Skyrim Mehrune's Razor Prop

This is a tutorial to build a replica prop of Mehrune's Razor from the game Skyrim. The main body of the Razor is foam, so it's resilient in its' possible uses which could be larping, cosplaying, or just as a wall decoration. This tutorial can also be followed by its core elements to replicate any other knife or short blade from other games, movies, anime, books, etc...

These are the tools and materials needed for this project...

Tools:

Computer

Hot glue gun (with lots of glue sticks)

Craft knife, razor blade, or any sort of extremely small and sharp knife

Scissors

Dremel with a cut-off wheel attachment

Any and all sanding implements (including the dremel), but at the very least some coarse and fine grit sandpaper

Disposable foam brushes

A small cup of sorts to hold glue/mix paint

Popsicle sticks for mixing

Paper towel/Napkins

Materials:

Pencil and printer paper

1 sheet of 1/4 inch craft foam

2 sheets of 1/8 inch craft foam

Contact cement (E6000 for example)

White school glue (Elmer's)

Gloss Mod Podge

Matte Mod Podge

1 small block of black oven-bake Sculpey

Silver metallic acrylic paint

Black acrylic paint

Brown acrylic paint

In a dark room, use the photo of the Razor included in the tutorial to trace the basic forms of the Razor on a sheet of paper. The picture can be scaled up or down to suit the person "wielding" the blade. Fold the traced piece of paper down the middle of the drawing. Choose the side that looks the best and cut it out. Using this template create a second pattern for the blade and half of the handle, this was to fit it on a piece of standard piece of printer paper and craft foam. Trace the two side "spikes" that make up the guard, pattern the raised detail on the blade, and approximate/pattern the rest of the handle. Also, pattern the guard as a whole and cut the two end pieces off. Be sure to keep all of these patterns close by as they will be needed for the next step.

Trace the following patterns with pencil to 1/4 inch craft foam and cut with the razor blade/box cutter:

Blade x2

Guard spikes x4

Half-handle x2

Trace and cut the following with scissors/razor blade on 1/8 inch craft foam

Blade detail x2

Guard Midsection (No ends) x2

Using contact cement:

Glue the two blade halves together, then glue the blade detail on top of it.

Glue the two side spikes to the blade to form the core of the guard. Glue the guard midsection over the blade and side spikes.

Glue the two halves of the other part of the handle together, and glue to the rest of the blade. Secure this connection by gluing around a 3/4-1 inch strip of 1/8 inch craft foam.

Making the Pommel+Finishing the grip (hot glue it all):

Cut one or two long strips of the 1/8th inch craft foam and wrap the handle of the blade.

Form the Sculpey into a ball and bake according to the instructions on the package.

Follow the "cross" shape in the pictures to make the decorative piece for the pommel and glue to the sculpey ball.

Assemble and glue to the butt end of the grip.

Sand the blade so that the two "halves" of it are uniform and all edges of the piece are blended except for the handle because it'll be wrapped later on.

Using any and all sanding implements bevel the blade, not to a "cutting edge" but to make it seem as if it may have one. This is probably done best with a belt sander or a dremel.

Sand to blend the midsection of the guard into the guard spikes underneath.

Dremel the detail lines into the guard and sand to create depth.

With all of these move from a coarser grit to a fine or even super fine grit to make less work for later on in the filling stage.

For any major gaps that couldn't be sanded out in the previous step, just fill it with some hot glue and smooth it over with a popsicle stick.

Put some white school glue into the small cup, in very thin layers cover the blade and guard of the Razor. This will fill in all of the little imperfections in the foam and create a smooth surface, depending on how well it has been sanded this could go on for 20-100 layers. This can also be sped up with a hair dryer.

This is the last chance to sand and fill as needed to blend the hot glue with the foam or anything else that may have been missed. Any pieces that weren't cemented well together can also be hot glued and sanded.

Cover any and all "metal" parts of the razor with silver acryllic paint.

(Optional) Dremel "scratches" into the blade.

Use a "wash" of black acryllic paint and water over the silver parts and wipe off with a dabbing motion (using a paper towel or napkin). Darken the interior part of the blade with more washes.

Use black acryllic on the sculpey ball pommel wherever silver paint may have gotten onto it.

Dry brush the "leather" grip of the razor using two shades of brown (darker and lighter), some black should still be visible after this.

Use matte mod podge on the "metal" parts and the grip (one or two coats)

Use gloss mod podge on the sculpey ball pommel (one or two coats)

You have assembled the pieces of Mehrune's Razor! Perfect for slaying incoming Daedra, Draugr, or whatever beasts Tamriel will throw at you. Happy hunting Dovahkiin.

I hope that you enjoyed my tutorial, any comments or questions are welcome. I will try my best to answer them.