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DIY Foam Swords
April 16, 2010
You’ve seen foam swords like these for sale in toy stores and other shops. They usually run between $5 and $8 each. They’re fun for the kids to play with but they break very easily and don’t really last long. Today we’re going to show you how to make a more durable foam sword for about the same price by making a quick trip to your nearest hardware store.
Here’s a list of what we used to make two swords:
1 10ft piece of 1/2 inch PVC pipe
1 6ft piece of 1/2 inch pipe insulation
2 4ft pieces of 5/8 inch wood doweling
2 1/2 inch PVC 4-way joiners
8 1/2 inch PVC end caps
1 roll of duct tape
1 roll black electrical tape
Hacksaw or Dremel to cut the PVC
Utility knife or box cutter to cut the foam and tape
Step 1:
Cut the doweling down to 3ft (you can leave it at 4ft if you want but we found the kids had a hard time with this size so we shortened it)
Step 2:
Make a couple of cuts to your PVC. For a 3ft sword you want 1 28-inch piece, 1 8-inch piece and 2 3-inch pieces
Step 3:
With the 28-inch piece, place an end cap on one end and a 4-way on the other.
Slide the dowel into this piece
Step 4:
Place an end cap on the 8-inch piece and slide over the dowel connecting it to the 4-way piece
Do the same for the 3 inch pieces
Step 5:
Measure off your pipe insulation to just a few inches over the length of the word. For this we went with 30 inches.
Take off the end cap and slide the pipe insulation on. You don’t want to cut the insulation and put it on because you want to compact it on the pipe. Slide all the insulation on and compact it so that you have enough room on the tip of the sward to place the end cap on. Then make a small slit on the insulation and pull it up over the end cap.
Step 6:
Take a 2×2 square of duct tape and cover the ends
Step 7:
Beginning at the tip of the sword, run a line of duct tape around it, then run a spiral down the length of the sword
Follow this for all points of the sword. At the base of the sword you can get creative and glue a jewel or put stickers on it. As a final touch, run a straight line of duct tape from the base, around the tip, and back down the other side. This will give the blade a straighter look.
Step 8:
Using black electrical tape on the handle, run it in a spiral motion just like you did for the blade.
Now you have a foam sword that is durable but still safe to play with. The dowel inside the PVC offers enough strength to keep the pipe from bending too much and breaking. With the dowel being slightly smaller it also creates a nice “cracking” sound when you strike something.
Total cost of the project: $11 for two swords (not including the tape)
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