Shad over on shadaversity y.t. got a katana sword made from the most indestructible metal to come out in a long time. It's grade is classified as S5 steel. They took a blade to solid rock and it bairly hurt it.
The folding sword is coming along nicely, but if you ever wanna go back to a retractable design I think Agent 6's sword from Generator Rex would be a somewhat feasible design 😊
I think the sturdyness is the most important feat, especially if the unfolding works plenty finde, after all you can take all the time in the world to fold your sword back together once everyone who could complain ceased breathing. On another note, I really enjoy the slow, step by step Vlog-esque project as a small series, really helps one to appreciate all the effort it takes creating such a cool and precious pointy pool noodle ;P
Totally agree! 😂 And glad to hear you like it. This also makes it a lot more sustainable for me because I can get multiple videos out of one project without doing parts
I think easy disengage is more important, at least thematically. I mean guns exist in the Dishonored world, so if you get busted and have to fight, you might as well start blasting. I really wish you weren't limited by German law in what types of mechanisms you could use for your design. Not that a gravity knife type design would automatically be better (you folding/unfolding this blade looks as cool if not cooler than the in-game animation). But there is something to having all options available. Looking forward to what you make next regardless!
8:20 I don't think you have to choose between being sturdy and being easy to fold away. I think the problem with your current design is just that the forces when you're cutting things and when you're folding the blade away are basically the same. I think if you can come up with a grenade-pin type of mechanism that requires you to pull something before the upper blade is allowed to fold (ideally something located down in the hilt, maybe linked by a string or cam), you'd be able to avoid the problem entirely and have the best of both worlds.
@@jemman2906for the part to be in hilt maybe, how ever, you can put a rather small pin thats able to handle some heavy abuse in the blade its self and then just use a "key" to remove it and fold the weapon away.
Why not use the grip lock (that holds the lower blade rigidly place) to activate a secondary lock? So, when the grip lock is moved to the locked position, and the lower half of the blade swings into place, the blade engages a pawl of some sort that then engages a mechanism in the upper blade to lock it into rigidity. When the grip lock is released and opens, that would disengage the pawl, and thus the lock, allowing the blade to fold back and fold up.
Inside of the larger blade section, have a rod that attaches to the top hinge area of the blade's end. This rod will travel all the way down to the grip, where it will be held rigidly with a locking mechanism. This will hold the tip of the blade rigid while it is being swung, but allow the blade to easily fold up once that locking mechanism is unlatched by a button on the hilt.
i'm super excited to see more versions of this, id love to see multiple versions like you talked about near the end! Also out of curiosity what were you 3D printing in the background?
Really cool to see a semi-fuctional replica, but its important to note that in game, it is stated that it has a fairly strong locking mechanism, and you can upgrade it to make "sword contests" easier (when you and a enemy are crossing blades and fighting to overpower the other) either way, you made a pretty cool looking sword, so props to you!
Phase 1, folding and unfolding Phase 2, stabby unarmored Phase 3 foldysword mark 2 with increased strength, stability, and joints. Looks amazing. A prototype of something cool. 🎉 👏
Being unable to perform simple cuts with the blade's upper half makes it useless, and it might as well only fold once. I'm really excited to see how you address the locking mechanism to fix this. I'm impressed by the thrust though. Awesome art piece in the meantime!
As cool as the quick to conceal sword is, I think it being sturdy enough to slash is more important. This is just a thought, but could you use a back lock style locking mechanism for the blade? That way the button to push would be right near the end of the hilt instead of in between the two blade sections? It might not be possible due to the blade sections both pivoting, but just a thought
I agree! I’ll focus on making it sturdy and leave the quick fold up as optional if I can find a solution. Anything that connects to the handle would mean I had to run some sort of wire or something similar through the first segment and I think that one is already pretty thick
Very interesting build! It seems to imply that the folding sword is designed more like a thrusting weapon and the sharp cutting edge is a bit of a red herring. I am very interested in seeing your iterations especially with some different steels in play. Top notch work.
