Nights Watch

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Modifying the Sword

I bought an Italian Long Sword from Cold Steel, but when it arrived, I found that I really didn't like how they created the risers on the grip. Very uncomfortable. I loved everything else about the sword, so I decided I would re-wrap the handle myself.

After removing the original faux leather, I added risers, made out of thick leather chords available at any craft store. I placed them where they made the most sense for my hands. Using standard hemp twine, I tightly wrapped the wood. A very light coating of poxy was added before wrapping as well as after to make sure the twine stays in place.

Sword with the risers in place and half of the hemp-wrap done.

Adding the leather - this was the hardest part. Using paper first, I created a shape tempate for the leather (due to the tapering of the wood, a simple rectangle won't work). After cutting the leather to the appropriate size, I used a skiver and tapered the two sides that would overlap in hopes of reducing the seam (sorry, no pictures). 

In order to create that "chord-wrapped" look in the leather, you to, well, wrap it in chord. To do so, you must first soak the leather in hot (not boiling) water. This makes the leather malleable, so I had to be very careful about finger prints, nails, etc. Once the leather was soaked enough, I gently patted it dry to remove excess water and after applying leather cement to the hemp wrap, I carefully wrapped the leather over the handle. Working fast, I then wrapped more hemp around the leather-covered grip, making sure the wraps were tight - this keeps the leather secured to the grip as the epoxy sets, plus has the added benefit of creating a nice texture on the leather. I let everything sit for about 24 hours before I removed the hemp.

Sword grip after removing the hemp wrap.

I used a combination of brown and black leather dye to give the feel of a sword long spent in a pair of hands, and finished it up with a coat leather conditioner.