lol, i came off slightly brash, sorry about that, Ive been shredding my fingers on everything thats remotly pointy. Comes with the terriotory ^^"
Anyway, I am skilled (not obnoxtious l33t) at sword crafts and have my fare share of scars but nothing that i can brag about. I
had several weapon sets, off the top of me head, Jutte and Tessen, Dragonfly Tanto, set of three katana(for show -ill explian that) and a few others but thier names escape me.
New laws were intoduced after some fools were stupid enough to use them for malice. Street gangs, hoodies ect used them to kill each other. Under these laws i would have faced £10,000 in fines and a two year stint in young offenders insitute. So i had to hand over most of my collection to be incinerated, i saved a large amount of them by giving them to a registered holder.
You are right in saying that steel is denser than than wood, but your forgetting other very large factors that determine a swords strength, the most important is the swords ability to dissapate an attack. This is why stainless steel should never be used other than for show. The metal is far too brittle and will break after the fouth-fifth strike. Thats the first true lesson you are taught when forging, i spent 3weeks of crafting on a beautiful blade made from stainless steel, my first sword, and honestly it was my best.
When it broke in my first fight... Its best to leave the past where it is.
The best metal would be flxith steel, but you need to be prepared to pay at least £300 for a viable amount. The metal is also very temermental and you must know for sure that you can use it. Am no where near that stage myself. Carbon steel is reasonable and cheap, you can expect to get your monnies worth from it. The metal plays nice in the forge too, so its a all rounder. It does however become brittle if overheated.
You said you havnt the tools for carpentry? I started with a set of craft knives and a lock knife that are older than me given by my dad.
I still use them after 21 years of use. Ive had them for 5. (yes i am young) Build up a small collection, set aside some money from your paycheck, you dont need anything flashy to start with just get the basics down.
2'1' are essential for carving, other than the size being near perfect for swords, its very cheap £1 for 8ft piece at the local timber yard.
As for messengers i despise them beyond belife, i had 1000 contacts at one point untill i had a appinfinny, i only really knew 30 of theose people. Overkill in so many words.
If you have any questions jsut post them up here,
Ill answer them to the best of my ability.
