# My Homemade Psycho-Killer Arsenal - HOW-TO TUTORIAL



## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Hey guys. Sorry I've been AWOL for so long. I was out getting married last October, and that took all my attention so I didn't haunt the yard in 2012, and several other factors have distracted me lately, so I probably won't haunt the yard for 2013. Bummer. Hopefully 2014 will be the year to get my butt back in spooky gear.

In the mean time, in honor of BrotherMysterio's previous request, I thought I'd FINALLY get around to offering up a tutorial of sorts on how I made the homemade psycho-killer weapons that I shared on my previous thread...

http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=29704

The process is actually really simple. A minimal amount of work can yield a pretty decent result. (Please bear with me, this is my first time trying to write a tutorial. Be gentle.)

What you'll need for this project...

MATERIALS: 

- 1/8" or 3/16" thick "hard board" (I don't know if this is the correct technical term for this material. You can find it at stores like Home Depot back in the lumber section, usually near the molding and trim, in 3'x3' or 4'x4' squares. It's pretty much the same material they use to make paneling and peg boards (only without the holes). Sometimes it's really smooth on one side and kinda rough on the other.)

- Scrap wood (1/2" thick or less works great)

- 2'x4' boards (basic interior wall stud type boards, not pressure treated boards)

- Dow foam board scraps (if you make tombstones, you probably have alot of this just lying around)

- Glue (wood glue and/or Liquid Nails adhesive)

- Spray paint (silver and/or black)

- Acrylic craft paint (silver, black, brown, blood red)

-Wood stain

TOOLS:

- Wood working tools (jigsaw, router, sander, Dremel)

- Clamps

- Paint brushes (small craft brushes, not big house painting brushes)


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

INSTRUCTIONS:

For making the thin bladed weapons, like the machete, butcher knife, and cleaver...

(This time around, for the purposes of this tutorial, I thought I'd make something completely different from the previous weapons I made. No sense making another butcher knife or machete when I already have those. This time I'm making a wicked sickle-shaped knife, something kinda-sorta similar to old fashioned 18th century amputation knives.)

First trace the shape of the weapon on the hard board. Trace the entire shape of the weapon, blade and handle. 



















Once the shape is traced the way you want it, cut the shape out of the hard board with the jigsaw. If your hard board has a rough side, you'll probably want to sand it down to make it as smooth as possible without wearing the board down too thin.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Next, use the hard board shape and trace the handle portion only onto the scrap wood and cut them out. You will need 2 handle shapes traced and cut from the scrap wood. 































These 2 pieces will be used as the handle scales for the weapon's grip, one on either side of the blade. This is why you will want the scrap wood to be no more than 1/2" thick. Two 1/2" scales and the 1/8" thick blade will give you a grip slightly more than an 1" thick, which is comfortable to hold on to. Much thicker than that and it will start to feel thick, bulky, and clunky in your hand.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Once you have the handle scales cut out, clamp the scales onto either side of the blade and use the sander and/or Dremel to even the edges so that the 3 pieces are flush.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Once the pieces of the handle are flush, then use the router, Dremel and/or sander to shape or round off the edges on one side of each scale (for this piece I'm going for a octagonal grip, with some extra carving at the ends that will go toward the blade to simulate the appearance of bolsters). Leave the other edge untouched and squared. The shaped/rounded edges will face out and the squared edges will go against the blade. If your handle is going to be irregularly shaped, you'll want to make sure that the scales are rounded on opposite sides.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Now, with the scales sanded and shaped to match up with the blade, paint your pieces. Simple base coats are all you need at this point. I use silver spray paint to color the blade piece. For the scales, you can either paint the solid black or you can stain them, depending of whichever look you prefer (I spray painted the "bolster" portions of the scales with the same silver spray paint, then stained the rest the scales once the paint was dry.)





















After the pieces are painted/stained and dry, glue the scales onto the blade and clamp them together till dry.











You're basically done. All that's left is to add the finishing touches. You'll notice that I used a little silver craft paint to paint dots on the grip to simulate the existence of metal pegs that are supposed to hold the scales of the grip to the tang.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

To make the blade look dirty and rusty, I use the black and reddish brown craft paint. Using something with a random, fibrous texture (I use a small wad of old synthetic cushion batting/stuffing), I dab the wad into the black paint and then dab/stipple it onto the blade. 











Then I do the same with the brown paint. 











You just keep doing this until you get the look you are going for. I also use a paper towel to smudge and even wipe off some of the black and brown paint. Whatever it takes to make it look used and grungy. 











I also make a point of avoiding coloring along the cutting edge of the blade. This helps to give the appearance that the cutting edge has seen more active use, being sharpened repetitively and then slid through whatever (or whoever) it is that my character would be cutting up. I finish by putting a protective coat of satin-finish clear enamel spray paint on the knife.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Some "finished product" pics...





































I haven't decided whether I want to bloody up this knife or not, but if you want a blood stained blade, you can use the red craft paint. Squirt some paint into a cup, add a little water to thin it out a bit, then use a brush to flick the "blood" onto the blade in random streaks and drops.


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

That takes care of the thin bladed weapons. For the thicker weapons, like the sledge hammer, the axe, or the hatchet...











... I use the 2x4s and foam board. Without going through another step-by-step tutorial, here's the gist for making the big daddies: Using a table saw, I thin the 2x4 down to a thickness slightly more than an inch. I cut the shape of the handle from the thinned 2x4, then round out the edges with my router and sander to allow for a more realistic and comfortably shaped grip, then stain it. The hammer head and axe head are made from foam board scraps. I cut 2 pieces of foam out in the shape of the head (1/2" foam for the axe and 2" foam for the hammer). These 2 pieces will be sandwiched together over the handle. I route out grooves on the inside face of each head piece (each groove half the depth of the total thickness of the handle, so that when the 2 head halves are put together, it leaves a socket hole that matches the thickness of the handle). I then glue the 2 head halves together, and when the glue is dry I use the Dremel and sander to shape the heads. 











Once shaped, the heads are then painted in much the same way as the bladed weapons above. Finally, the stained wood handles are slid into the sockets of the painted foam heads and held in place with glue. Then the blood paint is splattered over the finished weapon.

That's basically it. All in all, no more than a couple hours or so of work, not counting drying time. Hope you guys and gals find this useful. Enjoy!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Beautiful pieces, stoic! Thanks for posting the tutorial.


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## falon810 (Sep 3, 2013)

Awesome thanks for the tutorial


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## nimblemonkey (Aug 21, 2011)

those look great and I like the profile of the tapered blades- something I can use for a guillotine next year- Thanks


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## stoic_clown (Nov 11, 2011)

Hey RoxyBlue, falon810, nimblemonkey... Thanks for the compliments and appreciation. Glad you like the tutorial.

BTW - I liked the pseudo-vintage look of my tutorial hook knife so much, I decided to make a companion knife, something with a more standard design.










I'm thinking about being a Victorian era Jack the Ripper style character for Halloween this year. I think either one of these weapons would suit that costume just fine.


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