Sweet Ride
With its sparkling surfaces and flashing lights, this Ferrari-inspired AeroPod dazzles with the colour and motion of a nostalgic arcade game. Designed with the fun-seeking candy lover in mind, this “machine” not only dispenses gumballs, it allows you to actually choose your favourite flavour, so you get what you want every time.
It was the anonymous client’s request that I design a gumball machine inside a Ferrari red AeroPod, so I had to start from scratch and think about what would make the experience of obtaining a gumball enjoyable and entertaining.
Turn the crank of your desired colour and watch the gumball ride down its own winding stainless steel track amongst the flashing red, green and white lights, stopping at the bottom to be consumed. Everyone gets a turn and a prize, making it fun and entertaining to use. Refilling the three reservoirs is as easy as pulling out a drawer and pouring the gumballs in, and all parts can be easily removed for cleaning when necessary.
The “Sweet Ride” gumball machine is innovative in many ways. All mechanical parts are 100 percent handmade and repeatedly tested for reliability. The ball-selector mechanism in particular took weeks of prototype development and is hand-carved from solid maple, fitted with a stainless steel paddle and polished to perfection. The system of three separate tracks was formed and delicately welded from lengths of 1/8" stainless steel rod, while authentic shallow-dome lenses and chrome bezels were used to complete the sporty “engine-turned” dash. It was an artistic challenge that I welcomed and couldn’t be happier with the results.