[Andy K.]

A short preface: like many of our fellow members, I have been trying my hand at tinkering with my H/T Norman and Bastard swords. Did grip re-wraps, now working on the scabbards. The poplar cores are done, so now I'm practicing stitching leather before doing the first real scabbard wrap. And this would also be an opportune time to thank everyone who has generously shared their own experiences, tricks and techniques, because without your examples I would not have even attempted my modest projects.

I did run into a minor issue that I didn't see addressed in other posts (and if I did miss it, well, that's just a testament to the enormous amount of information the myArmoury has accumulated over the years). The chape on the Norman scabbard (I'm reusing chapes from the original scabbards the swords came with) is U-shaped, designed to be held in place with tiny nails. The holes are visible in the picture. I didn't keep the original nails, and now I'm having a heck of a time finding replacements. I mean, these nails need to be tiny, about 4 mm long.

After much searching, I have found nails of the correct size included in decorative latch kits. The problem is that all the decorative latch kits I have been able to find are brass in color, but the Norman chape is steel (now somewhat brushed, I didn't care for the original shiny finish). So, what it boils down to is this: has anyone ever found silver-colored tiny finishing nails anywhere?

The other picture shows a nail in relation to the chape (the nail is to the lower right of the chape). I did purchase a brass decorative latch kit at Rockler and used it to replace the worn one on my GF's sewing box. The nail size is perfect but the color is wrong.

[Andy K.]

My apologies, not sure how, but the picture of the chape with the nail got flipped during posting. The nail is on the upper left.

[Shahril Dzulkifli]

You're right, Andy. This is how the original photo looks like.

[Jeffrey Faulk]

Don't bother with nails.

--Get some epoxy. Glue chape on (just a dab at the sides should do it).

--Take a very fine drill bit and go through the scabbard via the nail-holes. If there isn't a hole on the other side, make one, so you have two very small holes going *through* each side of the scabbard and the chape.

--Find some mild steel wire of the correct gauge, snip slightly over-long by a cm or so, and carefully rivet. You want to 'head' the rivet first by heating up the end against a stove burner, holding it in a vise-grip and tapping it carefully until it spreads out. Then slip it into the holes, cut to size (just a mm or two projecting from the hole), and tap the end carefully to spread it as well-- you may want to remove it and heat the end, then slip it back in and hammer again. A large hammer-head will do just fine for an anvil underneath the head end of the rivets.

This will hold it far better than nailing and it'll match on both sides, plus the hammer-marks will give it just a wee bit of an irregular hand-made character. Can't buy that with money!

[Andy K.]

Thank you, that is a really good suggestion. I have the poplar core for the H/T Bastard ready to go, so I may try it on that. Here is how the finishing nails + original Hanwei chape turned out on the Norman scabbard.

[Mart Shearer]

Model railroad supply places carry HO gauge railroad spikes, which are really tiny iron nails.
http://www.modeltrainstuff.com/Life-Like-1406...3-1406.htm