The Excalibur Chainsaw comes from the third Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III.
Leatherface, the star of the show, used this custom STIHL 034 to do his dirty work.
The saw pictured here is a replica made by Neil Oliver. He used to customize and sell these saws, but the website is now down.
In 1989, New Line Studios began working on the 3rd installment of the TCM series.
The studio hired Paul Byer to produce the infamous “Excalibur” saws for the film for $3000 each.
Three of the Excalibur saws were made for the film:
- One with a rotating sharp chain
- One with a non-rotating sharp chain adhered in place
- One with a rotating chain with teeth removed
All saws had a “fully functional motor.”
The following two pictures are of an original screen-used saw (the one with the teeth removed) that was sold on an action site in 2012.
The following information comes from a site that no longer exists, but we believe it was run by Jason Guy and Neil Oliver.
They said:
This is the first of the saws to have come out from hiding, and it is unknown if the other 2 are still out there. This saw was previously owned by an ex-New Line employee.
The auction house estimated the saw would sell for between $2000 and $3000, the final winning bid for the saw was $11,000. After all auction fees and shipping, the total was close to $13,000.
And:
The chainsaws used were all Stihl model 034.
Both the Chainsaw in the first scene that Leatherface is seen in, where he attacks the trunk of the car, until the end of the movie the only saw he uses in an 034 Stihl.
There are several different versions of the 034, and even though the details are small there is a correct one, and a couple that are not 100% accurate.
Other sites have claimed that the saw used was an 066 Magnum.
This is not true. I got my info direct from the man who built the saws for the film, not someone who is guessing.
Another nail in the 066 rumors coffin, came in March of 2014 when I helped restore the last known excalibur known to exist.
This saw is without doubt a model 034.
Now, back to the replica!
Neil Oliver of Gas Capital Customs is the man behind the replica, but he no longer makes them.
The website is down; before it went down it had an “out of stock” and “not taking orders” notice.
The listing description stated:
A perfect replica of the infamous Excalibur Chainsaw from the 1990 film Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III.
This is a Stihl 034 chainsaw, modified to look exactly like the most famous chainsaw in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre world.
Each saw comes with:
- Huge dog spikes
- Latex wrapped (flesh) handle
- Polished body with brass pieces riveted in place all in the exact same spots as the originals
- Custom made professionally hand made, hand engraved, and polished 6061 Aluminum ~ The Saw is Family ~ bar
- Brand new chain attached (with teeth)
You also get a Certificate of Authenticity, an engraved numbered plate adhered to the body, and a numbered carry case for the saw body.
Neil also shared:
Please keep in mind these take anywhere from 1 to 2 months to build, as these are built once your order is placed.
The bars are built from scratch, then engraved at a 3rd party, as well as polished at a 3rd party so sometimes their workload dictates on how quickly the saw will be complete.
How much do you think the saw cost when he was selling them?
What would it cost today?
These replica Excliabur Chainsaws were sold for US$2000, with free shipping.
Not a bad price at all!
The site also stated:
Custom from head to toe, these saws are dripping with chrome and brass. Our Excalibur saws feature hand-engraved, custom-made aluminum bars.
And:
High attention to detail, along with information from the original saw builders makes my saws the closest thing you can have to the originals.
Every Excalibur comes with a Certificate of Authenticity, and each are numbered and built to order.
There is also a good YouTube video that gives an overview of one of these replicas.
The description states, “In this video, I go over and talk about the Tinkerbell Special Edition Excalibur chainsaw.”
We think this pictured replica is the “Tinkerbell special” which is slightly different from other versions. It’s more reflective.
Another interesting thing we learn from the video is that Neil doesn’t use brand-new saws for these builds.
He’s customizing “pre-loved” saws so that they’re “exactly like the film”.
Another interesting thing about the TCM III movie trailer:
A company called Cimarron was hired to do the trailer, which was also the same company that did the trailer for John Boorman’s “Excalibur”.
It was requested to be a shot-for-shot parody with the chromium Excalibur Saw reclaimed from the lady of the lake by Leatherface himself. The Saw created by Cimarron even has dual exhaust pipes on it.
They made 2 of these Chromed out Chainsaws. One of them was gutted on the inside, and an electric motor was added to make the saw function, which was probably the saw used in the shot of it coming out of the water.
The other saw was fully functional and was in the shot where Leatherface revs and turns to the camera. It happens to be (not sure if by coincidence) the same exact make and model of saw that was used in the film as well.. a Stihl 034.
The Excalibur replica chainsaw is another awesome custom STIHL build like the STIHL Jetsaw or this nitrous oxide-powered STIHL.
STIHL even had an official Excalisaw—a saw that had to be pulled from a stump in just the right way!
