Here's a tip: score a line about 1/8 inch deep around the circumference of the pipe where you want the knuckle before you heat it. Then push the segments of the pipe toward the score line. It will help the pipe keep its roundness, and the knuckles look very realistic! Your finishing is amazing, as always. Thanks again for posting these videos. I'm learning a lot!
A switch up for the moss in the eye socket could be worms (plastic fishing lures) or a snake, you could have a snake wrapped around the top and poised in a strike position
Bamboo is so common and such a weed you might as well just take an afternoon to drive around and look for some bamboo growing somewhere. Natural materials in a decoration always make them more “believable” and increase their effectiveness. Also reduces your exposure to toxic / harmful chemicals.
Very cool! We use a bead of caulk for the knuckles on our PVC bamboo. It's not quite as realistic, but still looks good, and is way less time consuming.
I used to work on the Temple of the Forbidden Eye at Disneyland before moving to New Orleans. I'm feeling a tad homesick for my old Temple, so I just might have to make one of these for myself! Huge fan of your work. Thank you for breaking things down into very manageable steps. Kungaloosh!
I was just thinking of what props to add to my jungle temple haunt, this is perfect and I already have most of what I need to make a couple. That said, I scored some actual bamboo poles from Goodwill for cheap so while I'll likely make some from PVC, half the work's already done. Another thing I'd do, and this is wholly dependent on what theme you have, is maybe add some paint markings on the skulls before aging them, especially florescent paints if you plan on having some blue lighting in your scene. Things like ancient runes or Voodoo symbols, again it's all about your theme and what story you want to tell. Great video and thanks again for the idea!
Super fun prop Derek! I love the bamboo technique, it turned out so awesome! Hope you guys are doing well and have some fun plans for this Halloween season! Cheers!😄🎃👍
Amazing! Loved the temple of the doom-inspired backing track as well. The finish is fantastic. I also loved the suggestions of trying with a snake, and I am thinking of a spear tip or a flaming skull topper! Lots of additional ways to go further.
I have inserted several skulls on individual real bamboo poles and inserted a small solar light through the hole in the top of the skulls. The solar lights, light up the inside of the skulls making them look really good. And I also drilled out the eyes enabling the light to shine through the eyes. Menard's has 4 - 6 foot bamboo poles for $8.00.
Great prop.. Thx for sharing. I just knocked out 20 of these to replace my old stakes for my rope line.. I ended up using real bamboo to save time and made a mold of a plastic skull and used 2lb foam to fill the mold. Real easy to knock out a half dozen skulls a day that way. Thanks for again for this great prop idea.
That's a really nifty way to simulate bamboo! But maybe I'm missing something but why not just go to the garden center and pick up a stick of bamboo there?
As a prop maker, half of the magic is turning one object into another. This is just a further exploration on how to do that. You could absolutely buy a piece of bamboo, but if you ever needed to have something in a specific diameter or length, or needed a bend in a specific location it’s good to know how to go about doing it.
No patina this time? 🤣 Just kidding! This build is amazing and simple. I want to make one for myself. I've always dreamed of a pirates/voodoo/bayou style build and this could fit right in! 👍
Yay, awesome! I can totally use these for a decoration for my pirate LARP camp, love it! xD A little thought on the skulls: If you took a dark brown instead of black to age them, they´d get more realistic.^^
@@PowerChordEPS yes, particularly to the rope, and the "mossy" fiber additions in the eyesockets. Would make it all look like it was long time exposed to a humid, steamy climate.
Another great technique Derek. I wonder if the same would work for making larger bamboo sticks? Like using 40mm (1.5") pipes, or even larger like drain pipes or underground plumbing/waste pipes (that are around 150mm/6")? I can't see why not, but maybe the problem would be getting and keeping the whole circumference evenly hot and pliable enough to manipulate into shape. I will try just to see. Thanks.
Stunning as always! It's crazy to me the details you think of (wetting the rafia and moss to get better shape) or to use shellac instead of any type of stain or something...It looks really cool! Are you gonna use it in a staged setting? or for a costume? or?
I have found if you want to bend pvc, tape one end with painters tape (removes easier later!). Fill with sand - I used some "construction sand" I had on hand. (Sand handles heat well!) Tape 2nd end shut. If you can, find something round about the size you want, this helps as a bending "jig". Would say a 5 gallon bucket, but it might melt ! Heat pvc, go slowly and keep it moving. When it feels a bit melted, wrap around your jig. Do it in stages. It will STAY hot for a long time, so use safety gloves ! Once you get to where you want, soak in water. Let cool, remove sand. Do this in a well ventilated area, too ! Hope this helps !
