The head and skull are prime targets for lethal blunt force injuries because they are readily accessible, are poorly protected, and allow for maximum damage. The most important factors to consider in analyzing an injury to the skull are the energy transfer from the weapon to the wound, the surface area at the point of contact, and the plasticity of the human skull. The comparison of wounds to possible causal weapons has traditionally consisted mainly of visual and photographic comparisons of actual weapons or exemplars produced by the investigators. The present research combined dental impression and prosthetic materials with computer assisted tomographic (CT) imaging to provide a physical comparison of weapons with skull fractures produced by these weapons. The use of exemplar models in conjunction with CT scanning allows for scaling of the weapon and the wound; both objects are automatically depicted with the same scale. The current techniques allow the consideration of only group and class characteristics rather than individual characteristics. Figures and 4 references