle looking nice and hopefully completed by then.

Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

$200 of Stripper's Pole!

2009-05-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

At DBJ Corporation I just purchased $200 of stipper's pole supplies! Wow, that is a) one shitload of moola (Phew, thank gawk for art grants) and b) well, actually a very, VERY serious pole. I don't mess around, and being on top of a roof rack on top of a beetle I wanted as little rickety as possible about it. So I spected it out, two inch is the proper diameter for a pole, and eight feet seemed like enough to really act like a pole. But what makes it really nice, and ah, expensive is the flange, the wide base you screw the pole into and then bolt down to a flat surface. I asked them how big of a flange I would need to make a very sturdy pole that was only mounted at the bottom and had people dancing on it. About a twelve inch diameter is what they said I would need for the expected weight. It is seriously heavy, costs a hundred and twenty dollars, and reeks of structural integrity. This baby ain't going nowhere. It is nothing close to flopper, no it is hard, firm and stiff. Really, if you are going to do it, do it right, but I was not prepared for how... tough the whole rigged felt. I mean, there are eight mounting holes on the flange, but they have three quarter inch holes in them. You can't even get three quarter inch bolts at Home Depot! I had to get them there at DBJ, the whole thing just says fuck off, I own you. And perhaps I should have noticed this before, but it suddenly occurred to me that I would be driving around Transformus with a giant cock coming out of the top of my car.

Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

PS I promised Tom, the gentleman I worked with at DBJ, that I would email him pictures of the completed project. I must remember to do that.

The Art Grant in the Rough

2009-05-22T12:38:00.000-07:00

Here is a trimmed down version of our Transformus Art Grant Application. It has all the juicy bits and less of the boring bits - like numbers, timetables and safety.

Introduction
Last year, a number of members of my theme camp decided that this year we needed to bring an art car to Transformus. We have been coming to Transformus for several years and it is time to contribute at a deeper level. I really wanted a trailer to take our Audio Assault national (within the nation of Mysteria, that is). One of my super highlights of last year was listening to one of our campmates on the piano. I thought it would be nice to spread her music around a bit, maybe listen to her playing to the dying embers of the effigy burn as the sun rises. This idea of a sound trailer stuck in my mind, being able to spread sonic art around in the form of our diverse DJs, spoken word, and chiller music.

The Vision
Looking at options, with the economy the way it is, purchasing seemed out of the question. So, my plans became simple: thinking of something artsy involving a theme and lots of person-hour enhanceable options - without too much monetary investment. I started to look around and think, what do we already have? I realized my purple '69 VW Beetle was just about a pre-made art car! We could take off the doors (they are attached with four Phillips head bolts on each side) and it would do just fine. Although, I wouldn't do it on the highway, it could pull a small trailer at slow speeds. I started thinking, if we have a trailer, another fantasy of mine was to have a stripper's pole for peeps to dance upon. And, with my father's technical seal of approval for structural integrity (he has worked on VW's since before I was conceived), I realized the pole should be on a round platform roof rack mounted on my Beetle. Then I thought, it would be amazing to have wings coming out from the beetle, to give it kind of inverted, winged zeppelin look.

The Plans
Here are my plans broken down into stages, including a parts list. A lack of an art grant will not stop this project in its tracks, though an art grant would enable it to be far more kick-ass, far sooner. Before we get too technical, I want to: address a few concerns and questions; then go over a list people currently involved (I am assuming the names will be redacted before it reaches the judges); then a project list of different stages and possible additions, depending on time; and finally a rough budget.

Stage One - Roof-rack and Pole
This would be rather basic: removing the doors (this can happen later); building a small, round wooden circle, mounting it to the beetle (I already have the roof rack mounts); and attaching a stripper's pole to it (this is easier than you may think). I am pretty sure we can do this in a weekend, probably the majority of it in just one intense day. Discussing this with my father, we agreed that it should be able to hold two people my size (250 pounds), and should not hurt the roof or tip my beetle over. We will strongly enforce a policy of only having one small person at a time dancing on it, but it is imperative to build it safe, for when people do stupid shit. PARTS:

1/2 inch plywood
2/4s for frame and diagonal
Steel tubing stripper's pole
Stripper's pole mount
Bolts, screws, etc