well, it's the first attempt, so it's just a matter of starting from that and moving forward and improving it😊I am impressed that it could do so well, when you consider that it is a prototype. I am excited to see what the final result will be😊
I think for this to work the best, you probably have some sort of snapping lock when you deploy it, but you have a cable/string running down the inside of the bottom segment into the grip. When you activate the tab/lever on the grip, the cable pulls on the internal locking tab in the upper blade and it unlocks it, and you proceed to fold it like the current design. Of course this is more complicated and the issue of the correct string tension is a another problem, as the string probably has to be longer folded then unfolded thanks to the bends. Also i think a stabbing only sword kinda defeats the purpose of the sword because at that point just use a dagger, you will have just or better conceivability. There is stuff like rapiers but crovos sword doesnt have a very stabable shape imo, a extendo rapier would be a fun idea but probably also hard because the force acts on the mechanism on use.
If he uses the cable to attach to the opening and closing part of the handle, then it could work well I'd wager. As the handle opens it slackens then when it closes it goes taught.
Came here from Skall's video. I love the idea and have always had a soft spot for Dishonored's aesthetic and Corvo in particular. My first thought was maybe some sort of lockback design with the crossguard acting as a release. One long piece of metal with a small but strong spring you can overcome with the force of one hand, given the leverage with you thumb on the spine/top of the guard? No a perfect solution, and not exactly simple, but the design is already complex, so I think it's warranted.
In the game there is a lot of mechanical bits in the blade. It would not be too far fetched to add some sort of push rod linkage that attaches to the metal front cover of the grip, runs though the lower segment and presses on the upper segment when held shut, with the rod disengaging form the upper piece when folding the cover open. Would be very mechanically complex but help with the upper segments stability. Anyway very cool build and nice craftsmanship!
Thanks! Yeah that might be a good idea. So far my problem is that a top lock would obstruct the first segment, so the second can’t fold in there and an integral wire would bulk up the first segment. Maybe I’ll find a way to solve that 🤔
I've never played Dishonored but this looks wonderful. One note, it looks like it a small blow to the back ridge of the blade would be completely disarming with the folding part against the fingers.
I do love the "blade in blade" design, however I never liked the folding method. I have designing this sword in CAD for years now and the best design I found was a double hidden slide. This works where the lower half of the blade actually splits open and the upper half slides out and gets locked in a notch, where you then close the lower blade and it makes a seamless blade out of both. This utilizes tension in the break-open handle, as is shown in the various designs and in game, to act as the method to hide and split the lower blade while also hiding the upper blade inside both. I have still yet to build it myself due, mainly laziness, but I'd love to see your interpretation.
I know nothing about any of this... But what comes to mind so far, is... Most tactical folders and even more conventional pocket knives have a bar that locks the blade in place. Press the bar, fold the blade. You could rig one inside the first segment, instead of in the handle like most folders. Then you can have that one bar lock both segments simultaneously, just as securely as any conventional pocket knife or tactical folder. Then you press the bar down by the hilt, and both segments unlock and fold back into place. You can continue to include the handle guard if you want, but I'm not sure it would be necessary if you build the handle properly. So long as the gap is narrow enough, its edges sufficiently rounded, and the blade recessed sufficiently...it should still be safe and comfortable to hold when undeployed, even without the guard bar on the handle. Without the guard bar, and with the locking bar inside the first segment, you should also be able to deploy the weapon much more quickly.
Since your first part of your blade is hollow, you can hide spring loaded pin near the end of it that will clip into second part. And also at the beginning of the first part hide a lever on a dull side that you can press to retract the pin and fold the blade. When you will open the blade, the pin will be retracted because second part will push it inside the first part, since the second part of the blade has an obtuse angle. After that the pin will lock itself in hole of the second part of the blade. I think that it is possible to put lever in the handle, but because first part of the blade is also rotating, there must be some pretention mechanism for the wire. Probably in third iteration it could be moved to handle, but I don't recomment doing it in the second iteration since you will be testing the pin. Or you can add another lever on your handle to push the lever on the first part of the blade. This is, of course, if my proposal is accepted.
