[Eric Bergeron]

Hello just wondering if anyone has experience in attaching spearheads to poles and could direct me to a source for a step by step guide? I have a old MRL spearhead that I forgot I had lying around and want to attach it to a wooden pole I got years ago that I was using as a quarterstaff but would much rather have it as a spear.

[Korey J. Lavoie]

I'm not sure how Feudal European period Spear-heads were held in place. I have yet to come across anything specific on the subject oddly enough, it's probably one of those things that gets over-looked because it's so simple. So I'd just go with what works best for you, so long as it doesn't hurt the appearance of the Weapon. I'd recommend that you simply carve the end of the shaft so that it makes an absolutely precise fit in the socket and line the socket with an industrial adhesive, then drill a couple of holes in the socket and through the fitted end for a threaded bolt or rod: Then carefully peened flat with the socket so it doesn't stick out in an unsightly manner. Assuming that you are sure that the socket will maintain it's integrity through such an operation.
Keep in mind that Historically accurate methods of securing the heads of pole-arms did display a fair degree of variety. As an aside, It's cool to see that theres another person from my state on here by the way.

[Chris M.]

www.anvilfire.com scroll down to armory

[Jim Adelsen]

I usually just carve the shaft to fit the socket. You'll be very surprised at how well it holds. One time I was just kinda fitting it to see how much farther I had to carve and it was really stuck. If you wanted to add some adhesive I would use something like goop that dries rubbery. That would be more than enough to keep it on.

[Jean Thibodeau]

Instead of carving I used a wood file to taper the cylindrical end when I put on a butt spike with a socket identical to a spear head socket: I measured the depth of the socket and put some duct tape around the shaft as a guide to have a nice circular transition to the full diameter from the tapering end.

Start filing at the end and keep testing the fit. Using a file is longer than using an axe or knife to carve the end but doing it carefully gives a very regular taper. Oh, when close to final dimensions holding rough sand paper in the hand and doing a twisting/rotating motion removes any flats caused by irregular amounts of wood removed when using the file along the length of the wood grain.

A small hole in the socket and a light nail plus a little adhesive the end of the socket should be enough for a secure attachment of the spear head: The nail is just a safety and need not be very large in diameter. I also drill a smaller diameter hole for the nail into the wood before putting in the nail to avoid splitting the wood grain. A drop of epoxy will hold the nail in place should the hole be a little too big. ( no opinion about this being historically correct, but it worked for me ).

[Chad Arnow]

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