ࡱ> ! ~#` bjbj .. $  (D D D D D b n IKKKKKK$h o]D D ]]oD D ]D D I]ID  } RI01Pv h J( <d v v v oov v v ]]]]t dt  Proposal Inclusion of Flat Blade and Latex Weaponry into AllianceLARP Commentary The AllianceLARP has been in existence for over twenty years. In that time, many new strives have been made in the LARPing industry. Included was the creation and/or implementation of what are known as Flat Blade weapons (a core sandwiched between two or more pieces of closed cell foam and sculpted to look more like a sword) and latex weapons. Over the years, they have been refined to being weapons that are just as safe, if not more so, than the standard PVC and Pipe (P&P) style. Embedded below is a document that has been downloaded from the DIY Guide to LRP: ( HYPERLINK "http://home.clara.net/arianrhod/Aldebaran/DoItYourself/index.html" http://home.clara.net/arianrhod/Aldebaran/DoItYourself/index.html).  EMBED Word.Document.8 \s  This is a very comprehensive guide to creating a weapon out of sheets of foam (either Flat Blade or Latex). Does this change affect the dynamics of NERO combat? If so, how? Latex based swords are usually crafted without thrusting tips in order to give more support to the thinner tips. Therefore those using these latex weapons would have to fight without thrusting their swords. However, there are a small number of manufacturers who will create latex thrusting weapons that contain open cell foam or softer closed cell foam thrusting tips(check with the manufacturer before purchasing). The weapons are lighter than the standard P&P but with the combat requirements of hitting different targets and not machinegunning, this has little effect. In addition, I have not seen a greatly increased speed of swings. I have watched people with latex weapons fighting those with P&P and speed was not a deciding factor. It should be noted that all other latex weapons besides swords will function the same way as P&P weapons do. Does this change affect play balance? No. There is no play balance change. Insofar as a person who can afford good armor gets more armor points. Does this change affect the overall safety of the game? According to my research, no. Having received messages from postings on numerous boards (both in the US and the UK) as well as direct correspondences with the larger game providers in the UK, there have been no injuries or accidents reported, or frequency thereof, that have not been reported by the use of P&P. In fact, more serious injuries have been reported using P&P. The best source of comparative information comes from the NEROWest campaign in San Francisco where they used P&P for six years and then transferred over to UK latex weaponry for the next five. The only injuries reported have been non-weapon related. The primary concern about the weapons is that they are much harder than P&P. Although they employ a more rigid foam, the weapons are much lighter than P&P. This lack of weight lightens the force that is delivered by a swung weapon. Although there can be a sting if struck hard, it is not anymore painful than a hard strike with P&P. Due to the mass of P&P, the kenetic energy produced in a swing from it has the potential to do greater damage than that of a lighter latex weapon. Another concern is that the tips of the weapons can cause eye damage. Latex swords are not used for thrusting and, used as such, greatly diminish the chance of any thrust to the eye. Flat Blade weapons have rather rounded points and therefore the chance of eye injury is about the same as with a P&P weapon. Although the thrusting tip of a P&P is designed to not fit into an eye socket, this is only if the thrust is exactly straight on. Any other deviation of the weapon angle will result in the edge of the foam entering the socket. With the lighter version weapons, the kinetic energy is less and it is easier to recover a blow that is beginning to go awry. These weapons are and have been in use in various games throughout the US for some time. The International Fantasy Gaming Society (IFGS) never used P&P in their 20+ years of running nation wide campaigns and relied totally on Flat Blade weapons. If there was any real danger from these weapons, I do not believe that there would be such a demand for latex weapons that shops for them have been opening up in the US over the last 5+ years. Otherwise, games wouldnt allow them and the demand for them would be non-existent. Does this change have an affect on roleplay and/or world continuity? Roleplay is affected by these weapons by giving a more realistic look and feel to the game. Seeing and using weapons that look like actual weapons helps to decrease the need for suspension of disbelief. In addition, there is a greater variety of styles of weapons available, allowing individuals to tailor their characters individuality even more so than just with costuming. A player can feel more like hes in a fantasy setting if he is carrying a weapon that looks authentic rather than a round, P&P sword. There would be no effect to continuity. Could this change potentially create a logistically difficult situation? No. There would be a need to check the weapons just like you do with any game. In addition, some games have approved vendors that people can buy from. These vendors items have been previously inspected to show that they will fit the needs of the game. In addition, there will be a need to instruct players on the proper use of such weapons (such as not thrusting with latex swords) but this is the same for