hodgepodge
Senior Member (Gold)
For a while, I've wanted a gunstock war club as seen in the movie, Last of the Mohicans.
I purchased a kit from Crazy Crow. But I was disappointed when it was a short piece of pine. It's not for whacking flies.
So I purchased a piece of hickory. (Epic customer service message https://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=6267937&postcount=1)
I did some research and traced out a pattern. I was going to try it, but thought that a pro-level woodworking friend would have the tools needed to cut it out a bit easier.
He wrote: Last night I looked the club up on-line and saw what you provided plus other images. Glad that I looked at them to see what you had in mind. I saw one similar to the template you drew on the wood. I also checked to make sure they were legal in MD. I can see with the blade that they are very dangerous weapons.
Before noon today, I transferred your drawing to a paper template. I then moved your printout down about an inch or less to get it away from the rough straight edge you had used. I also wanted to get the pattern into more of the heartwood and away from the sap wood on the edge. I took pictures and am taking pictures of the process. I rough cut the outline of the club. The wood is under 2 inches thick so I cut it down to 1.5 inches thick. I plained the straight edge on the top. I scrapped the butt end of the rifle club into a smooth circled edge according to your template. I used carving chisels to complete the arrow style end according to your pattern. I am presently smoothing the bottom edge.
Unless you say otherwise, I plan to keep the thickness at 1.5 inches in the center of the side of the club and then slope the edge down by 1/8 inch to the edge. This is similar to the pictures you provided. It will look good and the edges will be around 1.25 inches thick since I will take off a sloped 1/8 inch on each side. If you want it sloped more such as 1/4 inch let me know of which will provide 1 inch thickness at the edges. I think your pictures look more like a 1/4 inch slope from the center. Instead of a machined slope look, I will use wood chisels that will provide a shimmering light affect. It will look very nice on display.
Also, do you have a blade or want me to insert a blade? If you have one, just let me know. I noticed in the drawings, they use a blade that is held in place with a rivet. A potential blade would be an old wood handle kitchen knife that is ground down and shaped to a few inches and then use the predrilled rivet holes in the handle. A dangerous weapon for sure. These type of knives are hard to locate anymore. I did see a couple at the flea market this morning and should have bought one for a buck. They won't be there the next time.
Thanks and I'll let you know the status with a picture next time I work on it. Not sure when I'll be back in the woodshop.
Two days later, he wrote:
Your item is completed and just let me know when you want to pick it up so that I am here or someone can pass it to you. Enclosed are two face pictures. I will provide a one page writeup with progress pictures. I created an overall template from your drawing on the wood plus created an internal template that kept the thickness at 1.5 inches on each face side. I tapered or sloped the sides 1/4 inch from the internal template to the edge. I kept the machine looking slope with a hand plane on the top slopes for both sides from front to back except for the pointed arrow. I left woodcarving chisel marks for the bottom taper. I think the woodcarving marks provide a nice visual that shows the item is not factory produced. I did not use any sandpaper and did not perform any sanding. I used a scrapper, wood chisels and hand planes. I softened or rounded all edges.
I recommend putting on one or two coats of hand-rubbed polyurethane (satin) of which is wiped off to provide protection from dirt when handling the item. The clean wood will quickly get dirty by touch and when you install the metal blade. Afterwards, it is easy to apply additional coats of sealer and no one can detect where the wood was disturbed that had been previously sealed. It blends very well. The hand-rubbed polyurethane is idiot proof and I highly recommend it for a lot of wooden items. I use it a lot and have not found anything that compares with it over my lifetime. After the item is completed and sealed, add a coat of paste wax that will really look good. Also, pictures don't do the item justice. I think it looks better than the pictures.
He sent photos:
So all that remains for me is to finish it with the recommended polyurethane and insert a blade.
The blade from the Crazy Crow kit is OK, but a bit shiny and modern. I'd like to find something similar in shape, but not as modern. Any suggestions would be welcomed.
