Interesting Sword Problem.....

[Earthcup]

A friend of mine has an excellent idea for a sword but we can't think of a reasonable way to make it. He wants to encase 3 oz. of mercury in a battleworthy katana to give it added momentum but we can't think of any way to do it.

Glass wouldn't withstand the temperatures and pressure IMO and steel and crystal aren't an option. Would ceramic work? Or would it be as likely to break as glass?

*puzzled*

[FelixFire]

Could you perhaps enclose the mercury into some kind of metal vessel that is then installed into the katana?

I'm not very familiar with katanas though, I'm imagining wooden swords and you're probably talking about steel? (battleworthy, FelixFire, he probably does mean steel, duh)

Not coming up with anything very brilliant, unfortunately. Sounds like a fun experiement, though!

On an aside...where do you buy mercury these days? 3oz is a pretty big amount, I don't imagine you're smashing up a bunch of thermometers to get that much, LOL...

[Old Witch]

Not to mention how toxic Mercury is.........Some got dropped at school in a lab that Bryant was in and the whole class was sent to the ER and the haz mat team was called to decontaminate the room.......why risk it??

[oskila]

second that. keep off the mercury!

[Sowelu]

What about just welding it? Why is steel (metal) not an option? Just curiouse:)

[Sowelu]

...actually what I should have asked first was, will it be put on display or will it be used?...(for ritual...etc)

[)O( ~ Khara~ )O(]

Mercury is a very powerful and symbolic metal. I understand the desire to use it in a sword. I have a small vial of mercury that I had had since I was a child back when I was allowed to play with it. Long before it was considered dangerous and toxic. I keep the glass vial on my top shelf altar away from the kids.

Is this strictly a ritual sword? If so, why not attach the glass vial by silk cords to the hilt? If this is a display sword, the same would apply.

A sword used for any other purpose would risk the mercury casing being broken at a risk to both the sword holder and everyone around, for which use I could not think of a SAFE way to contain the mercury.

Sorry if this doesn't help, the only ideas which came to mind!

[Demeter]

Would your friend perhaps be thinking of something like the executioner's sword in Gene Wolfe's books? There was a hollow shaft down the center of the sword with some mercury in it; when the sword was held upright, the mercury would be down by the hilt, making it easier to hold balanced over the head, and when it was swept down to strike, the centrifugal force would send the mercury to the tip, increasing the momentum and making the sword strike harder and more surely.

I don't see how a sword could really be made like this, since the blades are made by folding and pounding and folding the metal again (particularly with katanas). Any kind of a tube down the spine of the sword would weaken the blade tremendously. And elemental mercury is very dangerous to work with.