teaching any type of LARPing combat. Instructions on building Flat Blade weaponry are currently online in various places. Latex weapons are much more difficult to build and, as such, most players will purchase theirs from a vendor who has been making the weaponry for some time. CIJV  P Q ˺~kVFkFhpB*CJOJQJaJph(jhpB*CJOJQJUaJph%hphpB*CJOJQJaJphhpB*OJQJphhSB*OJQJphhd B*OJQJphh B*OJQJphh6)B*OJQJph hrah6)5B*OJQJphhf5B*OJQJph"h{0e5B*CJOJQJaJph(hrah6)5B*CJOJQJaJphHIJVWP Q < = \ ]  gh9:$a$gdpgdSgd6) 6 7 8 = > X Y Z [ ] пЬМuМiZN@/ hrah6)5B*OJQJphhf5B*OJQJphh B*OJQJphhph B*OJQJphhpB*OJQJph.jhphpB*CJOJQJUaJphjvpdJ hpCJUVaJhpB*CJOJQJaJph%hphpB*CJOJQJaJph hY!hp0JCJOJQJaJ(jhpB*CJOJQJUaJph4jhY!hpB*CJOJQJUaJph L }    ( V q ,ghi9:-<۲󗉲}}}n}h6)h2#B*OJQJphh2#B*OJQJphhf5B*OJQJphh6)hraB*OJQJphhraB*OJQJph hrah6)5B*OJQJphh B*OJQJphhd B*OJQJphhfB*OJQJphhB*OJQJphh6)B*OJQJph*:-.<=>gd gd6)gd2#<=>ŹŹўŒhB*OJQJphh2#B*OJQJphhxB*OJQJphh6)hd B*OJQJphhraB*OJQJphhd B*OJQJph hrah6)5B*OJQJphhf5B*OJQJphh6)h6)B*OJQJph,1h/ =!"#$% DyK Bhttp://home.clara.net/arianrhod/Aldebaran/DoItYourself/index.htmlyK http://home.clara.net/arianrhod/Aldebaran/DoItYourself/index.htmlyX;H,]ą'c Dd c0  # A"r 'ĖmtTLqN H@=F 'ĖmtTLqhgI f xXiTU=!6K_tu%DXZCMbLMȲ4 MB:`AQ@x"*"qHDQp{aP5(|ׁ*D|Fnc^O{HO l~g[~g.K>^|o~'weEs252Ps AcvlEh4gG%}R6-yס@(:V{_㗠go1P'qZ5j8̷l GM 8aG8/^WI{M9a]-nLp"8mQ^O5|Sb:x kY;~){jop7QQPF+Fp6RtH?*^+H%8jѵoŠi%Xâ wYFz}ZlF\6D2STR?q11bB:RCg;2ݪwpw2=^-җ/JlԸpnȋkҋk/J wo;=h8dO%j:/fn Uwz\؆ՇCQ'Fc51qzx>ic'.ΓN zEbxP3YqIKsuχ3CQ ɇÉ>[V%T#H?7C I ~-'RĶćJl ȟoU_O|^* OOGSN?X?EuR͸HT(Q=AC<>dH nUCSv9 GO]mfE͂~}&MiWz|5泂ΉƜm~WwH<X(R>ԞLf.%'e}sG^[ /ǥ^ <8AIp GEW<7MvnlORCQY$nGM:b FgQ:r,¼+Kq=b:nzo,, ME|6I .q~K~Ӂ#wR'LJu}yQ=R0DH .'U~>:ym:_O1=1 95 \z9|>-a>*}ފ*\hgVNV'zg&3l| OuتxΤ;#E;k |-L"y]hy-wsR漧|l^xlYQk+s33&x{LY~ٸPsH>ܜgCqf|V3ƯEH뿿+Ưc?Ǟ-~w5|u4IG^pO{hhm>䧱G zBX!i5h.آ yF%ƶmB}ᚆ ̈p;kADϳ^ź*CР׋<`BI<~d(;sg0[NLY"e|VbXFWL JUWf{ZT٧ olzڽut}t&6ʵb1e:=< ~#h@++VHMTSkVt1ⷔsA'jXDh4QLԙ@Ddxz󤜟!,1F$y">#1~nZ)ww#Uy#؍T "$%&'()*+,-./0123456789:;<=>?@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]^_`abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz{|}Root Entry  F'Data WordDocument ..ObjectPool}'_1248096374 F}}Data #1TableBCompObjq#Dd^sL  C (ASword01b<&iob_DlnW<&iobPNG  IHDR]q{T0PLTEO&IbKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmIDATx  %7`˫KgMg8*Ճ]G8N.p> {w^xuDy45bT K@OW°  x0RO :;j B,roZH)і+ƤRBssg8czg[K6& )0[i2?!~nwjd.ri6qNZ͆Rh?Z*)T R"P'DHJB"z[N׮`eXlB;Kba%@Hp]Yv-m7+9$!^@4 , -GNҧpMWzf r_8r[T/k)|NCc[(m3t IU -\|ok/4B#ĸ%CĞb%GĮrB%Kľb"%ORҵt )t¥р(#|#IgMT-j<FEU`=!n2/PxD1-OsnQ8? ]O{گ`,\e8fDD1-YҖWliy; Qbd4 Fv!}rfݍZUu#KȽ0\o n̓%;YFOe4#M`$c Jnuc _7:զ~&ߜXm[Ɍ\&5Ŧ0Q%bfFj64cvb,I_j?(i1QuiIMamsgd}znVpfێ'(>Foϧ0}1SshC#)F$+IENDB`bDd" L  C (ASword05bSL1DEd/_-lnSL1DEd/_PNG  IHDRO4E[PLTE@@@@@@@𠠤f[bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712Hs IDATx^ٚ*E_LРB릿2D3?P@Nr` IRMO`@R$&l'0 xTTg84p agh~MX;`p qgn2 qi,FH i4 OIQ'<ʀ<)NF d'_L)цeV=;:=t*À @-̨Y:z_6ZƄZ5b8 X8cDu tԹR!ӇPlӻD,jnnλ :os8QQoZS xI~BU(qVrc` J f$˧6Q=UpZկ=Qӫָ~ꫝhy:GfjjMUYV8M㉾qyPûSM >~'@hݸYO DE)AQn5nB;M>X7'ug3oIsO=V޽sIO (O{/OyU$@\US+Sfss)«,9C *5nXǺ]oWۏl/A=\ v(Pr<8`b@ l*Tek3wή~(/[^!9- ~%s HJ8m!&xOii%M4xPɍ{;"LX<}fg &2Su+o kiZwM,Kq,pR;ZlSRٽ-&K(t!dh??aAJ '<'Z9&NyMO9:הPN_k'<^~a`6?K*Q:YDS,'q+T+M_؀O[%5EgZNI+0R)K&:z}+SL\eAg8/UKҨq-bP2q{F 4qi6`:cΙ9k3%<1^~Kv Ly霖NO <]rӝ#^<][{ h?YyR<ŋ;s^꘠&K ph+bZamS[#+Ze[hv W/R*u`cЙ-l`@)6s3\HZrAnAKZK 0ut+*i&j'I~rS+fp=}R?q&=n99wFe^qN0˲WabjI/חo!&~UK p>.W@ecnVgbT\eE}CrZ:;P?퇋ӵu)A'$9!ރn]%4KE i#<׫0c1!J,/ֆe],ɑ|yx(z tEֶ[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&#ﳅ᲏/'hbL0>[.r&R\Gx-$Z [Q+S+/A\*JI5mxu99x]jd*O@IMn&F`;!& 8d+k"9RHG388d\嶚_1o~f,!*RH'._ĥ58d\|p4L~!4G5҉˷p5ߜ5WћjQc^OԘz(.zuzKzp}hOnᢷ\Jl,2G*amJ$!*vL'6;7MlzBޖl;Δ ѤdHofO!u/:x,͐l1b L$դ_V[0U>F^#V&}IcCggmB*/5…w2܏Jh$;6B:4 kBT.Fm|ҫ5# ]&OoᐃR)Y5l,^% ֍onYURHi'v)[3ސ,P;'WV%ȐvF)A&*RyD*lE1B,E[H.zzp2&w.nLtv1 ު>O]h4HGR\5A<5x?S_p.qKusEqoVԌ)E<ЎR]ZsZt`* rw u"rښ+JXZBpKU1H+< !*y150\ͅڑ]Ij[c"I2{]V@6 sa!  pY{_5He}GpepF\Qltr{fp*.bZ\,_i7ERe_WA0\E0.|y!.ZZOW1\K n.qi%Zh1\K#-&Z NLy #qRHS]*4x^b˪CΆK򺳅rLgqT5ҽ8H wi:1)Ҏ'OB xڽ:l˱V;V_gcsvkTW-lU>"$ĕP&;YwwSOyh<ŁV-Yr:Wd/}..YIwP?]ťz\rJE m:Z,I'}{WL\vFD+}a+X@taL+WXR.k=6VÅQ%7duԨR-LIze'aLԦy<@ƒgiI(9?+xGT rJlr' /I Dows y&ָgJ9w}p!8pta['KG%^1\6EۣSKR[H8ACϭv%98ޤDbu<@7³ u4 |\b? YHzyxHp&$%f)Tjy5o\\HZpޒf|\3p>B oe7.1Zor"[)I.Gud+[ #$&~FJC\@+XBѤ!!]w>ҭt t;xp~slPXt ⛖a\]#rG+4oRiYVF _O\BPE Q$9&KSr=򣸠• " 9`!ɉ W|+u.p9E/VJ`åI3܏{VY,C1KFR{(:$91殌.TqK]J X >`!OV[]ˏ+."FBK ]aJZ9eP>5s5. 4P6GR*1ra₺hXZKݛdDpcK`~Y̳h5hsvݺ4Ҡ@_|$;$O-Vp+נ-&% #t 9S3Duلpp/,qܚMO xBO) *PFT>J SԑyҨ )%) 5aŮDP)T.D0(0xƎ!)&tA엎h;D颓c4AuA4*xOEDwpW-)qԁd=ω.>3Q*(Ǎsn*Nj#xCY< 쑚`r oM^&IP p蚍I'"@1rJgtwL 8gz5̯œqKIp >CzΔ\bP.0䲙z^ '(RLBϯTaA\ =C$\7 ;`_?*x:= ڪ|g{\![bfz70\ /!xЃ<@ < ~#4\/` rV>}Pp sc^<.}.,V'Ӆd%o U ǤFy 3q߻XxAdE\>`ޟHOw F3O5MF1#+{n}JqE }GeWXB;Eg| Ȍ7OdpHȎ㦎g"#YFpX&r;P w;™*>tӫF<'ow-ږf palPt zP3__>B ,r.O_ʍ/1ε@C#7N(ԷE9Sځ*ky _c\$jR'\,PgRH_ (W2l;JȠҖ+u%*} q,&]VÒΏљy*IFzW@]ZZ\eOZ5Xʂ)r@Js"" # XFOX 5]&+IMY$3JV04\Xwf 7  ،2IENDB`Dd L  C (ASword07b$I \[󤽑9ln$I \[󤽑PNG  IHDR.lFPLTE@@@@@@@𠠤f[bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712Hs_IDATx^흍v* _G`a$!6Md 8?|đ@p(B(p ,0p(B(p ,0p(B(p ,0p(B(p ,g ;Kq|6ӎQ>_uݣdE+__װq㪾V]G*l;c\jsڳjau=x\bfrqR1яpⲪa\|!RALzvqzKaNKi/,̋?6 f6.C)R(!.?qg%5.t;b1@r\ny˪eg˪ꥸK L.bt+^q>x7p.!]X0]M6$EG6zA.dmV!n+B ?c\ sHɭ)ţxh:\m\~xulxkc[_+h:l=ZEe׊.ZǶ.[V9Wҷb:%gW{<N3a0ow' O.7$ݿ+Fj\R}𚑻g'? ^:B\b^VXsӓ$t]3Wz$ bڙ6n7Lv!Y 2as吸Q3~NjOf Yl`= ^Y^Dg* `*aj?ƃڹ[`\h,br?Ƈ*f+`.cz~ux`h4 @G%0GLH1щaxRgC^ƕ6#btc0YQcoL9f:*0Tc'N!A0PiM_/5Voˤ$'2֝/񣄚`M<ƋJ9Y:*#=04y]fEe0FIi&;%f˴fdBvk랂B~]=]ubǎ;\n+ &6B8v qz&,Tx%,=y;wK&uSCcX5 ׳k鱥{@Fr̙$zø9<< EPa`ZJ֙HK%ŅpLU{Otr t~\"`Iq*@k<_8v\rIT$R>q )C&eFLhK*WJC=[.