That's a good one!!

-=tab

Bless yer heart, Stanyon! And you call yerself a southerner?? It's supposed to be, "Hey Earl, hold my beer and watch this!"

Thanks for saying so. Ive always had a good eye for talent and yours would shine regardless.

Sorry Michael, I'm a d**n Yankee! You know, the ones that come down South and never leave.

Actually, I am too! Illinois boy here (carpetbagger)

Update... adding a lot of fake crap to the box today so it looks like a mad scientist device. Giving it a rusted industrial feel, as that fits the venue. The haunted trail is built on the historic site of an old steel blast furnace. I'll finish a few more of those do-dads and then start wiring this puppy up.

Man, if this thing fails on me, just think how much energy will have been wasted on this thread!

Michael,

I found this website while looking for something else. Look at item #(RWA) 59795:

http://www.surplussales.com/Potentiomete......t-1.html

That's an interesting little device! I had no idea they had them. I may look at getting one in the near future, although for now, I have a pair of singles ready to hook up.

Thanks!

~michael

I have used ganged potentiometers before, but never a rheostat. They were wired up opposite from one another to cause a similar effect to what you are trying to accomplish.

Get as thin a glass as you can use. No matter the thickness, you will get double reflections - one from each glass surface. The thinner the glass pane, the less noticable this double image is. You can not eliminate it, though.

Coupled rheostats are the norm for this type of item.
MR

That is good advice. Thank you! I actually talked to a glass company today to have them cut a piece of 1/4", because I was thinking more about the potential for breakage with a thinner piece. I guess I'll have to go ahead and pay for the piece they cut, and if I notice that issue, I'll opt for a thinner piece. Well, dang...

Ok, the electrical end of it works. Still waiting to hear from the glass company. Almost done.

After you replace the 1/4" glass with thinner glass, you might want all edges to be lightly ground by the glass guys. They will want to only grind the sharp edges. You will want the complete edge surfaces ground. This is to prevent edge reflections. Once the edges are ground (they will be white), go over them with a black permanent marker to darken them. This will be as good as you can get.
MR

Thanks again for that tip, which I am aware of, having made mirror boxes.

However, it won't be necessary for this application, as the glass will be running in slots to hold it secure. The edges won't show. It won't be viewed close up either.

Ok, I have a piece of glass in it, but seem to have run into an interesting dilemma. Compartment "A" is straight ahead. Compartment "B" is 90 left. Lights are in cans on top of the unit, shining down through holes cut in the top. This is in accordance with the plans I found for this contraption.

When "A" is lit and "B" is dark, the view is good. However, when "B" is lit and "A" is dark, and the glass is doing its job, there is too much light falling into "A". The reflection in the glass cannot override this, and it causes the original object in "A" to remain visible, although muted somewhat.

I am playing with various light baffles to keep this from happening, but to fully prevent this, these blinds are getting dangerously close to obscuring the top of the object in "B".

It is also prudent that no light enter through the front opening, as this can also illuminate the object inappropriately. But that is a different issue altogether.

I am beginning to think that a different lighting arrangement would be better, similar to tray lighting, with possibly more, but smaller bulbs. Also, even though the interior is painted flat black, I may also try to line the interior with light absorbing BA fabric to further prevent any bounced light from straying.

Any thoughts from anyone here?

One-way glass?

Interesting thought, and probably worth checking. Thanks.

Lousy plans drawn up by someone who never built or used such a device. I hope you did not pay for them. If we had seen the plans before you began, someone here could have tipped you off to the upcoming problems.

Lighting from above is NOT how it is done! Showcase bulbs (small size) around 3 sides of the opening just behind the glass for each view. This aims intense light directly onto the object behind the bulbs and simplifies masking problems. If the lighting is intense, the ambient room lighting will not affect things unless one chamber is empty and lined with dark material (there will always be very faint reflections). Intense front lighting of the spaces counters the faint reflections. Do NOT try one way glass! You do still need thinner glass though.

Any pictures of what you have?
MR

MR,

Thanks again for your input. Ha-ha!! No, I did not pay for the plans. A friend found them online and sent them to me. Actually, they show a photograph of the one they built, so I assumed they had one that worked better than this one does.

I figured if the lights were directed toward the back of each chamber, illuminating the object(s), then that would prevent light from spilling too far in the wrong dirtection.

Actually, I thought the recessed lighting, as exists now would have done that, but too much indirect light illuminates the wrong chamber. That is why I thought of lining the box with something to absorb light better.

This is a very small unit, only 24" square by 12" high (minus the unused space in one rear quadrant). The trick will be to design a housing for sufficient lighting that doesn't eat too much of the viewability.

Oh, and I did get a thin piece of glass, instead of the 1/4".

All in all, this is really an experimental piece. I have invested very little money, using leftover wood from my shop, and a handful of salvaged parts. My intent was to include it as part of a Halloween gig that I do each year. If it's not going to work properly, so be it. It's not the end of the world. There are other fish to fry and one more prototype will hardly be noticed around here!

This particular design obviously has it's limitations (one bad side angle for instance). What I'd ultimately like to do is make a piece similar to Abbott's Frame of Life & Death. This has better side angles, although a lousy view from up high. That is less critical for my typical venues.

Oh, and here is the link to the original design...

http://www.halloweenhauntedhouseprops.co......box1.htm

~michael

Abbotts head to skull had rollerblinds under the glass covering the skull. They were opened just before the light change.
Ray

Mr. Baker, check out the old Thayer Reincarnation plans for how they did the lighting. The newer Owen plans are virtually identical. This is how to properly do the showcase bulbs.

Abbotts unit with the blinds worked but is really ugly.

BTW none of the things made using this principle have very good sight angles. They all really require straight on viewing for best results.
MR