Belegarth

Ok I want to make a couple good speed bats for backup weapons (ie i get disarmed and i whip out the speedbat) - I have seen references to using two types of foam for good ones, etc. So someone help me out there?

I plan on using 3/8" fiberglass for the core

You can find some fun speedbat designs in this thread here from the Dag boards.

Also, solid fiberglass is a bit heavy for a speedbat. Can you find some kitespar (hollow fiberglass rod) or graphite rods? Check out www.goodwinds.com if you have online ordering capabilities.

fair point on the core

kitespar = carbon rod right? what diameter do i need?

[edit]
those ones i see on the dag board aren't really what i have in mind.

i'm thinking kinda like a club speedbat, not "round sword" one

The kind of kitespar we're talking about is hollow fiberglass, not carbon fiber anything.

What do you mean, "club speedbat"? Just shorten the top layer of striking surface foam to get a shorter striking surface.

I tend to include black magic and sometimes hate in the weapons I build.





Also, the "round sword" is the superior. Just ask the cool kids.

Also, the "round sword" is the superior. Just ask the cool kids.

I know your kind of joking, but I like a flat blade for pulling off slot shots and pocket stabs. In general I find them better at stabbing due to having slightly less surface area. YMMV

but, i feel that stabbing tips on round blades last longer, and hit better.

ah youth waisted on the young.

you are both wrong, the triangle blade is superior.

yep ! the triangle blade will sweep the foam fighting community.

I always thought a scythe would be better.

-Kraesh

You could just learn to fight. Like a sword fighter.
Using, get ready, A **** sword shaped sword.
Speed bats and tubesword are for pussies with no edge control.
Learning to only hit with the edge is the essence of SWORDfighting.
Aside from this, hollow cores are for homos. I break them on purpose with my solid core swords. It's all in where and when you hit them.
FB

way to be a *.

go choke on one.


i can hit with the striking edge just fine.

cuz that was totally a direct attack at you. chill out buster.

Forkbeard wrote:You could just learn to fight. Like a sword fighter.
Using, get ready, A **** sword shaped sword.
Speed bats and tubesword are for pussies with no edge control.
Learning to only hit with the edge is the essence of SWORDfighting.
Aside from this, hollow cores are for homos. I break them on purpose with my solid core swords. It's all in where and when you hit them.
FB

WORD FORK!!

Denidil wrote:way to be a *.

go choke on one.


i can hit with the striking edge just fine.

Ya busta settle down!!

It wasn't an attack on you. It was an attack on speedtubes in general.
I feel these weapons are diluting the techical skil of our field. People who use them are either a)becomeing lazy in thier pursuit of maintaining their place in the skilled hierachy OR b) new people trying to jump ahead by avoiding learning edge control altogather. That sucks.
Everybody is in love with throwing wrap shots. With these weapons you just have to wang out your arm and wrap around, not caring how your shot lands. With the real life equivalent of this weapon(ie a nightstick) this would not injure any are of the body enough to casue it to cease funtioning, therefore, not delivering SUFFICENT FORCE. I call light on these shots, excepting on the rare occations that the hit is actually good. However, me calling light on 80% of the gay * wrap shot thrown at me with gay * ultra lite speedtubes makes me and every other fighter who is playing this game RIGHT look bad. It casues rifts in the sport, which in turn causes sportsmanship to drop. Which causes fun levels to drop.
I wish I could ban them, but I can't.
So I speak out against them. Some one has to.
Now to the personal attacks.
**** you, you little **** dweeb. If you could hit with the edge effectivly, you wouldn't need, or even want, a speedtube.
If you weren't **** retarded you would either, a)already know how to glue foam on a stick or b)know how to use the seach on the wikki.

FB

Forkbeard wrote:It wasn't an attack on you. It was an attack on speedtubes in general.

comes across differently in text

Forkbeard wrote:Now to the personal attacks.
**** you, you little **** dweeb. If you could hit with the edge effectivly, you wouldn't need, or even want, a speedtube.
If you weren't **** retarded you would either, a)already know how to glue foam on a stick or b)know how to use the seach on the wikki.

FB

excuse me while i laugh hysterically at your ignorance of who you're talking to.

Hey Fork, you wanna bet that everyone running around with bats are pansies with no edge control? Betcha if I chalked edges onto my bat, I could draw a pattern on your back standing in front of ya, and I'd dare you to call any one of the shots light.

I like bats because if my sword slips and I flat someone, they walk away with a giant welt. It doesn't happen often, but I don't like hurting people, and sometimes **** happens. I also like the fact that they last longer. I blow out edged swords faster than I can afford to replace 'em, and bats just plain last longer. So take it down a notch, bro.