{'I@f  \H5K^Yo8%bLAjHu$vago&E.y{Rp}Qn(L}39c2K(nE.-p4õ{jxZp=5\rxK7$Av;q9ߋꠥ33Bzivfd)G"vfnM/E!zs5D3.8U7.}9P nJK TMfX塚<үN B.'(yKoMkY/,yX1ngALd (`6=[u^ ]ojp5.u{lv꫃8)N \!9 GY!aM\IENDB` Ddt"6L   C (ASword08b2  ߰n҂m)&A FLln ߰n҂m)&APNG  IHDRLjyPLTE@@@@@@@𠠤|MbKGDH cmPPJCmp0712HsIDATx^흋r0 E?m[Pis2&esu* دo^(̠70&% &5)1L00I!`5IMJ  )LjRb`@M`RCj &PSԤ0&% &5)1L00I!`5IMJ  )LjRb`@M`RCj &PSԤ0aeB_"dBG&67Ei M+JWJļ0ҼU{% TX0&XZpj=*y[c~a",-x_kbkK@,X, U&XRbd#LT W*sÊ^,8_oӥPaZŒEKXZn4i߮3k 4,U04':,0پ^'eI3 fD^w@D{i,+k#Rf<#"STr`oA\3\ptT%0ًhD7:s )ĕ4C4V؈ǥ&Qz:߆qSbҜMș󵧻w’| 9ߙw+SWzI0Oc{MYsߝң|S}1>eP=T<+ +.{)}eW3z+5000}8 w?NQFL9'[ETLb-iVg:(Qe@N ӶY̷ L/|c4yl?mnxe<;|`33&71`33&71`ks%x.5_RG*՛t D[ЊJ^]G4MFLB5" ,M[ک?-;Gql `ת΍+nfDBS'4'$'۴vWF%iADdx SJت(/;w~B*P>T64)ŊŠVH`GX_r=~Ѥе_Kj~Vlnv>Ѥе_KjPNG  IHDRxqPLTE@@@@@@@𠠤|MbKGDH cmPPJCmp0712HsIDATx^흁*/61&Q,sO ds?~7o< ^#g<Ǯ{ZvZ{nfzL6#ke#w)6FALhTZ(A˅# En7լ}JzU,n,k!iCY޲}H]e})!iCyZ[pkҧg/Bv5z^c"5rou8Do6?DM= 9u`_GkN Z=@<)^S3s,J/6#zig6#ײ;>5^Z*kuHY# h!_MG\-Nq}?= )9)ڸl?ɡ];agx.9 6iewf>nJ[T^@LjУg6:#:8S(Oz5Rz,thMgJJ2I vWM r_ zAT-2}SGK =AUHT94T\:Q)| /)~{ܣ9 7w c#:=L{NT󠇒I |b A5z(_$j9~P̓Jjj!x[8o^T?c4s z yqU3ܣVoS]2X\K<ᮈ=̌H{>@O-k頷 N 6[Ik Ղ1VoPTEH{Y|̅T+ylnwlEa<~Ju{+1IwLB0Bfˌg@e@ng5^kCQ b!V(~+31 C2_9z88} ,ΟvG7SYe20BSسb(SGA8c^SaMۘ5bgˋ) Do'#j熶},1q1.d"_!kݛ/{i'oӹܮ~u~r,'&!d#`!uIf:I.Bc)˔% Mpi{7!`gS7aga}{7='VOs7gz85Х+d ԩ]ɐ0@՜#˻NtŜnco߼4|0K!&>40q 'W)>mr܍d4r;ox /V*ZŷGد̨6m0 ]_މ20HBoCSnK䊞S [4{Y y.hjj6|1Sw Ͼvz`kf (=KX]г42\ГXlNQ\nbYhPƺI!I8N`QN삧1HmBC@hd*ZSȦouzQO!1z [hbQq t8D[|T>A҈|W ՛<;CzcLo`t7=A+ ߏAQ/&BxMx,=0mD r0ل,@rK7J/K 9AS&oFaz󓏗{uaz <է>Tq5ݱ "Dr&?p7tgL^ԣaЛ|ahT|i2P}6Alϑ*q-Cord>:Huzo=0$Apϱ+Q=kq-6P9^]$zU|A|ǫɣ7t @uA[E7_ znru zJ]/{urp`қ (yAAl z<Çs/MWswOr2n#:o1X[9æGz01aPO}S 3{lUF}#LnS+]F@Χw|ѻO#׃'z ~cѣ\9_,eyo*A7{"A 4 z>s<>Nle#}Joi׌ǜU:wqz~× FhV|5qzsMzЃ A~G=E%,zظAP ȣZeUJbfcԻlѿfHλ$AU FHǎ$<2j,C׫ZXfj:a᱾ǀZJ-~HHEz/(0F_YɑS AD!E-7 =b<( %jg&8N2E-fL(vUzd0>Lxy!FqKo?ao(钷azbЂ{ ?G~ pk#F$goLgc ހhc3H=E 8F"Q9&AONlyKhd4 }0whue QZaIٹ/̈PQO =:q A}l.Qd[*-KtAdVun$K £/&fG|< г^==r ,Ƚ Г_)FMiZ\'4\K ۶ Bu3G0i Mv.X#ZcLOm8 9hUç?ڤe]*r)ď5iOԄ4 zsvbHETπ:vHv-'tz+sJ7R&[ [zTzɧb]a;>&KNS*e0m諟`4E6 0c )|!59 ;YJ|4<`+ar%=:eV:ã[:.٤̸kNK->E/~QkA4 U^Ȗ-݊MLK0&&bJk%:HfxRpDL,z^c$TzPb%NL^NBu j81y9 !&^]0Hr\]ΛdW?O'=<MϳC(H,l}xp3(h᭔WtURT)JތY^ Rw=*vZNjoDjNX o^ޓ7:9}yK#l!/mEGPҘD yC0^3qTe ?§5з<¦J߲ߊTM5= wW[5PVxf{U[Vxkye|vC oeC- xPϫDb;xa75khC6*>_{/Ws~b9;$7Qxi^wdm۶z]todvGi׭[%Jc9ox.۬0y܌d$u=tݶNjGm+_)׸2I}MhךhzW9e:[o5.7o{LyJ=4~15gw|PDRϩw$k}vk?g DIENDB`Dd oo\   C 8Sword12Sword12 Dd{DL  C (A Sword12 bXl*ȃ L1ؗ@BO4{ln,l*ȃ L1ؗ@BOPNG  IHDR|7V0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmIDATxI EӴǔi:\fW !J_+e{Pa3u &dubU:HY[5Pq3޸Uq` %+wY YBݘVBVΨ:X!kR7&23`"i]% kJX(X;0&q{cFZ挺7NWzt] +sY*1rF 3xOᯬ}_Y{#k7t~cL:?rFEldX1]Vyڏ cSX}ڑ1iYqFdp(֎ ɚ`>3ŊXYktU؊:2Uʰ0ɘ8Fd ZnXbc7&̊Ѭ`D |e(/R*PmbcWz?] T1-Y-랤5l5V5`˚e}|,2@D9JDkk9*90k uVY0bju@Vȸmraң&: RތȚ8+=UfsYrɎy{+,2;lO5&̪F!s㢳d7WVXzSadm=}Jכk]D$.aDI,ֵNqXeyD̀VXÌ4k_t`?+-XyWb ֺ _yi:UY7V'dd3~zq"gh}oepD>? KCh!駬f&-XW"h .ԲBHc`Vp۰;s)fWss}x>~>nOaU" ~ #_çݪr'"QjΛE5o،Ҽ}4DH%u9 d#O]ݮ˫%VuػQT~-!k`?akէ6VΊ Jbʯ+agv:=}އu%Pk֐G55`7-6`}Og1cuPi+Qb ln>i+QbPNG  IHDR~v0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmYIDATx] [FP_j%a3wR 5xi_ڗ}i`iGӅ"zH55i9n[yl`K]ڮ-jJݢ֮a}eoQ]iHۏEu`Qi9ÆeڌKI IOekӂ2yV/YTt>#n>r RhG28ZV.պ-c OpF ɒt.gf(D2-Z%DeYhINCK[8R NAKdTSeMexi獗vxi獗v!ۀ&pd^Ar\I.\ m/;'Zamo߄vKy/"Mv}_x˻1}Ѿw5m $bYӥ56!9zDu&n5#mKASELaC )E)1]īB!ܺS J:},.psQ\aQ a,[KBM!0PS+,)Jk Q5Bc0rBCbSC+u/:tְ7!B[?P9qU - ;~9WADa`JA~;|0vm) D8s>S'L "8,aNžO#%kDU!ymyWx~v5Eʏy {c 9fS/Sy!_﷨PuvM#Bd뽰A;Iy ՜IԛͯPӚ vI705U=vrW}B.͍' 㟜I^#46S P(a^"CXnb˫ŦB!mOk[v-ͦ-M}0i[ t7x£f,?S8~ j~IENDB`mDd^sL  C (ASword17br'RjD&RM˒lnr'RjD&RMPNG  IHDR]q{T0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmIDATxm΄ AKn H4f -غnNNrB|9!_N/'ėk0:Hc1CT)Bl"E8EOg"1!XN"%ĉ @N8"T- u]M|bP3J(*/V2J*эmd/-2524_?CR;C4ܗ['7_YN_N8awOh!;[ /@BoGòhWS L:VԎ;עXujhmM.9I)m*bc O ekANȬ0y q0N＄De],sf$au[,TB[Zm ipWPfnZ: 짢KQ裭RDrO(I1qO骃L6IENDB`bDd / L  C (ASword18b]\G@stfK8ln]\G@stfKPNG  IHDR\0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmIDATx ܀?Ae 腩Y ?L˚FD_J{ɵ&&k7E+[6io{ܔשCi){e4{p1Qy-C5^^NF^i:khhKn44444444444444444444ږ{i#{T Y1~ c41Ryd&f\UseUVOhi@CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCChʦ׿-n}{Z+w%44444444%5wcs>7K'5tJv} ٬ьyZsx]"aYGq~1n& RnB: ꖲ#nsŸZbx55Uob!%-I]\*;I.Sǥ 4Pk 5jԨQFe&Ij9%Zq"55Pjv"|jzTSfNDxafsPN#͝4g+'F4)B ./Դ:-snBmLsԨQF5jԨQwq꘤ɳ:~-}Niw2gZ+M -̝nRLں|jpWǐ,Vk&>a ikrzy.̛ VӊJ\mbC38ia_2 x) *#yT0GLnj^@e>xtLn1i3wjNIENDB`Dd / L  C (ASword20b@wE]} ,lnwE]} ,PNG  IHDR\0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmiIDATxkr `݀ߒ1~EBL'_S;5jԨQF5jԨQF5jԨ}ZjUAgjYx@k4s`4X;֤5[4TF5-S ^h jjI -[AZ5j8hh9D4iyD4-\j_W617$SNM G҆1jԨQF5jԨQțɾ"ZNKJҡE[][5"9cmԶl۶Ӳ]=u#[+O!51>`hMbk'p{c8t{ %0!N(!;Q7@BwGݲh WM0Nh\K tb&nv^S/R:T^Jw' geo2! iq>B9J5g}[],}d:G]Cy0Ruk1n2آ w'TaG<]d(N80'DQp:<^ԡEa u>-@k9mms)[$!ßZN(vhF ?>(EIENDB`Dd^sL  C (ASword22bX({I-0N <%4\ln,({I-0N <%PNG  IHDR]q{T0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmIDATx휍v [ Xϲ͸n]G%aF"<%$ʿ:}\r~QL/+ !NHcʄ *!5:!V {xCm-=#B-LEQe$< ep7:B#!Ue"DFdB!B, -XFb*|0 SߟD]da!lV^O1"YBM-Bh"&J B6H PY|*+J=l\&|}+YɟpCaH-p#a;!R܊ {|Ba-!+W~dD!@L$',2 D!-u-fnց1QhWB1QP D6U(}7B| dR(EM.{Bn{J_&TՁX4 KԠFX~Oh$fF*.V>v-vd vKKN??0uqXfLXL簃Vm%)}mT8Lȅ~Ht':W0=JO,0 [I'BF-Lc2w'ʥ>ƎG3G)C)2B;.wok*!L{xt,s | !~OV!IENDB`Dd^sL  C (ASword25b&>JGxS=uln&>JGxS=PNG  IHDR]q{T0PLTE{bKGDH cmPPJCmp0712OmDIDATxr EAKn@ iwl~]nuFhFh d2B|!_F/#ėKH]?Hiu#$oA*"Y( B!8,bY( B!H,XC}u3LnL\O' ς%,h33KX4߻2JH!= d .a㒔pgE6I0WM7, aRUW_4W<{&ߗ[6]#B4 ~B-?{B3ўhbhD=1M5{wa|!,z㋸.{z"/{[cLH.wy c}+͕5a<2G<~Zg&.?