How to give wood a metalic affect?

May 21, 2006 2:31 AM

Is it possible to paint a wooden sword to give it a metallic affect?

I recently visited a friend who owns a Dungeons and Dragons shop and found a cheap wooden sword there.
Those are usually sold to people who play RealD&D (going into forests, dressing up and acting out the pen and paper adventures).
Even though I'm not into RD&D I decided to get such sword thinking I could make a nice thing out of it perhaps with fake diamonds and such.

My problem is the blade. I want it to appear like metal as much as possible.
I went to a hobby shop and they gave me a "metal colour" but when tested on a piece of wood all I ended up with is.. a grey piece wood. nothing like metal.

What is the best method to achieve a metallic affect on wood?

posted by sierra13 to sports, hobbies, & recreation (13 answers total)

I have a 'silver' acrylic that looks metallic on any surface - just shop around for some better paint, perhaps. Or paint it grey and then varnish it, for a bit of a sheen.
posted by malpractice at 2:41 AM on May 21, 2006

google mettalic paint The first result has a link to an article on faux steel paint. The LARP crowd is almost certain to have resources for making your own realistic but safe weapons, I don't have the time to do the research right now but I'd suggest LARP DIY weapons as a good first search string. Good luck!
posted by Grod at 2:41 AM on May 21, 2006

rustoleum makes several excellent metallic spray paints. i have an old wooden sword that i got 12-14 years ago that had the blade sprayed with rusto metallic silver, and it still has it's metallic look, but it took several coats, and if you're picky, it may come down to shaping the blade before you paint it.
posted by gally99 at 2:42 AM on May 21, 2006

Another thought, find a theater tech geek and ask him/her how they make wood look like metal.
posted by Grod at 2:43 AM on May 21, 2006

Thanks for the LARP comment Grod. I didn't even know that phrase before..
I was able to find some intresting links with that.
Seems the best metalic results are obtained when using Latex(!) to cover the wood.
I will need to study this.
Thanks.
posted by sierra13 at 3:56 AM on May 21, 2006

You could paint it with Sculptmetal, which a metallic paste, and polish it. (Can't find a link to a supplier but try Pearl Paint or any other large art supply store.)
posted by StickyCarpet at 4:08 AM on May 21, 2006

Paint might get you the color but you still have to deal with the texture and the reflectance . You'll need to give your sword several coats of primer or filler, sanding between each coat, to "fill in" the wood, get rid of the grain and give it a smooth surface. Then paint it with your best metallic paint. Then maybe some sort of topcoat over that to protect it.

Theatre geeks probably can't help you. All the wooden swords I've seen for stage have looked like crap from less than 10' away (fine for stage though).

Real geeks use real steel.
posted by zanni at 4:44 AM on May 21, 2006

The biggest problem is the porous nature of the wood. To get it looking its best I would start out by sanding the wood with various grades of sandpaper (150 to 400grit) until it’s nice and smooth. Then paint the blade with a coat of primer; Krylon gray works well. Sand the primer with 400grit until you have a nice smooth surface. If after sanding there is any wood showing repeat this step until you have an even finish. Now paint the blade with a couple of coats of your preferred metallic paint (one of the chrome spray paints should work well) then once it’s dry more sanding. This time start with 400 and end with 600 grit. Finish it off by coating the blade in a gloss varnish or my favorite Future Acrylic floor polish.

Finish you can first coat the blade in epoxy. In the past I’ve used the standard 5 minute epoxy you can pick up at most grocery stores. Mix up the epoxy in a disposable dish or paper plate and apply it to the blade using a 4” disposable paint roller; you can find those at Home Depot or similar DIY stores. Make sure to use the totally smooth foam rollers or you’ll get a funky surface. Once the epoxy cures you can start with the sanding. I used this method once to make a giant double headed ax out of pink insulation foam for a movie prop.
posted by Tenuki at 4:54 AM on May 21, 2006

That second paragraph is supposed to start out with "For a tougher finish ..."
posted by Tenuki at 4:57 AM on May 21, 2006

What about gilding the blade? The process is simple enough; apply a few coats of gesso, sand until really smooth, apply some sizing (aka really sticky glue) and then the leaf - burnish and then varnish. If you use aluminium leaf it's relatively inexpensive, less than $20 for a bottle of size and a package of composite leaf (aluminium).
posted by squeak at 9:36 AM on May 21, 2006

Theater props designer/scenic painter reporting for duty.

As many above have pointed out killing the grain of the wood and upping the reflectivity of the paint is key. I generally use a primer mud mix (50/50 latex primer and drywall mud) sanding in between coats (going down to 400 grit, at least). For the most realistic effect, I think doing the leaf idea by sqeak will give the best results. I've only done it a few times but it definetly looked better than any metallic paint out there.

and Zanni is right. The props we make look awful up close but from 20 feet and under some pretty lights look wonderful.
posted by fantastic at 10:03 AM on May 21, 2006

Find Larpers.... There are some everywhere... Hell, in South Dakota there are two "fantasy swords and armor" shops, and if it's in South Dakota, you can find it anywhere else.

Also, in the midwest there are plenty of Renaissance Faire's (the link is to California, but lots of information). You might even be able to find a smithy that'll work up an actual metal sword. If you want to take it one level further, get involved with The Society for Creative Anachronism [SCA]. I've watched several ACTUAL, blood-drawing sword fights (no serious injuries) by SCA members practicing their swordplay. (this was non-sanctioned, real SCA melee's use full armor and Rattan swords).

SCA and LARP is to D&D what D&D is to "Choose your own Adventure" books... it's a major step up the geek ladder, as it were.
posted by hatsix at 3:48 PM on May 21, 2006

Also - turn your bugs into features. Putting a gleaming polished metal finish on wood can be done, but is a bit of a hassle, and for the price of the paints and laquers, you can buy a (cheap-ass) metal blade. So don't make it a gleaming brand-spanking new sword, make it an ancient artifact, dirty, dusty and weathered.
posted by -harlequin- at 4:12 PM on May 21, 2006