New fangled lighter rattan? (sarnac please read)

Tarquin Bjornsson · Post by **Tarquin Bjornsson** » Mon Aug 26, 2002 8:47 am

Does anybody know anything about it at all? All i know is that its been dried in a kilm and is now called "fairy wood".

Sarnac you majesty recently (murder melee) i received one of the swords you are giving to newly authorized fighters during your reign (by the way thanks a lot!) are they by chance made out of "fairy wood?" If not how in the hell did you make them soo light?

Tarquin

[This message has been edited by Tarquin Bjornsson (edited 08-26-2002).]

Tarquin Bjornsson · Post by **Tarquin Bjornsson** » Wed Aug 28, 2002 3:41 pm

sarnac · Post by **sarnac** » Wed Aug 28, 2002 9:53 pm

Hi Tarquin,
there is a process to dry out rattan....its similar to the process for hardening rattan for escrima sticks before they seal them...
It involves heating the rattan in an oven until the oils are extruded and then rolling over the skin with a steel rod to recompress the fibers...
It lightens the rattan alot but also shortens the life of the rattan in our game because we cannot laminate the rattan to preseve it (as that is illegal).

That "fairy rattan" as you call it, is simply rattan bought from Sir Edward the Red, except I get the rattan the is pre-shaved to exactly 1 1/4 inches..its straight and uniform...so that one wrap of fiber tape and one layer of duct tape and you are just barely legal...no excess weight.

I just make really good swords....

Tarquin Bjornsson · Post by **Tarquin Bjornsson** » Wed Aug 28, 2002 10:09 pm

thank you for sharing the "secret" i really like the sword and thanks a lot for giving it to me. I will have to see about getting some of this from ed ( i really like the light sword)

And yes you do seem to make nice swords

Tarquin

Will Sparhawke · Post by **Will Sparhawke** » Thu Aug 29, 2002 3:27 pm

Is it possible to order some of this pre-shaved rattan?? Sounds interesting.

Will

sarnac · Post by **sarnac** » Thu Aug 29, 2002 4:44 pm

see here

Adobe file -

http://www.franksupply.com/pdf_files/bamboo_and_rattan.pdf

page three....

[This message has been edited by sarnac (edited 08-29-2002).]

Stoffel · Post by **Stoffel** » Thu Aug 29, 2002 6:05 pm

I somehow got ahold of what I pressume to be a piece of this. Its dry as a bone, but increadibly pliable so it doesnt snap in half. The husk is hard as a rock. I made a bastard sword from it, about four foot, and it weighs nearly half what a one handed sword weighs. Everyone at practice calls it the lightning stick of death. It might not be from the same source though, I will have to find out where my friend got it from.

Will Sparhawke · Post by **Will Sparhawke** » Fri Aug 30, 2002 8:09 am

Thanks Sarnac