Personally, from experience, I would recommend getting something from [By My Hand Designs](https://bymyhanddesignsllc.square.site/s/shop). Lots of options and their effectiveness has been proven through decades of use.
Will highly second this. Have personally bought three different halberd heads and loved all of them. Have had zero issues with them, if you make an effort for them to look period, they work beautifully. My hand designs is a solid merchant that has been around for many years.
I am a primary polearm fighter. As linked by craftyfighter, I highly second By My Hand.
Additionally, for solidness and ease of building, I highly recommend the Swiss Halberd or slashing spear for your first build. The blade extensions on both the axe side and hammer/hook side make taping it onto your pole massively easier than some of the other head designs.
That said, I've tried several shaped heads in my 8 years of fighting and while they look cool and add immersion and historical accuracy, for the actual martial art/sport that we're doing, I highly recommend having a straight stick/Glaive as well as whichever shaped heads you go with. Learn to fight with both and choose the one you like better down the road.
With the shaped heads you get advantages like the axe head being able to hit people beyond their guards by ~4-6 inches, or hook a shield, but with the straight stick you gain a much lighter weight weapon with greater maneuverability and accuracy. All of the best polearm fighters I've ever seen use straight glaives.
If you want a middle ground option, I recommend the slashing spear heads. Since they're lower profile I feel like they have the best of both worlds (other than getting that extra space to hit beyond someone's guard).
Also, as a word of warning, using the rubber heads can lead to people not taking shots because they're used to both the feel of impact AND the sound, and the rubber makes a very different feel and sound. You can get around this by using clacker heads, which is just a cut down single piece of rattan taped along the weapon's striking surfaces, but they also add a decent amount of weight on top of the shaped heads, which already add a decent amount of weight.
As for the actual construction for a shaped headed polearm, you need 8 things, with an optional 9th and 10th:
The stick
Both sides of the shaped head
Two thrusting tips
Strapping Tape
Duct Tape
Box cutter or other sharp, controllable knife
-Optional - 1 inch satin ribbon
-Rasps to carve/smoothen out a notch
For the by my hand heads, the first thing you need to do is use the box cutters to carve out a notch lengthwise. Just cut a small v on the side that will sit on the pole, then widen it to a larger v, then larger, until it sits on the pole without wobble to either side. Using a rasp once you have the V cut can smooth out the curve for a better fit, but is not necessary.
Once you have them how you want them, you wind strapping tape around at various angles and lengths until the heads are absolutely rock solid and unmovable with no wiggle. Wind tape around both in a spiral around the blade extensions as well as horizontally around the blade itself. This is normally 2-4 layers of tape around nearly the entire shaped head to make is super solid and secure. You can experiment with fewer layers but you run the risk of having to replace the heads if they get wobbly or straight up break off. The first polearm I made I had something ludicrous like 8-10 layers of strapping tape around the whole blade and boy when I tried to remove that head like 4 years later it was an effort. Just remember that the tape DOES make the weapon weigh more.
After this is done, decorate and "prettify" as you see fit with duct tape. Blade surfaces and thrusting tips must be contrasting colors.
That's it for the shaped head parts. If you already know how to do thrusting tips you're good to go from here.
If you don't know how to do thrusting tips:
If you are using the satin ribbon, which is to make the thrusting tips MUCH harder to get knocked off, you want to secure your thrusting tips with at least four layers of strapping tape. I personally do the first two with satin ribbon and the last two without. Just center the satin ribbon in about an 8 inch strip with at least 10 inches of strapping tape. It can be annoying to center the ribbon on the tape, but what I do is I lay the ribbon on a flat surface and center the tape where I want it to sit, then press down, securing the ribbon to the tape, and lift up. The flat surface needs to be something that it will be relatively easy to pull the tape up from. I then do the two ribboned layers of tape in an X on the tip, then the two unribboned layers in another X crossing the first X, so they end up in a star pattern.
Also, make sure you do the thrusting tip BEFORE the weapon head if your weapon head is going to go all the way to the top of the pole. Replacing a thrusting tip on a shaped headed weapon is... not fun.
Repeat for the butt spike if you're having one, which I 100% recommend. somewhere between 25-33% of my polearm kills are with my buttspike.
