Farscape mechanical digitigrade "werewolf" leg extensions stilts 1999

[AlphaGodith]

I want some so hard!

[asimomantech]

nice for new E.T movies XD

[CanisLupus224]

@GregOrca would you be willing to make a pair to sell? If so, how much would they cost? Just asking cuz these are perfect for a draenei costume I want to do.

[CanisLupus224]

@GregOrca would you be willing to make a pair to sell? Asking cuz these are perfect for a Draenei costume I want to do. If you are, what would the price be?

[zeekyzoid]

HOT DAMN. I LIKE THEM GAMS.

[kusanagisama]

Those are the WETA legs built for Underworld, then sold on the market, when not enough orders were taken, they cancelled them. Area 51 then bought them, and are currently selling them.

[GregOrca]

@kusanagisama

What are you referring to?

The stilts in my video have nothing to do with weta or underworld and were made in 1999 for the Farscape TV series.

Look at my response video to see how they were used in the TV series as part of an Alien character "Namtar" in the Episode "DNA mad scientist".

[kusanagisama]

@GregOrca Find kimgrahamstudios and who's currently selling them:  area51.co/

[Shadowassasin14]

I'd fall flat on my face if I tried those. XD

[PhoenixKyuketsuki]

This is REALLY cool! Thanks for sharing this farscape tech with us! :D

[400Renan]

can you run with it it is very cool

[realisticHomeboy]

Looks like someone who needs to go to the toilet really bad.

[abnunga]

I actually noticed them while watching the episode and thought they were very cool!

Looks like there's not really any ankle flexibility, is that right?

[GregOrca]

@abnunga

That's right. The area where Adrian's real ankle is did not flex.

The toe section where there is ground contact did flex though. Check out the other vid that features the face and claws and you can see the ground contact flexing

[MrWhite8800]

looks more like a walking elite from halo XD

[OokamiJay]

did you make those yourself???? can you tell me how if you did? cause im planning on making an anthro wolf suit some time and im having a hard time with the legs

[swordsandhorses]

were do you buy these?

[GregOrca]

@swordsandhorses

A UK group called Area 51 are commercialising something similar although I don't think they are as high as these. Do a search for digilegs Area 51

[BoogiemanUSA]

Can you show a close up of the stilts?

[CognitiveNetwork]

Now go scare some kids.

[thispixie]

Are these digitigrade stilts for sale anytime in the near future? I would be very interested in buying them.

[NicaraguaAl]

werewolf with T-rex Arms?

[sphinxofthenewage]

if he falls please film him trying to get up , would appretiate that thanks.

[redninja302]

Cows in the making! *mgs reference*

[shantiponks]

thats cool in a morbid creepy way

[hankparish]

And why i see someone charging at me wearing those.. that is were i crap my pants!

[dragonwingish]

are they okay for kids

[edzlover]

how did you make these? :D

[GregOrca]

@edzlover

mckeewildthings com image Stilts legxtend.jpg

mckeewildthings com image Stilts stilt1.jpg

through to stilt11.jpg

[DTS12250]

Wow! @_@ It's really really amazing! I want one!

[ScottsIrishCrow]

this is coolio, at the end I thought you were gonna use effects to jump or somethin.

[susuzeck]

have you a plan for me how i can make this legs by my own?

[M3iscool]

If I have prosthetic limbs I would want them to look like that.

[kitsunelover11577]

i would kill myself with thouse

[coreyaustinmiller]

I find this interesting, I've been looking to design something like this for my father, he can hardly use his left foot, and I need to find him something that he can use to take the stress off his foot and give him a better stride.(he doesn't want a cane.)

[GregOrca]

@coreyaustinmiller

Hi Corey.

These will place a great amount of effort on your folks joints. They are tricky to balance on . Similar to buying your ailing Dad a pair of roller blades if you get my drift.

[OrderoftheHammer]

@GregOrca did look like standing in one place was a little hard, mine look exagerated, but easier to stand in one place. Can't nearly go as fast as the ones pictured here though. All about angles and the suit's we wear with them. PLus mine weigh about 20 pounds each (too much wood).

[GregOrca]

@OrderoftheHammer

Yeah it's often not obvious that making something out of steel will be a lot lighter than using wood, but of course you have to use materials you have access to and use the tools you have available.

We had a nice metal and fibreglass workshop with lots of materials, welding gear etc. Far from what most folks have at home so I reckon all you guys do a great job making stuff from home on zero budget

[OrderoftheHammer]

@GregOrca we try, fall alot, lol, but we try. Fell in the parking lott this passed friday night from uneven pavement and untested bottom plates, but got helped inside anyway and took first place...then spent 4 hours re-working bottom plates using wood bridging plates from walmart.

