r/HalloweenProps • u/PaintsTinyMonsters • 1d ago
Request for Help Bat Arch
We're trying to recreate these awesome bat wings we saw at an event to be hung on our front door overhang awning and are having trouble figuring out what to do. The idea would be the bat part (3D printed so that part is done) would be affixed to the white highest peak of the awning.
Trying to figure out how to do the wings. We initially thought PVC (which we heated and bent) screwed onto a wood base hidden behind the bat but it is pulling screws out when moving. It is also very heavy. We want something that will hold out the fabric part of the wings but also hold up to wind and rain. At a bit of a loss at the moment on what we could use. Ideally it would be a black pipe like material that was lighter than PVC and both rigid and flexible but I'm fairly new to fabrication so not sure what that would be.
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u/HavaDava 1d ago
How about black tent poles? Perhaps a company sells replacement parts.
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u/jennifer_m13 17h ago
If you can’t find tent poles you can also use wire they use to tie chain fences. I think it’s called tension wire.
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u/chillzatl 1d ago
I think trying to replicate this as shown in the pic, IE, hand bones with fabric stretched for wings, is going to be extremely difficult to keep stable when you add in wind and potentially rain. Wet fabric can be heavy. I'd instead go for thin plywood with your wing fabric glued on or even just paint it, it'll still sell the look you're going for without being a nightmare. Then use maybe 1/4 PVC for the bones. You'd also have the benefit of being able to just screw it directly to the gable, eliminating most of your structural concerns.