Trick Chair

[adude23]

Hi there,
Doing a play and trying to get a table to fall over ''on cue'' with no one on stage touching it.
I've been thinking about fishing wire but it's not possible as it would quite simply GET IN THE WAY but i've also thought about taking apart a radio controlled car and doing it that way. . .
Has anyone done this before?
If so how can you get it to work well and efficiently!
oh and it also needs to be reset by a member of the cast so has to be pretty simple
Thanks in advance
~adude~

 

[Van]

If you have the room to hide battery packs, etc, then acheiveing this effect through radio/remote control is possible.
Here is a link to one of my favorite suppliers / reference spots for all types of solenoids. Which I would suggest using to actuate this trick.
In a recent thread we were dicussing the control of a wagon using conventional R/C car parts. One issue I brought up there is a issue I'd like to bring up here as well. You'd be better off purchasing a higher end radio control system like those used for R/C planes Preferably one with a digital security code imbedded in its commands. This is going to almost completely eliminate the possibility of interference from somebody else
with a similar controller. < Did that make sense ? My brain's not working well today>

 

[adude23]

Yea that made perfect sense thank you!
What i've thought of is maby having some sort of pin that can be removed (via. R/C) which then makes the legs detach...
It's just making the device easy enough for actors to re-assemble

 

[Van]

Yea that made perfect sense thank you!
What i've thought of is maby having some sort of pin that can be removed (via. R/C) which then makes the legs detach...
It's just making the device easy enough for actors to re-assemble

My thoughts almost exactly.
If you were to cut the leg at an angle, say a forty-five degree, then inbed a small spring loaded, retracting when activatied, tubular solenoid in the top part of the leg, and drill a hole in the bottom part < whew this is a run on sentence> for the pin of the solenoid to insert into.... Then when you hit the remote the pin retracts, the leg parts slide, 'cause gravity tells em to. To reassemble the actors would just need to right the table line up the pin and set down the table.

 

[adude23]

Thanks Van,
I've got a production meeting tonight i shall bring our idea up and see what they say!
thanks again
~Adude~