The Riddler's Cane

[JokerMan]

So, last year, I attended the Wales Comic Con in Wrexham as Edward Nygma. This year, I intend to go again, this time as Edward Nygma's future persona...the Riddler.

One aspect of the Riddler that no cosplayer should be without is his signature cane. Next week, I intend on getting to work on building this prop. Now, this is my first time actually building a prop this big, so I'm not expecting miracles.

However, I would like some advice. I want this cane to last, so what is the best wood to use? I have an idea on what colour scheme I would like (a silver question mark with a black cane as a throwback to the Animated Series counterpart), so what would be the best way to varnish the cane so the colour stays?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated - thank you for looking!

 

[spydrwebz]

I would recommend search walkingstickforum.com. They have a ton of articles about various properties of woods as well as techniques for bending them.

Theres a lot of talent here at RPF as well, but walking sticks are all these guys do.

 

[gothic]

found these if it helps ? http://www.instructables.com/id/Making-a-Riddler-Cane/ http://www.instructables.com/id/Batman-Arkham-City-Riddler-Cane/?lang=de

 

[JokerMan]

Sorry for the long wait, but now I finally have an update!

gothic, that first link helped me out a lot, thank you very much! I found the design I liked (which happens to be the New 52 version), and I promptly drew a rough design for it, and smoothed it out. I don't have any pictures of the process, but I managed to cut the design out of a block of wood, sand down the rough bits and round the edges off with a sander (I don't have a router handy, so this took a LOT of time).

Being my very first prop project, this is not the best cane top out there, but I'm still proud of it...

Along with the hat I shall be wearing

 

[gothic]

glad i could help, and its not about being the best one its the fact you took time an effort to make it, that is whats important

 

[JokerMan]

So, a quick update - I'm SO sorry about the late update, but stuff got in the way. Stuff like...well, life.

Anyway, I managed to get a suitable rod for the question mark top, and stuck them both together. I've also sprayed a grey primer on one side, and currently waiting for that to dry before getting to prime the other side. I have taken pics, but I can't put them up right now, but stick around to see them soon

In the meantime, I'm just about to catch up on Gotham, and I think this is the episode where - surprise, surprise - Ed loses it. Can't wait - see you all soon!

 

[JokerMan]

Well, this is embarrassing - one month after the Con, and I STILL haven't put pictures up. Well, that's about to change.



The process involved spraying the entire cane with a grey primer, then waiting to dry (a day). Then spray painted the entire cane a glossy black, and waited a day for that to dry. Then I masked off what I didn't want being silver for the head and the bottom. For my first project, I don't think I did TOO badly, but this has taught me a few lessons:

~ Be patient
~ Avoid overspray
~ Make sure something is dry before masking off

But overall, it wasn't too bad. I had quite a few photos taken of me on the day (a lot more than last time, since I was only as Arkham Origins Edward Nygma last time - the Riddler is more recognisable, understandably).

Also, I took a picture of something, but I forgot what it was - I can't seem to see anything, but I found a tally mark on my arm after I took the picture...odd.

 

[JokerMan]

Hey guys - thought I might update you on this prop. I went ahead and made a second cane, a vast improvement on the last one, which I took to Wales Comic Con in 2016.

As you can see, I made the dot and the actual symbol separate. However, one thing I hadn't taken into account was the the cane top was made of compressed wood, which is significantly weaker than other woods. So, on the Sunday, while I was distracted by a man dressed as Iron Man (he did a really great job with it), I was leaning the cane on a wall, and the unpredictable Welsh weather blew a gust of wind, causing my cane to come crashing to the ground. The symbol was snapped in half, and the entire top was separated from the cane.

Needless to say, I was disappointed, but not disheartened. I found a place to store the cane pieces, and bought myself a pair of goggles to make a last minute Steampunk Riddler.

When I came back home, I looked at the cane, and wondered what I could do with the pieces. Well, I finally came up with the perfect answer, and here is the result of several days of hard work:

Weathered, aged, and duct taped, this cane is the result of years of use battling Batman. This cane resembles the Riddler's constructive side. It has been dented, scratched, and repaired using what little resources he has to hand.


As well as repairing the top of the cane, I also had the idea of adding batarangs to the cane, almost as if it had been used to block oncoming batarangs. They are resin batarangs bought on eBay for a really cheap price. Once glued into position, the duct tape was wrapped around them, adding further security. The bataranges were then dry brushed with silver paint, creating a chipped metal effect (the pictures don't do them justice. It's not a great effect, but I like it).

I should use this for the Wales Comic Con Part 2 in November, pairing this with my black Riddler jacket (with painted question marks on it), and a split lip - this is a Riddler who's tired of having Batman beat the living daylights out of him, and I want to show that. It will also be paired with my fedora hat and Riddler pin that I recently commissioned from Tiger Stone FX.

 

[Klybern]

thats awesome man riddler is one of my favorite characters. I love the weathered and aged look on props.
Thats why im a sucker for the arkham city cane lol

 

[JokerMan]

thats awesome man riddler is one of my favorite characters. I love the weathered and aged look on props.
Thats why im a sucker for the arkham city cane lol

Thanks, I'm glad you like it I am planning to do an Arkham City Riddler sometime in the future, so I will be making that cane. Should be in the next decade, though - I want to have fun editing what I already have - and that means more canes Stay tuned!