[CrimsonBlooDrop]

@coreyaustinmiller I would love to see your father walking around in these with a gimped left foot. XD

[sean1ers]

hahahahaha looks like an alien

[GregOrca]

@sean1ers

It was for an alien character for Farscape sci fi series

[mowgli2071]

@GregOrca: Alien's name was "Namtar", which is "rat-man" in reverse.

[GregOrca]

@mowgli2071

Correct.

I also made the small rat rat sized version of namtar seen at the end of the episode.

[DorikoSniper97]

Did you make it or did you buy it?

[ShakaSamurai]

go buy some wooden stilts you fucking dipshit

[leslie13536]

I'm just curious but do you have any tips for people who are trying to make their own stilts like these?

[leipzchen]

thats weird but cool!

[Muppephile]

Does it still work if you bend over? Just that the same leg configuration would work for a medium sized dinosaur, but dinosaurs do not stand upright. I imagine you could modify it so you could be bent over and balance with a beam hidden inside a long tail.

[GregOrca]

@Muppephile

Hi, Yes I've been doing some designs recently for a dinosaur project with exactly that approach.

We haven't been given a go ahead yet but I know it will work fine

[XxDeidaraxSempaixX01]

is it hard putting it on, and taking it off..? >.>

[Chrisbutler1993]

aliens' legs from the movie district 9 :P 

[pontus515]

How do you take a shit with those attached?

[KakashiFTWHatake]

greg, can i ask a question?

are there any copies of these available for sale to the public? if so how much are they?

[GregOrca]

@KakashiFTWHatake

Hi.

I'm hoping to work out a manufactured version of these for under $1000.

Not sure of the price yet untill I can figure out how long they would take to make for different people as the foot size etc would all need to be adjustable. For safety they would need knee braces as seen above and other features to prevent injury in case of a trip up.

[KakashiFTWHatake]

@GregOrca aaahh okay! thanks for the info! :)

[wolfblade50]

@GregOrca how come their so much?

[GregOrca]

@wolfblade50

I don't have a price yet but consider they are not made in their thousands in an automated factory.

I've made 1 set and think they could be under $1000

To build a single motorcar from scratch costs millions of dollars. By manufacturing hundreds or thousands of them the development and tooling costs get amortised and the cost comes down.

At present the materials cost alone is a few hundred dollars but economy of scale by making large numbers could make them cheaper.

[crasch4]

@GregOrca I would be interested in buying a set of these when they're available.

[LynnSnow]

@GregOrca I think you'd have at least a handful of interested clients by the sound of it. Please keep us updated. A lot of people could give a set of these some good use!

[lunitha19]

eii dudee!!!

are cool!

greetings from mexico!

mmm are in sale???

[wolfblade50]

Did you you guys make these or buy them?

[GregOrca]

@wolfblade50

Hi.

We made them

[bibanan02]

if you don't mind me asking, how tall were you then? and if you remember, how tall were the stilts?

[GregOrca]

@bibanan02

Hi. I was 175cm I think, as a result of years being kept in a small box, but that is Adrian in the video and I'm not sure how tall he is.

I think he's about the same height as me. Perhaps about 10cm taller.

Best thing is to look at the calf length and foot length and then work out your own proportions and relative extension lengths to match if you want to copy and make a set

[bibanan02]

@GregOrca thank you very much for your assistance!

[GregOrca]

I'm thinking of making these to sell due to repeated requests but I hope you all realise these are very dangerous because they are effectively a long lever that places far more strain on your joints and ligaments than should ever be expected.

Anyone who wanted them would have to sign a disclaimer stating they are aware they are buying a dangerous prototype device like an ill-maintained hang-glider!

I don't have the time and resources to undertake a long development program to make these safe.

[Anthropophagi5]

@GregOrca I would buy them O_o

[ChoccoMonkey]

where can i get these?

[catsrock2me]

Can you find these at party city during the Halloween season?

[wilcous]

Are these available for purchase. I need a pair for a costume? Please ail me

[Minute158]

Are they available for purchase? I was about to buy some air-trekkers before I saw these. Email me please! :)

[DoughBoy112196]

hey was this at suny oswego??

[mdude009]

how hard is it to balance in those? the only thing I know is that running is out of the question

[XtremeMW2]

District 9

[Mickjaggerismygf]

Do you have to move your arms so much to keep from falling?

