X-23 Claws Tutorial Using Cosplayflex

STEP 1:  I measured our daughter’s hand and decided on the size of claws we wanted and got a pattern on paper.  I cut out a pattern with paper.  I ended up making three copies of each piece of the pattern since I wanted to stack them together to make the claws thicker.  I could have stayed with one or two, but I wanted the claws to be sturdy and give the illusion of metal.

STEP 2: I cut out the patterns traced on the Cosplayflex. It is easy to cut with just regular scissors.

STEP 3: I heated up the pieces of the claws and layered the Cosplayflex three deep.   I then used my fingers to make the plastic take the shape I wanted.

STEP 4: Once it looked pretty solid, I used a dremel to smooth the edges to make them look more like blades.  This step was fun to do and gave great results, but I would recommend doing it outside – lots of dust to clean up in our basement.

STEP 5: When it was smooth, I sprayed it with clear Plasti Dip and let that dry.
​
STEP 6: Then, I sprayed it with a silver Rustoleum spray paint and topped it off with a clear topcoat spray paint.

STEP 7:  Wear and enjoy!

These claws outlasted two days at a con with a five year old holding them and slashing with them the entire time, so I would say the Cosplayflex held up great.  The paint chipped a bit, so I probably needed two coats of clear topcoat, but other than that…success.

Check out the video below for pictures of this process.