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Post by freq on Aug 18, 2011 8:31:28 GMT
wondering if anyone has suggestions on how i would go about making this short of getting the head cast (which i cant afford and takes the challenge out of the build). i love the design of this and have done since i saw it in van helsing. thought since cant afford to buy one ill try to build one but not sure how to go about it so thought i would ask for some help.any suggestions? (i have a welder, grinder and forge re shaping metal) dont want to end up with this
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Sam H
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Posts: 1,099
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Post by Sam H on Aug 20, 2011 13:48:55 GMT
You could use a grinder for rough shaping then if you have a dremel (it would take a lot of time) you could use the dremel tool via stock removal for final shaping ie. grinding and sanding of of the head to look like that. It wouldn't be easy and I guaratee you it'll take a while. I know I can't do it I'm not that good with tools but I'm sure there are others who could. Maybe you're one of them.
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Post by Elheru Aran on Aug 20, 2011 20:35:49 GMT
Hmmm...
Make a block out of metal in the rough shape of the fist, up to the knuckles, weld on top of shaft.
Make spike, weld to top of hand
Make 'fingers' out of half-circles of metal, another bit of metal for the thumb
Weld them all on and grind out the details
Granted, in this approach the welds need to be quite sound...
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Post by Elheru Aran on Aug 20, 2011 20:38:00 GMT
BTW, historically these are somewhat disputable; it's not a certainty that these are actual medieval weapons. That aside, they would almost always have been cast, probably with bronze up until the point when they could cast iron more reliably; it's possible to make them either by forge-welding or stock removal, but both would've been quite slow processes...
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Post by freq on Aug 20, 2011 22:02:58 GMT
not terribly worried about authenticity just think its a cool design , as for forge welding it together ummm still cant forge weld :lol: Attachments:
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Post by brotherbanzai on Aug 21, 2011 18:01:09 GMT
You could use your forge to make the shaft with the twist, and the spike and harden and temper it. Then get some square or round stock of mild weldable steel of about the same diameter as the fingers. Cut the stock into a bunch of short sections for each finger phalanx. make the cuts at the approptiate angles so that when you fit them together, the fingers will be closed into a fist around the spike. Cut five longer pieces for the metacarpal bones that make up the hand and fan them out slightly and weld the tighter end together at the wrist. Weld the fingers together onto the hand and around the spike but keep the spike out while welding so you don't overheat it and ruin the temper. Just tack weld the hand together at first. Cut three or four more longer pieces to make up the forearm, or easier, just use a piece of steel tube that will fit over the shaft you made (make sure the tube is weldable steel not something with zinc in it). Once it's all tack welded together and the rough shape is how you want it, weld the whole thing together (except the spike) using the filler rod to form the rest of the hand between the metacarpals and the knuckles. Grind everything down to shape and lastly weld in the spike. An arc welder will probably be the best type of welder for this work if that happens to be what you have.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 21, 2011 18:54:37 GMT
Hi freq
I would suggest you make this as three separate pieces. The fist, wrist/haft, and spike. First you should take the steel stock that the fist will be made from and make a tapered a hole where the spike will go. Next make your spike. Then grind and shape the fist. You can insert the spike temporarily to help you picture the finished fist. Nest grind and shape the wrist/haft (you could also make the wrist haft two separate pieces and weld them together) and weld it to the fist. Last permanently weld in the spike. Of course you will need to blend in the welds, but I believe doing it this way (three or four separate pieces) will be easiest.
You can use a angle grinder to rough shape the fist, but will probably need to use a die grinder to finish shaping the fist.
Make the fist from mild steel. The spike should probably be medium or high carbon steel. After it is all welded together you can harden and temper it.
One advantage you have making this is you have the perfect model, your own hand holding a spike (use a tapered wooden dowel). Just take measurements in all planes and start grinding.
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Talon
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Post by Talon on Aug 21, 2011 20:56:14 GMT
funnily enough i saw the perfect thing 2 weeks ago at a flea market,a brass moulded hand corkscrew, basically it was a brass moulded hand clenching a brass bar with a corkscrew on the end,with some simple machining to remove the brass bar and replace it with hardened silver steel and replace the corkscrew with a wooden haft,i would have had you're perfect build freq ,the seller wanted £35 for it though :? too much for me to splurge on,if its still there next weekend i'll offer £25 and post the pic of it,it really is begging for a spike and 2 feet of oak
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 21, 2011 23:33:25 GMT
You should have named this thread "lend a hand" instead of "a little help" :lol:
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Talon
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Post by Talon on Aug 22, 2011 4:24:46 GMT
:lol:
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Post by freq on Aug 22, 2011 11:24:45 GMT
love it, awesome, have some karma from me was thinking today might try something along these lines bit easier to make only spike not ball
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