And for the record, Den is one of the ballin'est craftsmen I've met. His armor and gear are some of the sickest I've seen.

Slagar wrote:And for the record, Den is one of the ballin'est craftsmen I've met. His armor and gear are some of the sickest I've seen.

thanks bro!

I provided alternatives to both of those statements.

a)becomeing lazy in thier pursuit of maintaining their place in the skilled hierachy

I didn't say everyone who uses speedtubes(what we're going to call them from now on) sucks. I said the good people who use them are being lazy and I think thats bad.
Listen to yourself. You flat people and give them welts. I say your slopy and swing out of control sometimes and you need to work on edge control.
You say you blow out tips on swords, I say you flat people too much, again learn better edge control.
I'm going on a year with the same sword with a stab tip. Ask how hard I stab people. You just have to do it right. Sure, you might die more, but if it's a choice between dieing and flating people too much(something I, personally, consider cheating), I'm going to die and then keep working on being a better SWORD fighter.
And I didn'y say this dude makes poor quality stuff. I said if he couldn't figure out how to make a tube of foam on a stick he must have something wrong with him. Its about the easiest weapon to make.
It doesn't matter who I'm talking to, I would have reponded to any of my freinds the same way is they asked about speedtubes, I bust the balls of everyone one of my freinds who use them pretty regularly, ask any of them.
FB
FB

The last time I flatted someone like that was about six months, or ~220 hours of fighting, ago. I still feel crappy about it. Dude got his sword on mine coming in, and it spun in my hand. Like I said, **** happens. If there's something out there that makes my game safer, then I've no problem using it. To be fair, I still use my flat-blades all the time, when I do blow out my bats. I just don't ignore the option, when it's available to me.

And I can blow out your swords in a month for ya, if you'd like (40-45 field hours). I haven't met one yet I couldn't. It's nothing to do with how often I flat. It does have to do with my fighting at range a lot, so my tips get lots of abuse. If you wanna give me crap over being a tip-fighter, I probably deserve that. Sloppy, though, I'll deny all day long.

As for how easy they are to make, I couldn't say. I can't make ****. I do know that some of the ones I've gotten (from WLS, for example) pretty complex. Whatever, not really my deal.

Otherwise, though, I agree with the rest. Just stepping in with my two cents. Lots of people use 'em for the cheese. Not gonna deny it. Not all of us, though.

yup and some of us just like weapons that barely pass minimum weight.

Nah, my bats are 18oz, minimum.

i personally wouldnt call them speedbats. to me speedbats are about weight

Like I said, I don't use 'em for any particular fighting advantage. They're a safety and budget decision. Meh.

Forkbeard wrote:. With the real life equivalent of this weapon(ie a nightstick)

FB

I present the bar mace

Anyhow .......3/8" fiberglass CAN be used to make a very quick club if not a full blown (depending on your definintion) speed bat out to a core length of 28". The ones I use have a first box layer about 20" long topped with two square caps (this requires 2 strips of blue foam 3/8" wide and 2 strips 1-1/4" wide). This is followed by a second layer that is NOT a complete box consisting of 4 strips 12" long by 1-1/4" wide. Using a very sharp knife, knock the corners off of this incomplete box to get an octogon. The last layer on the striking surface is a single wrapped rectangle with tapered edges that when glued will overlap itself by about 2". For the pommel: hit the bottom 2" of core with a file to roughen slightly. Put on your cover and wrap haft with athletic tape. Using a scale, wrap the core with 3/16" dia. lead wire like this stuff http://www.sportchalet.com/product/301664_2120790.do to just under 12 oz. Remove this coil of lead a glue on with 10min epoxy flush with the bottom of the core. To build the pommel, carpet tape a single wrap of blue foam about 2-1/2 wide over the lead. Cap twice with circles of blue foam about 1.5" in diameter and tape well. Follow this up with a block of open cell and tape accordingly. The end result looks a bit like a chef's hat. By the time the pommel is done and you put on a handle it should be 12.5-13 oz. Since you're in Des Moines if I remember correctly, you can get the lead at Sportsman's warehouse in Ankeny.

Denidil wrote:excuse me while i laugh hysterically at your ignorance of who you're talking to.

I laughed pretty hard at this one. Almost sounds like benadryl thinks he's a big deal here.



And Fork, Slagar's a legit lefty boarder, does some SCA cross and other **** too. Does not throw noodle arm * and fights just fine with a flatblade. I may cry myself to sleep tonight though, I thought I was becoming awesome with my kitespar roundswords.

