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Tai chi sword steel


MikedMck

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I'm researching steel to make a Tai Chi sword.  I recently did a black smith work shop and he suggested looking into nice spring steel or to see what they are made of .

The sword will probably only be used for Tai Chi demonstrion. It likely won't be slicing tatomy mats, but the forged in fire fan in me kind of wants to do a heat treatment.  

I don't have a forge of my own so i would be shaping it with either a file or a grinder.  

The blade will probably be approximately 3 feet long plus a handle.  Do you have any recommendations on sizes and steel types?

I thake Tai Chi in Toronto, and there is a Tai Chi sword element in the next level when i grade. I'm sure i can go down to China Town or order something off Amazon, but I want to make my own sword 

I want to make something i can be proud of, not use something mass produced


Mike

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Easily acquired, fairly inexpensive, fairly easy to work and heat treatable would be 5160 steel. Otherwise perhaps a spring tempered 1075 or 1084.

It is difficult to get a distal taper by hand; but most of such swords I have seen do not have much of one. (I don't know if that is an artifact of mass production though!)

I would try to get the blank size in annealed state and as close to the final size as possible and cut the profile with a bandsaw before going on to draw file the bevels.

A good vise is MANDATORY and you may want to clamp the blade to the edge of say a 2x4 (or thinner) and clamp the wood in the vise so you can drawfile the length of the blade with support under it.

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56 minutes ago, Steve Sells said:

How many years until your next rank test

To elaborate on Steve's point, a sword made by someone inexperienced can be a danger not only to the wielder, but  also to any spectators.  If you insist on DIY, you would probably be best served following Thomas's manufacture guidelines, but keeping it fully soft with no heat treatment IMHO.  Better that it bends than shatters, and heat treating such a long blade without warping, corkscrew or sabering will be a serious challenge.  Be sure to take particular care with the tang to blade joint to avoid stress risers in that area as well as the pommel connection to the tang. Just draw filing (4) 36" long bevels evenly is going to be a real labor of love. 

Note that even if you plan on only using it to demonstrate forms, there is a strong probability that someone will end up trying to cut with it at some point.

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Thanks for the feed back.  I'm open to all suggestions.  That's why I posted. I've only brazed copper tubing and done a one day black smith work shop. 

I'm an HVAC mechanic with oxi acetaline torches if there was a need for some isolated or edge quenching.  

I'll double check with the Sensei, but for safety reasons I think most of the swords in class have a dull edge. I've never heard, be careful I don't want to cut you from the other students.  That's why i probably wouldn't need a heat treatment other than personal preference.

 

 

 

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you say you dont need any heat treatment when you dont know what heat treatment does, after asking what steel to use.   Just go ahead and get mild steel from the box store and stock removal til it looks like a blade. make your life so much simpler than trying to make a real blade.

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