For this project I’m going to show you how to forge a “Mini Master Sword”, out of
styrofoam. Make one just for fun and Cosplay. Or bury it in a bucket of sand, and turn it
into solid metal. However you wield your power, is completely up to you, because with this
Legendary Sword, you are the Master.
Let’s begin this project, with another sheet of dollar store foam board, and the Hot-Wire
“Styro-Slicer” I showed you how to build in a previous project.
You’ll also need this “Mini Master Sword” template, I drew in photoshop. And you can
have it for free, if you just say thank you, and check the description for a link.
Now you probably remember that dollar store foam board is just a layer of foam, sandwiched
between two pieces of paper, and if we carefully use a fingernail to pull up on one of the
corners, the paper peels right off, with hardly any trouble at all.
Alright, let’s get busy cutting out all the individual pieces from the template. And
if you want to save yourself from having to glue them on, then simply print your templates
on full page label paper instead.
Cut all the shapes out, as cleanly and neatly as you can, then go find a glue stick, so
we can stick them firmly onto the foam board, next.
Now when you’re adding glue to the back of the paper templates, you don’t actually
need to smear the entire piece of paper. That will only make it trickier to get off later on.
So just add a generous coating around the edges instead, then take time to position
the template carefully on the foam-board, pressing the edges down as smoothly as you can get them.
And if you utilize the space by keeping the pieces close together, you’ll be able to get 3 swords, from one board.
If everything looks smooth and secure, then go ahead and power up the “Styro-Slicer”.
The “Styro-Slicer” is a homemade hot-wire foam cutting factory, that has adjustable
power settings, for slicing styrofoam of all shapes and sizes, and can probably create
any custom Cosplay, or foam prop you can think up.
Alright, the first thing we need to do with this foam board, is chop the templates down, into manageable pieces.
I typically slide the foam up and down the wire a few times, to rough out the foam pieces
a little faster, then carefully trace each of the shapes, once they’re smaller, and easier to work with.
Now the two base blades need some really special attention, so let’s focus on them next.
Tracing around the edges of just the hilt, and the handles first, you can see the hot-wire
slices easily though the foam, but doesn’t actually go through the paper.
That’s really cool, because it leaves us with a really smooth, and professional looking cut.
Now hopefully you didn’t cut the blade out yet, because there’s a cool little trick
I’m going to show you for doing that next.
Move the arm of the “Styro-Slicer” to the side of the cutting base, then slide the
wire back into the center of the work surface, and you’ll see, you can adjust the angle
of the wire. How cool is that?
This means, that now we can give our blade a nice beveled edge. So set the wire around
45º and double-check it’s pointing away from you, then lay the sword flat on the cutting
base, and trace the blade.
Keep the wire as perpendicular to the lines of the template as you can, then carefully
trace the edges in four separate passes.
When you’ve made it around to the other side of the hilt, then stop, and pull the
sword straight back toward you, to release the wire.
Go ahead and peel the styrofoam off, from around the edges, and take a look, at that cool beveled blade.
And now that you’ve got the hang of it, go ahead and do the other sword the same way,
so we can move on to modifying, the thickness of the handle next.
Now for this next trick, you’re going to need to adjust the blade of the “Styro-Slicer”
so it hangs horizontally over the cutting base. And just like that, you’ve got the ability to cut foam bits, in half.
The blade can adjust to any thickness you want, but for simplicity, we’ll just be
cutting a few select pieces, in half.
The only parts that actually need to be downsized, are the 2 small blades, and the 2 handle grips,
which you can see leave us with 4 of each. But you can scrap the ones with paper glued
to them, because we won’t be needing them anymore.
Alight the pieces are all cut to shape, so let’s peel the paper templates off the foam,
and if you’re careful not to rip the paper, you can actually use the templates again, to make another sword.
Now before going any further, it’s a good idea to layout all the pieces on a table to make sure they’re all there.
You should have 28 pieces altogether, and if you do, then let’s get busy gluing them together.
There’s a little diagram on the template that shows how the finished sword is going
to look. So start assembling it by laying one of the base blades flat on a table, and gluing the hilt to the top.
Take a little time to adjust the bottom and the sides so they match up with the base blade on the bottom.
Then simply follow the pattern for the rest of the pieces, and you should end up with
two completed sides of the sword, that look identical.
Now simply add a generous amount glue, to the flat sides on the bottom, then gently,
but firmly, seal them together.
That’s pretty much it. All that’s left for finishing our “Master Sword” now, is carving out the Tri-Force.
Use a pair of scissors, or an X-Acto knife to carefully draw the 3 lines, to form a triangle
in the middle, then carve the little channels as deep as you like.
With that final step, your 3D foam sword is finished, and of course you can get creative,
and customize it any way you want.
I gently sanded the sword with a 220 grit sanding sponge, to smooth down any imperfections,
making our little homemade creation, look surprisingly professional.
Now before you get too crazy with your sword, it’s a good idea to leave it overnight so
the glue has a chance to dry completely.
And if you plan on turning your sword into aluminum, you’re going to need a foam riser
like this as well. So you might as well make one of those, while you’re waiting.
Simply cut the riser to whatever length you need, then bury the sword in a bucket of sand
and pour hot molten aluminum overtop.
You’ll see the styrofoam vaporizes instantly from the extreme temperature, allowing the
metal to flow in and take its place, before the sand even has a chance to collapse.
After 5-10 minutes of cooling, the metal will still be scalding hot, but should be hard
enough for you to grip onto with a pair of pliers or channel locks, so you can unearth the sword, from the sand.
Now the finer the sand you use, the more detail will be captured in your casting. And if you’re
happy with how it looks, just dip the whole thing in a bucket of water to cool it, then
clean it up a bit to finish it off.
These swords will take some time, and some skill to make, but they’re so low cost,
that you can make a whole arsenal of foam weaponry, for just a couple of bucks, and a bit of your time.
Well now you know how to use a little electricity, and some dollar store foam-board to forge
a powerful, and impressive, “Mini Master Sword”.
By the way if you try experimenting with different kinds of metals, you’ll probably find you
can cast a sword, from just about anything you want.
I melted a few handfuls of bullet casings, and turned them into a “Golden Sword”.
It’s over 3 times heavier than aluminum, but it makes a really cool addition, to my metal casting collection.
Well that’s it for now. If you liked this project, perhaps you’ll like some of my others.
Check them out at www.thekingofrandom.com