Other Projects
Lobster Car
Welcome to the Lobster Car's home page. This is on a slightly higher level of technical sophistication than the Shark Car. This Art Car again makes use of wire coathangers and styrofoam as structural elements, but I've eliminated the use of epoxy in mounting the suction cup/coathanger struts by using thin wire to bind the struts to the styrofoam. Additionally, I've started to use coathangers covered by heavy craft/packing paper, to eliminate the use of large amounts of styrofoam. Eventually, I'd like to make my future Art Cars out of entirely recycleable materials. The lobster's claws and tail move when the sunroof goes back and forth, and when the lobster's claws reach a certain limit, they open up.
2002 "Food For Thought" Parade, Somerville, MA
The Lobster Car was originally designed for a festival in Gray, Maine (Celebration Days) that is to take place in August 2002. I was asked by the organizers of the Somerville "Food For Thought" parade to bring my Shark Car again, but this seemed like a good opportunity to give the Lobster Car a shakedown cruise. Things went pretty well; I've learned how to keep the various parts of the car's costume intact, and how to mount the pieces so they stay on more rigidly. Eliminating epoxy as a mounting method for the struts to the styrofoam has actually turned out quite well; the pieces of the Lobster Car are more rigid, and are not as flimsy.
Again, I've made use of the sunroof to drive the mechanicals of the lobster's claws and tail. When the sunroof moves back, the tail goes up, and the claws open up. There's a rubber band that holds the claws together on the inside, and when the control lines move the claws back enough, they open up. The claws are designed to sit a little inboard when they are not deployed; this allows the car to be driven at about 20 miles per hour, which is godo enough for Art Car parades; for parades with people, speed is not an issue.
Here are a few photos before the parade. The weather was a bit iffy on this day, and there was a chance of thunderstorms. That's me standing next to my car on the driver's side. You can see some of the details of the claws as well. As luck would have it, someone had a lobster bib and a set of silverware at the parade, they followed me (they are in the picture on the right).
Here are some closeups of the various elements.
Legs and head:
The tail, and a three-quarter view of the tail/legs and claws.
Here are some photos of the car on the parade route. And of course, "Rock Lobster", by the B-52's played at appropriate moments.
