# Doc Holliday Tombstone



## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Glue Tombstone Face: Glue sides, rope lighting and PVC together using foamboard adhesive and/or Glidden Gripper. Weight the top while curing.










Mark Plywood (picture 1): Note - These pictures are from another tombstone build. Put the tombstone face back into the foam bases. Center it on the plywood so there is even space in the front and back. Trace a line around the stone with a marker. Remove the tombstone and put on its side. Apply some paint where the PVC is. Lift up the stone and center it over where those lines are and press down. It will leave a paint impression showing you where holes need to be cut out of the plywood.

Cut Plywood (picture 2): Drill out a pilot hole your jig saw can fit into to cut the circle out. It's hard to drill out a 1/2" hole first so start by using a 1/4" drill bit then switch to the 1/2" drill bit. While you are making these holes, also put two in the far diagonal corners. These holes are later used to tie off your stone to ground stakes. This helps add more wind protection and helps it defend against burglars when out in your graveyard. Use the jig saw to cut out the larger holes for the rebar/PVC hole.











Glue base: Glue the bases and tombstone face to the plywood one by one starting from the bottom. Use the same foamboard glue to 'caulk' any open seams (except for the transition seam from top to middle base) and where rope lighting exits out of the stone. Weight down and allow to dry overnight.










Shape Stone and Make Cracks: Use the Stanley SureForm Shaver to shape the stone and bases. Pay attention to the bases by shaving away the corners until they meet up and have a nice curve to them. Soften the edges of the stone so they look like worn stone.

Mark out 'crack' lines on the stone. Use a pick or a tool that will allow you to cut/pick a thin 'crack' into the stone. If you like you can use a tool from the sculpting tool kit that looks like a beefy eXacto knife.










Apply Acetone: Place some acetone in a non-reactive plastic container and brush it onto the cracks and any blemishes that are already on the stone. This will open them up and amplify damage. The way it eats into the stone looks like what weather would do to stone over the decades of time. Be sure to wear a good mask and eye protection as a precaution.










Fill Seams: Fill any seams and cuts you don't want in the foam. Wear gloves and dab some filler onto a fingertip. Press into the seam and feather away using your gloved finger. It is easier to smooth the wood filler while wet. It's very hard to sand dried wood filler on foam. The sandpaper tears up the foam too easily. Let dry overnight. Check the next day to see if there are any raised ridges. Use a smooth metal tool to burnish down. Had used one of the sculpting tools. Also check to see if any filler had shrunk down too much and use more to fill.










Insert Portrait: Open the wire holders. Place a bead of foamboard glue on the edges of the recessed area. Place some more glue in the inside area. Insert the portrait and press in. Bend the wire holders down over the frame with needle nose pliers and clip to trim. Place a bead of foamboard glue around the perimeter of the frame being careful that it's all sealed up. Let dry.










Barbed Wire: Make barbed wire by tying a short piece of twine onto one of the wire holders. Tie a second piece of twine right over the first. Grab both and cut them so they are the same size. Repeat for all the other wire holders.










Monster Mud Casings: Dip the rifle casings into monster mud and place on the stone. Use a large brush to press the casings down and smooth away the mud. Have a scraper nearby to help clean the brush of excess mm. Keep doing this until the mm makes the casings have a nice transition to the stone. Dip the brush into some water and carefully and gently wash away some of the casing face so you can see that they were shiny, smooth casings. Also use the brush dipped in water to help smooth away the edges of the monster mud. Let dry overnight.










Cover up Portrait (picture 1): This step will protect the portrait from the next painting steps. Trace a piece of paper over the visible part of the portrait. Cut out. Place on another piece of paper. and trace again. Draw an interior line about an 1/8" from the edge of that new piece. Cut that out. That second piece of paper will be slightly smaller than the visible part of the portrait. Place the smaller paper on a sheet of glass in the center. Tape it over with blue tape. Put the first piece of paper over the tape and trace out. Cut the blue tape with an eXacto knife and remove from the glass.

Place Cover (picture 2): Center the tape assembly over the visible part of the portrait and press on. Also, stuff paper towels and some plastic wrap into the bullet holes to protect the LED lighting from the next painting steps.

Wrap Rope Lighting (picture 3): Coil up the rope lighting and place in a plastic bag. Seal the opening with blue tape.