I don't think anyone will make this work. It's a cool design and amazing that you've pushed it this far but I think you've reached the peak of where this concept can go
In regards to the question at the end, a sturdy sword is better than a concealable one. A dagger performs a concealable weapon's role already If you're pulling a sword out of nowhere, is probably more for self defense and skirmishing, where you'd need to deflect other swords. But seeing as you're not gonna go around picking sword fights or getting attacked by them, this is fine and really cool
If you have a rod (preferably in U shape to bend around that flat edge and prevent excessive wear in lateral directions), you could simply have it pushed up when you squeeze a lever on the hammer. It doesn't need much distance, maybe an inch, to really secure the blade and keep it from folding. When you release the grip, the rod would be free to sag down under gravity and you could fold the apparatus.
i have a weird idea, but probably impractical: add a sliding spine mechanism to push into place to reinforce the back of the blade around that joint. mechanism is largely attached to the lower blade section but is the same thickness as the blade so it can still fold. the rail itself would have to be like a c-shaped grip on the rail itself. but it can interlock with the upper section. it'll look weird, but it's just an idea
First of all, this was the first time i was actually hit with that "Unsubscribed from a channel without you noticing" feature of RU-vid. I was 100% sure i subscribed to you and wondered why you didnt upload anything anymore... Secondly: Its a lot more important to deploy a blade quickly and take out a target than it is to fold the blade again. Once the target is down, you have much more time to put your weapon away or hide it- And if you were seen doing that act, you need to keep the blade out anyway to defend yourself.
two three thoughts that came to mind; 1) Why make the bottom portion of the blade the one to contain the upper portion? What if you were to invert it, so that the top portion has the hollow body for the middle, and turn the entire hollow into the locking mechanism by instead of spring bending outward, clamping inward to form the lock? B) Tacking on to 1, instead of collapsing jacob ladder folding have both folds follow the same direction. If you were to go with the top blade hollow body, the hardened edges that would act as the lock would also be the blade which could be reinforced further. 3rdly) separate from the 1 and B, I recall a similar concept from Michaelcthulhu and his 'lockblade'. He had cutdown a ratchet strap as his mechanism for the fold/lock, maybe something similar would serve to work for the blade's pivoting/locking that'd be sturdier than just the friction lock.
Couple of suggestions and remarks, just in case you didn't think about those already: - for stabbing i would assume, a more angular surface of the hand locking mechanism would be beneficial to not just blow the weapon out of your hand due to an angular "sliding" surface opening the lock - the pivot and contact points have to be very sturdy even in the handle area to prevent ware(local hardening of the contact surfaces might be an option) - the locking mechanism of the upper blade part: you have to be very careful about hardening, since hardening makes most steels brittle and the locking mechanism exploding on you would be bad. - i was thinking about another way to lock the upper blade part but a snapping mechanism like you already designed seems to be the best solution for a quickly releasable one. Maybe you can twist the metal strip slightly to enlarge the width of the metal against the lower blade part.
Loved both the videos! Wanted to bounce an idea off of you... Do you think a "back lock" (I don't know what it's actually called) like what is seen in a lot of pocket knives would work to lock in the upper retractable bit while you're wielding it? and maybe use a reverse disengaging mechanism (like if you decrease grabbing force on the handle, the spine support for the upper part dislodges)? Not sure how you would fold the lock back though, or if it would even work realistically. Would love to hear your take on it. Definitely patent the mechanism as is though! And, any improved iterations!
I LOVE where you're going with this project! I think you should retain the approach that you had from the start, you are taking on challenges that so many other makers of this weapon have been shying away from. Keep it metal, of course. Retain your brilliant folding scheme, it is incredibly loyal to the idea of Corvo's sword while keeping from breaking German Knife Ownership laws. Prioritize your mechanism, put sturdiness a bit lower on the list but don't take it all the way out. You are right; assassins and professional fighters would easily be able to build a style around using it. The main selling point of this weapon is it's concealability, good fighters know where strong points are, GREAT fighters account for weaknesses. With your sword as it is, it isn't an impossible weapon to use in a fight. Maybe not ideal, but I am willing to bet you will find solutions to all the glaring problems and maybe a bit more! If I had the money I'd pay you twice the amount you need for the next prototype so that I could have one too. I would do that without thinking, I am in love with this piece! Your approach is the gutsiest one I've seen anywhere for this fabled sword!
