Specifically, a quaterstaff. I’m looking to buy one (Oh, dont ask me why :P) but I cant find anyplace. I’ve looked on the internet but I coulnd’t find anything. Frankly, I’d do it on the internet if I had to, but I’d rather find an actual store. Do these places actually exist? Do I stand a chance?
Go to your local lumber yard, and tell them you want a stairway bannister railing.
Had one in the next town over a while back… Closed now. So, they are out there, but I bet they’re getting killed by the net.
T-bon-----Make my own? I don’t think I’d be able to do that. I could make a long stick, but I know nothing about balance and all.
And Hammerbach…I think you’re right
You are talking about a big stick right? Like the bowstaff we use in Shorin-ryu.
Go to your local hardware/lumberyard and tell them you want a wooden closetbar. They come in lengths up to eight feet and can usually be found in hardwood as well.
Sounds good t-keela…um, what’s Shorin-ryu?
Ever been to a Renaissance Fair? I was at one in March and there are booths that sell all kinds of poles, axes, swords, knives, you name it. Good prices too.
No Cook, wish I was. Where/when do these things occur, do you know?
Shorin-ryu (style name)
“Shorin is the Japanese equivalent of the Chinese Sil Lum Loa (“Shaolin Temple Method”). Karate originated and developed in Okinawa, and all present-day styles evolved from there, Shorin-ryu (Shuri-Te) and Goju-ryu (Naha-Te) being the two original styles to be formally systematized. Both have remained pure in form to this day, although Shorin-ryu is considered to have had the most influence on the development of contemporary karate styles.”
Click on “All the Faires of the Americas” to try to find one near you.
I just want to add the word is [medieval.
Two sources for medieval weaponry:
They have lots of other cool stuff, too. I had a Medieval wedding, and I bought my wedding dress at renstore.
For a non-replica weapon, one that can be sharpened, & a D$mned good sword, go to Badger Blades LLC .
I know they have maces, warhammers, & godentags, so a good quarterstaff may not be out of the question.
You could probably go into any dojo and ask the sensei. I’ve been in some that actually had “stores” to buy things just for martial arts.
I still think a closet bar would probably be your best bet for now.
Forgive a hijack about spelling medieval – my doctorate is in medieval history, and when I lectured, I got all the spellings…the best definition I had of the ‘medieval period’ was someone who spelt it ‘mid evil’ and wrote that the ‘Mid evil times were between when all the people were bad in pagan Rome and all the times when they were having orgies and stuff in the Renaissance.’
As for your weapon, may I add to these lovely suggestions that you might also wish to find the local chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism…
Now if you really wish to do this hands on, whether actually going to a shop to buy or making (as opposed to ordering on-line),
hie thee to the nearest library (esp a uni lib) & you should be able to find richly illustrated books on medieval arms and armour.
cheers,
Ms Boods
There are a few dealers in UK that sell actual antique weapons. To find these look up Militaria dealers, and ask arround. The items I saw were deffinately affordable (something like $400 for a pole arm). I doubt quaterstaves would be so easy to findm but some well shod examples may be available.
Cheers, Bippy
I have a friend who bought one at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. It has leather wrapped around the middle as a handle and everything. Of course, she didn’t really buy it to use as a weapon–it’s mostly a walking stick and a complement to her Ren Fest costume. However, it did seem very well-balanced.
You could also go out in the woods and find a big stick and whittle on it. That’s probably what most people did back then.
If you can get your hands on a small circular saw and a six foot length of wood, cut it to the right width, set the blade to a forty-five degree angle, slice the corners to give it an octagonal cross-section and give it a light sanding to round the corners a bit. I find the corners help stiffen it and give more surface area for my hands to grip
If you just blindly take a long, round piece of wood, without knowing anything at all about balance or whatnot, and try to make a weapon out of it, what you’ll end up with is… A quarterstaff. There’s not really that much that can go wrong. In the worst case scenario, I guess your wood might have bad grain to it, and your staff ends up breaking, but if that happens, you just make a new one. Closet rod is really cheap.
Incidentally, the way I was trained to use a staff, you don’t want it to have a grip. You want a smooth, cylindrical shaft which you can easily slide your hands along (please check all double entendres at the door). But if you’re not specfically trained in staff-fighting, then just put on whatever sort of grip or lack thereof feels most comfortable to you.
The ridges don’t hinder sliding along the length, they mostly help my grip around it.