Lightweight Heat Bonded Amtgard Sword

[@musicisblood2636]

I know this is old. Great informative video. I believe that kind of gorilla glue requires a little water to activate properly though. Might check that.

[@Papercut337]

I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of using a heat gun!

[@Yeeleaf007]

Can I use a metal golf club? Your video of the golf club looks plastic.

[@koor7180]

In amtgard metal cores are not allowed and I think that is true for most larps due to the danger of injury if they break and stab through the foam. This golf club is graphite which is very strong and less likely to cave from repeated hits then the hollow metal tubes of metal golf club shafts. The carbon fiber golf club shafts are the best but also really rare.

[@matthewmendoza280]

Great vid. I've found, personally, serrated blades work better for cutting the foam. If you can find an electric turkey carvers/cutter(can't remember what is actually called) it will make super clean cuts on the foam. Just noticed it looked like you were stepping the foam a bit at 13:00

[@worldofdarknessfinalnights1810]

What kind of foam is this?

[@koor7180]

Blue cam pad from Wal-Mart

[@c.jstevens698]

Agreed ditch the old penny method. But great information. I hate glueing foam to cure for swords. Rebuild is much too difficult. But that's just my preference. I can certianlybuse this info for other projects. Ty

[@bossmorgrum]

I've been playing around with this method, and the stab tip comes out like a brick. I have to build a separate stab tip, which is ok, but I feel like I'm missing something.

[@wayneceallaigh8027]

I would like to know how it held up. The gorilla glue seems like it would tear up that foam and put pressure on it, causing it to fail early. Also, how does the heat bonding hold up to combat?

[@koor7180]

The gorilla glue actually makes it hold up better and last longer. A lot of damage to the foam on swords is caused by the core rattling around loose inside. But the gorilla glue connects the core to all sides of the core making the impact spread to all the foam around the core rather than just the foam between the core and the target. The glue also foams making a bond that flexes with the foam rather than being a ridged saw. The prototype I built lasted a year before the core snapped the foam could easily have made it another 6 months at least. The ones I have built sense have all lasted over a year before foam failure and the foam only fails at the point near the end where it strikes shields during shoulder picks and fakes.

[@TheQwerd9]

when gorilla glue dries, doesn't it become rigid when it dries? would it not snap and crumble over time?

[@bahamut810]

How does the long term use of the weapon work with this method? Have you tried plasti-dip methods with this?

[@koor7180]

Bahamut 810 I have not tried to plasti dip these swords my parks rules are cloth covers only. but the life time on the weapons is really long the foam is the only thing you have to worry about breaking down. the foam will break down long before the seams come apart.

[@Kanphuzian]

Via the V8 RoP, only the strike area needs to be cloth covered. everything else can be plastidipped. :D (Page 15)

[@LORDHoekalledGAuhEY69TH]

man I just put a bunch of tape around my carbon fiber shaft and layer it up to where honestly you can get hit it's not the end of the world

[@AquilaMagnaLARP]

You should speak up! I can't hear you! :3 Nice tutorial. Though my biggest take away was how easy it is to heat bond the foam. I always thought it would take more work.

[@koor7180]

Aquila Magna truth be told i think the cammera girl was cupping the mic as she recorded. Before i make any more videos i am going to get a clip mic so i can mount it to myself

[@AquilaMagnaLARP]

That's a good idea. :3

[@Intro2Love]

this method saves money on dap

[@johnbrowning7722]

good idea, except the penny in the sword makes it illegal. any metal or wood inside the foam makes a sword illegal.

[@koor7180]

John Browning the rules are that metal and wood are never legal cores true but the rules also state that metal can be used as a counter balance as long as it is permanently affixed to the core and will not come into contact with other players. also the rules state that the tip of the core must be capped with a minimum of tape and foam so it does not break any rule because the core is graphite.

[@AquilaMagnaLARP]

Jordan is correct in his ruling though I'd rather just use a bit of 4lb foam instead of a penny. The coin thing is a bit of a left over idea from the age when it was necessary to keep your foam from sliding into your PVC. We still do it for arrows to keep the thinner shafts from breaking through the foam and to give us more of a base to build up from.