props advice(Berserk)

[scrimshander]

Hello all. I'm making my first costume Guts from Berserk, mainly because he is one of the few characters in anime I look like(and also share manerisms with), and because he is just so friggin' awesome. Now my question is about the sword.

I have a real two-hander which, though not nearly big enough(think the sword he has in his fight with the axeman inn ep 2, make it smaller by maybe 20%), is impressive as hell, easy to carry/handle and already has a scabard, so no added effort. I could take this one.

OR I could begin construction of a mock-up, mostly likely out of wood painted to resemble steel. This would allow me to go to full size(thinking probably 7 feet, including pommel). More impressive at a distance, but kinda lame up close. Now even for someone my size(6'3), this monstrosity will be awkward, but it will also not have as many security issues/chance of hurting someone by accident. Also I really doubt I'll be drawing a blade all to often at a con. And having a seven foot sword, even one made of wood, is pretty rockin'.

So, which option should i go with, or are there others that i am forgetting in making my prop?

[aimee]

well, you can't really take real swords to most conventions! al ot of them have strict weapons rules

I'd say make it yourself in the method you said, but keep in mind you may have some "cumbersome" issues. However, there are people who have made 6 foot or 7 foot swords on here, they can tell you if it was a pain or not.

Lord Masamune (Matt) made a KH Cloud with a HUGE sword.

[Yui]

Yes, it does depend on the con (say...Katsucon sucks regarding even light blasa wood weapons, despite what they claim on their official policies) Paper-mache or a mold filled with paper pulp or hotglue are options, but wood probably still is your best bet, because the shape isn't too complicated. Which one of his swords were you thinking of making btw? And how do you intend to transport it? That's one aspect I often forget to consider myself when making ridiculously large props.

[scrimshander]

i got wheels(hand me down pickup), so i am good with transporting. I was thinking a one of the later swords, maybe arround ep 15-17 or so, my logic being if i am going to make something this big, i may as well run with it. after a certain point added size is not much of an issue. Plus this is sort of the only really difficult/impressive part of the costume, so i want to make it flashy.

[Yui]

Okay, then you probably don't need to worry about making seperate parts and fitting them together via a central shaft (which some large prop swords do) if you can just drive it.

Now the sword he uses around the middle of the series is beveled along the blade like a normal sword but also indented even further in the middle. If you're going to do that one, it'd probably be easier to have two seperate sides (instead of just one piece of wood), bevel the outside, cut the middle angle out, and then connect the two along the middle seam. And then you can cover that seam with wood putty or boat plaster and sand it down very smooth. Having two pieces to start with will probably be easier than trying to gouge out the middle perfectly and geometrically straight. Unless you've not using wood...

In which case, I recommend the infamous Tessaiga tutorial on large prop sword techniques...

http://forums.cosplay.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2717

(And I think the actual tutorial page is down, so you might have to ask Melchior for additional info.)


Heheh, and if you're going to be at ACen, AX or Otakon this year, PM me and I'll tell you a *secret*