How to Make a Wooden Sword

Guide Note

So you've just seen the latest gladiator movie, and you want to emulate your on-screen heroes. Here's How to Make a Wooden Sword that will look great in your trophy case or serve you well in pretend combat.

Table of Contents

Sword Making Tips

  1. Draw from the history of swordmaking for inspiration.
  2. Design your sword before you start cutting.
  3. Using rich hardwood gives you beautiful results.
  4. Put your sword together in a way that will keep it together during combat.
  5. Stain or paint your sword to fit your personality.

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Introduction

  • Whether you're heading out to the local Renaissance Fair or just want to learn more about bladed weapons, making a wooden sword can be rewarding. There are endless possibilities, limited only to your imagination. You can choose a rich mahogany and emulate a broadsword from the past. You can even make a futuristic-looking sword out of balsa wood so you can engage in safer combat.

Step 1: Research the Evolution of the Sword

  • Humans have been building swords for thousands of years, so it's probably a good idea to try and borrow some knowledge from the past. Technology limited the length of sharp, pointed weapons until the processes used to make copper and bronze were developed.1 After that, swords evolved along with the defenses against them. Wielding a big, heavy broadsword doesn't make much sense if your opponent is using a rapier. Here are the parts of a sword.2
  1. (Creative Commons photo by danielle_blue)
    (Creative Commons photo by danielle_blue)
    Blade: The cutting edge of a sword. When building your wooden sword, you need to think about the balance between weight and strength. A larger, thicker blade will do more damage, but a thinner blade is easier to handle.2
    • Some swords balance these two concerns by adding a fuller, a grove in the blade, to make the blade a little lighter.3
  2. Guard: The piece that protects the sword wielder's hand. This can be a simple crossbar, or a larger, rounder shape to direct an opponent's blade away.4
  3. Hilt: The handle by which one grips a sword.5

Step 2: Design Your Sword

  • Before you build anything, you need to have a plan.
  1. Brainstorm to decide which features you want your sword to have.6
  2. Make lots of drawings until you decide on the final design.
  3. Consider designing your sword to fit an era.
  4. Design your sword to fit your purposes.
    • If you plan on engaging in safe, friendly combat, make sure you will be able to manipulate the sword the way you want. Make sure it will be light enough for you.
  5. Select the kind of wood you will use to build your sword.8
    • Balsa wood is much lighter than mahogany, but not as strong.
    • If your sword is meant to be a beautiful conversation piece, think about going with rich, beautiful hardwoods.

Step 3: Cut Your Pieces

  • (Creative Commons photo by TC)
    (Creative Commons photo by TC)
    Now that you know what your sword is going to look like and have selected your wood, it's time to cut some lumber.
  1. Use power tools to get your basic shapes.9
    1. A circular saw is good for breaking down large pieces.
    2. Using a jigsaw gives you more control and mobility for finer pieces like the guard.10
  2. Cut larger pieces first and work your way down to the smallest.
    • Remember, you're trying to transform the lumber into the shapes you've designed.
  3. Err on the side of caution. You can always remove pieces from the wood, but you can't add them back once you've made a mistake.
  4. Don't worry about making perfect pieces. You can refine them later.
  5. If you're going to make lots of wooden swords, you might consider making a number of blanks. If you do this, it will be easy for you to customize a number of similar wooden swords.9

Step 4: Put it Together

  • Assemble your sword so you can make sure everything fits together properly. Even though it will look a little rough, you want to identify problems sooner rather than later. You can join your pieces with one of the following methods:11
  1. Wood glue is an easy way to make sure your sword stays together. The tradeoff is that it doesn't look quite as good and the bond is not as strong as other methods.
  2. Metal fasteners are L-shaped ridges of metal you can pound into two pieces of wood to make a joint. Using a mallet protects the other wood from the rigor of pounding in the fasteners.
  3. Doweling is a very secure way to put your sword together.
    1. First, you drill holes in the wood where the pieces meet.
    2. Then you slip in a dowel with some wood glue.

Step 5: Add a Striking Finish

  • With your sword in one piece, it's now time to concentrate on its appearance.
  1. Sand your sword.12
    1. Start off with coarser sandpaper to remove the larger flaws.
    2. Then use finer sandpaper to get your sword smooth.
  2. (Creative Commons photo by Bree Bailey)
    (Creative Commons photo by Bree Bailey)
    Stain or paint your wooden sword. As with any kind of woodworking project, you have a number of options:13
    1. Oil stains bring out the rich beauty of wood. Stains also come in a variety of colors.
      • Consider staining your blade one color and your hilt a different hue.
    2. Lacquer is a shiny, protective finish for your sword. It's also easy to apply; some lacquers even come in a spray can.
    3. Water-based stains are easier to apply and dry faster. Their finish, however, may not be as durable as other stains you can use.
    4. Paint is a more expressive way to go. Whether you use oil or acrylic, the fact that paint comes in a vast range of colors lets you put more of your personality on the sword.

Conclusion

  • Now that you have your wooden sword, it's time to brag about it. You can place it on your wall to let people know about your interest in weaponry. If you want to have even more fun, use your wooden sword to challenge a friend to a duel.

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References for Name of How To

  1. ↑ myArmory: An Introduction to the Sword
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 SwordWiki: Sword Parts
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Reliks.com: Learn About Medieval Swords
  4. ↑ Tsuba: History of Tsuba, Japanese sword guard
  5. ↑ Sword Information: Sword Parts: Hilt Information
  6. ↑ suite101: The Art of Brainstorming
  7. ↑ Orkneyjar: The Grotsetter Bronze Age Sword
  8. ↑ Oldandsold: Different Kinds of Wood
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Instructables: How to Make a Nice Wooden Sword
  10. ↑ Reader's Digest: How to Use a Jigsaw: Cut Any Shape
  11. ↑ Extreme How To: Do-It-Yourself: Joining Wood Made Simple
  12. ↑ eHow: How to Sand Wood With Sandpaper
  13. ↑ BenchMark: Wood Finishing