These are the primary weapons used in LARP today. Used in Europe for decades, latex weapons are finally coming into their own with the US LARPing community. While homemade latex weapons can be somewhat unreliable depending upon the skill of the crafter, injection molded foam latex weapons produced by a manufacturer are much more reliable and safe.
The first and largest supplier of these weapons in the US is a company called Rampant Mouse, which broke ground in 2001 by making latex weapons readily available to the US market. Before then, obtaining these weapons was an expensive and frustrating endeavor because they all had to be shipped from overseas, and many custom latex weapon companies refused to ship to the US.
View weapons:
Rampant Mouse: US LARP-safe full-contact weapon retailer and wholesaler
Home-made versions basically consist of:
- core made of fiberglass rod (carbon fiber is a superior, but more expensive substitute and for short weapons PVC electric tubing is a cheaper alternative)
- foam (usually in three layers of about half an inch each)
- a few layers of latex
- color
- a special end-coating that is UV resistant and makes the weapon less sticky
An excellent guide for making these weapons can be found in The DIY Guid to LRP
Some sample galleries and weapons with detailed photos can be found on the Elbenschmiede
