# Skeleton Hands part one



## Herman Secret (Oct 1, 2007)

I wanted some skeleton hands for a couple of this year’s props. This is the technique that I came up with, and hopefully you will find it useful.

Materials required

Sheet plain paper
Pencil or marker
Wire 
Air drying clay (DAS or similar)
28 Wood or plastic beads (I used ½ inch for the knuckles and 1/4 inch for the joints)
Masking tape

Step 1. Place your hand on the sheet of paper and draw around it. 










Mark either side of the finger joints. Remove hand and draw lines across each mark on each finger where joints will be.










Step 2. Using the drawn hand as a template, make a wire frame for the fingers. Start by leaving an extra 3” to 6” from the wrist (to allow you to join the hand to the arm). Make sure the tips of the wire fingers are pinched together tight. Finish off by leaving another 3” to 6” past the wrist.










Step 3. Thread 3 beads on each finger and two on the thumbs. The red beads in the picture are ½ inch, the green beads ¼ inch.Place the beads where the knuckles and joints will be and wrap masking tape either side of the bead to keep in place. 


























Wrap masking tape around exposed wire as shown. 










Bend the fingers into the desired positions.



















Part two to follow...


----------



## Lady Nyxie (Jul 27, 2006)

This project I can handle.


----------



## Dark Star (Sep 24, 2007)

What gage/kind of wire did you use?


----------



## Herman Secret (Oct 1, 2007)

Sorry Dark Star, not sure what gauge the wire is, I was given a whole roll of the wire by my father in law and its proved to be extremely useful. It's about 1.5mm thick if thats any help.


----------



## Herman Secret (Oct 1, 2007)

FYI...
I have edited the how to so that the pics are now shown...


----------



## perdidoman (Nov 19, 2007)

Great job


----------



## CMGhost (Oct 14, 2007)

I need to make a gripping skelly hand for my next prop, and I think this would be right down my alley... Thanks...extremely helpful.


----------



## Madame Turlock (Nov 2, 2007)

What a great tutorial. I can use this for the prop I'm currently working on. Thanks for posting!!


----------



## MHooch (Jun 15, 2007)

OK, now this is more my speed!! Great tutorial, thanks!


----------



## bethene (Feb 12, 2007)

Herman, great tutoral, thank you! I made hands last year out of great stuff, and while they looked ok( lots of people asked how they were made) I wasn't happy with them. I like this idea alot more, they look realistic. And easier, less messy!


----------



## darth stygian (Jun 19, 2008)

Great tutorial ! got my items and I will be making my hands this weekend. 

Thanks


----------



## Mr Em (Jul 4, 2008)

Thank you for the great step by step tutorial. The "hands" I made last year were great for fleshy zombies, but they all came out different. This year I wanted something a little more consitant for the "girls" who will gaurd my yard entrance. I think these will do the trick. Thanks for sharing!


----------



## Aelwyn (Jul 8, 2008)

Awesome! Thanks for sharing this!


----------



## INDY (Jul 18, 2008)

*Awesome*

Hey great skeleton hands and thanks for the easy step by step instructions. These are on my to do list for this Halloween


----------



## evilpotpourri (Jul 13, 2008)

Thank You! Im adding this to my to do list! Its great when folks post easy to follow tuts with pictures....


----------



## Gothikim (Jul 25, 2005)

Sweet! That armature would make a great base for lots of different styles of hands--mummy, corpse, etc. Thanks for posting it!

*now where's my darned wire*


----------



## INDY (Jul 18, 2008)

*Part Two??*

I'm eagerly awaiting part two...I have a pair of hands, with the beads and tape on them, ready for the next steps.
I would attempt to go ahead and start the clay process, but I'll mess them up without some kind of guidence!
Thanks


----------



## INDY (Jul 18, 2008)

OOPS My mistake, I found the part two. Sorry


----------



## Herman Secret (Oct 1, 2007)

Thanks everyone for the thanks on this tut. I look forward to seeing pics of your finished hands


----------