@AzCCCDDEEdFqF$H/HHHIIJ&JJJELgL>NONOO]OQ&QS$TTKU]UW8YKYTY^ZnZZ[[[(0(0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0(0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 000(00000(000(0000000(000000000000(00000(00(000000000(00000(00(00(00000000(000000000(0000(000000000(00(00(00(00000000(00(0000000(080080000000000000000(00(00(00(00000(000(0(00(00(0003 +3Wv}:ecCO&w  @ - ^ `V $&/P !""J#L###S$p$Y%[%%%%%&&&'1((())H*J***S+,,a-j-..&0<01 345668R:[:;t<>.?@AzCCCDDEEdFqF$H/HHHIIJ&JJJELgL>NONOO]OQ&QS$TTKU]UW8YKYTY^ZnZZ[[[000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0# 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@0 0@00@00@00@00@00@00@0O0@0O0@0O0@0O0@0O0@0O0@0O0@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00@00 00R !$Pc27;w *4KK]c35689:<c4[]?A  [CCCo=a![ ![9*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsplace $z!ns!  Z> V_..S0[02296@6668888=9D9R:Z:`:h:::;;====>>{????@@^@d@iAoAAABB(B/B{BBCC)C0C?CFC^CeC{CCCCCCCC-D3DcDjDDDDDEE F'FdFnF]GdG$H,HBHMHHHIIHJQJJJKKQMXMMMMM>SHSJTQTSTZTUUUUVViWtWWXXXKYRY[(2v|CNz_dZ>DU  &.F I !"H#L%N%&&(()F*++,,a-i-..&0;0[::;;ZA^A{CCCCDDEEEEdFoF$H-HIIJ$JxKzKL$LWL\LLL>NNN OOOO\OOPQ%QKU\UUU8YJYKYSY^ZmZZZ[[333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333(vv}   Z`a> &&S$T$8888Z:Z:zC{CJJHZHZ[[[Z> [HAldAvh3^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(opp^p`CJOJQJo(@ @ ^@ `CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(PP^P`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(opp^p`CJOJQJo(@ @ ^@ `CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(^`CJOJQJo(PP^P`CJOJQJo(dAvHAl B#e$tH3 '4[>:.PWsZXfFmUG 3 ;/ |6V+]*Q &4q+ 6= H!$u(O+e/0e[2{L3H38[:q?;?0BZB0uEe[FsG H[+HoHnKzKEM2SG}S;X{XG3YuY!4\HB\e}dH e[desexfeg6hjEcmUnCvP[w+3zN}x}~NA %BW<}yK8vYBb5pxGN%!B< 2E#CSbd4cd`H\~ H17VViA~^elqA9]XpwN0u7[*ko#lK*O8 "V)LF 6B,@[[X@[[[@UnknownG: Times New Roman5Symbol3& : Arial?5 : Courier New;Wingdings"1hDf#Df N. N.!4[[2QKX ?sG2'The making of a Latex/Flat Blade Weapon Mark Mensch Mark Mensch     FMicrosoft Office Word Document MSWordDocWord.Document.89q@Oh+'0(< P\ |  PProposal Inclusion of Flat Blade and Latex Weaponry into the LARP Alliance Mark MenschObjInfo WordDocument.zSummaryInformation( DocumentSummaryInformation8#` cbjbj .z[----4-<>2|-:------->>>>>>>$?h*B5>7.--7.7.5>--J>5557.-->57.>55::,;-p- @-1; >`>0>; B4B;;B;,--5- -S---5>5>u5.--->7.7.7.7.d The making of a Latex/Flat Blade Weapon Materials. 6mm and 12mm thick closed cell high-density polyurethane foam (Often sold under the brand names "Plastazote" or "Calogen") (*). Glass fibre tubing 12mm extermal diameter (**). A small piece of scrap cloth (Cotton). Impact adhesive (Evo Stick). Latex. Acrylic paints (silver and black). Hot melt glue gun (Optional). Tools. Ruler. Pen. Hacksaw. Some very sharp craft-knives (with extendible blades). Sandpaper. Soldering Iron (Optional). Smallish paint-brushes (I find the ones meant young children good). A collection of jam jars or similar pots. (*) It is important to use closed cell high density polyurethane foam. Do not be tempted to cut corners and use "Karrimat" style camping foams as this will mush up quickly and make the sword unusable. Under no circumstances use the soft furniture foam! (**) Glass fibre rod is virtually indestructable and will provide a former that is light yet strong. Some people use carbon fibre if they want a particularly light blade but carbon fibre rod is considerably more expensive. The Design. Start off by designing the sword. Get an old newspaper and draw out the sword on a 1:1 scale. The scale is important as things which look fine on a small scale can suddenly look ridiculous when they are scaled up. For the purpose of this am going to build a very simple bastard sword (Fig. 1).  Cutting the Former. The first thing to do is cut the former to length. Cut a length of former that is 1000mm long. Generally you want a former that is 50mm shorter than the final length of the sword. Use fine sandpaper smooth of the sharp edges of the former. Wrapping the end with duct tape will also help to dull the edges however do not do it too thick else it will hamper the construction process. (Cutting glass fibre rod is fairly unpleasant as it produces a fine dust which contains powdered glass. It is advisable to cut the former outside and wear a face mask when doing it to avoid breathing the dust.) Making the Blank. The first stage is to make the blank for the blade. Cut 2 pieces of foam 60mm X 770mm from the 6mm sheet and one piece 60mm X 770mm from the 12mm sheet (Fig. 3).  Take the piece of 12mm thick foam and cut out a strip 12mm wide from the centre of this leaving 35mm at the end (Fig. 4).  It is now time to construct the blade blank. Take the 3 pieces of foam and the former. They will eventually be assembled as shown below (Fig. 5).  Tip Reinforcement. This stage is often neglected by people making thier first weapons but it is probably the most important part of making a sword. Take two small squares of material and cut 2 small squares approximately 35mm X 35mm. Soak them in glue and leave them to dry. The best material to use is silk as it is very difficult to tear although cotton is a reasoanble substitute On the two 6mm sheets mark a line across them 35 mm from the end as shown. Take the 2 pieces of cotton and glue them on to the two 6mm sheets as shown making sure that you use plenty of glue. Note how the thread of the fabric is positioned so that it lies at 45 degrees to the former and not running across the end (Fig 6). This helps prevent the fabric from tearing across the end of the former.  