You could add a sliding metal inside the lower blade. Using momentum to slide out, then a button on the handle to release it (letting gravity pull it back down) also gives more rigid stability to the blade since your gap on the back would have a rigid filling
Well i just took a quick look at the original Dishonored sword and yours is the only one that actually works. The animations from the videogame are just cool swirly balisong movements with the blade magically popping out
Use steam to bend your veneer (before applying your adhesive) to prevent cracking. For the first segment lockup, I’d use a longer leaf spring, flared slightly wider than the spine in the center (increased surface area for the disengaging arms, cut them past the joint and notch the end, so the frame of the second section is supported even when extended and the springs can’t hyperextend.
Sturdy seems more practical for a sword where easily closed would be more interesting on a folding spear. If it is only for stabbing, there is not need for the lower part to even be sharpened, so a sturdier lock that allows for slicing motions would make more sense than one which is easily closed.
In terms of iteration, making a super solid sturdy locking blade should be the priority, looking at various knife locking mechanisms. Once you have that fully worked out and reliable you can start looking at ways to get a quick closing systems. And while super cool to only need one hand, have to rapidly touch one locking mechanism with your off hand isn't really that detrimental. Most folding knives aren't even a snap shut with one hand, the quick deployment always takes priority over quick reholster of folding of a weapon. I love the design and its simplicity overall. Would definitely buy one. I'd say once you have a reliable and strong quick release model you should see if you can find a blacksmith and/or machinist (or someone who is both) and make it a product. I don't know if you realize how well this thing would actually sell haha and it is the kind of thing that if well made can be expensive without much complaint.
This is simply amazing. Can’t wait to see your improvements on the design. I know a telescoping blade is unrealistic, but perhaps multiple segments that sit inside the blade and fold out to make one single would work? In my mind, that would shift all of the “pressure points” to the flat of the blade.
What you could do is using the lower blade and it's 2 sidewalls to be the lock at the top end, so when the blade is fully opened the 2 sides collapse on behind and lock it in place Though this may add to much drag to the blade for it to fold and unfold freely, so you may need some sort of groove that follows the path of the 2 prongs so they don't touch the blade And for the unlock mechanism you could use a little piece on top, mounted on a springy bit of metal with a V shape that aligns with the top of the lock. Then, all you would have to do to close it is the same as what you currently do. Though I could see an issue with the unlock mechanism not fitting inside properly, since it would be protruding out of the top blade and could get caught inside the other blade. Maybe put it on a spring loaded hinge so it can fold inside too and not flop around when in the open position ? Having the V shape being pushed out by the lock so it can still work without getting stuck in the lock or not being able to go low enough It would be a little finicky to get right but it should work It seems like the simplest way to make it fast and sturdy, and after reading a bit the comments I didn't see anyone thinking of this And as fun as retractable pins and rope system sound they probably won't work in such a small space Regardless, a really unique take on a sword I love from a game I love, so I'm looking forward to see what you will come up with next
Okay, so I have two idea on how to improve this, one more realistic than the other. Idea number one: Make the lower section of the sword not have a blade, and have it fold the other way, via the front. This might be the best from the standpoint of it being a practical weapon: you would mostly cut and thrust with the top half, and use the bottom half mostly for parrying and possibly halfswording. No long drawcuts but - can live without them. I knew the blade would not cut the moment you made it fold backwards, tbh... Idea number two: Rather than having the blade segments fold out within each other, have them fold out side by side, then one of them would snap to the side, putting both into a single line. Would require quite a complex linkage between the two parts, though, and would probably disengage if simply knocked to the side. If it is the bottom half that is being moved in and out of line, you could have a groove cut into it with a rail that would allow you to "remotely" push the top linkage and disengage the lock. ...Honestly, a ton of things that could go wrong mechanically, tho.
You might also want to oil up the parts where metal skates along metal in order to prevent it from wearing itself to pieces. Real cool piece, though :D I look forward to seeing the next version :D
Nice sword! I think the un/folding of the sword is very true to the aesthetic of the game. I wonder if it would be feasible to add a retractable spine to give a sturdier cutting edge, though I imagine it would be tricky to make it still easy to fold back into it's concealed version.
