Building a Simple Shield
The easiest and most cost effective shield to build is a wooden heater. This uses 1/2 plywood and carriage bolts. You can use this same technique for a round shield as well, but it is more difficult.
First find the size shield you want to use. Average size is around 2 1/2 feet across, and about 3 feet from the top to the bottom point. You will want to adjust the size to match your height and width, and also your style of fighting - if you don't do much moving, you may want a bigger shield, and if you run around a lot - you would want one less encumbersome. Ideally, when you hold it up, the front corner should angle to just below your right (or left) eye and the bottom point should be at the top of your knee. Any size difference will need for you to make the necessary adjustments to your style, either larger or smaller blocks, or fighting with one eye covered.
How to build a standard wooden heater:
Leather strap & buckle - enough to wrap around your forearm, leaving a couple inches to spare.
Handle - either a shield basket, or a sturdy piece of leather, or a strip of rubber hose bolded on. Make sure that your gauntlet will fit in the handle.
Drill - with a drill bit large enough to match the diameter of your bolts, and a 2nd for drilling attachment holes - a small one will do (1/8 in)
Razor knife- for cutting hose
Cord, String or cable ties - enough to tie the hose around the shield.
Construction:
Measure the desired widthe along the top of the board (2 1/2 feet), and mark. Measure the desired length from the same starting corner along the side (3 feet), and mark. Draw your lines, and cut. This should leave you with a rectangular piece of plywood.
On the long side, measure up 6 to 8 inches from the bottom. Mark this, and measure the same on the other side (these should match so that you get a good balance). Now mark the center on the bottom edge, and draw cut lines to your marks. These lines will be around a 45° angle, forming a point at the bottom center. Save your scrap pieces for later. You now have your basic shield blank. You could edge and mount it and use it as is, but it will fall apart in about 30 minutes of fighting.
Now it is time to cut your supports. This is a wooden border that goes around the edge of you shield along the face to strengthen it. To do this, you will want to cut strips out of your scraps to match the dimensions of your shield. These strips should be measured to match the outside edge of the shield, you don't want them to hang over the edge - they will splinter and break sooner. There are ways to prevent that should you desire to play around with it. Otherwise, continue on. Cut each strip about the same width. If they aren't exact, it won't matter - as long as they are close. I recommend at least 1 1/2 inches wide. This edge is what is going to take the brunt of each blow, and you want to make sure that it is big enough to do that.
Each strip should butt up against the next, overlapping the strips will cause the shield to crack where ever the strips aren't touching it. You really only want one strip per edge, so when you cut them, you will want to cut 5 of them. The corners can be angled if they are butt. Note: the leading corner of the shield (the one that will be under your left {or right - if your are left handed} eye) takes the most damage - do do not angle that corner. Place the strips perpendicular to each other at that corner.
Once you have your strips cut out, it is time to mount them. If you have a couple o clamps, you can clamp each strip down and drill the holes for our carriage bolts. If you don't have clamps, then line up your strip and drill a hole at one end and insert a bolt. Then do the same at the other end. Tighten the two bolts down and drill the rest of your holes. You will want one every couple of inches. Repeat this process for each edge.
Now that you have your supports mounted, you can begin edging your shield. If you want to put an insert on the shield face, i.e. a cloth banner to be set inside the suppor border, you should first skip to balancing your shield, then mount your hardware, then come back to this part. Edging is simply wrapping your hose around the edge of your shield and fastening it. If you are using hose, I higlhy recommend that you split the hose open length wise to provide a wider area. Ideally, the hose shold completely cover the top edge, and about 1/4 inch of the face. If you are using a thick hose, you can probably just lay the hose along the top edge and fasten it tightly. The whole point is to prevent rattan from coming in direct contact with any sharp corners that could damage your opponents weapons.
The easiest way to fasten your edge, in my opinion, is to first drill your small holes, about 1/4 inch from the edge. You should have one every couple of inches - but don't go crazy drilling hundreds of holes - you don't have to lace through them - and they could weaken your edge. You will need more holes along the two bottom edges, and the top. The sides shold only need a few - 3 close togetherat the top corner, then maybe 4 more down the side. Use your best judgement, and remember, if it doesn't move when it gets hit - then it's on right. Hold one end of the hose in place (I usually start at the bottom), and tie it on. Just tie it enough to stay while you get started. You want the ends to overlap, so you'll use that same hole again. If you are using cable ties, this will go quickly - but you will probably need a lot of extra ties to rplace them as they break in combat. If you are using rope or cord, the fastest way is to spiral the rope through the holes, over the hose, and through the next hole. The best way is to tie at each hole. Spiral wraps usally last a while, so I tend to go for speed. When you get to the end, you will want a couple inches of overlap - but not a lot (that's just more work). Trim any exceess hose, and tie your last end down very tightly.
Ready to balance! You may need a hand for this. Before you mount your hardware, you need to balance the shield. This is the most important part of building any shield. An unbalanced shield will feel twice as heavy, and be extremely awkward to use. This isn't an exact science, however. You will probably only get close to perfect - but that's all you need. First, raise the shield above your head, laying flat on your shield arm - face up, as though you were wearing it. Now, you will want to moveyour arm into a proper diagonal position - as it will be when you carry your shield. The shield should balance flat on your arm - if you allow it to lean forward a little bit, it will automatically fall into it's proper position when fighting. Once it is balanced, mark the shield o either side of your hand where the handle will go. Then mark it on either side of your forearm, where the strap will go. You can now mount your hardware.
to mount your hardware, you need to use your gauntlet to make sure that the handle is the right width. Set your gauntlet between the marks for your hand, then make marks along hte same line as your irst marks at the right width. Use these marks to drill holes for your bolts. Now go down to strap marks, find the center, and mark. This is where you will drill another bolt hole. Make sure that you drill/punch the holes you need inyour strap and handle. Now drill the holes in the shield. Ren the bolts for the handle from the front - so the threads are inside. If the bolts are too long, and get caught up on your clothing/armour, use a hack saw to trim them after you tighten them. Run The bolt form the strap from the inside out.
Now, tighten everything down. Make sure all the bolts are tight everywhere - if they are loose, you run the risk of adding shock to the wood when it is hit - and this will cause splintering. Check all of your bolts to make sure that they meet your local requirements dealing with length. Most areas allow up to 1/4 inch. If they are any longer, you will need to trim them with a hack saw.
You now have a functioning shield that will bring you hours of githing enjoyment.
Lord Robin of the Whip