Lastly, if you are able, having someone flatten the sides of your pole helps immensely for both the shaped head and straight glaive polearms. It lets you keep your blade oriented without having to check visually.
If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.
Really wish I had seen this post yesterday because I literally made a new polearm today and could've taken pictures for you as I went
This is the exact kind of information I have been searching for, thank you so much! I actually already ordered the swiss halberd from By My Hand, so I'm glad to hear it's a good starter! I've also got a straight stick i was going to but a rubber crossguard 2 feet from the end almost like a reverse longsword to approximate a partisan.
Do you find any utility in chiseling out a recess in the rattan to place the head rather than cutting the head to fit for keeping it secure? I imagine the answer will be obvious once I've actually gotten the heads in. though from the sounds of it your method is mighty secure as is
> Do you find any utility in chiseling out a recess in the rattan to place the head rather than cutting the head to fit for keeping it secure?
Some do that. I do not. At the end of the day if you want to take the shaped heads off and go back to a straight stick you can't do so if you cut the rattan down. Also, unless you have the tools, like a belt sander, it's MUCH easier to cut the heads than the rattan.
Again I'd say try both and go with the one you prefer.
The rubber crossguard with a mostly straight stick is a great idea because it gives a bit of shaping but also still has the benefits of the straight stick.
I [had one](https://i.imgur.com/l7e9RMF.jpg) for a short time but I didn't like the way having both the hooks backwards looked. I should've done them both forward or one forward and one back.
Also if you're getting just the hooks, get the sparth hooks. They have little extensions on both sides that makes taping it SO much easier.
I'm not in Atlantia and I don't make my own ax heads, but I do own and use those purpleheart hammer heads.
YSK they are a pretty hefty bonk all on their own. Were you to add a blade onto it, I would recommend doing your best to keep it light.
I’ve seen some really good axe heads made of layered leather, mostly sole bend About 4 or 5 layers. This was a while ago, so I would check your kingdom to see if there they are legal.
Personally, from experience, I would recommend getting something from [By My Hand Designs](https://bymyhanddesignsllc.square.site/s/shop). Lots of options and their effectiveness has been proven through decades of use.
I just put mine together from their pieces so far has been pretty easy to use and nice to fight with
Another happy By My Hand customer here.
Will highly second this. Have personally bought three different halberd heads and loved all of them. Have had zero issues with them, if you make an effort for them to look period, they work beautifully. My hand designs is a solid merchant that has been around for many years.
thank you! I will give them a try
I am a primary polearm fighter. As linked by craftyfighter, I highly second By My Hand. Additionally, for solidness and ease of building, I highly recommend the Swiss Halberd or slashing spear for your first build. The blade extensions on both the axe side and hammer/hook side make taping it onto your pole massively easier than some of the other head designs. That said, I've tried several shaped heads in my 8 years of fighting and while they look cool and add immersion and historical accuracy, for the actual martial art/sport that we're doing, I highly recommend having a straight stick/Glaive as well as whichever shaped heads you go with. Learn to fight with both and choose the one you like better down the road. With the shaped heads you get advantages like the axe head being able to hit people beyond their guards by ~4-6 inches, or hook a shield, but with the straight stick you gain a much lighter weight weapon with greater maneuverability and accuracy. All of the best polearm fighters I've ever seen use straight glaives. If you want a middle ground option, I recommend the slashing spear heads. Since they're lower profile I feel like they have the best of both worlds (other than getting that extra space to hit beyond someone's guard). Also, as a word of warning, using the rubber heads can lead to people not taking shots because they're used to both the feel of impact AND the sound, and the rubber makes a very different feel and sound. You can get around this by using clacker heads, which is just a cut down single piece of rattan taped along the weapon's striking surfaces, but they also add a decent amount of weight on top of the shaped heads, which already add a decent amount of weight. As for the actual construction for a shaped headed polearm, you need 8 things, with an optional 9th and 10th: The stick Both sides of the shaped head Two thrusting tips Strapping Tape Duct Tape Box cutter or other sharp, controllable knife -Optional - 1 inch satin ribbon -Rasps to carve/smoothen out a notch For the by my hand heads, the first thing