Also, a fantastic fast way to create the natural looking grain down the length is to clamp the PVC in a vice and use a heavy duty stiff wire wheel in a drill to run up and down the length. Really softens it all up
One can use a serated knife or even a hack saw blade to scrape grain into plastic etc and it make beautiful long lines that a wash will make pop when applied. Spraying water on plastic as it bends or deforms "freezes" into place by removing heat nearly instantly from the material and there are another way to use water to form plastic. By taking water near to its boiling point you can dip or pour it over plastic carefully instead of using a heat gun to form it then just cool with a hose or other water to freeze its shape. Indeed if you wanted to take pvc pipe like this and make it into an arch or a nice curve say for garden by tying the ends together then pouring the hot water over on into the tubing using extreme caution then cool with a hose. The ideal way to use this method more safely on a small scale is to have a plug in steam pot often sold to clean stove tops to heat the plastic since unlike a heat gun it won't char or set it on fire as fast. As always be safe when using heat on any material and surprisingly some oil stains can catch fire because as the dry their exothermic and the rags etc that are used should be laid out to dry not waded up tossed.
@@VanOaksProps Thanks for letting me know so quickly. I have learned a lot from watching/re-watching your videos. Thanks for making them available to everyone.
Please be EXTREMELY cautious when scorching PVC. I personally try to never heat it to the point it scorches because thermal decomposition products of PVC are very dangerous. I'm given to believe it releases stuff like cyanide and chlorine and the chlorine readily combines with moisture in the air to become hydrochloric acid vapor. From what I can tell you always do this in well ventilated areas. I know from personal experience it can really play havoc on your respiratory system. Also I'm not 100 percent certain as to exactly what comes out of burnt PVC but it's not good. Cyanides and chlorine are what I have read. I know the white vapor will have you coughing for days. I never tell anybody not to work with PVC as it's a wonder material but I always advocate awareness with the potential hazards involved.
I like the torching step, it adds the darker spots and smoothes (and opens a bit?) the rotary lines. Great tutorial! How many times did you burn yourself of that high-temp hot glue? 🫣 Oddly enough, there’s a massive bamboo supplier warehouse near me that I recently visited, their prices have tripled in the past two years! I understand the need for a replacement! Though Spanish moss grows everywhere in Florida- literally on power lines- but it’s also full of bugs. Well Florida is full of bugs, so… 🤷🏼♀️
Great job again! Perfect timing, I was just in CA this past week and visited Disneyland for a few days. I had planned to try making some Indiana Jones props for Halloween and rode the ride many times and took alot of pictures of the bamboo and skulls to try and make some for our yard. I live in MN and bamboo is not really available unless you order it, which is expensive and on the plus side I enjoy making stuff! Thanks so much for your videos I really do look forward to watching them! Wish I could see your haunt in person.
Here's a tip: score a line about 1/8 inch deep around the circumference of the pipe where you want the knuckle before you heat it. Then push the segments of the pipe toward the score line. It will help the pipe keep its roundness, and the knuckles look very realistic! Your finishing is amazing, as always. Thanks again for posting these videos. I'm learning a lot!
A good way to mount this in the ground is to use some rebar!
Now you and Mrs. VanOaks just need to visit Disneyland and drop this off on the Jungle Cruise.
A switch up for the moss in the eye socket could be worms (plastic fishing lures) or a snake, you could have a snake wrapped around the top and poised in a strike position
Love the snake idea
i love your videos. not only do i learn alot but also your voice is very calming and helps me center myself
Try this with some animal skulls for a witch doctor look maybe.. Great project. Thanks!
Bamboo is so common and such a weed you might as well just take an afternoon to drive around and look for some bamboo growing somewhere. Natural materials in a decoration always make them more “believable” and increase their effectiveness. Also reduces your exposure to toxic / harmful chemicals.
I couldn’t agree more. But sometimes you need it in a hurry and this is a serviceable approach.
very true, tho pvc can last for years w/o breaking or splintering, and it's going to stand up to handling if it happens to be part of a costume.
I could drive around for a week & still not find any bamboo, it's not common in every hardiness zone.
Also cheaper than pvc
Lee R, bamboo will take a ton of handling and last for years. It's what you make scaffolding out of.
Very cool! We use a bead of caulk for the knuckles on our PVC bamboo. It's not quite as realistic, but still looks good, and is way less time consuming.
Cool idea!
I used to work on the Temple of the Forbidden Eye at Disneyland before moving to New Orleans. I'm feeling a tad homesick for my old Temple, so I just might have to make one of these for myself! Huge fan of your work. Thank you for breaking things down into very manageable steps. Kungaloosh!
That really came out great. I cant believe how to changed the pvc. Blew my mind!
So cool. Amazing how realistic that bamboo look is.
