For several years now I’ve used this skele in the Ghoul Scout camp, and I have always attached his head and hands to the clothes lines above the yard. But, as you can see in this picture, a little wind can really play hell with that sort of arrangement.
I thought about it for a while and I came up with the idea of stuffing copper tube through the leg and arm bones to make him posable and give him some stability. I was so excited about my idea that I went on the Monster Page of Halloween Projects to post my brilliant and innovative idea. Alas, I discovered that while it was indeed a good idea, it was far from original.
I picked up the copper tube form Home Depot, 20 feet for $18 which is enough for two skeletons, at least the way that I did mine.
The process was really very simple and only took about half an hour to complete.
First, I cut a piece of 1/2″ PVC pipe and slid it up through the pelvis, trunk and skull of the skeleton. This gives the main body some stability.
Next I took the skeleton apart and snipped off the nipples from the ends of each leg and arm bone, then I straightened out a four or five foot section of the tube and slid it through the pelvis. I slid the leg bones up until they fit snug against the hip joints, then I bent the legs down so they were in a standing pose. I had the copper tube run all the way into the longest toe of the foot section.
I repeated the same process for the arms. I pulled the PVC pipe out of the torso piece to make it easier to slide the copper pipe through, then I slide the PVC back into place. Again, I cut the pipe so it slide into the longest finger on the hand.
Once all the pieces are assembled you can attach them using small screws into the PVC on the bottoms of the hands and feet. I actually didn’t bother with this step myself, but I probably will when I put them away as the hands and feet come off very easily.
Finish the process with a little bit of white or black spray paint to cover up the exposed copper tube and you are all set!
The way I put the skele together it is not fully freestanding. You could make it be by either using one long piece of tube which runs through the whole thing, or you could fish the tube through holes drilled in the PVC and attach the copper to the PVC with some small screws. For my purposes, I felt it was fine to tie his head to the clotheslines.
