Weaponmaking

A very useful site here

Now that I’ve got some shields, I’m tempted to do a mace. Or maybe some daggers.

And for those who just don’t think there’s quite enough crazy around there is this site

I personally like the “gun ring” and “knife made out of knives” at the bottom of page 2. And at the top of page 5 is the perfect St Wolfgang’s weapon. The crucifix gun. :smiley: (Vatican experimental labs again?)

I saw one of these in the Royal Armouries in Leeds

Oh my gosh, what is it?
I seen the .70 calibre Nitro-express but thats a peashooter compared to above!

Some were 2.2 caliber :smiling_imp:
They’re called punt guns

can i just pay someone to make me a larp safe machete? ill even donate it to nz larps if/when my character dies.

Talk to Derek or Gaffy. I’m sure either of them will be willing to help :slight_smile:

I’m trying to not make larp weapons professionally, unless hey interest me. I won’t be doing swords and stuff that are already available, because I’m trying to build stuff that isn’t available.

I’ve been contemplating making a machette myself, because I think we need one. So if I make one, I might just stick a price tag on it and see if anyone (like Zannii) is interested in buying it.

om nom nom

i think they would be hard because they are really thin and they would flop around alot

Thats what the fibreglass rod inside is for, to prevent flop

So, having finally acquired some fibreglass rod (courtesy of RD1 in Longburn), I thought I’d try my hand at a mace: a diamond-headed flanged one like those pictured here. I’ll be following the instructions at the Quiche Commandoes site linked at the top of this thread.

Big question: how thick should the foam on the haft be? I have two sorts - blue 10mm camp mat and a slightly thinner grey EDF foam. What’s the usual standard in Auckland for a haft?

Second question: what’s the best way to prevent the core from punching through? I’ve seen sites which suggest tipping it with superglue-soaked cloth, rubber inner-tube, a small coin, or just a couple of disks of foam. How much clearance does the core need?

Final question: is there anything else I need to think about before I start?

[quote=“IdiotSavant”]So, having finally acquired some fibreglass rod (courtesy of RD1 in Longburn), I thought I’d try my hand at a mace: a diamond-headed flanged one like those pictured here. I’ll be following the instructions at the Quiche Commandoes site linked at the top of this thread.

Big question: how thick should the foam on the haft be? I have two sorts - blue 10mm camp mat and a slightly thinner grey EDF foam. What’s the usual standard in Auckland for a haft?

Second question: what’s the best way to prevent the core from punching through? I’ve seen sites which suggest tipping it with superglue-soaked cloth, rubber inner-tube, a small coin, or just a couple of disks of foam. How much clearance does the core need?

Final question: is there anything else I need to think about before I start?[/quote]

I’d put 10mm on the haft

If you’re doing a mace head, risk of punch through is very low, because you have so much more foam. Sand the tip to get rid of burrs and do this… (3rd and 4th picture)

For swords and things with less tip padding, I just sandwich fabric between the foam at the tip and use the same glue (ados F2) as i do on the foam.

So, ordinary cloth then? Cool; I’ll go with that.

I was going to wrap the haft rather than sandwich and carve it (due to a lack of belt sanders).

[quote=“IdiotSavant”]So, ordinary cloth then? Cool; I’ll go with that.

I was going to wrap the haft rather than sandwich and carve it (due to a lack of belt sanders).[/quote]

you can do a pretty good job with a really sharp box cutter blade and a cigarette lighter to “smooth” things afterwards

So, wrapping doesn’t work so well. Though it would probably go better if I let the initial section dry properly before proceeding.

Fortunately (?) I found out my foam strip, which looked fine initially, wasn’t wide enough in practice, so I have to start again anyway. So, any other suggestions on how to make it easier? Can you sandwich and then carve it without needing power tools?

[quote=“IdiotSavant”]So, wrapping doesn’t work so well. Though it would probably go better if I let the initial section dry properly before proceeding.

Fortunately (?) I found out my foam strip, which looked fine initially, wasn’t wide enough in practice, so I have to start again anyway. So, any other suggestions on how to make it easier? Can you sandwich and then carve it without needing power tools?[/quote]

Yes. Get some brand new snap off blades. You don’t need the handle (I use them by them self a lot). Use that to do the shaping, they cut REALLY well when they’re brand new.

Then you can use a cigarette lighter to ‘soften’ the nasty edges. Play around on some scrap first, you’ll find the EVA gets soft and can by shaped by pressing it with your fingers. With practice, you don’t even burn yourself much. :smiley:

Wrapping closed-cell foam around a 8 or 10mm fibreglass rod won’t work, because the foam will be under a lot of pressure to resume it’s original flat shape. The foam on the inside of the curve will be trying to expand, and the foam on the outside will be trying to contract. But you’ve already experienced that, I gather.

So sandwiching is the way to go, if what you’ve got is sheets.

A belt sander (clamped in place upside-down) is good for shaping curved closed-cell surfaces, once the foam sandwich is constructed and the glue is fully dry. But it’s messy, and you probably don’t have one.

As Derek says, use new craft knife blades. I use them in the plastic handle, it’s probably a bit safer than handling the blade directly like Derek suggests unless you’re very handy. Use long, slow blade strokes, drawing the knife through the foam, as opposed to jigging it back and forth a lot. Carve the corners off the sandwich to get an octagonal cross-section. You could just leave it octagonal, or carve the corners off again to go for something close to round.

Something that works even better than craft blades is scalpel blades, but they’re far better suited to fine, detailed work, or when you want a really precise, small angle. I tend to use craft blades for the grunty work, then switch to scalpels for the finer stuff. Use a handle though!
We used a lot of EVA on Rangers, and we were all about the scalpels :smiley:

I’ve spent the morning making a foam sandwich, and when it is dry, I’ll have a go carving it. But since I have plenty of core, I’m trying the wrap method with the thinner foam as well. It looks like it will work, and I can always double wrap it if it needs a thicker covering. Then I can see which method works better.

Does anyone sell box-cutter blades by thmselves? The $2 shop sells the cutters (unfortunately in a variety pack, not all of which are useful) - but can I get blade refills to cut down on waste plastic?

hardware stores sell the blades by themselves - I get heavy duty ones