Some people use thin rubber sheet such as a bicycle inner tube or strapping tape but, although successful I have personally not had a lot of success with this. Glue one of the 6mm sheets to the 12mm central sheet with the cloth between the two. Now glue the former into the central channel. Be careful to make sure that you spread glue along all the walls of the central channel as well as on the former. If you have a hot melt glue gun position the former so that there is a 2-3mm gap at the end, otherwise ensure that the former is forced all the way up to the end of the channel Fig.7).  Take the hot melt glue gun and fill in the small gap at the end of the former with hot melt glue. This helps to make a slightly flexible section on the tip of the former which helps extend the life expectancy of the weapon. Now that you have done this glue the other 6mm sheet on to this with the cotton inwards again. You should now have something which looks like a foam cricket bat (Fig.8). Leave this overnight for the glue to dry fully .  Shaping the Blade. Now mark out the shape of the blade. The final blade will be 50mm wide so mark 2 lines down the 50mm apart and an equal distance from either side. Locate the tip of the former either by feel or by holding the blade up to a strong light. Mark this point on the balde and another line 25mm from it. Mark the tip on the blade being careful not to start tapering the tip until the end of the former. In order to get the tip symetrical it is a good idea to cut a small card template that is the shape of half the tip and use this to mark out the tip on the foam (Fig 9). INCLUDEPICTURE "../New%20Folder/Images/Sword09.gif" \* MERGEFORMAT  Now take a sharp knife and carefully cut out the blade. You should now have something which looks like a sword blade when viewed from the top (Fig. 10). INCLUDEPICTURE "../New%20Folder/Images/Sword10.gif" \* MERGEFORMAT  Cutting the Edge. Cutting the edge is probably the most difficult part of making a sword (or any edged weapon). The secret is to take your time marking things out and use a sharp knife. Marking Out. The first stage is to take the blade and mark a line around the centre of the blade where you want the edge to be. I find it better to mark two lines very close to each other (about 1mm apart). This leaves a very narrow flat edge on the sword which helps to prevent the latex from splitting along the edge but it undetectable on the finished sword. It also helps disguise slight deviations in the actual cutting of the edge (Fig. 11).  The next stage is to mark the lines on the sides of the blade where the edge will come to. The further these are away from the edge the steeper the angle of cut will be and the blade will look better as a result. The drawback is that a steeper cut also makes the actual cutting of the blade more difficult and slight imperfections will be more obvious. I think a good compromise is to mark the edges of the blade 20mm in from the edge of the blank (leaving a 10mm wide gap up the centre between the two) (Fig. 12). INCLUDEPICTURE "../New%20Folder/Images/Sword12.gif" \* MERGEFORMAT  [This assumes the blade is 24mm think. If the blade is of a different thickness you will need to adjust the distance accordingly. As a general rule the following equation can be used (Fig. 13).]  1.67 X Distance from centre of blade to edge (A) = Distance away from edge (B). Cutting. Now take a sharp knife. Do not use the modelling knife you have been using up to this point but get a new one. Go somewhere this is well lit and take your time. Try and cut the edge in one single stroke with the knife going slowly and steadily taking your time. Whatever happens avoid using a sawing motion as this will produce a jagged edge which looks more like a saw edge than a sword edge. Your first edge is likely to be a bit jagged. Do not be discouraged by this, cutting edges is a matter of practice as much as careful marking out. You can use fine sandpaper to try and smooth out any imperfections afterwards. You should now have the finished blade (Fig. 14).  The Ripper Method. An alternative to cutting the edge with a knife is to use the "Ripper Method". This is a more rough and ready method than carving the blade described above. It can be done several ways. The use of a belt sander or a sure form tool (rasp used for drywall) will help to tear down the edges quicker. However, you need to be careful as not all foams are alike and while some may shape easily, others may not. This method does take a bit of practice, but, once you've got the hang of it, is MUCH quicker and easier than carving the blades, though the inside edge of the blade isn't as sharply defined. It also goes without saying that all the precautions of working with power tools should be followed - tie long hair back, don't wear loose clothes, and, most of all, since your fingers will be coming into close proximity with the sander, mind your fingers! Making The Hilt. There are three different ways to make the hilt. The choice of method will depend on the design of the sword to a certain degree but all three are possible. Method 1 - The Foam Sandwich. This is the method I use. It is exactly the same as the method used to make the blade. Three pieces of foam are cut out and a slot is cut in the centre one before they are glued together to form a sandwich. (If you are clever you can cut the centre piece 12 mm smaller than is actually needed and then cut it in half rather than cutting a strip out the middle.) Cut the foam so that the place where the hilt joins the blade is accurate but leave excess foam all round the other edges (Fig. 15).  