Weapon Construction

Want to build your own weapon to defend yourself against the beasties of Atoll? Well, speaking as one of those beasties who has been struck between the eyes one too many times, we would greatly appreciate it if your follow these simple rules for building your own weapons.

The best rule of thumb is to not build anything that you wouldn't have someone else swing at you at full speed. Even though DM rules clearly state that all fights are supposed to be in sloooowww mooootion, we in the cast know that there are times when adrenaline gets the best of some of our players, and we in the cast are left with the prospect of actually defending ourselves with only a rubber mask as protection (if we're lucky). Remember, even boxing gloves when swung at full speed will put you on the deck.

Please note that even if you do follow these rules and go through great pains to come up with the coolest weapon ever, please do not be upset if the Dungeonmaster steps in and decides that it is unsafe to use in the show.

Most of our weapons in DM are constructed out of foam sheeting which is cut out and glued together in two layers with hot glue for stiffness. The war hammer and mace are constructed out of foam and foam wrapped PVC tubing covered with duct tape, which you can find at most hardware stores.

The SCA (Society of Creative Anachronisms) has extensive information on the construction of foam weapons (since they prefer to smack each other at full speed on a fairly regular basis). You can find tons of other info online (with lots of pretty pictures) at Association for Renaissance Martial Arts, and Medieval Combat Society.

The following was sent to us by Peter Miller describing the detailed construction of these weapons:

A boffer weapon is constructed from at least four different materials, a core, closed cell blade foam, open cell tip foam and a covering material. Additional materials can be used improve the look, feel, balance or utility of the boffer weapon, but these four make up the minimum requirements.

The Core:
A semi-rigid core material forms the handle and blade of the boffer weapon. The core must be thin enough to give slightly when struck, but stiff enough not to become "whippy" when swung. PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), CPVC (Carbon-Poly Vinyl Chloride), acrylic tubing, lexan tubing, graphite composite tubing and RET (reinforced epoxy tubing) all make good core materials. PVC and CPVC are used in plumbing and electrical conduit while the other tubes are typically used in hobbies. RET has become very popular for a core material because it's very light weight and fairly strong, and is normally found as a spar material for making kites (www.kitebuilder.com happens to be the site I buy mine from). As a general rule, 1/2" cores should be used for weapons under 45" in length, though thin walled PVC and CPVC become whippy at that length, and should be limited to 36" in length. Graphite and RET are stiffer and can be used up to about 50" before needing to be thicker than 1/2" (RET is normally sold at .505 diameter rods). PVC and CPVC (white and gray plastic plumbing piping) are the cheapest and most readily available materials.

Blade Foam:
Blade foam is made from extruded closed cell polyurethane pipe insulation. It comes in tubes, typically they are partially slit (a cut through half the thickness of the foam to allow it to be "snapped" over an existing pipe). DO NOT FULLY SLIT THE FOAM or buy pre-slit foam. The insulation should be a minimum of 5/8" thick. This is normally the thicker version of this pipe insulation. The blade foam will cover the entire core, except where your hand will go to form a grip. If you can find 5/8" neoprene rubber insulation, it also works very well, but it's much harder to find.

Tip Foam:
Tip foam is open cell polyurethane foam, it is normally sold as air conditioner insulation or cushion foam. This foam is fairly compressible and sure return to it's normal shape immediately when released. This will cover the ends of the weapon to allow it to be used for thrusting safely. The tip foam needs to be at least 2" thick to provide good padding, but shouldn't be more than 3" thick.

Covering:
The covering protects the foam under it, improves the appearance of the boffer weapon, adheres the weapon together and generally finishes the weapon off. It can be nylon rip-stop tape, duct tape or gaffers tape. Duct tape is the cheapest, and available in the most colors, even metallic silver. Don't ever use aluminum repair tape on a boffer weapon, it will crease, forming a sharp metal edge and become a major safety hazard. Note that the vinyl surface of Duct tape does not handle heat very well, and will wrinkle and shrink if left in a hot car or in direct sunlight. Gaffers tape is a high-strength all cloth version of duct tape, and is normally found in black, though other colors are available. Gaffers tape handles heat better than duct tape, but will absorb moisture since it's entirely cloth. Nylon rip-stop is available in several colors, is more expensive than duct or gaffers tape, but is very light weight, making lighter weapons, but it's also very thin and allows some of the color of the underlying foam to show through.

Additional materials, such as vinyl electrical tape, vinyl paint, paints, leather cording, feathers, plastic gem stones, garden hose, etc. can be used to decorate the weapon, but nothing more rigid than the duct tape should be places on the striking surface of the weapon, and always keep in mind that safety is the most important thing.

My description of construction will include the use of the following items:
1/2" PVC electrical conduit core
5/8" wall polyurethane pipe insulation for 3/8" Iron or 1/2" Copper pipe.
Fiberglass reinforced packing tape
2 nylon washers (matched to just cover the end of the PVC pipe)
Normal "Gray" duct tape
White Athletic tape

First, you decide on a pattern to build the sword to, for beginners, a basic European crosshilted sword makes the best pattern, leaving you to pick an over all length, and crossguard placement.

The game I play has a maximum length of 46" for one handed weapons, so I normally target very close to this for a longsword boffer weapon. Let's pick 45" long.

With the overall length selected, we need to subtract 5" from that length to size the core, so we'll cut the PVC core to 40" long. If you're using graphite composite, RET or Fiberglass tubing, wear a dust mask as the dust from these materials is a severe lung irritant.

