The makings of my Bat'leth

[elninjo]

Not sure if this belongs here but it doesnt fit anywhere else.

I have started to make my own Bat'leth. I have seen a lot in the shops but they just dont seem to be the size Im looking for so Ive decided to make my own. Once I had drawn the template and cut it out a friend of mine wanted me to make him one also.

I put mine aside and started on his first. He wanted his to be 60" long. This is the first time I have attempted something of this size before and didnt really know what gauge/material I should use for this project.

I half decided to go with 1/4" mild steel but when I went out to get it, it felt way too heavy so I went with the 1/8".

I dont really have the tools to cut it out so I went to a metal worker to get him to cut the template out for me. He decided to cut it in 2 peices (good on him) which ruined it from the start. But it was good for some practice. This is it.



If you look close enough you can see the join in the centre. I worked on it for  a couple of days trying to remove the visibility of it but didnt get very far with it.

I spoke to the guy about this join and he has agreed to cut me another one. So my one is now cut out and ready to start work on. It is 48" long. Mine has also been cut out of 3/16" steel as the 1/8" was a lil flimzey.  I will post some more pics of it as it comes together.

Dont you think my friend looks like a Klingon!! Thats him......no makeup no addons. Well I think he looks like a Klingon, hes even got the scowl.


Cheers

[SoplaHtaHwI']

HOLY GUACAMOLE!
That's a big betleH...
Not really battle-material, I think...

and...

Hab SoS Quch...  (stating fact, not meant as an insult)

Hab = be smooth
SoS = mother
Quch= forehead

[elninjo]

No definately NOT battle worthy. For starters its just too big to be practical.(thou my friend is a big person) then its welded in the centre. One hit with a sword and it will fracture and lastly it is far too light. But it was good experience anyways. The next one will be something great. I hope.

Cheers

[Kehlan]

It looks to me as though it would make a great display piece, especially if you ever have a stall at a convention, it would look fantastic on the wall behind you.  Alot of the join would be hidden when you put the leather wrapping on the handles

Our weapons maker makes them out of aluminium, it gives the same effect as steel and look convincingly sharp but they are much lighter and completely legal to carry - and here in Britain, thats something that is becoming more and more of a problems for us Klingons due to a massive increase in knife crime.

Have a look at the link below and half way down the page you will see a 'dk'tahg made out of ally by the same person

http://ncc-71805.com/coms/viewtopic.php?t=20

Kehlan

[elninjo]

Oh yes Kehlan, would that be Brian? I have been speaking with Brian from the KIWG about it and he has suggested using aliminium but I dont really want it just to hang on a wall. I want it to be "battle ready" but also once I have completed it I plan to colour it with fire. The handles I want to put some sort of fur on it. Something like a kangaroo hide or maybe fox.
I intend to make a wooden one for practice also.

I have my one cut out already out of 3/16" steel 48" long so its a lot shorter than the one above. It Friday here in Aus so Im looking forward to the weekend so I can start work on it.

I agree that the aliminium makes it look gr8. I love the klingon insignia too.

I heard on the news a few weeks ago that the police in England confiscated a mans Bat'leth. Are you not allowed to own these in England or did he do something bad with it?

Cheers

Cheers

[elninjo]

Can anyone here tell me where the "blade line" of the Bat'leth lie. In this pic the lines are marked but Im not sure if its the true line mark or not



Does the blade go all the way round to the top on both sides?

Cheers

[Kehlan]

A guy called Klag (not the same one I think I have seen on this forum) makes them - and trust me, alluminium, if its done right, can be as battle ready as steel. (but without the balde so you can carry them in public)  He uses aircraft ally, I'm not sure what guage but will find out as soon as he gets back from his holiday.

Yes, a batleth got confiscated.  The full story was never made public but his house was raided (we never found out why) and they found the batleth hanging on the wall, which is supposed to be legal, and because it was sharp they confiscated it. there is a lot of paranoia here due to press coverage of knife crime which has increased alot recently.

the day after that happened I was at an event and they tried to confiscate my disruptor (its made of wood) which made me laugh hecause there was a stall at the same event selling genuine swords.