Once the foam is glued in place mark out the design of the hilt (Fig. 16).  Carefully cut out the design of the hilt. You should now have a sword that looks like the one below (Fig. 17).  To make the hilt thicker than the blade you can use three thicknesses if 12 mm foam rather than one thickness of 12 mm and two thicknesses of 6 mm. Method 2 - The Large Block. With this method the entire hilt is made from a single piece of thick foam (25 mm). Take a block of foam that is large enough to cut the entire hilt from (The hilt is made completely separately from the rest of the sword)(Fig. 18).  Mark out the hilt as shown below (Fig. 19).  Once the hilt has been made it is cut in half as shown below (Fig. 20).  A channel is cut in each half to take the former where it has been cut. The 2 pieces are then glued together on either side of the former to make the hilt. You should now have a sword that looks like the one below (Fig. 21).  Method 3 - The Single Sheet. This method is not suitable for making the design of hilt used on this sword but it quite useful for making the hilts on oriental swords which tend to have small hilts. A single piece of foam (usually 12 mm) is cut out in the shape of the hilt. A hole is punched in the centre of this and it is slid over the end of the former to make the hilt. This method can only be used if the former hasn't been weighted (or by using an awful lot of foresight and placing the hilt over the end of the former before the blade is made). Making The Pommel. This method is exactly the same as the method used to make the blade. Three pieces of foam are cut out and a slot is cut in the centre one before they are glued together to form a sandwich. Cut the foam but leave excess foam all round the edges (Fig. 22).  Once the foam is glued in place mark out the design of the pommel (Fig. 23).  Carefully cut out the design of the hilt. You should now have a sword that looks like the one below (Fig. 24).  To make the pommel thicker than the blade you can use three thicknesses if 12 mm foam rather than one thickness of 12 mm and two thicknesses of 6 mm. An alternative pommel making method to make cylindrical pommels with their axis in line with the blade, is to wind strips of 6 mm foam around the base of the former to build up a cylinder. Cut the base flat and glue some 12 mm on as a cap to cover the former and then cut the 12 mm as a continuation of the cylinder. Decoration. You might want a totally plain sword in which case there is no need to do any decoration. However most swords have some form of decoration on then and there is a number of ways to go about this. Carving. There are a number of ways of carving decoration into the hilt and pommel. The obvious method is to use a knife but a soldering iron makes an excellent tool for melting patterns into the surface. (When using a soldering iron work outside and avoid breathing the fumes given off as they are very unpleasant.) A small modelling drill can also be used to engrave the surface. Building Up. The other alternative to carving material away is to add material to the hilt and pommel. Patterns can be built up by gluing small pieces of foam glued onto the hilt or latex castings can be glued on. One other possibility is to use the hot melt glue gun to build up patterns using small dots and lines of glue. Making the Hand Grip. The final stage before latexing the finished sword is to build up the hand grip. There is no hard and fast rule about how thick a hand grip should be as it depends on the size of your hand and personal preference. I personally think a lot of professional weapon makers make their hand grips too thin which results in them twisting in your hand as you try to use them. There are two approaches to making the grip. The first is to simply wrap foam around the handle and glue it in place until you achieve the desired thickness this will probably require two layers of foam). This is very simple and produces a reasonable grip but it can be a little soft and squidgy particularly if you are making a fairly thick grip. The second method produces a slightly firmer grip. Take the former and wind it in a thick plastic rope as tightly as possible (washing line is good for this). Use double sided sticky tape on the former to make sure the cord won't slip. If you have weighted the former the cord can be used to build the rest of the hand grip up to the same thickness as the part of the former with the metal tubing on. Now wrap the cord in a layer of foam as above to build the grip up to the desired thickness. This method produces a very nice grip which is firm enough to allow good control of the weapon but has just enough give in it to make it nice and comfortable to hold. Finally wrap the grip in a layer of gaffer tape. This helps to prevent the foam from breaking up after prolonged use which can result in the grip going squidgy. The sword should now look like the one below and is ready for latexing (Fig. 25).  