Rainbow Ribbon Power Streamer (Looper)

Rainbow Ribbon Power Streamer

When I was a child I had a toy that looked like a bubble pipe, but it had an opening in the top and bottom of the bowl. A loop of string was threaded through these openings and when you blew into the pipe the string zipped into the bottom hole and out the top with the loop whirring along. It was great fun. That toy is the inspiration for this Rainbow Ribbon Power Streamer.

Let the colors of the rainbow zip along through the air.

This Power Streamer uses an air mattress inflator, some PVC pipe, foam core board and a loop of colored crêpe paper.

The 14 foot long loop is powered by air and can float skyward or can be moved around like a trick lasso and people can even jump through it (ultra-carefully, please). It is just plain great fun!

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Supplies:

120V Air Mattress Inflator (I tried a battery powered one, but it was too weak)

3/4 inch PVC Pipe. 1- 5 foot length. 1- 6 inch length. This is type 1120 PVC pipe. It is a thin wall version of schedule 40. It weighs less and is easier to thermal form.

3/4 inch PVC coupler (union).

3/4 inch PVC 45 degree elbow.

Colored crêpe paper. Six colors of the rainbow. Each about 28 inches long.

Foam Core Board

Latex Glue. (This is quick drying and light weight. Other types may also work.)

Tools:

Razor Knife

Metal Ruler

Hot Glue Gun and Glue

Heat Gun

Heat Resistant Gloves

Scissors

The crêpe paper loop is 14 feet in length and is made up six colored segments each about 28 inches in length.

Each colored segment is glued to the other. I cut the leading edge in the shape of an arrow to reduce the likelihood of the splice getting caught as the loop moved along.

I applied glue to the arrow point and also to the trailing edge of the segment in front.

Make sure the loop is 'flat' with no twists in it.

There are two places in the build that need to have the PVC pipe formed. 1) The air output nozzle and 2) The slip joint over the output of the inflator.

Carefully heat up the PVC pipe with a heat gun while constantly rotating it. [Probably best to do this outdoors in case the PVC off gasses something nasty].

When the pipe is soft use heat-resistant gloves to flatten the pipe to make the nozzle.

The inflator extension pipe is similarly done, when the pipe is soft force it over the outlet.

The 3/4 inch 1120 type PVC pipe was chosen because it was very close to fitting over the inflator outlet. A different diameter pipe might have to be used depending on the diameter of the inflator outlet you have.

The box that keeps the crêpe paper loop tamed and running where it should is just a box made from foam core board cut to size and hot glued together.

The box consists of 3 sides, each 9-1/2 inches long by 2 inches wide. The 3 pieces are hot glued together.

The nozzle positioning can be a bit finicky, so play around with its position and angle before gluing it in place. Try to find the spot where the crêpe paper loop extends out the farthest. The nozzle opening is located about half way down the length of the box and pointed downward toward the bottom lip.

A spacer of two pieces of scrap foam core board is used to space the nozzle away from the side of the box and leaves a gap on the opposite size where the crêpe paper loop can be threaded into the box.

The 5 foot length of PVC is attached to the inflator with a coupler and to the nozzle with a 45 degree elbow.

The actual length of PVC pipe can be longer or shorter than the 5-foot piece according to your liking. There was no special reason for the length.

Switch on the power and get that loop looping!

Enjoy!