you need to do is use the box cutters to carve out a notch lengthwise. Just cut a small v on the side that will sit on the pole, then widen it to a larger v, then larger, until it sits on the pole without wobble to either side. Using a rasp once you have the V cut can smooth out the curve for a better fit, but is not necessary. Once you have them how you want them, you wind strapping tape around at various angles and lengths until the heads are absolutely rock solid and unmovable with no wiggle. Wind tape around both in a spiral around the blade extensions as well as horizontally around the blade itself. This is normally 2-4 layers of tape around nearly the entire shaped head to make is super solid and secure. You can experiment with fewer layers but you run the risk of having to replace the heads if they get wobbly or straight up break off. The first polearm I made I had something ludicrous like 8-10 layers of strapping tape around the whole blade and boy when I tried to remove that head like 4 years later it was an effort. Just remember that the tape DOES make the weapon weigh more. After this is done, decorate and "prettify" as you see fit with duct tape. Blade surfaces and thrusting tips must be contrasting colors. That's it for the shaped head parts. If you already know how to do thrusting tips you're good to go from here. If you don't know how to do thrusting tips: If you are using the satin ribbon, which is to make the thrusting tips MUCH harder to get knocked off, you want to secure your thrusting tips with at least four layers of strapping tape. I personally do the first two with satin ribbon and the last two without. Just center the satin ribbon in about an 8 inch strip with at least 10 inches of strapping tape. It can be annoying to center the ribbon on the tape, but what I do is I lay the ribbon on a flat surface and center the tape where I want it to sit, then press down, securing the ribbon to the tape, and lift up. The flat surface needs to be something that it will be relatively easy to pull the tape up from. I then do the two ribboned layers of tape in an X on the tip, then the two unribboned layers in another X crossing the first X, so they end up in a star pattern. Also, make sure you do the thrusting tip BEFORE the weapon head if your weapon head is going to go all the way to the top of the pole. Replacing a thrusting tip on a shaped headed weapon is... not fun. Repeat for the butt spike if you're having one, which I 100% recommend. somewhere between 25-33% of my polearm kills are with my buttspike. Lastly, if you are able, having someone flatten the sides of your pole helps immensely for both the shaped head and straight glaive polearms. It lets you keep your blade oriented without having to check visually. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. Really wish I had seen this post yesterday because I literally made a new polearm today and could've taken pictures for you as I went
This is the exact kind of information I have been searching for, thank you so much! I actually already ordered the swiss halberd from By My Hand, so I'm glad to hear it's a good starter! I've also got a straight stick i was going to but a rubber crossguard 2 feet from the end almost like a reverse longsword to approximate a partisan. Do you find any utility in chiseling out a recess in the rattan to place the head rather than cutting the head to fit for keeping it secure? I imagine the answer will be obvious once I've actually gotten the heads in. though from the sounds of it your method is mighty secure as is
> Do you find any utility in chiseling out a recess in the rattan to place the head rather than cutting the head to fit for keeping it secure? Some do that. I do not. At the end of the day if you want to take the shaped heads off and go back to a straight stick you can't do so if you cut the rattan down. Also, unless you have the tools, like a belt sander, it's MUCH easier to cut the heads than the rattan. Again I'd say try both and go with the one you prefer. The rubber crossguard with a mostly straight stick is a great idea because it gives a bit of shaping but also still has the benefits of the straight stick. I [had one](https://i.imgur.com/l7e9RMF.jpg) for a short time but I didn't like the way having both the hooks backwards looked. I should've done them both forward or one forward and one back. Also if you're getting just the hooks, get the sparth hooks. They have little extensions on both sides that makes taping it SO much easier.
I'm not in Atlantia and I don't make my own ax heads, but I do own and use those purpleheart hammer heads. YSK they are a pretty hefty bonk all on their own. Were you to add a blade onto it, I would recommend doing your best to keep it light.
hmmm thanks for the info, I may have to work on another plan then, don't want anything too heavy on the end of a 6ft pole
I’ve seen some really good axe heads made of layered leather, mostly sole bend About 4 or 5 layers. This was a while ago, so I would check your kingdom to see if there they are legal.
"Kayak" foam (EVA Mini cell) and a half rattan clacker.