Sting - My first adventure in weathering

[Silverhold]

After seeing the fantastic work Jamanticus has done with Glamdring ( http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=76103 ) I was downright inspired. So I rounded up my implements of destruction and set out to give the same treatment to a replica of Sting I acquired earlier this week...

The pics show Sting as it arrived at my door... so shiny, so new, so unaware of the suffering I was about to subject it to. :love I'm pretty sure it's only a cheap knock off. The only identifying marks are "stainless steel" and "China", the grip is metal where more expensive replicas seem to be wood - and I'm pretty sure the elvish script on the blade loosely translates to "Insert pointy end into Orc, repeat as needed".

But for $18.50 + s/h, and shipped only 2 hours from where I live, I figured - why not? If all goes well, I hope to turn a cheap replica into something a little more presentable.

Progress pics to come...

 

[Silverhold]

First up: Dents and scratches.

(Apologies for any poor quality pics. I'm also learning to photograph my props as I work on this project)

I've never read the full story of Sting (if one exists), but from what I recall of the Hobit and LOTR, it's implied that Sting is a very old blade - like Glamdring. If any Tolkien buffs out there know how old, please share. I wanted my replica to look like it's been from one end of Middle Earth to the other - and kicked its share of Orc behind along the way!

Unlike Jamanticus, I was fresh out of horse shoes so I had to make do with a claw hammer. I got the same sort of results, but he still gets bonus points for creative use of... well...horse shoes!:cool I set to work making small dings and dents on the guard and pommel. I also used the point of a small nail and a fine grit sanding sponge to create scuffs and scratches.

Haven't touched the grip yet until I figure out how to paint or apply some sort of material to make it look more like the wood grips of the original (suggestions anyone?) Tricky part is the leaf pattern is actually a layer of gold coloured metal, so I'll have to work around it.

 

[Silverhold]

I've also started using soot to weather the guard and pommel, as explained over in the Glamdring thread. The big difference between this copy of Sting and Glamdring is the lettering. Where Glamdring's lettering is etched deeply into the guard, Sting's is raised/embossed. When wiped away, the soot gathered around the edges and low spots of the guard, but the letters stayed shiny. The heat from the candle gave them an antique sort of look, better than the the bright gold on silver look it started with. The really neat part of the soot (aside from looking dirty) is that it makes the sword really feel dirty and grimy, like something found on the battlefield.

My thanks to Jamanticus for a really great weathering technique. A month ago I would have been horrified at the thought of applying fire to one of my prop replicas, but once you get used to the idea of destroying something to make it look better it's actually kind of fun!

 

[Jamanticus]

Fantastique!

Your horseshoe substitute does the job quite well :lol

Really, great job with Sting- I love what you've done with it- now it truly looks like it has a history, and it looks really good too :love

 

[Silverhold]

Thanks!
It still needs a few more well placed scrapes and scratches, and probably a couple more trips over the candle to get things nice & dirty. And thanks to Darth Marmalade's tip I've got a lead on some UV reactive spray paint to make the blade glow.

 

[Paracord Junky]

The sword known as Sting, being of early Elven craft, would employ the metal commonly known as Mithril, which was popular in weapons and armour as well as adornment for it's unmatched strength and resistance to stain/tarnish. Given it's extraordinary properties, as well as the magical protection often endowed by Elven smiths, any "real world" type replica of "Sting" would rightly appear largely unblemished, with the exception, perhaps, of the wood covering the handle. [/geek]

 

[MooCriket]

Yeah....I still like it, even if Mithril somehow protects it from weathering:lol

Good job, Silverhold:thumbsup

 

[Silverhold]

:confused :confused Um, it's an $18 replica. :lol

OK, for the sake of argument, let's say the blade is mithril and the decorative parts of the guard & grip are overlayed with other metals.... that should allow for a little creative licence.... i don't intend to weather the blade (mostly b/c stainless steel seems like a pain to weather)

 

[MooCriket]

Well put Silverhold:lol

 

[Knowone251]

Very well done! Now I just wish some one would make a Sting replica from the cartoon version of the Hobbit. That was my favorite sword/dagger as a kid, even better than the Sword of Omens.

 

[Jamanticus]

The sword known as Sting, being of early Elven craft, would employ the metal commonly known as Mithril, which was popular in weapons and armour as well as adornment for it's unmatched strength and resistance to stain/tarnish. Given it's extraordinary properties, as well as the magical protection often endowed by Elven smiths, any "real world" type replica of "Sting" would rightly appear largely unblemished, with the exception, perhaps, of the wood covering the handle. [/geek]

I'd have to say that this replica is largely unblemished.

A sword that wasn't made of such material as mithril and enchanted would most likely look like this after several thousand years of battle and exposure to the elements:

I think seeing some dings on an ancient fantasy sword gives it both a realistic and magical quality. Realistic because not even mithril stays *absolutely* pristine after so many millenia of abuse, but magical because it shows so few signs of wear after so long a time.

 

[AlHazred]

I'm right there with you, Jamanticus.

I love when sci-fi fantasy nerds (myself included in that group) throw around the term "not realistic". When I do it, a wiser part of my brain points out that I've used the term to describe something in a setting where (for example) demons of fire arise out of dwarvish mines and a demigod thousands of years old goes all to pieces when a piece of jewelry is returned in less than peak condition. "Realistic" should never be applied.

I would say, rather, that this Sting replica looks perfectly consistent to the setting and look-and-feel of the rest of the on-screen props.

 

[Bilbo Baggins]

Great Job! :thumbsup

On the subject of these Indestuctable Blades..wouldn't it make sense that the weathering is just the imperfections that would be normal for an old hand-forged weapon that has just been made?

~BB

 

[dropshipbob]

An Elven blade...imperfect?

Surely you jest!:cool

 

[ItsThatGuy]

:lol You guys are all nerds!

Keep us updated on the weathering. I have that same Sting too. I've always wanted to upgrade the hilt handle (I am sure there is a name for the grip) to wood, but I'm too lazy.

 

[clancampbell]

Yikes!!!! I thought it was going to be a sculpt of Sting (singer) as an old geezer!!!!

tremendous work, BTW!!!

Rich

 

[lint]

has anyone tried weather some of these blades by actually using them? go out into the garden and plunge the blade into dirt, shrubs, hay bales, etc. Leave it outside for a day or two. work some dirt & leather around it and let it dry and fall off naturally. Let the metals tarnish.

It seems like some extremely convincing weathering could come from this.

-todd

 

[Jamanticus]

has anyone tried weather some of these blades by actually using them? go out into the garden and plunge the blade into dirt, shrubs, hay bales, etc. Leave it outside for a day or two. work some dirt & leather around it and let it dry and fall off naturally. Let the metals tarnish.

It seems like some extremely convincing weathering could come from this.

-todd

I tried that with one sword.

The end result was not all that bad, but it was very hard to control, difficult to achieve, and didn't look as good as other weathering methods.

The big problem with natural weathering is the materials decorative swords are made of. Stainless steel, which is insanely hard to weather by its nature, handles that are made out of not-easily-corrodible materials.

So, many of the really good weathering effects can only be simulated on these decorative swords. Simulated really well, but still simulated.

 

[Silverhold]

:lol :lol

Sorry... I was just imagining the look I'd get from my wife if I went and planted a bunch of medieval weaponry in her vegetable garden. :lol

has anyone tried weather some of these blades by actually using them? go out into the garden and plunge the blade into dirt, shrubs, hay bales, etc. Leave it outside for a day or two. work some dirt & leather around it and let it dry and fall off naturally. Let the metals tarnish.

 

[bend215]

Looks great.