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Step 8The Hammer
The crowning touch of any Thor costume is the hammer. After all, Thor without his hammer is just a Viking. I experimented with making a hammer head out of styrofoam. But, I accidentally dissolved chucks of it when I tried to coat it with Plasti-dip (bad idea). So, I resorted to purchasing an officially licensed plastic hammer online.
When the hammer arrived, I was shocked at how big it was. If you recall, I bought an officially licensed Captain America shield for last year's costume and learned that many costume accessories are 3/4 scale. Not so, for Thor's hammer. This thing is actual size. And the grip was over 2" in diameter. My son could barely hold it. Also, the hammer was hollow and easily deformed during light play. This simply would not do.
So, I set about improving it. First, I removed the unscrewable, hollow plastic handle. I replaced it with a section of 1 1/8" wooden dowel, epoxied to the inside top of the mallet.
Next, I set about preparing the head to be filled with expanding foam. I didn't want to sides to bulge out, so I spent several hours precisely cutting wooden sides to firmly encase the mallet head while the foam set. I even glued a lattice of craft sticks to hold the seams together. In hindsight, I should have used clamps as well, since several of the craft stick braces popped loose during curing.
After I had the mallet encased, I drilled two small holes near the handle and filled the hammer head through them. I had to clear away the ever-growing mound of foam from the holes several times throughout the day. After a day of curing, I removed the wooden braces and discovered a firm (yet slightly bulged) hammer with a wooded handle firmly held in place.
I finished the hammer by epoxying a strip of brown vinyl spiraled around the handle. I then fastened a loop made out of a leather belt, to the handle's base with a wood screw. I covered over the screw with the remaining length of belt and spiraled the belt up the handle as well (securing it with more epoxy. After drying, I was left with a highly customized and very authentic-looking plastic replica of Thor's famous hammer.
When the hammer arrived, I was shocked at how big it was. If you recall, I bought an officially licensed Captain America shield for last year's costume and learned that many costume accessories are 3/4 scale. Not so, for Thor's hammer. This thing is actual size. And the grip was over 2" in diameter. My son could barely hold it. Also, the hammer was hollow and easily deformed during light play. This simply would not do.
So, I set about improving it. First, I removed the unscrewable, hollow plastic handle. I replaced it with a section of 1 1/8" wooden dowel, epoxied to the inside top of the mallet.
Next, I set about preparing the head to be filled with expanding foam. I didn't want to sides to bulge out, so I spent several hours precisely cutting wooden sides to firmly encase the mallet head while the foam set. I even glued a lattice of craft sticks to hold the seams together. In hindsight, I should have used clamps as well, since several of the craft stick braces popped loose during curing.
After I had the mallet encased, I drilled two small holes near the handle and filled the hammer head through them. I had to clear away the ever-growing mound of foam from the holes several times throughout the day. After a day of curing, I removed the wooden braces and discovered a firm (yet slightly bulged) hammer with a wooded handle firmly held in place.
I finished the hammer by epoxying a strip of brown vinyl spiraled around the handle. I then fastened a loop made out of a leather belt, to the handle's base with a wood screw. I covered over the screw with the remaining length of belt and spiraled the belt up the handle as well (securing it with more epoxy. After drying, I was left with a highly customized and very authentic-looking plastic replica of Thor's famous hammer.
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