# Skeletal Hands and Arms for the Hellmouth



## duxallinarow (Oct 21, 2014)

You're having a good time when you have _all_ your tools out for a project. I'm trying to find a simple way to make skeletal arms/hands for use in my Hellmouth grate for the front garden. I want to design this project so that –

1) each hand can be created quickly and easily (an hour, not days), 
2) I can use materials I have on hand or can purchase cheaply (salvaged and recycled = good), 
3) I don't need any tools I don't already own, 
4) the hands are sturdy, weatherproof, and store compactly, and 
5) the end result looks good.

I like mass-effects when it comes to props. We put out 40+ plywood tombstones, 100+ plastic pumpkins, 15 birds in the Flamingo Death Squad plus another dozen crows, and so on. Why make one Hellmouth when you can make two, and as for skeltal arms, I want a lot of these – at least a dozen.
I started making these skeletal arms/hands yesterday, and now have four usable props, although they are not yet quite what I want. Two 10" lengths of 3/4" PVC pipe, some beads (for spacers), and wire make up the radius and ulna of the arm. White duct tape to cover. Then a palm piece cut from thick plastic, bent (hot water), and wired to the bones at one end. The fingers are 6" lengths of 3/8" tubing attached to the palm piece with duct tape. Once the armature is assembled, the whole is covered with more duct tape. Then I start wrapping each finger and hand with strips torn from plastic shopping bags, using the heat gun to tighten the plastic and adhere it to the hand.

We're getting there. Let's see what today brings.

PVC pipe
plastic cut from a broken Rubbermaid bin
thin wire
wooden beads
3/8" clear plastic tubing
white duct tape
white and clear plastic grocery bags

Tools: Dremel, heat gun, hand tools, razor knife


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## Greenwick (Apr 25, 2013)

Mass effects are great if you have time and space for them!


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