I’m always so amazed and impressed by your work. You can’t tell that the bamboo ever was PVC. That’s for all of your instruction and tips! 👍🏼
It really looked like bamboo! Thank you for making things that the rest of us might be able to do.
I was just thinking of what props to add to my jungle temple haunt, this is perfect and I already have most of what I need to make a couple. That said, I scored some actual bamboo poles from Goodwill for cheap so while I'll likely make some from PVC, half the work's already done.
Another thing I'd do, and this is wholly dependent on what theme you have, is maybe add some paint markings on the skulls before aging them, especially florescent paints if you plan on having some blue lighting in your scene. Things like ancient runes or Voodoo symbols, again it's all about your theme and what story you want to tell.
Great video and thanks again for the idea!
Well, looks like I need to buy a couple more skulls - this would be a great addition to our pirate skeleton theme. Great video as always!
Super fun prop Derek! I love the bamboo technique, it turned out so awesome! Hope you guys are doing well and have some fun plans for this Halloween season! Cheers!😄🎃👍
Your ideas are always so good, even ones, not this one, that I can't make.
Cool! So glad I found your channel!
I really like the look of these! They'd be awesome on either side of my old arbor! We love to decorate for Halloween!
So many possibilities and variations for this idea to tie it in with any theme. Awesome idea and video.
Amazing! Loved the temple of the doom-inspired backing track as well. The finish is fantastic. I also loved the suggestions of trying with a snake, and I am thinking of a spear tip or a flaming skull topper! Lots of additional ways to go further.
Very cool! I'd like to do a version in a weighted pot with lights inside the skulls for my front door or end of the dock at Halloween!
Great idea!
I have inserted several skulls on individual real bamboo poles and inserted a small solar light through the hole in the top of the skulls. The solar lights, light up the inside of the skulls making them look really good. And I also drilled out the eyes enabling the light to shine through the eyes. Menard's has 4 - 6 foot bamboo poles for $8.00.
Great prop.. Thx for sharing. I just knocked out 20 of these to replace my old stakes for my rope line.. I ended up using real bamboo to save time and made a mold of a plastic skull and used 2lb foam to fill the mold. Real easy to knock out a half dozen skulls a day that way. Thanks for again for this great prop idea.
That's a really nifty way to simulate bamboo! But maybe I'm missing something but why not just go to the garden center and pick up a stick of bamboo there?
As a prop maker, half of the magic is turning one object into another. This is just a further exploration on how to do that. You could absolutely buy a piece of bamboo, but if you ever needed to have something in a specific diameter or length, or needed a bend in a specific location it’s good to know how to go about doing it.
Love your videos! You are so talented!
Thanks, Amy!
Really great look.
Great job Derek
Awesome Halloween props thanks for sharing 🎃💀🪦
That looks amazing!! And the music was fun too.
Love this! Really appreciate this one.
This is awesome! Great technique on the bamboo.
Thanks so much!
No patina this time? 🤣
Just kidding! This build is amazing and simple. I want to make one for myself. I've always dreamed of a pirates/voodoo/bayou style build and this could fit right in! 👍
Great technique!
Yay, awesome! I can totally use these for a decoration for my pirate LARP camp, love it! xD
A little thought on the skulls: If you took a dark brown instead of black to age them, they´d get more realistic.^^
I'd maybe add a moss green wash in spots too for a little variety, but not as much as your browns or black.
@@PowerChordEPS yes, particularly to the rope, and the "mossy" fiber additions in the eyesockets. Would make it all look like it was long time exposed to a humid, steamy climate.
@@connorandrews2859 That's what I plan on doing to mine. Little pop of color and helps tell a story
Dope! You're inspiring me to create some creepy props for Halloween!
Derek, awesome work as usual
Thank you!
Just awesome and appreciate the inspiration! Cheers
Another great technique Derek. I wonder if the same would work for making larger bamboo sticks? Like using 40mm (1.5") pipes, or even larger like drain pipes or underground plumbing/waste pipes (that are around 150mm/6")? I can't see why not, but maybe the problem would be getting and keeping the whole circumference evenly hot and pliable enough to manipulate into shape. I will try just to see. Thanks.
Stunning as always! It's crazy to me the details you think of (wetting the rafia and moss to get better shape) or to use shellac instead of any type of stain or something...It looks really cool! Are you gonna use it in a staged setting? or for a costume? or?
Thank you! No plans to use it for anything. 95% of what I make is just to share my knowledge with others.
Do you think the PVC pipe will still bend enough if I wanted to use these faux bamboo sticks for making an archway over a sidewalk?
Absolutely.
I have found if you want to bend pvc, tape one end with painters tape (removes easier later!). Fill with sand - I used some "construction sand" I had on hand. (Sand handles heat well!) Tape 2nd end shut.