Work in progress, but I'm liking it. The hickory was a good choice as this has some real weight. I'll add photos when it is complete.
I purchased a kit from Crazy Crow. But I was disappointed when it was a short piece of pine. It's not for whacking flies.
So I purchased a piece of hickory. (Epic customer service message https://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=6267937&postcount=1)
I did some research and traced out a pattern. I was going to try it, but thought that a pro-level woodworking friend would have the tools needed to cut it out a bit easier.
He wrote: Last night I looked the club up on-line and saw what you provided plus other images. Glad that I looked at them to see what you had in mind. I saw one similar to the template you drew on the wood. I also checked to make sure they were legal in MD. I can see with the blade that they are very dangerous weapons.
Before noon today, I transferred your drawing to a paper template. I then moved your printout down about an inch or less to get it away from the rough straight edge you had used. I also wanted to get the pattern into more of the heartwood and away from the sap wood on the edge. I took pictures and am taking pictures of the process. I rough cut the outline of the club. The wood is under 2 inches thick so I cut it down to 1.5 inches thick. I plained the straight edge on the top. I scrapped the butt end of the rifle club into a smooth circled edge according to your template. I used carving chisels to complete the arrow style end according to your pattern. I am presently smoothing the bottom edge.
Unless you say otherwise, I plan to keep the thickness at 1.5 inches in the center of the side of the club and then slope the edge down by 1/8 inch to the edge. This is similar to the pictures you provided. It will look good and the edges will be around 1.25 inches thick since I will take off a sloped 1/8 inch on each side. If you want it sloped more such as 1/4 inch let me know of which will provide 1 inch thickness at the edges. I think your pictures look more like a 1/4 inch slope from the center. Instead of a machined slope look, I will use wood chisels that will provide a shimmering light affect. It will look very nice on display.
Also, do you have a blade or want me to insert a blade? If you have one, just let me know. I noticed in the drawings, they use a blade that is held in place with a rivet. A potential blade would be an old wood handle kitchen knife that is ground down and shaped to a few inches and then use the predrilled rivet holes in the handle. A dangerous weapon for sure. These type of knives are hard to locate anymore. I did see a couple at the flea market this morning and should have bought one for a buck. They won't be there the next time.
Thanks and I'll let you know the status with a picture next time I work on it. Not sure when I'll be back in the woodshop.
Two days later, he wrote:
Your item is completed and just let me know when you want to pick it up so that I am here or someone can pass it to you. Enclosed are two face pictures. I will provide a one page writeup with progress pictures. I created an overall template from your drawing on the wood plus created an internal template that kept the thickness at 1.5 inches on each face side. I tapered or sloped the sides 1/4 inch from the internal template to the edge. I kept the machine looking slope with a hand plane on the top slopes for both sides from front to back except for the pointed arrow. I left woodcarving chisel marks for the bottom taper. I think the woodcarving marks provide a nice visual that shows the item is not factory produced. I did not use any sandpaper and did not perform any sanding. I used a scrapper, wood chisels and hand planes. I softened or rounded all edges.
I recommend putting on one or two coats of hand-rubbed polyurethane (satin) of which is wiped off to provide protection from dirt when handling the item. The clean wood will quickly get dirty by touch and when you install the metal blade. Afterwards, it is easy to apply additional coats of sealer and no one can detect where the wood was disturbed that had been previously sealed. It blends very well. The hand-rubbed polyurethane is idiot proof and I highly recommend it for a lot of wooden items. I use it a lot and have not found anything that compares with it over my lifetime. After the item is completed and sealed, add a coat of paste wax that will really look good. Also, pictures don't do the item justice. I think it looks better than the pictures.
He sent photos:
So all that remains for me is to finish it with the recommended polyurethane and insert a blade.
The blade from the Crazy Crow kit is OK, but a bit shiny and modern. I'd like to find something similar in shape, but not as modern. Any suggestions would be welcomed.
Work in progress, but I'm liking it. The hickory was a good choice as this has some real weight. I'll add photos when it is complete.