Caulk and Drylok Bottom Base (not pictured): Turn the stone on its side and caulk the opening where the PVC pipe meets the foam and plywood so only the interior of the pipe is open. Allow to dry overnight. Paint a layer of Drylok on the bottom of the base and allow that to dry overnight. Next day, do a second coat of Drylok and let dry overnight again.

Coat with Drylok (picture 1): Turn the stone right-side up again. Coat entire stone in Drylok. This step takes longer than you think though. The epitaph gives you some painstaking work. For tiny fonts you will need to press the Drylok in and then scoop the extra away using a tiny brush. It will take repetitive passes. For large fonts it will also take many passes to scoop out the extra Drylok. The font will fill in and disappear because Drylok is so thick if you don't do this step. Also have another stubby brush to help push in the Drylok to be sure any rough areas and pin holes gets coated. To help pass the time - pour a drink first.

Second Coat (picture 2): Paint a second coat of Drylok.










Painting Crevices and Epitaph (not pictured): Using a small brush and dark gray exterior paint, paint the inside of the epitaph. Use a larger brush to paint the crevices but also feather out to the edges. This will help to add depth to those cracks and crevices. No need to allow full drying for the next step. As long as it's partially dry in spots you can move to the tea-staining step.

Tea-staining: This is a very messy step so put some painting tarps on your workbench. Dip a 2" brush into the dark gray exterior paint and mix into a 1/2 filled glass of water. You are making paint that is like tea. This will let you stain the stone so it looks like it's been out in the dirty air for centuries. Start at the top and roughly drip it down the tombstone and help brush it down in places. Do repeatedly until you like the look. You are trying to make it look like this stone has been in the weather forever. You can take breaks here and there to allow the previous tea-stain to dry a bit. If you do this you will see more definitive lines. If you don't take breaks then the lines will be muddier looking. It's all your preference. For this stone I took very short breaks so you get a bit of both. Muddying and definitive lines. Sop up any excess paint with paper towels. Remove the plastic wrap and paper towels from the bullet holes. Check to see if any tea-staining paint touched the lighting. If so, wipe clean with Q-Tips. Use small items under the base to prop it up and allow air to flow underneath so it can dry. Dry overnight.

Continued...


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Dry-brushing: A miracle step. Get a dry 3-inch brush and dip it in white exterior flat paint. First brush it dry on a paper towel. Lightly brush the entire tombstone. This will paint only the raised edges of the tombstone and you will be amazed at the transformation. Instantly your tombstone will look like real stone.










Lichen & Moss Color Accents: Raw Sienna is the perfect orangy color to add a rust-colored lichen look. Dip the 2" brush into the paint and brush off excess onto a paper towel. Streak the paint down in some areas of the tombstone. Prepare your brush the same way using the dark green paint. Pick a few places that a spot of moss would look good. Don't streak it down though. Just a quick, short, downward brush stroke.

White Lichen and Bird Droppings: Place some white exterior paint on your pallet. Get a crumpled up rag or paper towel and dip into the paint and dry off a bit on another paper towel. Dab the tombstone a couple of times in the same spot while turning the rag until you get the look you want. Dip a small brush into the white paint on the pallet and brush on some bird droppings.










Black Detail Lines: Paint a very thin line in the center of any cracks on the stone. Use flat black paint for this. Extend the line past the real cracks to make a faux crack on the edges. This adds realism. If the shade of black isn't dark enough it won't be convincing so you may need to go over your line twice.

Fix Dark Areas: Sometimes the tea-staining step will wash away some of the dark crevice paint details. Go back over any areas that needs additional shading with a brush.










Make a Ridge & Paint (Picture 1): Carve a shallow outer ridge on the bullet holes using an eXacto knife. Continue to carve out the ridge using a tool from your sculptor's kit to help flatten that ridge out. This will create a 'shelf' for the opaque plastic to be set into without falling into the center of the stone. Paint with the color of the light (red). Let dry.

Cut out Plastic (Picture 2): Put a tiny piece of blue painter's tape on a sheet of heavy duty template plastic. The tape will indicate to you what the top of the circle will be. This tip will save you a bit of frustration down the road here. Place over a bullet hole and trace out using an overhead marker. Cut out, test to fit and adjust using scissors. Remove from hole and wipe off the marker residue off the edges. Place off to the side and repeat the process for the other bullet holes.