First, Fork is amazing, Second, Mel is amazing. Third, Who the hell is this del person?? It looks like he might be from HD but ive never seen, met or heard of him before this thread... And im not taking sides on round vs flat

Vandey wrote:First, Fork is amazing, Second, Mel is amazing. Third, Who the hell is this del person?? It looks like he might be from HD but ive never seen, met or heard of him before this thread... And im not taking sides on round vs flat

That's not saying much, you haven't met A LOT of people, you're still a newb.

MeleeMoses wrote:

Forkbeard wrote:You could just learn to fight. Like a sword fighter.
Using, get ready, A **** sword shaped sword.
Speed bats and tubesword are for pussies with no edge control.
Learning to only hit with the edge is the essence of SWORDfighting.
Aside from this, hollow cores are for homos. I break them on purpose with my solid core swords. It's all in where and when you hit them.
FB

WORD FORK!!

Denidil wrote:way to be a *.

go choke on one.


i can hit with the striking edge just fine.

Ya busta settle down!!

To be fair... after a certain point it all becomes moot. Throwing a mechanically correct wrap shot, or chop shot, should use an identical motion. However, I've found training with a flat blade to be quite a bit more gratifying, because it teaches you not to throw sloppy half-wraps. I use both off and on, just for fun.
At this point, it makes no real difference in the way I fight. I don't really understand the stigma behind round-swords/clubs. Most of the animosity I've ever encountered on a bel field using one was some ego-sore dude QQ'ing about my "amtgard sword" (which incidentally weighs 14 oz). In the end it's just a f ucking game, if your spending this much time worrying about what other people are doing to enjoy they're time fighting, then you're probably not having a great deal of fun yourself. In my humble opinion this is akin to losing the game.

Big Jimmy wrote:

Vandey wrote:First, Fork is amazing, Second, Mel is amazing. Third, Who the hell is this del person?? It looks like he might be from HD but ive never seen, met or heard of him before this thread... And im not taking sides on round vs flat

That's not saying much, you haven't met A LOT of people, you're still a newb.

Wow jimmy that hurt me deep man that hurt me deep and its not my fault i cant borrow the car to meet all these people i met a good number at wolfpack and HD's winter practices.

Vandey wrote:First, Fork is amazing, Second, Mel is amazing. Third, Who the hell is this del person?? It looks like he might be from HD but ive never seen, met or heard of him before this thread... And im not taking sides on round vs flat

I made almost all my gear, which is why I was laughing at FB

i'm sure you've seen me

My Geddon page includes a picture from SW2010 http://www.geddon.org/index.php/Denidil


but if you're new I didn't make it to any events last year, or any HD practices last winter as adult life blows chunks.

Squire Mel wrote:I laughed pretty hard at this one. Almost sounds like benadryl thinks he's a big deal here.

go back to slaughtering Hydra and leave the lame puns on my name to newbs

Lame pun or blast from the past?

Denidil wrote:

Squire Mel wrote:I laughed pretty hard at this one. Almost sounds like benadryl thinks he's a big deal here.

go back to slaughtering Hydra and leave the lame puns on my name to newbs

Oh look, it's being silly.

Big Jimmy wrote:

Denidil wrote:

Squire Mel wrote:I laughed pretty hard at this one. Almost sounds like benadryl thinks he's a big deal here.

go back to slaughtering Hydra and leave the lame puns on my name to newbs

Oh look, it's being silly.

not my fault he was getting multiple kills 6v1 him being the one

he probably would have done the same against less experienced fighters from any unit. He's scary to newbs because he's big, quick and throws good fakes.

* it.
I put up a very clever and well written post yesterday and it did land.
I **** hate that.
Anyway, It said something to the effect of:
A Bar Mace is a heavy one hand weapon. Heavier by far than a sword on equivalent length. I think of them as the equivalent of some of the heavier clubs people use.
Benadryl is talking about MINIMUM weght weapons. I feel the the lightest possible club of length is the equivalent of a nightstick, and they hit like it.
And see Slagar, we agree again. I wasn't talking about bad shots from heavy clubs. The edge control thing stands, but heavy clubs do hit hard enough.
Ultralights are ****, though, and I stand by everything I said concrening them.
I've been speaking out agaqinst ultra lights for years and I ain't ever gonna stop.
I'f someone doesn't, people will think that everyone is in favor of these gay * weapons. I want people to know when they read these threads that there is a vocal opposition to them.
FB

so your issue isn't clubs, it is ultralight OK got it.

