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Just got myself a haunted key and I'd like to add a bit of character. I have seen the existing topic on this (some great methods there!), but it is not quite what I'm after...

Still on the lookout for a 'genuine' old key to perform this gimmickless and I'd like this one to look a few decades rather than a few centuries old. Do I simply follow the same methods, but leave it in the vinegar/ground for a shorter period of time, or do people have other tips?

A 20 year old key can look just as aged as a 100 year old version so there won't be a significant difference in appearance.

Salt, vinegar and similar corrosives will do the biz quite quickly, possibly a bit of work first with some wet & dry paper to remove any coating and try soaking the key in vinegar overnight then burying it with plenty of salt. You don't need to go out into the garden to do this, just bring a bucket, flower pot or other container of soil into the house and bury the key in that - easy to check and easy to put the key back if it needs more aging.

ebay. Thats where i got my genuine old keys from, and they work fine. Otherwise..... refer to my thoughts in the Halloween M,M on the subject of alternatives to the key.

daleshrimpton wrote:ebay.

Seconded.

Heh, fair enough. I bought a lot of nine antique keys today, so that's all sorted. Still applying Mandrake's method to knock a few years onto the new haunted key, though, as I have a few ideas for more modern stories.

I got lucky with my key, it's from an old safe so the shank is somewhat longer than a normal door key and looks especially good in action!

Mandrake wrote:I got lucky with my key

I hope you called it afterwards.

A_n_t wrote:

Mandrake wrote:I got lucky with my key

I hope you called it afterwards.

I would say a *facepalm* is in order here.

A_n_t wrote:I hope you called it afterwards.

Being a thorough gentleman not only did I call I also sent flowers....

pretty sure someone (paul prayer?) had an bit in one on the early mystic menageries on ageing a haunted key...

kartoffelngeist wrote:pretty sure someone (paul prayer?) had an bit in one on the early mystic menageries on ageing a haunted key...

Indeed he did, thank you! It's issue 3, Winter 2010 on pages 3 and 4.

kartoffelngeist wrote:pretty sure someone (paul prayer?) had an bit in one on the early mystic menageries on ageing a haunted key...

Thanks; I remembered that one, too. Paul uses paint for a rust effect, which looks great, but unfortunately wasn't what I was after (picky, I know )