How to make fake taser burns on a t-shirt

October 31, 2006 2:55 PM

Urgent Halloween Costume Question! How would you simulate taser burns on a white cotton t-shirt using only household implements?
posted by unknowncommand to Grab Bag (7 answers total)

Use a cigarette to get circular burn marks or make holes with burned edges.
posted by decathecting at 3:03 PM on October 31, 2006

Got a gas stove? Burn a couple holes in it. (Carefully.) Or use a match. You're going for dramatic effect here, not versimillitude. (Actual tasers don't burn clothing, from what I understand -- they shoot little barbs that lodge in your skin. Phasers, however, are a different story.)
posted by turducken at 3:05 PM on October 31, 2006

Do you have a soldering iron? That would give you nice pinhead-sized burn marks (I wouldn't try it on man-made material, though...)
posted by backseatpilot at 3:13 PM on October 31, 2006

Pour a little powdered sugar on the shirt. Use a barbecue fork to punch two holes where the sugar is. Use a lighter to quickly burn around the holes. The sugar should caramelize before the shirt seriously starts to burn, and that's how you get a nice brown-looking burn.
posted by infinitewindow at 3:14 PM on October 31, 2006

Don't forget to place broken wires leading from the shirt to heighten the effect.
posted by Ironmouth at 3:17 PM on October 31, 2006

tasers and air tasers are two different things. Take a look at how tesla coils arc, and work from there, burning a hole with cigarette or similar, then drawing out the spider-webby pattern in white marker or paint. Exaggerate quite a bit, because taser burns are about the size of a pinhead.
posted by boo_radley at 3:24 PM on October 31, 2006

you could unwind a coat hanger, heat the end over the stove burner and then use the hot end to burn tiny holes in the shirt or make tiny scorch points.
posted by buggzzee23 at 3:59 PM on October 31, 2006