One other method of making a grip which I do not recommend involves taking a length of plastic tubing. Two holes are drilled in either end of this and it is slid over the former and screwed into position before the pommel is made. This method is quick (which is why some people use it) but it produces a narrow, hard grip which is uncomfortable to hold and the fact that it is screwed onto the former introduces a weak point in the weapon just in front of your hand where stresses are at a maximum and a sword is most likely to snap anyway. Latexing Before you start latexing the first thing to do is to make sure you have got somewhere to put the weapon to dry once you have latexed it. Make a wire hook that wraps around the hand grip of the weapon than can be used to hang the weapon up on a washing line or other support. [I've got an old clamp stand that was being thrown out of a chemistry lab which is ideal for holding weapons while they dry.] Latexing When latexing work in a well ventilated area. The mixture of vapour given off by the latex and the paints can be pretty noxious. Be careful to avoid leaving brush strokes on the weapon if at all possible, on areas like the blade make sure all brush strokes run lengthways and this should help to minimise problems. don't use brushes which are too big. I find that the paint brushes meant for small children are about the right size for most things but you might want a slightly bigger brush (a half inch paint brush) for larger areas. To start give the weapon four coats of clear latex covering the entire weapon apart from the handle leaving each coat to dry fully before applying the next. Take care to make sure you cover the edges of the blade and try to avoid latex building up in cracks like where the blade joins the hilt. For these coats you might want to colour the latex using poster colour. This isn't essential but it makes it easier to see where you have been. If you are making more than one weapon be very careful that they do not touch each other between coats of they may become permanently bonded together! Next apply 2 more coats of coloured latex to the whole weapon. I tend to use a pale grey for these coats. The next stage is to apply 2 more coats. This is where you may have to start latexing the blade and hilt separately depending on what colour you want them to be. These coats should be a rough approximation to what you want the final colour to be. An exact match isn't important but having an approximate colour makes getting the final coats to cover properly a lot easier. I tend to use grey on areas that will eventually be silver or black and brown on areas that will eventually be gold, bronze, copper or brown (wood effect). The final three coats are need to be the colour of the finished surface. This will generally be silver for the blade and may be any of a range of colours for the hilt and pommel. If you are using 2 or more colours apply the lighter colours first and overlap them onto the areas that will be covered with the darker colours. The reason for this is that the overlap will ensure that you don't end up with a bare line showing through at the join where the 2 colours didn't meet up and darker colours cover lighter colours much better than light colours cover darker ones. Colouring Latex. Latex Colourants. Colourants are available especially for colouring latex. They are mixed directly into the latex using about 5% colorant to obtain quite a rich colour. These are great if they happen to come in the colours you want but as of yet I haven't found any metallic colourants. Paints. Any water soluble paint can be used to colour latex. Paints which are fairly runny such as poster colour can be mixed directly into the latex. Thicker paints such as artists acrylics must be mixed with a small amount of ammonia first or they won't disperse properly in the latex. Artists Acrylics. Artists acrylics work quite well in my experience. The metallic colours tend not to be quite as good as some of the others though. Flexithane. This is a specially formulated paint that is designed to give a flexible polymer coating. It is not mixed with latex but can be painted straight onto the latex. The silver gives an excellent metallic finish but I don't know about other colours. If you think about using this stuff work outside as it stinks of some really foul cocktail of organic solvents which is pretty noxious. The main drawback is that it is supplied in 1l tins. Liquitex. This is a somewhat specialised paint that can be found in art shops. I have never used it myself but I have heard people say it gives excellent colours. Miniature Paints. I find that Miniature paints are quite good for metallic colours and quite a few people use them although personally I don't. The best known brand is probably Citadel Miniatures. Other Acrylics. Any other paint that you can find that is water based is worth a try. It might be a disaster but it might be great. Poster paint. This is generally only useful for colouring the base layers of latex. It can be used for convenience so that you can see where you have been Stretchi Paint. This is a specially formulated water based paint that is not mixed with latex but is designed to be painted straight onto the surface of the latex. I have tried this recently and it gives a nice finish. Colours include Gold, Bronze and Black and the Gold and Bronze avoid the problem of cuprous pigments which is described below. (There isn't a Silver in this range to my knowledge. A Word of Warning About Pigments. Avoid any paint which contains a cuprous based pigment as cuprous based pigments rot latex. Paints should list the pigments on the side of them so its not too difficult to spot the ones which could give trouble. As a general rule the colours likely to contain the offending pigments are Gold, Copper, Bronze, Brass and any similar colours. Paints can be found in these colours which don't contain cuprous pigments but they tend to be the exception rather than the rule. Latex Thickener? Personally I don't use thickener as I find it tends to leave brush strokes in the