Gotcha Box

thingiverse

Many years ago my cousin and I did gag gifts for Christmas. Me being an engineer was kind of an unfair advantage but it made for some really fun times. When it came time for us to open each others present the whole family would gather around, but at a safe distance...... I came up with the Gotcha Box and it was an incredible success. These were first made of wood and the amount of work that went into each one was huge. Lots of precision cuts using walnut or cherry wood. Making these was dangerous because of the intricate cuts needed and the relatively small parts put spinning blades close to fingers. I took the original design and scaled it down for 3D printing. It prints well but expect to take quite a while to make one of these. How to use: Print all of the parts and clean them up so that they fit together slightly loose. Using a rubber band to hold together, place the side pieces in the bottom with the "hook" in the beveled inside edge. With all of the sides in place and held together with a rubber band, fill the box with marbles or hard candy. Place the top on top of the box making sure that the sides are engaged in the top slots. Once the top is on the rubber band can be removed. Warning! Once the rubber band has been removed the box is armed for action and will come apart and spill it's contents all over the place. If you decide to use marbles, keep in mind that they may cause a choking hazard for small children! The bottom part has a raised pyramid shaped center that I call the accelerator. When the box opens up the sides become a ramp to the marbles and the accelerator will shoot marbles across the room. You will be finding them for the next couple of days as they will go EVERYWHERE. I recommend loading the Gotcha Box inside an open cardboard box to contain an accidental discharge. Once you have the Gotcha Box loaded and armed you can carry it by the sides and it will remain together. Place on a table and place a couple of empty candy wrappers around it and wait for the fun. As soon as anyone removes the top to see what is inside, KABOOM! GOTCHA! Marbles are everywhere with a loud crash. The expression on the victims face is worth all the effort. Another way to get your victim is to walk in to a room of people and while holding the box show it to them and explain that it is 3D printed (don't let them touch it). Now sit the box down on a table. Believe me, someone just can't resist to touch it or pick up the top, KABOOM! GOTCHA! https://youtu.be/vQmWfsx5M_w