hey guys! i was just wonderin, if theirs a list for all the necesary tools need it to built a proton pack, for beginer or first timer. i know theirs a matterial list i printed them out. i printed out morms plans and now am printing the rest of stefans plans and i got my own GB prop files folder . just so you guys know am not a prop maker at all am just a GB Fan and artist. but i am intrested in learning about it and gettin, all the necesary and/or important info from all of you. Thank you! 
now all need is to print out some prop pics so that i can get ideas,lol!
Dremel tool is your friend 
power drill
dremel
stanley knife
hacksaw
jigsaw
hot gluegun
those are the tools i really couldnt do without.
<> except for temporary mold boxes that is one tool I could easily live without…
The necessary tools will mostly depend on what medium you build the pack out of…
And as much as the Dremel tool comes in handy it’s highly over used as there is almost always a more ‘proper’ tool to get the job done, and done better…
I have not used my Dremel in years, but for many it is a cheap and useful tool…
only really use the hotglue for building rough cardboard mock-ups, fake weld lines and…yup you guessed it…mould boxes haha. but i still couldnt get very far without one. on my “real” or “hero” props i use epoxy resin glue in it’s place.
I tought about hotglueing the repro weld lines… does hot glue hold paint well?
yeah hot glue seems to hold paint well. i think as long as hot glue isnt flexed the paint will stay on no problem.
I actually logged on to ask the exact same question.
A very distinct list would be very useful.
For example, I didn’t actually have a STRAIGHT EDGE in my house. Seriously, not one ruler, not even a level.
When I ask questions like these I kind of have this great hope that the end result will be an almost IKEA-like list of materials and necessary tool.
However, I then cringe at the fact that any lurker on this board trying to win a few bucks at a halloween costume contest- BUT cannot tell you who even found the car…
Jerks.
Would it hurt us to have such a comprehensive list? Would it make packs too uniform? Would it push people towards making more original packs?
I personally think that there’s enough differences in workspaces/skill that no two packs made by different people would REALLY be the same. You know, unless someone makes a full Proton Pack Kit to sell.
:walterpeck:
I’m gonna take a stab at answering this. The reason there is not a comprehensive list is because there are to many ways to make the pack. I have seen people use wood, to styrene, to foamboard to cardboard. each material deals with different tools. It really depends on what you have available to yourself and what materials you are going to use to construct your pack with. Plus, I can also say that this question has been asked multiple times throughout the years. using the search feature will yeild many results as to what different people have used.
I’m not sure what you mean by this. I know that if you follow the plans, your gonna have packs that look the same…but thats the goal of each ghosthead…to have a movie accurate proton pack to call their own.
if you mean the “junk packs”, then those are gonna come out no matter what.
The main thing is it really depends on you…use what you have available to you at the time and just have fun with it. But by all means, don’t be discouraged from asking questions. We are all here to help
in addition to the actual tools listed; i also use this stuff, devcon plastic weld
and i use loctite’s ‘super glue control gel’.
they work great! both are available at walmart and can be used for plastics/resin.
Hurt no, but there is no such list…
For me I would use the following if I was doing a wood or plastic build…
Milling machine
Lathe
Table saw
Band saw
Chop saw and/or Radial Arm saw
Orbital Sander
Hand drill
And misc other hand tools…
If I was doing an all metal build I would use
Milling machine
lathe
laser or waterjet cutter
TIg or Mig welder
But my list(s) include several thousands of dollars worth of tools unpractical for most, but what I would use…
Also if you are making it of foam board the list above would be useless for the most part, the variables and what tools are needed are all over the place depending on your budget, experience and needs…
See, right there is a list of very expensive tools that must be bought BEFORE most people get cranking on the parts for a pack…
Which is why I always borrow my brother’s tools 
It would be a real contribution to the board to make a list of ‘required’ and/or ‘suggested’ tools for the job.
I imagine you can ‘fake’ a lot of jobs that require real expensive tools, but it won’t be as professional.
Although a ‘professional’ wouldn’t need to know these kinds of things, there are a few amateurs.
— And when I meant “original” packs I was in FACT not referring to “junk packs”. I was however hinting at the list of ‘other’ packs that are on this board.