As it is a 'sword', cutting is important indeed. (Also I think relying on inertia or a mechanism which has the door of the handle sliding into a spring to trigger it, could be where this is going off, relying on chance I suppose is how I see it. I imagine maybe you could put the spring into the guard, since there is a definite horizontal section you can put two fingers on to pull back with. Which releases the door and maybe could have a rod attached to the spine of the second blade segment to pull it down or something. Then a less up to chance way to use that inertia is to of course swing the handle into the door to close it.
You had the original idea using the tip of the grip to disengage the lock. You could embed a magnet into the far end of the grip lever, and use an internal locking mechanism that requires the magnet to manipulate the pin from outside the body of the blade. This could give you a sturdier blade that can still be disengaged in your fancy flourishing motion.
Its cool weapon, I just suggest making the end of the sword usable to cut and get the locking mechanism to work, you may need to redo the entire blade given that its wiggling so much.
I think having a mechanism that actually keeps it open and locked is more important than having an easy disengage system. Like any weapon, or tool for that matter, you just train with it and get faster at using it. If you can come up with a robust system that is also easy, that's just a bonus.
Perhaps there’s a way to include a locking mechanism that incorporates the whole hitting it on your shoulder thing still? Perhaps a button actuated locking mechanism on the spine, and have a hinge that folds the foremost section of the blade into a hollowed out portion of the rear section. Like those aesthetic kitchen knife sets that all fit inside eachother? That’s just a solution that I think might look cool and be feasible. The only other option I can think of is having the second section be almost like 2 knives that meet together when the blade is extended but separate into two pieces and allow the foremost section to fold forward instead of backward into the blade. That way you could also include a more traditional and sturdy folding knife locking mechanism. The only issue I can think of is the second section not being able to cut as well due to the leading edge being thicker. Anyway that’s my two cents of what you could do, I love dishonored and I’d love to see you continue this type of design!
i think just by fine tuning the shape you can pull plenty more sturdiness out of this design. for starters if you offset your pivots in a way that cause more overlap between the pieces, the stoppers and locking mechanisms will have more leverage on your sword segments and make it more sturdier. obviously you will lose some of your unfolded length to folded length ratio. another one for the stabbing would be to offset the pivot of the tip section towards the spine of the blade. this way the stabbing motion would create torque in the direction that opens the blade instead of closing it. the adverse consequence of this would be that it makes the folded blade wider since more of the tip section would be hanging outside of the middle section while folded. that would also require less space to fold inside of the middle section though...
Awesome Video Bro! I admire the fact that U actually created a functional replica of Corvo’s sword & the fact that you made a Dishonored based video in general. Hands down 1 of the coolest swords & 1 of most underrated video game in history. 💯 I still play Dishonored the Definitive Edition & Dishonored 2 every once & a while.
i think a series of distal locking pins that run through the spine might help with rigidity on the tip segment. the machining and drilling would be a pain, but could be an interesting solution.
as someone who does hema and is also an engineer, I would have to say on a sword it is most importand how rigid it is. If you have to worry about your tool folding up or breaking it is not a good sword and cutting and stabbing are importand for assisn and for combat. Also FYI you woudl cath a blade with the front part for parrieng and let it slide down. Basicly for combat you only attack with the last 3rd or so of a sword but you need all the sowrd to do parries and such.
all i can think with the function of the blade would be to have the locking mechanism inverted for the tip ,as you would want the opening limit to be the spine of the sword thus letting you slash with the full potential and even guard, basicly what im suggesting in short , rebuild the blade portion , have the cutting edge only on the end of the sword , and put the cutting edge on the other side of the unfold limit
Maybe for the second version you could add a locking mechanism that will prevent sword from folding back when it used for slicing? I can imagine it as thin metal rod that slide from the handle using gravity all the way of first section of the blade and an inch on the second section, from the spine side of the sword ofc. That will require a handle to be a little longer but honestly i can't imagine anything better.
You just need to invert the hinge, it would work perfectly if the last segment folded the other way arround. You could even leave it as a friction lock, the direction of the swing would keep it up, and it would still be easy to disengage. You just would not be able to parry with back.