All I can say is that if you raid the house of some klingons I know, you'd think they were stocking up for World War 3!

Oh, in my opinion, the balde should go around the underside, wher eyou have it marked lato vero and also basso but not on the outer curve.

[dghor1966]

I too want to make a Bat'leth but not of steel but maybe plywood what material should I use to make one?

 Qa'pla
 D'ghor

[Kehlan]

Try MDF, its stronger than plywood.  D'Ghor, you have seen pictures of the d'k'tahgs klag makes - want one? May take a while but can be arranged.

Kehlan

[elninjo]

Ive just about sanded all the paint off it. I did this with a belt sander and ended with some hand sanding.



The leather thonging has been wrapped onto the first one I started. I really like the look of them hanging on the wall together.



I got to say its hard and thirsty work hence the can of Fosters  and ive still got a long way to go.

Dghor1966 I have never attempted a wooden one and wouldnt know what to use. I have been thinking about it a bit but havent come up with any real answers but MDF sounds to me to be our best bet. I does tend to be fairly strong. Even some of my fighting sticks have split in a very short time so Im not sure.

Cheers

[dghor1966]

Thanks for the info, I will look into the MDF. Kehlan I would love to have one of the d'k'tahg that's one sweet looking d'k'tahg

 D'ghor

[elninjo]

I'm at the point now where I have started putting the blade on my Bat'leth. I am getting a lot of advise from various sources and a lot of them are conflicting as to just where the blade line is.

Oh, in my opinion, the balde should go around the underside, wher eyou have it marked lato vero and also basso but not on the outer curve.

Kehlan, Im not sure here what you mean. I think what you are say is that the blade follows through from left to right on the underside but doesn't over to the top side (being where the handles are). But in any case where the image is marked with the #9 it is bladed?

Some tell me the blade only goes on the 4 points and others are saying it goes from one side to the other. Like this image indicates.
http://www.badastronomy.com/bablog/2006/05/26/friday-style-news/


Cheers

[Kehlan]

I am not claiming to be a weapons expert but from what i have seen of the way a batleth is used on screen, there is definitely a blade along where you have the number 9, as well as probably at 2 and 15.  If it was just pointy bits at either end I don't think it would work very well as a weapon, at least not in the way I have seen them used.

Kehlan

[elninjo]

Thanks Kehlan, thats what I thought.

Its not too far from the next step which is putting some designs on it like this one. Is this the only Klingon logo or are there more. Can someone point me in the direction of some good Klingon art that I might be able to use.

Ill post some more pics soon once Ive finished the blade.





Cheers

[Kesvirit]

That is indeed the "Klingon logo"; it is called the komerex stela, and a thread on it can be found here. See Levinius's Trefoils page for interesting variants on it. You may not be able to do much with the colors, but I think that the different textures and accents would lend themselves well to a metals project.

I too would be interested to see other Klingon artwork that could be applied to a betleH.

-=- Kesvirit

[elninjo]

Its not finished yet. The handle wrap is Kangaroo hide. Its a little fluffy but once I start practicing with it it will flatten out. I still have to do some more work on the blade, getting it a little straighter than it is but I've decided to keep it simple.





Cheers

[elninjo]

I whipped one up out of 5 ply plywood for practicing with.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c303/elninjo69/wood003.jpg

I had to make a practice one to make it a little easier to start with. The wood is much lighter and easier to manouver so it helps with the flexibility exercises. Once I tone a few muscles and get a little more flexible in my wrists Ill move onto the metal one.

Its actually quite strong.... I was surprised. When sanding it I was worried I would snap the points off so I got the offcuts and banged them around a bit and they didn't break. woohoo Im in bussiness.


Cheers

[qarSuv]

Zan Kehlan,

What IS that Daqtagh made of, what size is it and how much? Is it "legal"? I've read the "knife amnesty" stories and shuddered. Reckon I shan't be moving to the UK any time soon, no offense, Captain. Still, since the betleH WAS accepted by the Korean Martial Arts Association, can't you all join, get certified and carry on?

Also, how is aluminum worked to become realistically hard? Doesn't it get dented easily in practice?