Once the core is cut, very carefully wrap the core in a spiral wrap of fiberglass reinforced packing tape. This will strengthen and stiffen the core while protecting people from the shards if it breaks. As weight is a concern, you'll want to try and make sure the fiberglass tape lays as neatly as possible and overlaps as little as practical.

Once the core is taped, you'll want to "cap" it with the nylon washers by taping them down over either end of the core, this will prevent the core from pushing through the tip foam and becoming dangerous. Place the washer over the end of the pipe, then wrap a single thickness of duct tape around the end of the core with a little less than a 1/2" of the tape extending past the washer and core. Using a razor knife (box cutter) cut 8 or more "fingers" into the tape extending past the core and fold them down across the center of the washer. Now repeat on the other end of the core so both ends are covered with the nylon washer.

Now take a piece of blade foam and cut off a piece about half-again as long as the core is thick (3/4" for a 1/2" core) and lay it flat (will look like a donut) and cut it with two parallel cuts, one either side of the center hole. You'll form 4 pieces - two are the width of the center hole and relatively square, and two that are almost half circles. If the foam is partially split, keep the partial split in one of the half circles.

Place the smaller arc (inside hole) of one of the small squares (almost a cube) of blade foam over the capped end of the core, and wrap tightly with a piece of duct tape almost to the end of the foam piece. You will compress the foam slightly, but that will give it more strength. This is the only time you want to compress the foam with tape. Repeat with the other square on the other end of the core.

Now you should have a core that is wrapped in fiberglass reinforced tape capped on either end with a nylon washer and tipped with two pieces of closed cell foam. Now it's time to plan the layout the sword.

You'll need at least two inches of "blade foam" at the pommel of the sword to hold the tip foam securely. Your cross guard will be about 2" thick. In addition, you'll have 2" of tip foam on either end of the sword. With those restrictions in mind, layout the grip of the weapon, the cross guard, and the pommel. I like 8-10" of grip between my pommel and my guard, but that's a personal preference. Once you've decided on your layout, you can begin.

Start by cutting out your overall blade from a single piece of blade foam. Splits in this piece can be dangerous and will break down quickly if struck against other weapons, objects or people. The end of the blade foam will be flush with the end of the padded tip you added to the core, making it extend about 1/2" beyond the actual core.

Next, cut the cross guard from the blade foam, you'll cut a small cross through the guard and slide it onto the core. Do not line the cross up with the split in partially split foam, it will tear open easily. Then cut the pommel piece, again making it lay flush with the padded tip on the other end of the core.

First, you'll want to anchor the blade to the core. To do this, lay 4 strips of duct tape along the length of the blade foam, extending about 5" up the blade from the guard side, and about five inches towards the pommel (over the core) but do not press the tape onto the core. Cut each piece of duct tape into 3 strips from the edge of the blade foam towards the pommel (not cutting the part that is attached to the blade foam) this will form a number of "fingers". Carefully press each finger onto the end of the blade foam, then onto the core (many pieces will overlap on the core). Then run a strip of duct tape over the piece on the core as tight to the blade foam as possible. This will form the anchor for the blade.

Now cut the cross into the crossguard, keeping it as close to center as possible, then sliding the guard onto the core from the pommel side and covering the blade's anchor. Carefully tape the crossguard to the blade. Because both pieces are round, it may require some work to get the tape to lay smooth, but take your time and be patient. Make sure a number of "fingers" come from the crossguard into the grip area of the sword, then wrap them with a single piece of duct tape to anchor them to the core. Extra tape on the guard will make it stronger, add weight (actually improving balance) but can look bad as wrinkles get worse.

Carefully lay four strips of duct tape along the length of the blade foam, extending 2" past the tip of the foam, but not attaching it. As with the anchor, you'll want to slice the end of the tape into strips and fold them across the center of the blade foam, forming a flat tip that has many layers of tape across its middle, this will also protect a person from an over zealous jab. Repeat the process of anchoring and taping the blade on the pommel of the weapon.

Next, cut two cylinders from the open cell tip foam, the same diameter as the blade foam and approximately 2" thick. To secure these to the edge of the blade and pommel, use the same procedure as you used for taping the blade and folding the fingers over the tip, but only tape 6" down the blade (or the entire pommel, since it's likely less than 6") and tape a piece of duct tape around the end of the strips over the blade foam. DO NOT MAKE THIS TIGHT, YOU DO NOT WANT TO COMPRESS THE BLADE FOAM.

To allow air to exit and enter the tip, you'll need a long pin or needle to poke holes in the tape along the sides of the tip. Don't bother trying to drive through the several layers of duct tape that form the flat end of the tip.

Finally, you'll want a good grip on your sword. To do this, tape a small piece of cloth athletic tape to a fixed spot, pull out a long piece from the roll and spin it. Duct tape will work too, but I prefer a cloth grip on my weapons. Once you have a good cord of tape made, transfer the small taped end to the core of the weapon near the guard, and begin wrapping the core that forms the handle of your weapon. When you have covered the grip, keep wrapping past the end of the cord and wrap back up the grip, covering your cording with the cloth tape to form the final grip surface.

Now you're pretty much done, you can decorate the weapon pretty easily. Oil based paint markers and permanent markers will write on the tape well, while duct tape and electrical tape add color the weapon's aspects. Feathers, cording, leather wrapped handles and even plastic gems mounted with hot melt glue all make for easy decorations on the weapons.

Thanks Peter.
Just remember guys - play safe!
(the management)