My personal favorites being: The Dollar Store Proton Pack, XxEgonxX’s & TheWug’s RGB Pack, and that AWESOME XGB pack (the creator’s name escapes me, but mad props to that guy).
TheWug’s pack shoots silly string! I’m sure a lot of people wanted their pack to ‘fire’ but it took some off-the-plans tinkering to do it, and I give the guy props.
Required tools a razor knife and a ruler…
You can build almost the entire pack out of foam board or styrene with those two tools…
I posted my suggested tools, but yes you can use a screw driver to unscrew screws…
You list of tools could be as simple as a razor knife, hand saw and dremel…
Or in the middle with a circular saw, jig saw, hand saw, razor knife, and dremel…
It all really depends on your skill set and working knowledge of the tools, and also obviously you budget or availability to the tools…
It also depends greatly on what you build it with… If you use pre-cut and sized bass wood from the hobby store your requirements are going to be different and less then if you purchased a 4x8 sheet of 1/2 MDF… And again different if you build it out of cardboard or foam board…
It’s like if I asked you what tools you needed to build a sculpture, without knowing if I wanted a stone, concrete, clay, papermache, or origami piece you can’t tell me what tools to use…
Perfectly valid point!
Would it be safe to say that ‘pack types’ come in several categories, each requiring a different arrangement of tools and skills with said tools?
Off the top of my head:
Expert - 100% movie accurate = Full metal construction, etc.
Needs: Welding, etc.
Advanced - Wood or MDF = “lighter” builds that aim not to be 85lbs…
Needs: Woodworking tools, etc.
Beginner - Foam/Plastic/Other = Lightest, Least accurate build.
Needs: Dremel, straight edge, razor knife, etc
Something broken down into those categories would really help first-time builders of packs… Especially if say for the “expert” level it is recommended to have “At least 2 years of Welding experience” under your belt. That would make sure people don’t take in too much and sink money into something they’ll never finish (but we end up buying off them on ebay).
Of course, I’m just suggesting. As a guy who only converted a RGB trap to a more movie-based one and is currently working on a RGB PKE of the same fashion… I’m pretty much useless, except to ask questions.
:walterpeck:
um yeah… im gonna have to say that you’re wrong with that statement.
people have made packs out of plastic, known as styrene, that are some of the most accurate and best packs around; like bigi71’s pack and pvj’s pack. then there are also the vaccumed formed packs that, until fiberglass, were the most accurate and nicest prefabbed packs some one could buy. you also had to have wood working skills in order to make the buck for the vac form. so yeah; more advanced than beginner (assuming you made the vac form pack your self that is).
and since you didnt mention fiberglass; im going to assume that would fall under “other”. making a fiberglass pack would be, i think, advanced. you need wood working skills to make the mold with. not to mention then there is making the mold using clay, silicon, and other materials; and finally you need to have some knowledge on how to actually fiberglass (resin mixing, mat laying, ect). now obviously fiberglass packs are only as accurate as their molds were built as. but for the most part, fiberglass packs are some of the most accurate and nicest packs around.
As said above “accuracy” is not dependent on what route you take unless you are basing in on what the originals were made of…
You can make a foam board pack as visually accurate as a metal or fiberglass pack… And on the same token any of those mediums could produce the most inaccurate appearing pack…
Visual accuracy will depend more on the builders skills with the materials then the materials themselves…
Flynn
Well as I said, I’m not experienced and that was by no means meant to be a comprehensive list. Just a kind of off-the-cuff example.
Visual accuracy is different than something that is a 100% movie accurate prop.
Myself- I would try to build a Visually Accurate pack… But I would never EVER dare a 100% accurate prop because of my lack of skill.
But you guys get my drift about the list I made?
It would be something of a “Rubric” or more like a “fitting chart” for clothing. It quickly lets you identify what category of experience you fall under, what tools you should have prepared, what materials you can expect to burn through, etc.
There’s a lot of experience on the board so I think its feasible to make such a chart.
My first pack was made from MDF and I only used a Jig-Saw and cordless drill. I didnt have a dremmel at the time. Some small parts had to be done on 3mm MDF and cut with a sharp knife. But its definitely possible!!
Lawrence
loly2kn2 - would that be the pack featured in your board-avatar?
If so- kudos my friend!