Concrete Mace

For this instructable I made a concrete mace, and to be honest this was an impulse creation. I had just made 2 kettlebells, and when I was finished I had extra concrete and PVC so I figured I would try something off the cuff. Much like kettlebells, maces are often made of steel and can be quite expensive. I had all the materials for this project so it cost me nothing extra. For those who aren't familiar, exercise with a mace is built on the idea of imbalanced weight. When performing movements with imbalanced weights more and often different muscle groups are recruited to stabilize the weight. So the idea is to have all the weight in the bottom and the further away from the weight you hold the handle the greater the resistance will be. Now that I have completed making one I know I will make another, but I had fun creating this and I look forward to sharing how with you!

- 1" schedule 40 pvc ( I used a 37" piece for the handle, you could make yours a touch longer if you wish, in which case you can cut your pvc with a hacksaw or a jigsaw.)

- Quikrete concrete mix (Given the jar size, this will require little concrete. As mentioned i used what i had left over, which I mixed in a five gallon bucket and a putty knife.)

- Empty glass jar (I used a 24oz. pasta jar)

- I used a funnel to get some concrete down the handle to anchor it in.

- I used a hole saw bit on my drill to center the handle through the cap while it was in a vice. ( If you don't have these materials, just know this was a little extra step i used to be sure the handle was centered. You could still punch a center hole and cut outward with shears, for example, or simply eyeball it if you're good with that.)

- (Optional) I used sand I had to fill the pvc handle close to the top, and capped it with hot glue.

- (Optional) I spray painted mine for aesthetic reasons

When mixing your concrete you want to slowly add water and mix until you reach a consistency that is like a slurry. (see the photo) If you end up adding too much water, this isn't a big deal, just add some more concrete mix to balance it. Once mixed, simply fill your jar up. For the cap I drew straight lines to locate the center, and used a hole bit the same size as the outer diameter size of my PVC to cut a centered hole. I used a vice to prevent the cap from moving. On the lines I drew earlier I made relief cuts with some snips. These cuts will be needed to get the cap over your PVC and onto the glass jar. Be aware that this metal will be sharp once cut, wear gloves for safety. Once the relief cuts were made i pealed the metal back slightly with pliers to make tab. (See the photo in the next step for detail)

Place your PVC handle into your jar of concrete as best you can in the center. Slide your now tabbed cap over your PVC and onto your jar. I used a funnel to slide more concrete down to the bottom of the handle to anchor it further. After that I filled the handle with sand until it was about 1" -1.5" from the top, and capped it with hot glue. Not sure it was needed but i put some black gorilla tape over the top of the handle, and left it to sit for 24 hours to cure.

Once 24 hours has passed your concrete should be cured and it's time to remove your jar. I held mine by the handle over a trash can and tapped it with a chisel continuously. It's always best to wear safety glasses, and gloves and be sure to sweep up after to catch any loosen and unseen shards. Once your jar is busted off, and your lid is removed you can start painting. I applied more than one coat of spray paint, with about an hour between coats.

Now that your mace is complete you can start putting it to use. An after thought I had was that I will end up making one that weighs more. This one came out to be 6 pounds exactly. This isn't a lot of weight, but the uneven distribution still makes a lot of movements challenging for the smaller muscle groups like shoulders, wrists, and forearms. I'm still happy with how this came out, and I look forward to bringing you version 2.0! Thanks for reading!