The design isn't bad, but I think we can all agree that the top half of the blade is a fault. You could solidify it with a catch that snaps into place as it fully extends, preventing it from folding back, supported by a rod extending from the handle, allowing you to remove the catch from a mechanism in the handle itself. Options: 1. A pivoting rod that folds under the upper blade when it's stowed and swings out into place when extended, dragged into its appropriate position by the rear edge of the blade. The rod can pivot into a hole in the back inside of the hilt, priming a small spring catch which will snap a block into place when the rod fully extends again to give full support to the rear edge of the blade. This would help with the stability, but over time I imagine the rod will bend if it supports much weight on it. Thickness, particularly along the flat of the blade rather than its width, would help with that. The handle could have a squeeze trigger at that point to allow the block to retract and have the rod fall back into the hole and the top half to swing back again. No friction support from the bottom blade. 2. Two rails along the back edge of the lower blade can support small rods that push a larger chunk of metal into a catch position when the upper blade is fully deployed. The metal piece can be held in place by the force of the blade wanting to fold back, acting as a keystone if you would, and the inside of the keystone could even be rounded to act as the pivot for the top blade. To release, you can push at the inside of the keystone with the rods using a slide mechanism along the back of the hilt near the guard, snapping it out of place and allowing the top blade to fold back. If it is a pivot point though, it becomes problematic because it would mean some part of the top blade has to fit inside of the keystone and flare out, and the act of extending the rods has to push that flare back in so the top can fit inside the keystone again. Flexing metal will never be strong. If the keystone is solid, it would have to swing into place from somewhere and snap into a position which the rods could push out. If the end of the bottom blade had a groove for the keystone to fit into, then the top blade could have a sandwiched 3 blade keystone on a short movement 2 blade track that would allow it to snap into place, and then be pushed out of place by the rods. Cross section wise, think of it like this: ]|I|[ The ] I [ pieces would be the keystone, joined by 2 pins to keep the orientation of the keystone proper, while the 2 | parts are from the top blade and have the track which allows a small movement of the keystone (maybe half a centimetre) back and forth perpendicular to the blade's edge. 3. Another option is to have a third rotating piece that folds over the top blade when stowed that pivots from the base of the lower blade/hilt guard. It would fall into place behind the top blade, locking it into place. To keep it stable, it could extend further into the hilt when deployed and catch on a mechanism there, a simple spring mechanism that pushes a metal bar into place. You could then use a squeeze trigger near the guard to retract the bar and allow the supporting back piece to rotate, which in turn allows the top to fold back. It has the added benefit of protecting the top blade's edge while it is stowed. The key failure point is the instability of the rear of the blade on a single bladed sword. It serves two purposes in a sword: First, rigidity, obviously. Second, it deals with compression well, because the further along the sword you strike from, the more the blade wants to fold back on itself (yours or any other sword). Katana are an interesting example where the rear of the sword is actually slightly softer than the edge. The leading edge is the most rigid part, holding its edge, while the rear of the blade is cooled differently so it hardens into a softer and more springy steel that can take the compression of the slice better. It's still sturdy, this isn't in any way saying it's weak or a failing point, but it would not hold an edge nearly as well. Instead, because it's more springy, it aids slightly in the cutting motion. You're in a similar position with this build where the back needs to have a strong and consistent compressive force applied to the back. I worry that the second option with the keystone will fail because your lower blade is essentially hollow. Repeated strong strikes are likely to make the blade bow outward (or inward, worse), eventually leading to failure. If the supporting structure for the top blade is a bar (as in 1 and 3), it takes the brunt of the slashing impact along its length. The third option has the added benefit, perhaps, of fitting over and into the edges of the lower blade as well, ensuring it won't bow in either direction and adding more stability.