[GregOrca]

@Mickjaggerismygf

Hi.

Not really. Adrian had to act with huge finger extensions too which will feature in another vid and try to appear as an alien. So he's trying to come up with a characterised "look" in the way he moves as well as balancing on them. He's trying to balance with his arms AND try to move them in a way that will be cool for his character "Namtar, DNA mad scientist" in the show.

[Dragonstud]

@GregOrca Namtar was cool in farscape the nasty bugger gr8 and animatronics also...excellent alround suit

[mavoelker]

MAN BIRD

[Awracia]

I could only imagine springs and shock obsorbers added to these would turn someone into a phenomenal sprinter/cavalry man!

[ARandomFerret]

Wow. I've seen a lot of shorter ones, but it seems like it would be more difficult to make them taller like you did and still have them be possible to walk in. Great job.

[GregOrca]

@ARandomFerret

Funnily enough it's a bit like balancing a broom stick with one finger. Often the longer the stick, the easier it is to balance due to longer polar moment of inertia.

Long stilts like these however place great leverage on your joints and bones so there is a good deal of danger from these things if you fall over. it's a calculated risk

[pyradragon]

Now you can play as Dren from splice lol

[Sphinxfalcon]

Want. SO Hardcore. >.>

[takashy87]

Ever tried running with those? =)

[nabbsone]

thank you for the close up pictures Greg!

[littalluvah]

where can you get these? is there a link i can go to, to buy them?

[supersmash43]

Looks more like ungulate than digitigrade to me.

[Nattacus]

Just wear a trench coat and walk down the highstreet like that...

[TheEricCartmen]

Where i can Download the digigrade Software?

[freewolf775]

legs seem to be a little too long, but other wise great job!

[Grommo]

@freewolf775

Too long for what? They are for an Alien character "Namtar", not a werewolf.

[freewolf775]

@Grommo oh *grins impishly* sorry, it was under werewolf leg extentions but otherwise i think that they are great!

[USMCandanimallover]

I would think you were some kind of monster if I saw you from far away!

[RowenOwl]

Thank you so much for the links. Your work is amazing! Too all who see this, go to the site before posting. mckeewildthings com

[gyrrakavian]

I want a pair of those!

[TiagoTiagoT]

we need more tall digitgrades like that :)

[killgore333333]

my larp would shit bricks if i made a monster out of this

[stoshik]

MOAR

[iloveCrowfeather]

I need some exactly like those, only a little shorter

[Ryukuni]

did you make them or buy them? In either case, please give me info!(if made, tutorial? if bought, the link to the site?) thanks

[zeplined]

I NEED A PAIR OF THOSE!!

either that or ill have to build a set and probably kill myself in the process lol

[xatrag]

Looks like Starscreams legs

[hardiehardley]

So that's using screw bolts as fixings in the stud holes, a harness about the waist (how?) and a knee support.

[locotwix]

hey iv been working on an elite from halo 3 and can not get the legs right can you help me oh ya its gonna be 9 feet tall so long leg desines would be sewwt !! :P

[hardiehardley]

Hey, do you have any diagrams or sketches of how this worked, I'm attempting to construct a set similar to this

[GregOrca]

Hi, if you go back to earlier comments I link to some detail photos on my website.

[hardiehardley]

Unfortunatley I can't make the links work

[GregOrca]

take away the spaces in the links and replace with a dot before the com and a backslash everywhere else

[nurion]

Where can I get a set of legs like dis?

[nidawi20]

first I have to say awesome, I've been wanting to do somethings along that line but the one thing I'm trying to figure out is where at exactly do the spring bundles go, are they in the tubing running up the thigh to the waist. and how doe sit work? hope to hear from you soon.!

[GregOrca]

Hi. Yess the spring steel bundles are what appear to be tubes running up his thighs to the harness on his waist.

They originate from fixed mountings on the calves and bend through loops at the side of the knees. That means that despite the weird leg position, the springs take a huge proportion of the weight off the thighs so you can stand in that crouching position for hours.

[nidawi20]

thanks bunches, I appreciate it :-)

[rutgerhaase]

what is this noise a bit after 2secs??? - i heard it in manny games, but i cant find out what it is.

i mean not the birds and not the engine wich is running in the background

i can also hear it at exactly 13 secs! - its a lil gruupp or Schroop a clicky noise - what is it??? plz help

[GregOrca]

Hi. The noise is the plastic video camera lens-cap flopping about on it's retaining cord scraping against the bottom of the camera lens hood. There is also quite a bit of scrunching noise from myself and adrian stepping on large dry leaves

[rutgerhaase]

:/ i meant exactly in 2secs , just when the right foot reaches the ground - damn its hard to explain

[rutgerhaase]

looks like theese things from blacksite ;D

or like an elite from halo...

