Pommel Construction

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wiglaf
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Posts: 10

Pommel Construction Apr 19, 2022 20:29:19 GMT

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Post by wiglaf on Apr 19, 2022 20:29:19 GMT

Hello!

I am hoping some day to be able to forge sword blades, but for now, I am primarily interested in learning how to construct the hilt pieces and put them onto an already finished blade. Specifically, I am looking at certain types of Viking era swords. I am most curious about how the rivets work on some of these swords, such as Petersen type III, IV, and VII. I can see rivet heads on the underside of the pommel, but no corresponding rivet heads on the other side. I talked to my jewelry instructor and he was not sure how these were assembled either. Does anyone have diagrams or pictures of how these pommels are constructed? What separate parts are they composed of? How are the rivets hidden? How are they forged/fabricated?

I know some of you are probably sword smiths yourselves, and might have worked on such hilts before.

Thanks!

durinnmcfurren
Member

Posts: 561

Pommel Construction Apr 19, 2022 23:00:20 GMT

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Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 19, 2022 23:00:20 GMT

Ok! Well, there are a few ways to do it. I am not sure which were used historically.

Let's take the Petersen type H. This involves a pommel riveted to the guard. Now, you can do the following, and I have to say I don't know which were done historically:

1. Make rivet posts part of the pommel itself. This might be tricky, but it's possible, at least in theory. Either forge them as part of it, or else weld them on.
2. Put rivets all the way through the pommel. This is fine because you are now going to cover the pommel in tin, silver, gold, copper, etc., so the ywon't be visible as long as you sand them down first. Or even if you don't cover them, if you do a good job on sanding them down, they won't be visible. This is how I had Purna do one of mine.

3. You can use a single bent rivet through a hole in the interior of the pommel, so that what looks like two rivets is actually one piece of iron.

bjorngylfason might know more about this!

durinnmcfurren Member Posts: 561	Pommel Construction Apr 19, 2022 23:24:40 GMT Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 19, 2022 23:24:40 GMT Maybe this picture can help? www.unimus.no/portal/#/photos/7c1cc97f-2efc-45d9-85d9-f0c0341ae479
	Last Edit: Apr 19, 2022 23:24:49 GMT by durinnmcfurren

wiglaf Member Posts: 10	Pommel Construction Apr 20, 2022 23:24:34 GMT Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by wiglaf on Apr 20, 2022 23:24:34 GMT Thanks! I really appreciate it.

durinnmcfurren
Member

Posts: 561

Pommel Construction Apr 21, 2022 0:22:42 GMT

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Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 21, 2022 0:22:42 GMT

I think one method that was probably used, but I cannot guarantee it, would be to take your pommel and drill out a U shaped hole. Then you bend a single long rivet through the hole and rivet on both sides. This is like the third method I mentioned.

The reason I think this was used historically is that I know of an example of a sword with no pommel but a single curved rivet stuck in two places. It comes from Petersen's 1919 work on Viking swords. You can see the illustration here, it's illustration 81, the third illustration of type H swords.

I may be wrong, but that's the only way such a rivet would make sense to me! On the other hand, maybe the pommel fell off and someone just put a curved piece of metal through the holes as a stop gap measure. So, as I said, I cannot guarantee that's how the pommel was attached. After all, I don't know why the pommel would come off (but maybe there was a weak point in the metal?).

And even if this were the way one sword was done, I'm not sure that was the only way it was done! I've never gotten to handle the originals.

Last Edit: Apr 21, 2022 0:26:27 GMT by durinnmcfurren

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Pommel Construction

Post by wiglaf on Apr 19, 2022 20:29:19 GMT

Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 19, 2022 23:00:20 GMT

Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 19, 2022 23:24:40 GMT

Post by wiglaf on Apr 20, 2022 23:24:34 GMT

Post by durinnmcfurren on Apr 21, 2022 0:22:42 GMT

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