# How to Make Spinning 'Superman' Rings



## ghostlland820 (Jan 11, 2014)

Hi. I don't have any great idea about what to do with this, but the following video shows how to make spinning, gravity defying rings like those appearing at the beginning of the first (Christopher Reeves) Superman movie. To make it work, I bought several expensive aluminum juggling hoops. I'm hoping someone here comes up with a cheaper way to make the rings.


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## GobbyGruesome (Sep 14, 2005)

I remember that vividly from the first Superman movie. It's weird because my first thought was "What a cool but simple effect!" but obviously it ain't as easy as it looks. Thanks for showing us your trial and error. You can't argue with your results though. Very cool.


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## DaveintheGrave (Feb 12, 2004)

Some member here had posted a video of his yard haunt and he had the spinning rings just like you describe. I can't remember who it was.

I'm pretty sure he said he used hula-hoops for his rings.

It was a nice looking prop!


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## Ghost Ninja (Aug 25, 2013)

I will be putting this on my prop build list for sure. I'm thinking of welding two hula hoops together with a plastic welder from HF. This might be just the excuse I need to buy it! Perhaps using PVC pipe to form your hoops might be a cheap alternative to a strong hoop structure. Good luck!


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## ghostlland820 (Jan 11, 2014)

Ghost Ninja said:


> I will be putting this on my prop build list for sure. I'm thinking of welding two hula hoops together with a plastic welder from HF. This might be just the excuse I need to buy it! Perhaps using PVC pipe to form your hoops might be a cheap alternative to a strong hoop structure. Good luck!


Plastic welder? Hmmmmmmm. I'm going to check that out. Thanks.


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## mickkell (Dec 27, 2008)

There was a Tire store in Seattle who did this with two Tires way before Superman,cool illusion.


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## mickkell (Dec 27, 2008)

I'd use my roller bender to make those from Steel and just weld them at the angle that looks the best.


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## SaltwaterServr (Jul 28, 2014)

ghostlland820 said:


>


The final effect is fantastic. 

I wonder if the floppiness of the hula hoops could be countered by drilling a few holes in a hula hoop and then shooting Great Stuff into the hoops. The filling might stiffen it up. 

If all else fails, maybe coat the hoops with Viagra?


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## ghostlland820 (Jan 11, 2014)

I tried using hula hoops with Great Stuff. I may have drilled only one hole, which would have been a mistake. In any case, I shot the goop into the hoop, but after I pulled out the straw, the compressed foam exploded all over me and the garage. Had to throw away a set of clothes, and Great Stuff guts still adorn the garage ceiling and walls. I think--even with two holes, which I may have tried--the foam compound wouldn't have dried and hardened. It may have to be exposed to air. The suggestion to make a homemade PVC hoop might work; I didn't realize you could "weld" plastic. As for a steel pipe bender...don't think I can justify that purchase, even from Harbor Freight.


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## mickkell (Dec 27, 2008)

Dont mean to HJ this thread but I had lots of uses for the HF roller bender,including this Gate I built.


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## SaltwaterServr (Jul 28, 2014)

ghostlland820 said:


> I tried using hula hoops with Great Stuff. I may have drilled only one hole, which would have been a mistake. In any case, I shot the goop into the hoop, but after I pulled out the straw, the compressed foam exploded all over me and the garage. Had to throw away a set of clothes, and Great Stuff guts still adorn the garage ceiling and walls. I think--even with two holes, which I may have tried--the foam compound wouldn't have dried and hardened. It may have to be exposed to air. The suggestion to make a homemade PVC hoop might work; I didn't realize you could "weld" plastic. As for a steel pipe bender...don't think I can justify that purchase, even from Harbor Freight.


I think you'd probably have to go with a hole every 2-3" or so for both expansion and for the oxidation needed for final catalyzition to a solid form. 

I did have another thought last night, and it won't work for everyone. What about mounting a motor in a tree or on a camouflaged stand with an arm on it to suspend the hoops rather than propping the hoops from the ground up? One of those cheap chinese Ebay motors with about 20rpm would do the trick. You'd probably need a variable speed controller to start it off so the strings suspending the hoops wouldn't get all twisted. You could also do multiple hoops this way since weight wouldn't be as much of an issue. Here's a quick and dirty sketch.


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## SaltwaterServr (Jul 28, 2014)

mickkell said:


> Dont mean to HJ this thread but I had lots of uses for the HF roller bender,including this Gate I built.
> View attachment 213152


That is a mighty fine piece of metal working there sir. I spent every summer working structural steel construction to help a little with college costs.


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## Ghost Ninja (Aug 25, 2013)

Back to the PVC idea. There is a lot of info out on the web for bending PVC. I think that the gist of it is to cap one end but don't glue it. Then fill the pipe with sand and cap the other end without gluing it. Then begin to heat it with a heat gun until it gets soft, do this outside the fumes might make you grow a third ... something. Once you bend it using your hands or forming it over a barrel let it cool. I doused it with water and it froze in place. I did this to build a big Samurai throne for birthday parties and I also use this tech to reposition some of daughter's dinosaurs. You buy some heat blankets and spring coils but they start getting expensive for making a prop here and there. The sand helps to distribute the heat and the does not allow the pipe to kink so that you can have a nice bend. That's what the spring is supposed to do but they run about $30 and up I think. And the sand I have fits most pipe I work with!








You can see two of the three PVC pipes that I bend to form the stand for this throne.


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## mickkell (Dec 27, 2008)

Thank you SaltwaterServr.


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## SaltwaterServr (Jul 28, 2014)

mickkell said:


> Thank you SaltwaterServr.


Were the dragons and emblem bought or do you know someone with a plasma table?


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## mickkell (Dec 27, 2008)

I found a pattern online that I liked and altered it so it was one piece.Then I went to a local steel supplier(where I get mine) who has a CNC Plasma Cutter and they cut them for me.Really inexpensive too.


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## ghostlland820 (Jan 11, 2014)

In response to hanging hoops from above--Cool idea! That would you allow you to do something that I couldn't figure out with my setup: how to have something standing inside the hoops like in the Superman movie. Will give that some thought. Thanks.


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## Ghost Ninja (Aug 25, 2013)

I thought that I would add in that I got a great deal on a plastic welder at Harbor Freight. Only to take it back a couple of days later. It did not work the way that I had hoped it would. I have been using Mig welders for about 30 years. I don't know how to stick weld but I figured I could stick weld with a plastic welder. Either, I stick weld to save my life or the product does not work as advertised. For anyone else willing to give it a try, the welding stick packages come with a variety of different types of plastics. One of them is PVC, assuming you can figure out how to use it, you might be able to weld the PVC rings as described. Good luck!


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## SaltwaterServr (Jul 28, 2014)

Arc welding is a bit different than MIG. Even to start something like 5018 Low Hydrogen stick requires a bit of handiwork to get it to restarted once you've pulled it off of the steel from the first start. You have to know to strike it like a match across the steel or it'll weld itself to the steel you're working on. 

I'd have to take a look at plastic welding tutorials on youtube to see how they compare.


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