Occams Razor

Okay so last session both of my swords finally gave up the ghost. And instead of asking around to try and have someone make a new set for me i would like to know if anyone knows the materials I need to make a good set of swords. I just need the items list for what is needed to make them, I can figure out the rest.

Fiberglass core (.505 I believe- someone will correct me with specficis)

5/8ths foam insulation (closed cell foam for the blade). This is hard and harder to come by. Lowe's and Home Depot NEVER seem to have it, but some smaller places may.

Open Cell foam for the tip (I've been using "Foam Air Conditioner Weather seal/insulation") it's like a 3 foot long strip of the stuff, 2 inches square, that runs $3-5 for the whole she-bang and is available at any hardware store. Even little tiny ones in the city.



Adhesive Kite Tape to cover the blade (or a nylon 'sock'). You can get it at Goodwinds.com - about 12 bucks for a 25 foot roll in a variety of colors. You can also get the black or white stuff for a little more (same brand though) on Amazon, so shipping is probably quicker.

Foam you can get from McMaster Carr #4530K161. They only have the 3/4 foam, but it fits snuggly to the core so you don't have to cut the foam apart and tape it together again as you would with most of the 5/8 in things you get.

As for a sock, you can get ripstop nylon at Joanns or another crafting store and sow one, or use the kite tape.

You should also get some shipping tape to use when you anchor the foam to the weapon as well as the thrusting tip. You can get it at the super market.

Remember to leave about 1 inch between the top of the foam and the top of your core and stuff foam into the gap. I use chauking foam which you can also get at Home Depot.

Additionally, I have pretty much all the materials you would need if we can work a way to get them to you. That way you don't have to pay for multiple instances of shipping.

Sean- thanks for the extra info this is actually going to be super usefully to me in like the next 3 days!

Secondly, when it comes to doing 2-handers/poles with the Fancy Core, what do you use to cut down on the whip? I just can't imagine it's PVC or aluminum like the rule books says (our PVC two-handers use aluminum), but my imagination might be shit.

How do you make knobs? Like when you make a cane.

Here's my two-cents regarding 'socks' - use women's (or girl's) tights. They are the right size, length, and shape. I've almost never had to tailor them to the width of a 'blade'.

- kim

ive found 5/8 foam at hamiltonmarine. I positively swear by the stuff.

So, for 2H weapons, the traditional standard has been .606 cores (the PVC plus aluminum combo predates even that, but is generally disregarded due to the huge weight). However, as the years have gone on, the manufacturers have gradually reducing the content of fiber in favor of a lighter binding agent. This makes them lighter, but much less stiff. To compensate, some of us have scaled up to the next size for cores, which is 0.75. They don't whip as much (though they still do) but require a bigger size of foam as well. The other thing I have been playing with is 0.5 carbon fiber core from Dragonplate. It's only about 30% lighter, but it most importantly doesn't whip as far as I have seen. It's more expensive and runs the risk of snapping, but under the typical strains I put them under it seems to have been fine. My 2h sword is the first I made and it's still intact after a year and a half of use. Also, a neat extra benefit comes from the fact that the "blade" makes up the bulk of most boffer weapons, so the lighter overall core pulls wight back from the from the front of the weapon, improving the balance and heft.

As for knobs, the thing I tried was buying some open cell foam from a craft store and carving it into a sphere. Then you can glue/tape it onto the top of a weapon.

Okay so unfortunately I will not have any Melee weapons for the event tomorrow. I ordered my stuff and unfortunately a lot of it got back ordered. Is there anyone out there that is willing to bring a weapon or two for me to borrow for the session. I would really appreciate it.

I'm in a similar boat, sadly. My weapon was down for repairs and my foamsmith isn't going to have it ready in time.
looking to borrow a longsword or similar length weapon for the event.
Said weapon will likely see minimal use, given that I bring all the 'daka with my boomstick, and practice the lost arts of 'chi-chack pow' and 'click click boom'.