Pics of 4 sword blades I just finished...

[savagesword]

2 Conan blades: 5160 heat treated to 55 RHC from PACMET with CNC Inscription

2 Excalibur blades based on movie for a custom project: same as above.





The Excalibur blades have a multi-radius fuller...switching from 6" - 4" - 2" wheels as it nears the tip. I did the fullers free hand..so there's some wavy lines. The Conan swords were also hand ground, but the fuller meets the hollow ground bevels on the edge and helps straighten the fuller line as you look down the blade.

I've got some new techniques i'm going to try next time. Like putting the fuller in before I cut the profile, so I can rest/guide the fuller off the edge of the bar stock.

 

[Burl Source]

While I am not a sword person;
It looks like you are doing very nice work.
I will look forward to seeing more photos as these progress and are completed.
Thank you for posting the photos.

 

[crimsonfalcon07]

Looks great to me. I'd love to see one in person some time. Been thinking about trying some wider fullers on my next project. Do you have any tips you'd be willing to share?

 

[Will52100]

Cool, love swords. As for the wavy lines, that can be cleaned up by hand, though it's a time consuming process. I really envy people that can grind to 800 grit and buff and have a perfect blade. Most times I have to start hand sanding at 220 to straighten up my grinds.

 

[savagesword]

Thanks for the kind words, all!

Crimsonfalcon07: I remember that you live in the area (this past year was a crazy one for me, now things have settled down ), I'd be happy to show you one in person and show you how I grind. Some of the tips are:
1. Draw clean, sharp guide lines to grind to
2. Fresh belt
3. Use very light pressure and move the blade in a smooth, long stroke (about 8-10")... the idea is to keep the blade moving....also, go in a consistent direction when you're starting the fuller, ie: only cut left to right, pull the blade away, move the blade to the starting position, then do it again. This helps build a muscle memory...just doing the exact same stroke each time. As the fuller is cut, the wheel will naturally stay in and follow it (as long as you don't press too hard!).

Will: Hand sanding the fullers would definitely be a chore, but would be very helpful in fixing those lines, thanks for the idea! I'll have to get some files and sanding blocks together to help with that. Great advice!

 

[crimsonfalcon07]

That's a thought. I did a jian-style blade with a fuller in the manner you mention above, and it was definitely a bit wavy. I have trouble getting the full fuller in one stroke. Less pressure, as you mention, would probably be smart. I use an angle grinder with a grinding wheel to cut in an initial guide line for the wheel to rest in. That worked pretty decently on the last one. I like the idea of the hand sanding. A properly radiused block would likely help a lot.