Robo-Pumpkin!

This Instructable will show you how to make a pumpkin that moves and glows in the dark!
I got my idea from evil mad scientist laboratories. They used LEGO to power there pumpkin but I found some cheap gears and axles from the k'nex company. Over all the build was a success!

Happy halloween!

For this instructable you will need

A pumpkin
K'nex motor
2 yellow rods (k'nex)
2 red rods (K'nex)
2 k'nex wheels (pully and tyre)
2 green rods (k'nex)
1 grey rod (k'nex)
K'nex small cog
K'nex large cog
tan clips
3 crocadile clips
correx
2 LEDS
Electrical wire
battery pack (for 4 AA batterys)
AA batterys
Toggle switch
Duck tape
Black ball Joint

Tools

Soldering iron
Solder
Sharp knife

start by cutting of the top, about 5 cm down from the stalk of the pumpkin. (cut off the stalk, we wont need it) and then hollow out the insides with a spoon.

Note: I have cut the top of and not used it because we won't need it for this Instructable.

For this step, you will need to glue the bottom of your motor to a piece of correx about 20 by 10cm wide.
Next stick it down and hold it in place with duck tape.

Next get two black rod connectors(they can also be white) and put one on either side of the k'nex motor

Now get a red rod and and black ball clip.
Thred the red rod through the motor and stick a black ball joint on the end.

For this step, you will need two green rods, 2 yellow or grey rod connectors and a small gear cog.
First connect the two green rods to the black rod connectors like shown in the picture. Then connect the yellow/grey rod connectors to the green rods like shown in the picture.

Finally slide the small gear cog on to the red rod you put there in step 5

For this step you will need a red rod and a black ball Joint.
First slide the red rod through the grey/yellow rod connector's hole in the middle of it like shown on the picture. Next clip the black ball Joint on the end

For this step you will need a tan clip and one large cog.
First clip the wheel on and slide the large cog though the rod on to it so it clips in

For this step you will need a tan clip and a wheel.
First clip the tan clip on next to the large cog and then slide the wheel on to it.

For this step you will need a white/black rod connector, two green rods, a black ball clip and a white/grey rod connector.
First slide a white/black rod connector on the the red axel with the small cog on. Next attach a green rod and a yellow/grey rod connector to it like picture two.
Finally put a black ball clip on the top axel (one with wheels) and punch a hole in the plastic so a green rod can go through it like shown in the picture.

For this step you will need a tan clip, a black ball joint and a wheel.
First clip the tan clip to the wheel axel (again!) and then slide the wheel on to it (also again!)
Finally clip the black ball joint on the end.

For this step you will need a white/black rod connector and two green rods.
First clip the white/black rod connector to the yellow/gray rod connector (which you used in step 10)
Then again punch a hole in the correx and put a green rod in like shown in the picture

What you have made should look like this: (picture)

For this step you will need a sharp knife.

Firstly lay your correx down on the pumpkin and trace around it (lay your correx so the wheel face away from the pumpkin, so when you install it the touch the ground and the motor switch faces down)

Note:you may need to cut the correx back to fit on your pumkin

Note: When you cut the bottom of your pumpkin out get lots of the inside out as well to save wieght.

Renember, this is on the bottom of you pumpkin!

For this step you will need you wheels and motor assembly, one yellow rod and one grey rod (long ones).
With your correx being underneath you wheels/cogs clip the yellow rod in like shown
Next with a grey rod stick it through one side of the pumpkin and through the middle (going just above the correx like in picture 4) and out the other side.

For this step you will need one yellow rod and a red rod.

With your other yellow rod stick it through the hole marked in picture two and then through the pumpkin and out the hole in the other side.
Finally you red rod poke it through the pumpkin just above the motor like shown in picture five.

For this step you will need two black/white rod connectors, a small wheel, two white rods and a yellow rod.
First clip the white/black rod connector to the red rod you put there in step 16. Next put a whit rod through the hole and in to the pumpkin like shown in picture 2 and three. Repeat the same on the other side.
next slide a wheel on to the yellow rod and clip two tan clips on either side like shown on picture 5.

Note: You may need to reduce the weight on the pumpkin by cutting chunks of pumpkin out with an extremely sharp knife (picture 6)

To reduce the weight you could put the pumpkin by a window facing south for a week. You could also put a candle in the pumpkin to evaporate the water as pumpkins are 90% water! But you may only need to evaporate 50% of that.

Warning: You pumpkin must be dry so you can put you electronics in.

For this step you will need a battery pack for 2 AA batterys, and a crocadile clip.
First glue your battery pack in place and hold it down with duck tape on to some correx. Next clip a crocadile clip on to the battery pack and hold it in place with duck tape.

For this step you will need a Toggle switch and crocadile clip.
Now Clip your crocadile clip to a toggle switch. Next clip another crocadile clip to the toggle switch.

Note: Leave the toggle switch off.

For this step you will need a soldering iron, solder, LED's, and some electrical wire.
First clip the crocadile clip which you just clipped on to the toggle switch to one of the LED's.
Next put some solder of the tip of you soldering iron and then place the iron and solder next to the bit you want to solder (LED to Electrical wire) and melt the solder on to the wire and LED with the iron.

Note: Solder the Other LED to the wire as well.

For this step you will need a crocadile clip.
All you need to do is clip the crocadile clip to the LED you havn't cliped one to and then clip the other end of the crodile clip to the battery pack
Now place you circuit in to your pumpkin and make holes for the 2 LED's to act as eyes. You could also create a mouth, but I would do that before you put the circuit in. Make a hole in the side of th pumpkin for the toggle switch

Well Done !

Now go try you ROBO-PUMPKIN, if you have any probalems with, do contact me through comments or you could personal messege me.

Happy halloween