latex but some people use it. Thickener will reduce the number of coats that are needed but I find a few more thinner coats gives a better finish than less thicker ones do. Highlighting. If you have an airbrush (or have access to one) you can use this to highlight the weapon. Many people use black to highlight but it looks much better if you use a very dark silver (a mixture of black and silver). Just use the paint alone to highlight rather than mixing it with the latex. Latex is very difficult to airbrush with (and even worse to clear out when it blocks the nozzle). Latex can be sprayed but it requires an industrial sprayer. Varnish. Some people varnish weapons. This helps to stop the finish rubbing off but I find that it gives a very "plastic" look to the weapons which I don't like as it is too shiny but if you have airbrushed highlights on you will need to give it at least one coat of varnish. If you do varnish weapons only use a thin coat. I have seen heavily varnished weapons where the varnish is so thick and inflexible that it cracks to form a lovely cobweb pattern when a thumb is pressed against the side of the blade. An alternative to varnish is clear Flexithane. This gives a flexible finish so doesn't have the cracking problems associated with varnish and it doesn't look as shiny either. I have started using this recently and it is the best solution I have discovered so far. Another finish which is often used is Isoflex. Isoflex Special Primer (not the main coat) is actually a roof sealant and can be obtained from larger hardware stores. It gives a hard wearing very glossy finish. *WARNING* Both Flexithane and Isoflex give off very noxious fumes so work outside! Cleaning Brushes. Latex is insoluble in water once it is dry so it is important to clean brushes immediately after use. Rinse the brush in warn (but not hot) water and use plenty of detergent to remove the latex. Even so brushes will slowly become clogged with latex. In order to remove the more stubborn build ups soak the brushes overnight in brush cleaner (PolyClens seems to work best). The cleaner appears to rot the latex and causes it to swell. It can then be removed by using a wire brush. Once you have done this wash the brush very thoughrally using plenty of detergent as it is important to remove all the brush cleaner and small fragments of latex that will be remaining. Flexithane and Isoflex are virtually impossible to shift from brushes. Water, Detergent, Brush Cleaners, Turpentine, Petrol and Paraffin all fail. Soaking it overnight in brush cleaner and then wire brushing as above will make the brush "usable" again (even if it is still somewhat rigid with a few less bristles now). Finishing Touches. Talcing. Once the final coat of latex is dry lightly dust the sword with talcum powder. This will remove and residual stickiness and will stop the sword sticking to all and sundry. If you have varnished the sword the talc isn't essential bit I think its still a good idea. Silicone Spray. This is an alternative to talc. It doesn't dull the finish like talc tends to but it does make the weapon feel oily all the time. The Hand Grip. The final stage is to wrap the hand grip in leather. Don't be tempted to use leatherette as this can be horribly sweaty and clammy. The leather can be either glued or sewn on. (w x y ^  Z[\]^_`a>?@ABC ! ! !jvhsGUjjnhsGUjmhsGUj~VhsGUjUhsGUjLhsGUj\9hsGUjK hsGUjhsGUj hsGUj#hsGUhVV hsG5\hxjhsGUhsGhVVhVVCJ aJ 3(3 + 3 W v } : e c C O & w gdsG & Fdd[$\$gdsG & Fdd[$\$gdsGgdsG$a$gdVVcw y z @-^ gdVV$a$gdsGgdsGgdsG`DV $ !!!&"/"#$$$$?(P(( )**$a$gdsGgdsGgdVV$a$gdsGgdsG ! !!!!!:"?"$$**J+K+++S,T,Y-Z-----..11H2I222>>>>@MMdNoN$Pxpii hVV5\j1hsGUj\hsGUjhsGUjhsGUjhsGUj̝hsGUjVhsGUjhsGUhVVjhsGUjbhsGUjhsGUjvhsGU hsG5\jhsGUhsGj{hsGUjhsGUj{hsGU)*J+L+++S,p,Y-[-----.../100011H2J222S34gdVVgdsG$a$gdsGgdsG44a5j566&8<89 ;<=>>@@RB[BCtDF.G@IzKKKgdVVgdVV$a$gdsGgdsGgdsGgdVVKLLMMdNqN$P/PPPQQR&RRRETgT>VOVOW]WY&Y[$\\K]gdVVgdVVgdVV$P-PPPQQR$RRR\]cchsGhVV hVV5\ K]]]_8aKaTa^bnbbcccgdVVgdVV ,1h/ =!"#$% Oh+'0 (4 T ` lx(The making of a Latex/Flat Blade Weapon Mark Mensch Normal.dot Mark Mensch1Microsoft Office Word@2~@@* N՜.+,0 hp  LBNL.[ (The making of a Latex/Flat Blade Weapon Title1TableSummaryInformation(DocumentSummaryInformation8 CompObjq Normal.dot Mark Mensch4Microsoft Office Word@:@ C@ZcP՜.+,D՜.+,|8 hp  LBNL)  MProposal Inclusion of Flat Blade and Latex Weaponry into the LARP Alliance Title 8@ _PID_HLINKSA Bhttp://home.clara.net/arianrhod/Aldebaran/DoItYourself/index.html  FMicrosoft Office Word Document MSWordDocWord.Document.89q@@@ NormalCJ_HaJmH sH tH DA@D Default Paragraph FontRi@R  Table Normal4 l4a (k@(No List6U@6 p Hyperlink >*B*ph . HIJVWPQ<=\] gh9: -.<=>00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000WPQ : -.<00<|00 00000000000000<\U00000000@00 0 p|0 00 000  00y <:6=XZX: _1248096341X@Xo=tu o=o=o=lo=ao=ܕo=,; N N uu P P ww8*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsCity9*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagsplaceB*urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttagscountry-region z;G[g%3  " ai {:W  333333;CGGIJQQ=]Vqhi<<=>UG 3 ;/ |6V+]*Q &4q+ 6= H!2#$u(O+ .e/0e[2{L3H38[:q?;?0BZB0uEe[F H[+HoHnKzKEM2SG}S;X{XG3YuY!4\HB\e}dH e{0e[desexfeg6hjEcmUnCvP[w+3zN}x}~NA %BW<}yK8vYBb5 pxGN%!B< 6)2E#CSbd4cd`H\~ H17iA~^elSqA9]XpwN0u7[d f*ko#lK*raO8 p"V)LF 6B,@= @UnknownG: Times New Roman5Symbol3& : Arial7&  Verdana"qh;F+DfcP )cP )!24d2QKX)? .2LProposal  Inclusion of Flat Blade and Latex Weaponry into the LARP Alliance Mark Mensch Mark Mensch