If you can, find something round about the size you want, this helps as a bending "jig". Would say a 5 gallon bucket, but it might melt !
Heat pvc, go slowly and keep it moving. When it feels a bit melted, wrap around your jig. Do it in stages. It will STAY hot for a long time, so use safety gloves ! Once you get to where you want, soak in water. Let cool, remove sand.
Do this in a well ventilated area, too !
Hope this helps !
really amazing bro
Fantastic as always Derek. and as Patrick noted, scoring the pipe helps tremendously! Good tutorial man. Keep em coming!
Also, a fantastic fast way to create the natural looking grain down the length is to clamp the PVC in a vice and use a heavy duty stiff wire wheel in a drill to run up and down the length. Really softens it all up
Any particular reason you did not use actual bamboo? I often see it at garden centers as plant stakes and it is price competitive with pvc.
It’s what I had on hand and it allows me to manipulate it in ways that you can’t with real bamboo.
@@VanOaksProps ok. Always a good idea to use leftovers from another project.
Great for bayou graveyard
One can use a serated knife or even a hack saw blade to scrape grain into plastic etc and it make beautiful long lines that a wash will make pop when applied. Spraying water on plastic as it bends or deforms "freezes" into place by removing heat nearly instantly from the material and there are another way to use water to form plastic. By taking water near to its boiling point you can dip or pour it over plastic carefully instead of using a heat gun to form it then just cool with a hose or other water to freeze its shape. Indeed if you wanted to take pvc pipe like this and make it into an arch or a nice curve say for garden by tying the ends together then pouring the hot water over on into the tubing using extreme caution then cool with a hose. The ideal way to use this method more safely on a small scale is to have a plug in steam pot often sold to clean stove tops to heat the plastic since unlike a heat gun it won't char or set it on fire as fast. As always be safe when using heat on any material and surprisingly some oil stains can catch fire because as the dry their exothermic and the rags etc that are used should be laid out to dry not waded up tossed.
Cool!!!! Thanks for the info!!!!💀💀🎃🎃🤣🤣
Cool
I've made a bunch of these over the years. Yours look so much better. But that's why you have a youtube channel and I don't! :o) Thanks for the tips!
🤣
So, before you used the shellac, did you use any other treatment on the pvc? Other than making the wood grain patterns?
Nope. That was it.
in projects like this i sometimes also like tu use real bamboo because its cheap as well and you have less expense
For sure. It’s always good to include some real with the fake to help it look better.
I was surprised that your skulls do not have a lower jaw. Did you get a lower jaw with them?
They came without.
@@VanOaksProps Thanks for letting me know so quickly. I have learned a lot from watching/re-watching your videos. Thanks for making them available to everyone.
I feel like I have to address you as DMinor now. Haha. Ya know, that intro could use a little hook.
👏
A haunted tiki room?
Yes! I’d love to see it.
What a great idea! I sense skeletal and zombie birds in our futures....
Please be EXTREMELY cautious when scorching PVC. I personally try to never heat it to the point it scorches because thermal decomposition products of PVC are very dangerous. I'm given to believe it releases stuff like cyanide and chlorine and the chlorine readily combines with moisture in the air to become hydrochloric acid vapor. From what I can tell you always do this in well ventilated areas. I know from personal experience it can really play havoc on your respiratory system. Also I'm not 100 percent certain as to exactly what comes out of burnt PVC but it's not good. Cyanides and chlorine are what I have read. I know the white vapor will have you coughing for days. I never tell anybody not to work with PVC as it's a wonder material but I always advocate awareness with the potential hazards involved.
So why not just use real bamboo?
Where’s the fun in that? 🤣
As a finishing tip: paint some voodoo symbols on the skulls.
I like the torching step, it adds the darker spots and smoothes (and opens a bit?) the rotary lines. Great tutorial!
How many times did you burn yourself of that high-temp hot glue? 🫣
Oddly enough, there’s a massive bamboo supplier warehouse near me that I recently visited, their prices have tripled in the past two years! I understand the need for a replacement! Though Spanish moss grows everywhere in Florida- literally on power lines- but it’s also full of bugs. Well Florida is full of bugs, so… 🤷🏼♀️
I managed to escape unscathed. Lol
Great job again! Perfect timing, I was just in CA this past week and visited Disneyland for a few days. I had planned to try making some Indiana Jones props for Halloween and rode the ride many times and took alot of pictures of the bamboo and skulls to try and make some for our yard. I live in MN and bamboo is not really available unless you order it, which is expensive and on the plus side I enjoy making stuff! Thanks so much for your videos I really do look forward to watching them! Wish I could see your haunt in person.