Just an idea, but maybe you could have a rod running the length of the first blade section inside the slot. At the handle end attach it to an angled plate with the angle facing the front of the handle. At the handle side of the plate cut a flat notch perpendicular to the blade’s length, like you did to make the locking surface in this version (more on that in a minute). Have the rod/plate combo pinned to the handle end of the first blade section so it pivots inside the slot. You could even use the pivot pin for the first blade section where it attaches to the handle. Make the slot cover portion of the handle with a tooth at the blade end that extends up into the handle slot. When the blade is folded the rod rests behind the spine of the second blade section with the rod/plate combo’s angled section facing toward the back of the handle. When you unfold it, since the rod/plate combo is pinned to the first blade section it rotates with it and will now face the front. As you close the slot cover, the tooth on the slot cover would meet the angled plate forcing the opposite end of the rod upward in the slot. This would prevent the second blade section from folding backward when struck. When it reaches the end of the plate, the tooth would slip into the notch cut in the end, locking everything in place until you open the slot cover again. I hope that all made sense? As a bonus, that design would help transfer some of the force from stabbing back down to the handle pivot which could be made bigger/stronger with less difficulty than the pivot in the middle of the blade.
I really hope he reads and considers your idea because from as much understanding as i got from reading and re-reading your comment, it honestly sounds like a damn near perfect fix for the majority of the complications he had with the prototype.
think of it this way, with guns people practice quickdraw a lot, theres even competitions to se who can do it the fastest, but no one cares about how quickly you can holster your gun. So a slow disengage wouldn't matter as much
I was thinking a bar that ran the spine of the lower part of the blade so you can dengage the lock with your gripping hand, but that will not work because it would not allow room for the top of the blade to nest when folding...hum. Oh, bar running on the outside of one side of the lower part of the blade. Top of the bar locks the two halves together, lower part can be pulled back with the thumb to disengage the lock. Would require a return spring. Might also require a relief cut on the side of the spine of the blade so the bar does not stick out very far. Not sure it would be strong enough to handle some serious stress though.
BTW the locking mechanism and the way it's built is similar to a collapsible baton when the second part of blade is fully extended a small part of it will be decompressed and go in a slot preventing it from collapsing granted it would basically no longer be an assassin blade but it would be viable for a last resort
tbh the biggest issue in that design is it begs the question why not just use a shorter sword so you have less parts to swing open. I think the rigidity would be important because you don't wanna have you blade bend if you didn't stab in the right direction or if you try to deflect another's blade. Does look cool tho and I hope you find a good compromise for quick retract and rigidity of the blade!
well ya, but your reach becomes diminished if your blade doesn't have rigidity to make a cut at that reach. Also, if the point is from a stealth perspective, reach doesn't matter as much because you should get to a lethal distance before they notice. If you want the sword function with said reach, finding a way to make it cut would up its lethality and use and take advantage of said reach. However, from a cool factor on the quick draw, the blade does look very cool. So if you don't really care to up the functionality and focus more on like making it a costume weapon, id not care as much for the rigidity part and focus on the flip in/out part@@NjordArtisan
You could add a sliding pin lock into the uper blade, it would engage into the blade as you swing from centrifugal force. Possibly using a weak spring to pull it back when not actively swinging. It would work as a temporary spine for the unstable motions
More complicated you could put a ball baring on the end of the pin so it can pop past it and line up the pin to go in. Well still being able to be overcome with some force
to keep the sword extended, have you considered using a secondary locking mechanism that could slide back into the metal support on the handle, essentially an inline support that would travel through the interior void in the middle section and retract into the handle once ready to re-fold.
seems like it doesnt really cut very well right now but i'd say it does its job very well which is to say look really fucking cool. one thing especially i like is how you start the fold, with the hit against the shoulder. if you keep only one thing in mark 2 you gotta keep the shoulder hit
The main issue with the current design is that it isn't rigid in the cutting direction. I'm not sure if having the top fold inwards while still being able to fold with one hand is feasible, but it would greatly improve the cutting performance. Looks great though.
