Vampire killing kit…FINISHED!!!

[Funky]

Personally, this took WAY longer than it should have taken. Finding the perfect pieces took longer than building the damned thing. So I came in at two months and 150.00 bucks.
Thoughts, opinions and critique is what I’m mostly looking for. If you want to gush, please keep it at a minimum. As much as I appreciate it, I’m always looking at how could I have done this job better, so please be brutally honest, otherwise I won’t learn nuthin’.

 

[AJK001]

Sorry, but I'm going to have to gush. That looks great.

 

[Jr. jones]

Dude! Been wanting to make one of these for years! That looks fantastic! Top marks!

 

[Nicksdad]

I really like it.

 

[Noeland]

Well, you did a fantastic job Funky, however long it took. I have always found vampire killing kits to be pretty damn cool.

And this being our hobby I still think personal work should take a little while.

What about black powder and ammunition for the pistol? I would suggest conical projectiles made of silver or small wood stakes that are the same caliber as the barrel of the muzzle loader. You may find inspiration looking up cased dueling pistols (which you probably have done) to see how powder and ammo were frequently stored.

But I would certainly not say you need that stuff. It looks great as is.

 

[Apollo]

Send it to me, I will put it to the test……..

 

[Odin82]

Looks awesome man! Love it. An old Latin Rituale Romanum might be a nice addition to the kit! The Rituale Romanum probably should be there rather than the Bible. I've a thread on here identifying the exact one used by Hopkins in Bram Stoker's Dracula. The Roman Ritual / Rituale Romanum is the book that has the rites, whereas the bible is just stories. Can find some old 18th Century ones on the usual sites for great bargains from time to time. Random useless fact, the Rituale Romanum used by Hopkins in Bram Stoker's Dracula brides killing scene, is newer than the year the scene is set in. If searching Rituale Romanums, keep an eye out for a red covered one with a big cross on the front and leaf embossing - it's the one Fr. Merrin uses in The Exorcist. Pop up from time to time, first English translation of it, c. 1964 "Weller Roman Ritual" or something. Usually about 20 bucks, but should be worth more because of it being the main weapon in The Exorcist! On that note, once found the cross Merrin uses in the film for about 10 euro, and was offered 300 for it by another fan. There's certain crucifixes called "Casket Crucifix" that are placed in, well coffins. If you can find a couple of them, might be worth including in the kit, so as to be placed in the coffins of the slain vampires! The crucifix Merrin has is one of those coffin crucifixes.

Making a vampire kit has been on my want to do list for years. Though, I wouldn't be able to resist adding one of the Count Duckula Van Goosewing rifles that fires wooden stakes, with the barrel mushrooming out

 

[Funky]

Looks awesome man! Love it. An old Latin Rituale Romanum might be a nice addition to the kit! The Rituale Romanum probably should be there rather than the Bible. I've a thread on here identifying the exact one used by Hopkins in Bram Stoker's Dracula. The Roman Ritual / Rituale Romanum is the book that has the rites, whereas the bible is just stories. Can find some old 18th Century ones on the usual sites for great bargains from time to time. Random useless fact, the Rituale Romanum used by Hopkins in Bram Stoker's Dracula brides killing scene, is newer than the year the scene is set in. If searching Rituale Romanums, keep an eye out for a red covered one with a big cross on the front - it's the one Fr. Merrin uses in The Exorcist. Pop up from time to time, first English translation of it, c. 1964 "Weller Roman Ritual" or something. Usually about 20 bucks, but should be worth more because of it being the main weapon in The Exorcist! On that note, once found the cross Merrin uses in the film for about 10 euro, and was offered 300 for it by another fan. There's certain crucifixes called "Coffin Crucifix" that are placed in, well coffins. If you can find a couple of them, might be worth including in the kit, so as to be placed in the coffins of the slain vampires! The crucifix Merrin has is one of those coffin crucifixes.

Making a vampire kit has been on my want to do list for years. Though, I wouldn't be able to resist adding one of the Count Duckula Van Goosewing rifles that fires wooden stakes, with the barrel mushrooming out

That is an excellent idea!!! Thank you!

 

[Odin82]

If you can find an old purple priest "stole" might be another worthy addition to your kickass kit!. I'd hate to ramble on and on about vampire hunters and religion! Love the pics man!

 

[Bigdaddy]

It looks awesome funky, the box is fantastic! The only changes that I might make are a dark red velvet liner which would make the contents really stand out.
Switch out the glasses for something like this:

Maybe change the candles to a natural beeswax or ivory color to look more vintage:

It looks really cool man, well done!

 

[Odin82]

Great suggestion about the candles! That colour is great and adds to the look of authenticity/age!

 

[Funky]

Great suggestions. Already moving forward in making some changes.

 

[Lightning]

It looks like there is considerable space between the two layers when the case is closed. You could lift the bottom layer up and put it on a hinge in order to access the new lower storage compartment. That would be a good place for a clothing component.

 

[Odin82]

I've yet to see the Dracula TV series, but a lot of the props that have turned up on the propstore over the years, have looked pretty awesome, and great inspiration, so kudos to anyone that was involved in the prop department. There are some old Romanian Vlad coins from the show that look the business that were on there, and even buying original Romanian coins from the time period pop up on the bay too for great prices. I've some scans of some old Transylvania stamps somewhere.

 

[simiouno]

Nice .. Maybe add a little box of beads so you can scatter them on the floor and the Strigoi or Vampyre will have to count them all !

 

[Knightmare]

looks killer dude . I would take all the stuff out and age it some more.
loose all the shine dirty them up use old dried blood and brown it up .

 

[JamesM242]

You've done great work there! My only critique is regarding the usability of the "expendable" items - i.e, the stakes and candles. Perhaps its not intended to be a field kit, but having said that - the current storage design only appears to only work for exactly three stakes and four candles. But what if I've left a stake in some nefarious vampire's heart? Or had to hastily beat feet out of crypt, leaving two of my candles behind? Perhaps a storage system like a tray with lid, or anchored box with a clasp, would allow for a flexible number of stakes and candles?

Other ideas for your consideration: perhaps paint the crucifix and/or weather in a way so that it contrasts more from the lid? Adding a weathered label for the holy water might be a nice touch as well.

Anyway - I really like what you've done and these ideas are offered as constructive criticism.

 

[ultraman]

if i were to make this i think i'd probably age things up a little more.

1.) take a little sand paper an rough up the bends on the leather straps that hold items in place....that way it looks like it's been used a hundred times.

2.) take one or two of the stakes......grab a milk jug and fill it with some paint or stain that's blackish red....stab the hell out of it then let the stakes dry. don't simply splash color on it. let the chaos of actually stabbing something do the work.

3.) light a candle or 2 and blow them out the wicks look too fresh.

4.) whack a couple dents and scratches into the crucifix

 

[N2darkness]

The items and placement is good, but maybe a velvet or flocked lined wooden tray with dividers for each piece instead of just the leather straps.

And as some others had said, some more age and weathering, maybe some different color stains on some of the other pieces to stand out from the background color.

 

[Odin82]

Did you make the case yourself Funky? The latches on it kinda makes me think you did. If so, great job on it! Looks absolutely awesome.

Was watching some Adam Savage video recently, maybe 10 years old, him saying he wanted to make his own sea chest with dovetail joints. I wonder if he ever did make it.

Would love to see some progress pics of the case if there are any, or hearing about your planning process for final look.