Denidil wrote:excuse me while i laugh hysterically at your ignorance of who you're talking to.

Yo *! Representin! I be tha baddest * in my back yard wit nerf swords!

I fail to see how laughing at him cause I made pretty much all my gear is ITG, but whatever.

and Forkbeard sounds like he's been owned by people with finesse weapons and can't deal with it.

When dealing with noodle-armed people using minweight weapons, do the following:

Step 1: Call light
Step 2: Club them like seals
Step 3: Laugh at their pain

But seriously, if people tickle me with 12oz swords, that's my go-to plan. There are people who can hit with 'em, I've had the marks to prove it to me. But there's a lot who can't. If your mechanics are sub-par, then using ultra-lights will result in you not killing freakin' anybody. They can be useful in our game, but it takes some skill to get an actual blow to land with 'em.

I don't hate ultra-lights, but I do expect people to use 'em right. The benefits they offer, such as speed and maneuverability, are obvious. The costs that go with those, such as having to really lay the blows in to get shots to count in our game, should also be there.

Slagar wrote:When dealing with noodle-armed people using minweight weapons, do the following:

Step 1: Call light
Step 2: Club them like seals
Step 3: Laugh at their pain

Facts.

I blew off probably 30-50% of the shots that made contact with me at an event last weekend. People were throwing sloppy crap and throwing to touch, not to hit through and some of the shots were light enough that I didn't even have to block them at all and I could still call them light without any thought.

I understand where both sides are coming from on this. To clarify what FB is saying Denidil:
FB understands that the speedtubes are not breaking any rules, but he dosen't agree with the way they are used vs. their real life counterparts. I think FB is as open about the arguement as he is isn't to make speedtube people feel ****, but to promote using swords or any weapon with a more "realistic" feel. And like Slagar and Arrakis both said, a lot of people who do use speedtubes end up throwing sloppy bullcrap that they want to count as hits. Not all, just some.

On a side note, your armor isn't bad Denidil but Forkbeard's is *.

Den a word to the wise, you seem newer to the forums. Ive fought you, i know who you are, Still though you are newer( as in your dont post much so your face isnt out here). You really need to think before you post.

You come off very high and mighty in your first post. Written words are taken quite differently then how you mean to say them. Example

"excuse me while i laugh hysterically at your ignorance of who you're talking to."

Why should forkbeard know who you are? you dont post on the boards much. You must not travel west enough for him to know you, or you didn't make an impression. Ive never heard your name tossed out amoungst the folks i roll with. Never have I heard "**** man denidril was tearing people up on the field." The only reason i know who you are is because I just fought you at spring wars. You also didn't leave that high of impression on me.

As for forkbeard, hes good folk and has naked ladies on his armor, so he gets my vote for awesome.

As for clubs/speed bats, I could care less ill kill you either way. I understand they give a better base for stabbing tips, but also suffer from tip shearing even worse then swords. Theres pluses and negatives.

i dont go west, nor did i mean to imply that im a wicked fighter. right now I'm a middling fighter and i wasnt at any events or practices in 09 so I am rusty.

However, i am good at armor and gear making. That is why i laughed at his ignorance. Never assume someone is a hapless newb just because you don't know them. I don't know a lot of people in Bel and i'm equally sure people see me in my gear and go "who the **** is that?"

my phrasing of things often comes off poorly in text.. take very little i say seriously. FB's post also came off poorly in text. He's got a point about newbs using them as magical make me good sticks.

I would like to point out that magical sticks will only get you so far. PTQ, Mel, Calarn, Cyric, etc etc will still leave you dead.

if your lumping mel in with that groupe you are a noob

Peregrine wrote:if your lumping mel in with that groupe you are a noob

and here i was expecting someone to mock the blueberry knight being on the list!

no us blue knights have to stick together.

You can buy a good round sword at http://www.warlordsports.com
They also sell the materials to build your own. You could substitute pool noodle instead of the MC tube to save money but it wont last long.

As far as the debate over ultra light weapons, everyone has an opinion. Mine is to fight with what ever makes the game fun for you. Ultra light weapons may not require as much skill as a flatblades, maybe, but that really only translates to a small advantage for beginning fighters. Good body mechanics, foot work, ect. will translate to whatever weapon you fight with.

It is very much possible to generate sufficient force with an ultralight sword. If I hit you, you will feel it...thru plate, and if you gleefully sluff my shot just because my sword is round and fast I will happily * stabb you till you call something.

Edited for me being a *. This is why I'm not allowed to post that early in the morning. My bad.