Silicone in Place (Picture 1): Place a thin bead of silicone on the 'shelf' and push the plastic in. Remove painter's tape. Let dry.

Caulk, Smooth and Paint (Picture 2): Place a final barrier of caulk over the edges and finger smooth to blend in. If you smudged some of the caulk onto the plastic, remove it with a wet Q-Tip.










Apply Moss: Apply some moss to the stone using a hot glue gun.










Drylok & Drybrush Visible Glue: Cover up any visible glue seams with some Drylok. Let dry and drybrush with white to help blend it back into the stone.










Yippee! You are done.











Bonus info: Securing in your graveyard:

Cut Rebar: Cutting rebar is easier than you may think if you have a fiberglass cutting wheel for your Dremel. Cut all around the perimeter of where you need it cut about a 1/4 of the way through. Center the cut area over a corner of your workbench and bend the rebar. It will break in half.

Display in Graveyard: Lay the tombstone on its side where you want it in your graveyard. Line up the two rebar stakes where the holes are in the center of the tombstone. Pound the rebar 10" in the ground. Lift up the tombstone and slide over the rebar. This will help keep your tombstone upright on windy days. If your yard is sloped, use a plank or two of wood to shim up the bottom so it's level. Lace some string through the holes in the far corners of the tombstone and tie off to ground stakes. In a few days the grass will camouflage the string and it becomes nearly impossible to see. The ground stakes add additional wind resistance and some theft deterrent.


Note: This stone was made as a trade with fellow HF member Andretti. Always wanted a top-end carved pumpkin. Was floored at what he presented me:










WowZer and thanks Andretti!


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

ETA: updated 2019


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## Raven's Hollow Cemetery (Jul 3, 2011)

Absolutely gorgeous Terra! Both the stone, & your "payment"!  

Everyone must be traveling for the holidays it seems, I'm really surprised no one's yet commented on this one, before me. I'd have been posting earlier, if I'd not been in the shop working on one of my own.


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## Bobbywan (Dec 16, 2011)

FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!!!!


Bobby


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## DaveintheGrave (Feb 12, 2004)

Wow! Another work of art from Terra! Your tombstone looks outstanding! Great work and a very detailed tutorial. I love all the new tips and tricks.
Gee, don't you ever stop??? JK


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## Mourik (Nov 7, 2011)

Very nice indeed!

I was kicking around the idea of doing an Alfonse Capone tombstone and had thought about making it look like it was strafed by a machine gun.
Have experimented with a few pieces of foam trying to replicate what the bullet would do to the stone. So far I'm not happy with what I have.


Was wondering how well it illuminated the foam between the holes?


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## Terra (Sep 23, 2007)

Raven's Hollow Cemetary said:


> Absolutely gorgeous Terra! Both the stone, & your "payment"!
> 
> Everyone must be traveling for the holidays it seems, I'm really surprised no one's yet commented on this one, before me. I'd have been posting earlier, if I'd not been in the shop working on one of my own.


Thanks Raven! Yeah, this is the quiet time of year here which is a bummer because you finally have time to talk Halloween. 



Bobbywan said:


> FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!!!!
> 
> 
> Bobby


Aw, thanks so much 



DaveintheGrave said:


> Wow! Another work of art from Terra! Your tombstone looks outstanding! Great work and a very detailed tutorial. I love all the new tips and tricks.
> Gee, don't you ever stop??? JK


heheh. Actually, I do. Made this guy back in September and am finally getting the tut done. Guess the dead Christmastime here is good for something  Currently working on the haunt panels video.



Mourik said:


> Very nice indeed!
> 
> I was kicking around the idea of doing an Alfonse Capone tombstone and had thought about making it look like it was strafed by a machine gun.
> Have experimented with a few pieces of foam trying to replicate what the bullet would do to the stone. So far I'm not happy with what I have.
> ...


Thanks. 
You don't see the light at all between the holes.


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## JustJimAZ (Jul 26, 2010)

Great stuff Terra - as always! A brilliant idea.


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## NormalLikeYou (Oct 2, 2011)

Absolutely astounding & inspiring...thanks so much for sharing!


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## scary-mommy (Mar 15, 2010)

Amazing !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:d


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