By Gremer
#4937968
Hello everyone!

I've loved Ghostbusters for as long as I can remember and I'm currently considering getting a proton Pack. The full-size ones that are for sale are far too expensive for me though and I'm iffy on on the Spirit Halloween pack. It looks nice, with some minor inaccuracies, but the size is what gets me.

So I came across Thomas Galvin's DIY pack on YouTube and I was wondering what other people thought about it. It looks nice, though I don't have a super critical eye.

My questions are:
How accurate is this pack and are there any major inaccuracies?
How much would this cost?
How sturdy is it? It would mostly just be hanging on a wall for me, with some occasional use.

Thanks in advance!
User avatar
By Kingpin
#4937969
Gremer wrote: August 8th, 2020, 1:28 amMy questions are:
How accurate is this pack and are there any major inaccuracies?
How much would this cost?
How sturdy is it? It would mostly just be hanging on a wall for me, with some occasional use.
If it's the one in this video:



-Then the answer to your first question is "it's extremely inaccurate".

I'm afraid I have to leave for work shortly, but I'll try provide a more detailed response once I get home.
deadderek, Gremer liked this
User avatar
By Kingpin
#4937974
Where the Pack replica is most accurate is in Cyclotron (the round section with the four red lights)... And the Synchronous Generator (the 'd'-shaped section), everything else is extremely off, and wouldn't serve as a good reference guide if you were looking to construct a Pack resembling the props used in the movies.

I'm reluctant to go into greater detail as the quality of the video is rather murky.

Instead, I'd recommend the Reference Galleries, and this set of reasonably high-resolution screencaps at movie-screencaps.com: Link

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I actually came across this video in the "Up Next" section beside the one you linked, and I'd definitely recommend this one: it gives you an extremely clear and detailed process for putting a Pack together, and you could adapt it from using foamcore to something a bit more robust (with a bit of extra support structure where necessary):

Gremer, NotSabbat liked this
By Gremer
#4937980
Thanks! Unfortunately the other one you posted requires resin parts from a store that's currently shut down. :(

I know I may well be asking the impossible, but my budget is probably around $2-400. I'd like to make one DIY that's decently accurate, it doesn't have to be completely perfect but no major inaccuracies. I'd like one full-size, but given those limitations, would I be better off with a Spirit pack?
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By below_radar_00
#4937982
Gremer wrote: August 8th, 2020, 1:39 pm Thanks! Unfortunately the other one you posted requires resin parts from a store that's currently shut down. :(

I know I may well be asking the impossible, but my budget is probably around $2-400. I'd like to make one DIY that's decently accurate, it doesn't have to be completely perfect but no major inaccuracies. I'd like one full-size, but given those limitations, would I be better off with a Spirit pack?
A Spirit pack would be your best bet given you budget. There are all sorts of mods you can do to it (paint it, fill in the speaker hole in the cyclotron, add better parts that you can get off the "For Sale" section of the forum, etc). Even with all that you'd be in budget.

I've purchased three (maybe four?) custom pack builds over the past 16 years and the two that were the most accurate were right at $2,000. I'm guessing the market for an accurate pack is still $2,000 or more. For something passable you're probably still looking close to $2,000. I don't think I've ever heard of a good full-sized pack in the 2-400 range.

That's just my opinion on this. I'm sure Kingpin will pop in and give his two cents and he'd be a better source than me.
User avatar
By NotSabbat
#4937990
A 3d printed pack may be a good solution for you. You can stay pretty comfortably under $400 if you are willing to do a lot of sanding and are OK with 3d printed parts rather than real/resin and are good with doing the electronics work yourself. How handy are you at building stuff?

Generally thats around $150 for the filament (around 300hours print time) $100 for the pack frame, $100 for random bolts/glues/paints and maybe another $50 for electronics depending on what you want to do. Course projects always run over, but its a ballpark.
Last edited by NotSabbat on August 8th, 2020, 3:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
By Gremer
#4937991
NotSabbat wrote: August 8th, 2020, 3:41 pm A 3d printed pack may be a good solution for you. You can stay pretty comfortably under $400 if you are willing to do a lot of sanding and are OK with 3d printed parts rather than real/resin and are good with doing the electronics work yourself. How handy are you at building stuff?
Honestly, I've never tried any DIY stuff and I'm no good with electronics. I don't have a 3D printer either. :(

I'm thinking that with complete lack of experience, this would likely not be a good starter project. I might try to start off with something smaller. Part of the reason for my tiny budget is just because of my lack of experience.
User avatar
By NotSabbat
#4937992
Yeah, a proton pack is a big project. Ive built lots of stuff in the past and it took all my skills to get a good pack together.

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