The Armour Archive

as the title states i am looking for instructions on how to build greatweapons: greatsword and foam and rattan pole specifically (though i might wind up buying a rubber head or two as it stands) i have seen referneces to a post by sir vitus on a greatsword tutorial in my searching , but alas i have not found the tutorial, i have heard that it was lost in an update of somekind ? right now though i was looking for tutorials on pole or "tips and tricks" of construction. polearm is kinda more urgent as the crossguards from hjalmr are not yet here. then ill have to figure out what to do with the the trimmings of those 8 foot poles... shortsword sidearm anyone?

I made a greatsword tutorial once...I know it's archived here someplace.

don't know if this one is good as I am brand new, but it looks promissing

http://www.scabastardsword.com/

Bjorn

... frigging adress not found error... (insert string of blankety-blank-blanks here)

wierd, cannot get to it either righ tnow, hopefully it will come back up....also messed up a bit, the site is more on how to use rather than how to build. However...for split rattan polearms...

http://mattyds.com/essays2.php

Well lordedduffy, how much greatweapon are you building? Five-foot claymores and six-foot Zweihanders differ mainly in accessories -- and I think by kingdom too... you're in East. Comply with Marshals' Handbook Sec. VII C, Twohanded Weapons.

But a claymore/lowland sword can get away with a heater-hose crossguard, anchored with nylon tape. Zweihander needs something stiffer, a split-rattan cross at least. And SCA ironmongery comes in here too, and looks very well and answers very well.

Hose crossguards use 1" to 1 1/4" automotive hose, eight to ten or twelve inches of it, with slits cut in the hose to pass the rattan through. The hose comes from Pep Boys with a curve in it from being on the reel, which curve it tends to keep. Put one slit at the center of the segment, on the inside of the curve, and the other slit at the center of the outside of the curve. To prevent the splits from growing along the hose, punch holes at each end of each slit, using leather punches -- a rotary punch is the handiest tool for the job; stick it into the slit and go crrrunch. With the punches done, your slits should look like this: o--------o. With the cross slid on, X-lash it in place with nylon fiber tape. The hose ends may be taped flat to make a handsome fishtail shape and nylon tape may be run up the length of the arms to stiffen them, anchoring them to the length of the rattan also.

Polearm: electronics shipping foam or pool noodle foam are stiff enough and tough enough. You can use this kind of foam to make flukes on the back of a polearm blade. The generi-pole for SCA is about 5 feet overall, with the foam blade out in front of the haft end, which is a good location for the back fluke, the thrusting surface being a butterknife point's curve and the length of the head being eighteen to twenty inches. A foot or a little more of the blade is on the haft, the rest out in front. It should not be so floppy as to bend sideways when thrust, so whatever amount of foam hanging out there that remains stable is what you should use. Structural attachment is by nylon tape. The heel of the blade should be hooklike just as the fluke is, so you can catch shields and drag them out of position. Whether or not your blade should incorporate rattan clackers on the edge your Knight's Marshal can tell you.

lordeduffy wrote:as the title states i am looking for instructions on how to build greatweapons: greatsword and foam and rattan pole specifically (though i might wind up buying a rubber head or two as it stands) i have seen referneces to a post by sir vitus on a greatsword tutorial in my searching , but alas i have not found the tutorial, i have heard that it was lost in an update of some kind ? right now though i was looking for tutorials on pole or "tips and tricks" of construction. polearm is kinda more urgent as the crossguards from hjalmr are not yet here. then ill have to figure out what to do with the the trimmings of those 8 foot poles... shortsword sidearm anyone?

Maybe I take a very minimalist approach, but beyond some very specific details like the kind of foam I use for tips (5/8" thick green camp mat foam), how I apply the tape (lengthwise down the blade, crossing at 90° angles over each layer of foam on the tips to help them on), and knowing the length of weapon / blade that's good for me (7.5' for polearm with 24" blade, 45" for katana with 30" blade), I don't do, and haven't done for 20+ years, anything else particular when it comes to making these weapons, and it's served me pretty well, I think. Oh, and I use a disc of sole leather for the guard on my katana, so my hands don't get mashed by blocks that slide down the blade.

I *used* to be fussy about things like putting rubber tape or a strip of thin leather along the striking edge to make the rattan last longer (it doesn't), how to apply the head of a polearm (before we went to unpadded), taping up the hilt / haft to make it look more 'real', and the like. Over the years, I've come to realize that the most important factors are: getting good rattan to start with, minimizing the weight to allow for faster attacks and blocks, and keeping the tips in good repair so they don't get ripped off at inopportune moments; everything else is either time wasted 'cause the pretty aesthetics are going to get destroyed on the field in short order (they are just taped sticks that we beat each other with, after all), extra bits which will make your weapon less effective on the field due to added weight or changed center-of-mass of the weapon, or expensive accessories that will not make you fight any better.

y'know, now that i think about it for the polearm: how can i screw up a rubber head that friction fits on the haft ? (thats a big deal for me) i think splitting the rattan i would probably wind up destroying the haft (just me it probably IS stupid-simple, but then this is ME . and me and tape ,well we just dont get along as well as we used to) and for great sword i am ordering the quillions from hjalmr so that wont be quite a big deal.

Baron Master Feral right there in New London should be able to help His greatsword Named Kingmaker was used by several of his squires and former squires(Knights and masters) to win the great weapon bouts in many crown finals. check in at Sarge's comics on State street in New London If you don't meet him at an event or practice.he also makes a sweet pole arm. if any one can teach weapon making in the area he is the one to go to to learn.