You can make a recognizable Rick and Morty portal-gun prop from a shaped cardboard shell, battery-powered green LEDs and a simple surface finish. EVA craft foam gives the body a smoother skin, but acrylic paint is a lower-cost alternative. Keep any dimension display or controller as a separate upgrade: the available builds use different parts and wiring, not one interchangeable circuit.
Choose the build you want
Start with a light-up craft prop unless you specifically want interactive electronics. The Make: feature by Gareth Branwyn, published August 14, 2018, describes a cardboard build with reclaimed LEDs and batteries, and points readers to a Spanish-language video that includes a downloadable cutting template. It is a short feature rather than a complete electrical schematic or step-by-step written manual. Read the Make: feature.
| Approach | What it adds | What to plan for |
|---|---|---|
| Light-up craft prop | Cardboard body, green LEDs and batteries | Shape, finish, lighting placement and a way to reach the batteries |
| Dimension-selecting electronics | A rotary encoder and display for selecting a dimension | More wiring, a controller or display-compatible circuit, and room inside the body |
| Projection-based build | A Raspberry Pi, projector, display, encoder and LED lighting in one documented project | Substantially more electronics and careful integration; this is a separate project, not a drop-in extension of the cardboard design |
Build the cardboard shell and finish
Form the body
Use cardboard for the main shell and plan the shape around the template or pattern you choose. The Make: feature directs readers to its linked video for the template and construction demonstration; consult that material for its particular cut layout rather than assuming the feature itself contains all measurements.
Choose a surface
EVA craft foam can cover the cardboard and give the prop a more finished surface. Branwyn writes, “The only real expense here is the EVA foam.” That describes the material choice in this particular build, not a general cost estimate. The article also names acrylic paint as an alternative if you want to paint the cardboard instead.
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Leave room for access
Decide where the batteries and lighting will sit before closing the body. In the Solarbotics design, a small door at the bottom of the handle provides access to the battery pack. A similar removable panel is a practical way to replace batteries without dismantling the prop. See the Solarbotics design.
Install the lights and power
For the straightforward version, use green LEDs and a battery arrangement that fits your design. The Make: build uses reclaimed LEDs and batteries; another documented design specifies four 10 mm green diffused LEDs and a separate green LED string for the top tube. Those are examples from different projects, not a universal parts list.
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- Place the lights where they support the silhouette and visual details of your prop.
- Keep the battery pack reachable, preferably through a planned opening in the handle or body.
- Use wiring and current-limiting components suited to the LEDs and supply you actually choose. Do not treat a resistor value from another project as a universal specification.
- If soldering, protect exposed soldered connections appropriately; Joshua Thompson’s Area 73 project describes using heat-shrink tubing on its connections.
Thompson’s Raspberry Pi implementation reports green LEDs wired in parallel with 200-ohm current-limiting resistors on 5V, plus a separate 3.3V I2C level connection for its display. That is one project’s circuit description, not a safe default for other LEDs or supplies. Its details are in the Area 73 project account.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Optional upgrade: select dimensions electronically
If you want the prop to display a selected dimension, choose a single documented design and follow its parts and wiring as a matched system. Do not combine pin assignments or components across projects without checking compatibility.
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Rotary encoder and seven-segment display
Solarbotics describes a design using a rotary encoder to control a seven-segment display, with AAA battery power and a 5.0V boost regulator in its parts list. It also lists four green LEDs and a separate LED string for the top tube. These components illustrate one approach; they are not required for a cardboard light-up prop.
Trinket Pro firmware project
A separate open-source project uses a Trinket Pro, an I2C display, a rotary encoder and four LED outputs. Its README documents hardware-specific pin assignments and button behavior: a single click wakes the controller, a double click resets the dimension to C137, and holding the button turns off the LEDs and enters low-power mode. The repository says sound effects are absent from its main branch and that the speaker in the case was too quiet. Treat its pinout as specific to that project’s hardware. View the PortalGun repository.
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Before adding controls
- Check that the controller, display, LEDs and power arrangement are designed to work together.
- Measure the interior space before committing to a display or battery pack; the handle and body must accommodate both the electronics and access for replacement.
- Be prepared to adapt or solder a circuit. The individual project accounts do not establish compatibility across their parts.
Solarbotics describes its own version as imperfect and identifies possible revisions, including adjusted CAD files, a wiring schematic and better-matched tube and front LED colors. Its account is useful as an example, not a production-ready kit manual.
Quick Recap
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