[Killadobby]

what the fuck are they good for ?

[IMightStalkYou]

Please, someone send me a pm of where I can buy this or a better view of the legs so I can get a better grasp on how to build them myself.

[VALKIR4636]

0:29 OMG! it's looking at me D': get a mallet! quick! if the dude puts on a oil green skintight suit and starts creeping around in back yards it'll seriously scare the shit out of everything! the slightly hunched-over look and the skinny legs make it really really creepy ...

[XeonogaShanti9]

District-9 is gonna getcha!!

[VALKIR4636]

hehehe

[Sharpecostumes]

Those are the best stilts I've ever seen! Where can I get a pair and how much? Please reply.

[Pathular]

Could be part of either a badass Fursuit or a badass Stalker costume (Half-Life 2)

[JohannesShadow]

Wow, that's awesome.

There wouldn't happen to be any closeups or larger stills showing those stilts? it's hard to make much out in the video, especially since it's interlaced at HD quality.

I'm especially curious about the "Springsteel bundles" mentioned in the description, and how they are implemented, since they seemed to have greatly helped with the endurance (at 10 hours!)

How heavy were they, and what's happened to them during the last 10 years? Were they scrapped?

[GregOrca]

Hi, I'm not sure where they are right now. Probably In a huge set of boxes of left over farscape stuff resembling the scene at the end of Indiana Jones.

The springsteel bundles are the thin K%S spring steel wires you can purchase in hobby shops.

You need a bunch of them. having lots of separate rods in a tube is more effective than a single solid rod. You take a bunch out if too stiff, add more if too floppy etc.

I have some stills hidden on my web site

[GregOrca]

mckeewildthings com image Stilts legxtend.jpg

mckeewildthings com image Stilts stilt1.jpg

through to stilt11.jpg

[widjan]

i can't get the images to come up.

are the bits after /image/, Stilts_... or Stilts/... ?

thanks!

[GregOrca]

Hi. put a slash where the spaces are and you should be able to access the pictures

Cheers

[XeonogaShanti9]

Maybe District-9 used them.

[trilogy425]

Would you be willing to post the designs for the legs from the foot down, I have been working on a design myself for a halloween costume and i haven't been able to design a strong footing. Hope you can help with this, thanks.

[Appaloosakisses]

How difficult are they to move and balance in?

Does it take a large amount of practice or is it something that any fairly healthy person could do?

[GregOrca]

Hi, I could do it easily after a few mins practice, but I don't know what sort of indication that is, I can ride surfboards and water ski and a unicycle and other balance activities that others find difficult.

Others who were game to have a go in the workshop managed it after a minute or two so Not too hard, but it does feel weird since we deliberately had your feel feet behind the point of contact with the ground so they are not under your centre of gravity.

[trainerfabri]

what did u use?

[GregOrca]

Um, use in what way?

[trainerfabri]

what did u use to make it and how?

[GregOrca]

Hi, It's mostly welded mild steel, available from a hardware store.

Welded with a mig welder.

I also silver brazed some parts together.

The shin straps were motorbike protectors and boots are soccer boots with screw on stud mounts used for attachment.

It needed knee support frame from a sport store to prevent twisting injury as the leverage is very high.

The toe/contact plate pivots and it uses rubber buffers as toes for grip on concrete etc

[trainerfabri]

cool!

[Vegetanthony]

Really awesome

[XeonogaShanti9]

Oh that's cool, I was woundering how it was all done. Too bad Farscape Magazine didn't capture this. I now own the Trialtix leather armour from Crackers don't Matter. It with came with these pintzer claws that could have been a failed test shoot. I'm sure you remember the change of mind. I don't mind buying this here.

[GregOrca]

These were an evolution of an even earlier system used by Dave & Lou Elsey & Adrian for the Nike Demon advert

watch?v=vdhvp-iYR3s

That version was rigid and couldn't step or walk well so I made the modified sprung & pivoting version that Adrian for Farscape was able to stride & even run in.

This vid shows his first ever test.

It was capable of fearsome speed & could climb stairs or embankments. Adrian wore finger mech extensions & an animatronic head plus Schleral contact lenses on set.

[Quidgo]

I loved that episode.

These things look/ed great.