is there a market for battle ready weapons

[nschmuc1]

i had someone at work come up to me and ask me to make him a custom made battle axe and it made me think if i could start a small business making authentic unsharpened or sharpened weapons, do you think there is a market for that?

[K. Bryan Morgan]

There are quite a few people doing it.  From Cold Steel to people who supply the Medieval European Martial Arts Guild with weapons.  Lots of information on the internet.  Google is your friend.

[Steve Sells]

I am not aware of many modern armys hiring smiths to make axes for battle, most use more long range weapons. There is very little up close and personal fights today. But you can try selling them. Axes make good sence for field living and making camp.

 

If you are talking about reenactment groups, and assuming you already have learned how to make good blades.   I have worked with  the Adrian Empire, SCA and ECS. I have also worked with a few Martial Arts schools, including Jujitsu, Aikido to Iaido, and each has strict regulations about their weapons, as well as who makes them.  And they are not all the same.  No one is going to jump in and make them and get acccepted over night.  First you have to present a pedigree of your experiance and other people/groups you have made them for.   Also they will ask for insurance company and policy's limitations.

 

If they decide you are a potential  manufacturer for them, they will want a selection of your blades to test to destruction to make sure its a safe break, not leavin jagged edges to cut some one when pieces start to fly.

 

If you are talking about the Zombie apocolyps,  then you wont have the insurance or other legal libility issues to address. I am not aware of there ever being any claim accepted in a US court by a zombie.

[ThomasPowers]

Yes there is a market however  you must make better items than people can buy already and pretty much cheaper too---Gresham's law WRT blades holds very true.

 

Once you establish a reputation and get good and *fast* making things---which often includes thousands of dollars of equipment; life gets better.

 

It is strongly suggest moving to an area that has socialized medicine or marrying someone that has great benefits; most small businesses are 1 "oops moment" from bankruptcy.

[macbruce]

There's a market alright. If I was a soldier I think a modern tomahawk would be an excellent implement to pack along for hand to hand combat or survival....... :ph34r:

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=modern+combat+tomahawk&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=-HpkUvmUCc_figLjgYHgCw&ved=0CF0QsAQ&biw=1280&bih=850

[HJP]

Yes in syria :P  :ph34r: 

[Dodge]

I would find it hard to believe many commands would allow purchase of personal non-issue weapons on the battlefield. I know it happens I.E. General Patton's pearl handled revolvers. Maybe regulations have laxed over the years, but even still, I believe there would have to be months of extensive testing ($$$$) before anything a Soldier, Marine or otherwise would depend his life on would be accepted. I don't think Karbar simply made a bunch of big combat knives during WWII and just send them to the pacific theater for the Marines to field test ;)

 

Edit: I shoulda read all thoroughly; What Steve said

Edited October 21, 2013 by Dodge

[nschmuc1]

when i said battle ready i meant sharpened as if they were ready for battle, not literally used in the army 

[Dodge]

Ooooooooooh. So, murder weapons, then! Why didn't ya say so :D

[Steve Sells]

I am not sure how serious this poster is.  I noticed in another thread he is asking how to make an axe.  There is nothing wrong with that.   But I think we may be taking this more seriously than he is.  But of course this is the business section of the forum, so it should be serious business issues.

[Dan C]

What sort of liability are you at risk here?  Would it be wise to have the person sign a disclaimer so you're not on the hook in case they do something stupid to themselves or someone else, and would such a disclaimer actually hold up?  It's one thing to make an axe used to chopping wood, another to make one whose sole purpose is cleaving zombies...

[ThomasPowers]

Yup while the remark was flippant it did address a very serious concern.  Tell your insurance agent you are planning to make and sell weapons and watch him blanch---and cancel your coverage so fast the paperwork ignites!

[Nobody Special]

I would find it hard to believe many commands would allow purchase of personal non-issue weapons on the battlefield. I know it happens I.E. General Patton's pearl handled revolvers. Maybe regulations have laxed over the years, but even still, I believe there would have to be months of extensive testing ($$$$) before anything a Soldier, Marine or otherwise would depend his life on would be accepted. I don't think Karbar simply made a bunch of big combat knives during WWII and just send them to the pacific theater for the Marines to field test ;)

 

Edit: I shoulda read all thoroughly; What Steve said

 

If I remember correctly, Patton also was famous for promoting the use of a straight edged saber. Some units do buy everyone tactical tomahawks, or even include them in a vehicle's PII list, (I've seen it twice) but it's usually a unit purchase, not armywide, just like a battalion may buy everybody the Oakley eye pro or some such.

 

As far as guns go, no personal weapons. One unit I was with, they actually caught some people trying to take stuff along like the upper receivers from their own AR-15. On the other hand, lots of people had big honking knives/Bowies etc.......which mostly hung on their vest unless needed to open MREs.

 

Some of the Army guy's I've known have been a little crazy about collecting weapons of all kinds (or God help us, even Cosplay with them), swords, polearms, etc.

 

Weapons are often used as part of a going away present for officers or higher enlisted- seen knives, axes, kukris, tomahawks, etc. In the unit I'm in now, I've been approached twice once to make a spearhead (unit motto is "forging the spear" and once a knife as going away plaque wallhangers.

 

Also Steve, I cite you the well known case of Robert Smith vs Marie Laveau, 1852, setting precedence over whether inflicting grevious harm to the undead constitutes property damage against the houngan....... :P

[nschmuc1]

well thank you everyone for being dicks

[Frosty]

There's a video on the web about the outfit making tactical hawks for guys in the sandbox. The mid east is more a blade culture than more modern folk are used to so big knives or better really effective hawks are impressive. Being able to can opener into a vehicle is big mojo.

 

So, yes, there is a market but it's got at least one fairly large manufacturer forging quality hawks in batch lots.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Steve Sells]

As a result of his last public post, (hidden for ToS violations) nschmuc1 has been shown the door, and he will not be returning. We wish him well.

[Dan C]

so he got the axe...