Stage Two - The Sound Trailer
This will be a small eight foot by six foot trailer with a work bench down the right side (looking from the back) for a mixer or keyboard. Under the bench there will be room for the generator, the sub woofer and possibly a propane tank. On the front and back of the trailer there will be a frame going up and over the area with mounting for a tarp to make a sun shade or roof in case of inclement weather. This will be a cotton tarp so it is non-flammable. Technical Enhancements:

On each end of the bench there will be a short steel pole (mounted on the bench) coming up for speakers.
Some kind of shade structure going over the trailer to protect the people and equipment. If we get a projector, this will be on a 70 degree angle behind the DJ, with a projector mounted under the table projecting up at it.
The bench - one thought is to make the bench out of three pieces of metal chain link fence tubing covered in pipe insulation. This will make it easy to tie down DJ deck and sound boards and what have you, give the electronics some padding, and not have any place to put drinks or other spill-able liquids.
Propane torches (two), mounted on each side of the bench, aimed out high over the audience. Both torches would be run off of one tank, under the bench, with a splitter. Each torch would have a propane soldering torch pilot light. They would be turned on and off by the DJ turning the tank on and off. There would also be a fire extinguisher on the back of the trailer (as well as one in the Beetle - it already lives there).
A four foot Reuben's Tube in front of the DJ equipment. This would be a small low powered one, with a few inch high flames and a metal screen in front of it and behind it to protect it from the audience.
A swing down trailer crank. If you put two adjustable jack stands under the back of the trailer, then when you crank the front stand down, it makes a very sturdy platform without a vehicle.
Mounting a trailer hitch on my beetle will be a bit of a task, and will likely require a professional wielder to enhance and strengthen the bumper mounting points on my beetle.

Stage Three - The Wings
I started thinking about possibilities of the tube of the strippers pole, running up from the roof rack, and what I could do with it, and I got excited. There are all sorts of possibilities of things one could run up there: electronics, propane torches, metal cabling. At first, I thought of a disco ball (and that's still not a bad idea) but then I had a moment of reckoning. I had the idea of rigging going out to wings (mounted just under the roof rack, two or three on each side) the could make it into a Steampunk vehicle of sorts, flapping its way around with a dancer on the main "mast" and tunes blaring out from a Steampunk trailer.
We want wings attached to the platform that can flap. This might look a little like the small wings on the HMS Ophelia. There are a number of options we have been considering and it might just be a matter of building a few prototypes and seeing what we like the best. Currently, we are looking at four wings, mounted to a control tube on each side, with a motor in the middle that operates them. Don't worry, we have though of all sorts of ideas on how to make this work, now our biggest problem is just to sort them out and figure out which one would be the best.
The wings themselves will be cotton approximately 4 - 8 feet long and 1 - 2 feet wide. The front side will be cut at an arc running to the back, with a sleeve for a PVC rib. The back side will have a few darts in it, to make the whole wing curve even more. The PVC, being bent, should hold the wing taught.

Stage Four - Or if you have lots of time, money and a needling desire to fulfill all my fantasies

EL wire the rigging or in some other way make the wings glow
Projector - that could shoot up from the bench to the overhead awning
Brass finish all of the trim on the beetle
Wooden bumpers, to make them look more old fashioned

Transformus Art Grant APPROVED!

2009-05-21T13:05:00.000-07:00

STEAMBUG is officially funded as a Transformus Art Grant! I am super excited. Of our total budget of $2442 (and basic budget excluding extraneous additions of generator, projector and lots of EL wire of $1452), Tranformus awarded us $599, the most they can offer any single recipient! This is fantastic, in that we can guarantee the main vehicle will get built, but it also means that we need to raise an additional $800 to $1800 to complete the project (including the sound trailer). Now that the Transformus Art Grant jury has concluded their verdict and we no longer need to remaion anonymous can reach out to directly to Philosopherz, Mysterians at large, and also to the Alchemy art grants at their party.

A comment on STEAMBUG being all capitals, I have written it this way to correspond to the future license plate it will have just as soon as I get it registered and back on the road.

Keeping it lit,
PyroCelt

New blog to follow the creation of the STEAMBUG

2009-05-05T12:45:00.000-07:00

I just created this blog to follow the conversion of my 1969 VW Beetle in into the art car STEAMBUG!