There are two major things I can see going wrong with this. First is that *the* most common way to stab someone who sees you coming is to cut (either into their attack or just to get your sword to dominate the space between the two of you) and then thrust while the blades are touching. Thing is, your opponent is very likely to be doing the same thing, which means there is a hit into a solid steel bar before every stab attempt. If your front half of the blade is this floppy, there would be... issues with doing this smoothly. Second concern is general sturdyness. Cutting bottles and jeans is all well and good, but you will have to hit steel bars with this. What's worse, one of the best ways to get the opponent's pointy sword to point at somewhere that is not your organs is to cut with your edge against the opponent's flat - and these kinds of cuts land at the tip or middle of the blade, right where your joint is. Taking that hit a couple of times might be fine, but you are very likely to end up with a sword you will have to replace after every fight. Final note - if the front of the blade can't cut, I don't see a lot of point to it being shaped like it is. Cuts with the first half of your blade are notoriously weak, and make the reach disadvantage cuts have over thrusts much, much worse. There is some marginal use in slicing against the hands of the opponent once you get really close to them, but... I'm saying this thing would work better if it was based off of a spadroon rather than machete. It wouldn't look very Dishonored, though.
Two thoughts would be either switch which side is the sharp side or feeding a wire or thin pole through a reinforced spine so that you have a pull release a switch or a button on the handle to release the lock some metal wire and a small spring would probably work the best if you took that route
I would fix the fault at the fold by adding a spring pressured rod that would extend through the back side of the bottom half, into the way of the blade fold when it's pressed against the handle, then when you take that force off the grav mechanism, it'll spring back out of the way of the blade fold l, allowing the top half to collapse
And good mechanism to make its more sturdy is to add a similar sistem of a bicycle break handle. So you can add tension by pulling a wire, also you can add some reinforcement materials in special shape at the folding part (would be hard for me to describe that shape. My english is limited)
It's really cool that it folds, but to me a weapon is meant to be reliable above anything else. Durability over compactness. I think you could get a decent thing going with sliding a solid blade upwards from the handle, like gravity knives do. Though you'd either sacrifice half the blade length or have some of it stick out.
Maybe if the upper blade had push pins to lock it in place and have the metal "lever" on the handle work to push the pins to disengage them? I honestly really like this design tbh, way better than the one in the game in my opinion...
My only thought is if there could be some kind of actuation up through the inner segment that locks it when the handle closes... It would almosyt certainly have to be spring-loaded, but if it could unlock when the handle opens that would be the best theoretical option. I think it locking and being sturdy properly would be essential, if there is no other option.
A thought I had about fixing the top third segment of the sword: you are considering putting a piece to brace the blade top so it does not fold into the blade bottom until you disengage it, but you would have to disengage it manually; what if, so as to not do manual dis/engagement, you were to somehow link or connect it internally to the metal switch/opening(?) on the hilt, and have them engage and disengage in tandem?
……..I know Germany has restrictions on OTF knives, but if you could have a bar or rod in the handle that could move into the hollow portion of the lower blade to lock the system into place it may fix the unintended folding issue.
Why not add a levering lock to the second part of the blade to keep it rigid for cutting. Then slap the back of the blade, to start the folding. Alternatively. You might be able to do a trigger linkage, in the handle to disengage the lock at the top.
Maybe add magnets to the grip to hold the grip together without hand pressure. It wouldn't be enough for use I doubt, but it would be enough to keep it in sword form if you let go.
Just seen a video showing the animation, seems the sword in the game acts sort of like a butterfly knife, only it actually slides out of the handle rather than folding out. Might be an idea to look into
While I think the sword works great for what it is, I'd probably improve on the design by firstly making it a spear tip or having a sharpened back edge for the first 3 inches or so like a sabre/backsword. Maybe have the locking part on the primary section and the nub on the secondary section blade instead, I imagine that if you rolled your wrist over as you thrust, it may help with penetration as well, though I've got no clue for the cut except maybe it working better as a draw cut vs chop?
So i just watched your last video on this project, and i think i know why the bottom section of the blade developed a curve. So, like you said, it curved like a katana, and the way katanas get their curve is through differential hardening. One side of the blade is covered in clay and cools slowly while the other cools faster. The fast cooling side keeps its length while the slow cooling side contracts and developes the iconic curve. What you did in the construction of the bottom section was make a fast cooling side with the hollow area for the top half of the blade and a slower cooling area with the cutting edge having more material than the rest of the blade thus developing a curve in the direction of the blade. I'm not sure how you could've made it better but hopefully this information will help you out of you decide to try making this again.
