I don't post often, but I lurk here often, and this thread is one of the things which has really inspired me to make a few wooden weapon reproductions. Besides, a thread this good needs a bump every now and then, anyway. :)

I made this out of a beech sapling which a farmer let me harvest, since it was "in his way". I never worked with beech before; it's really heavy and fairly dense: the perfect material for a good root-ball war club. After stripping the bark, sanding, staining, and drying it, I soaked it for a full week in the linseed oil tank. I also found a new way to get a good, realistic looking patina going.

Full Shot:


With a 30" ruler:


From the top:


From the handle:


I love the head on this thing. While stripping and cleaning it, I found that it had a natural "hole" from the way a smaller root grew and connected with the rest of the head:


Another head shot:


The roots had really deep fissures between them, making for some nice potential impact points. This is a shot looking down the handle to illustrate what I'm talking about:


And one directly overhead to illustrate further:


Finally, up against the tree in the yard:


Thanks for looking.

That is a very attractive club.

M.

I was privileged to do a little work in the National Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa in the Pacific Island collection and there were wooden weapons of every form and shape.

Of interest were fishing gafs which were also used as weapons (as shown in a post above) which eventually got transfered into a metal shape with a long blade and a hook.

The most awesome thing was a Kiribati sword that looked exactly like a long sword with a cool crossguard and bladed with sharks teeth tied on with human hair. No photo though

There was an awfully large amount of human hair used for cords and decoration.

Plus a textile armour similar to that above - http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetai...m=kiribati

Some of the woods used may have been Pacific Kauri - Many of the Fijian clubs (some are huge!) are made as Stephen's club - the roots providing the spiky bits...

Then I got a chance to check out some of the Japanese weapons...

Sadly they have hardly any of the huge numbers of weapons photographed on line

Cheers
Boyd

do you use mineral or vege - turpentine?

Ah, diluted with turpentine would make it less viscous and it probably takes care of the sticky film on the surface problem and accelerates drying as well as deep penetration into the wood.

You might also ( In addition ) do a quick wipe on and wipe off with undiluted linseed oil after sanding the surface very smooth on the club to add to the lustre and bring out the wood grain even more.

Really like this club and the only thing I would do differently would be to make it as a very stout walking stick by making it a little longer and adding a metal tip ( brass ), this just because I like walking sticks and it gives one and excuse to carry it around.

Ever thought of making these or walking sticks and selling them ? ( I would find a walking stick like this very tempting. ;) :cool: )

Hey hey, with what I've learn from this thread, I think I might try to turn this club thing into a Godendag :D

---

 Attachment: 29.91 KB

My first medieval weapon attempt...

I made something like that as a kid once. My parents weren't as happy about it as I was. My brother and some of our friends were making wooden swords, I wanted to make something that would be an actual weapon. No I wasn't going to use it but in my 8 year old mind I figured that if I were going to make something for show then it should actually work.

Hello everyone! I don't post here much, but I am on here everyday reading and learning. This thread in particular has inspired me to make a weapon. I intend to continue to make these things, and have been collecting materials and tools to better facilitate my inherent need to make dangerous objects. I would like to thank the people that visit this site for divulging information on processes and techniques. I see this site as an awesome resource for the things that make me tick.

The following club was made from a solid hickory limb that cured for two years on my front porch. When I started it was 19 inches long and about 3 inches in diameter, and still had the bark. I did not use any powered tools to make this club. I took me almost a week to shape it, working 2 to 3 hours a day. I have since acquired a lathe!!!! I used a hatchet, wood rasp, several wood files, a sure form, sand paper and a gouge. Stained it, then soaked it in linseed oil for 5 day, applied the steel tacks, then smeared it with bees wax. Enjoy!

---

 Attachment: 43.85 KB



 Attachment: 42.49 KB



 Attachment: 37.74 KB

That's really nice, Luke.

I have something very similar in look to your club, but made from steel and coated in rubber in the boot of my car! Haha!

I like your wooden one better.

Thank you very much! I made this club for behind the one bar that I work at. But now that it is done, I don't want to part with it. The good news is that the owner of the bar liked it, and "commissioned" me to make him one. Now that I have a lathe, I will be able to do it for a reasonable price.

Hi Stephen,

I like your club VERY much! It looks really great. Along with historical A&A I have a thing for attractive pieces of wood. I bet you could do amazing things with more specimens of fine samples of wood lengths.

Jeremy

I couldn't decide what exactly to post here, so I'm just putting up the link to my whole gallery.

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v444/hasanb...s/?start=0

However here are some comparison pics, showing the quality I used to produce, and the quality I currently produce.

[ Linked Image ]
Here is an intimidating Hawaiian spear which consists of a blue marlin bill with shark teeth tied to it and joined to a shaft. This beautiful piece of art is 6.5 feet long, the bill measures almost 2 feet long, the wood used for this specific item is koa while rooster feathers decorate the beginning of the bill and it has woven loops of fibres called olona after a Hawaiian shrub with the same name, the bark of which was valued as a source of strong, durable fibre.

Wait til I get my woody!

Maori battle axe, 1864-1866. This Tewhatewha (wooden battle axe) was brought back from New Zealand by Major Charles Shuttleworth, who served with the 68th Light Infantry during the Second Maori War. In 1863 the 68th Light Infantry sailed from Burma for New Zealand, where the Maoris had gone to war to try to halt the spread of the British settlements. The 68th Light Infantry fought in 1864 at both Gate Pah and Te Ranga, where Sergeant John Murray was awarded the Victoria Cross.
[ Linked Image ]