Recently I came across Corsec Props. On this site you will find several wonderful Cosplay prop builds. I met Jonathan Bowen (site owner) on Facebook; he has a common interest in a Twitch Internet Morning Show “The Morning Stream” with Scott Johnson and Brian Ibbott. As a friend he was kind enough to allow me to download and print the STL files for the Jaune sword. Besides STL files, his site also offers custom costume and prop builds along with techniques for those do it yourselfers out there.
The STL files he offers are Jaune Arc’s Sword Season 4 RWBY, Rick’s 9 Gauge Plasma Pistol, Genny’s Staff from Fire Emblem, Silent Hill Heather’s Flashlight, Penny’s Swords, Mercy Staff with lights and motion, King’s Chastiefol from Seven Deadly Sins, and the Dragonfang Valkyrie’s Sword.
This review I will detail my build of the Jaune Arc’s Sword Season 4 RWBY. This review is my own and I was offered no compensation for my opinions, which are uncensored. This build was given to me under no promise of a good review in return. First let’s go over what we need for this build.
Supplies Required for the Build
Filaments listed are the type and manufacture I had on hand at the time and any type or color you chose should not affect the build.
The 3D printer used was the Monoprice Duplicator i3 with the Flexion printer head installed.
- 1 roll of Maker Geeks 1.75mm PLA Filament Rain Teal for the Grip
- 2 – 24” inch 1/4” inch wooden dowels for the blade pieces
- 1 roll of Inland 1.75mm Gray PLA for the Blade parts
- 1 roll of eSun 1.75mm Brass PLA for the Pommel and Guard
- Super Glue (Any Brand)
Recommended Printer Settings
- Layer Height or Resolution .2 mm
- Infill 20%
- No supports except for the Grip
- No Raft
- Extruder Temp 205c Bed Temp 50c
Let’s Print the Blade
The print ran for approximately 8 hours, which included all parts of the sword blade. I printed the blade pieces first using the gray PLA. I originally thought of using silver PLA, but when I compared it to the gray, the gray looked better for a sword blade. Also, I already had the gray handy, so no need to purchase silver PLA.
The only problem experienced with the blades was printing the pointy tip. It was determined if the temp is two high the tip would not print right, instead it will look like a Dairy Queen Ice Cream cone on top. I had to reprint the tip at a lower temperature. The blade prints in four parts with two 1/4″ dowel holes. This keeps the parts lined up for assembly and gives the extra blade strength once it is glued together.
The Pommel and Guard
The picture of the Pommel and Guard on the internet showed them printed with Gold. I had no gold filament, but I did have light brown. The photos here are of the light brown inland filament printing. I have since done some research and could not find an acceptable gold filament. The Gold filament I found looked too much like yellow. The brass looked like what I thought gold should look. So I reprinted the Pommel and Guard in brass.
I think it looks great. None of these parts so far required supports and look great once printed. The Guard prints in two parts and easily glues together.
The Grip
This is the only part that requires supports, but the supports remove like butter. They literally wipe right off the grip. I printed this part standing upright and it took about an hour with the Rain Teal filament. All of this means the Grip is beautiful and feels great in your hand.
Let’s Put It Together
I test fitted all the pieces and found that all fit together tight. I sled all the blade parts on to the two quarter inch dowels. Then added super glue between each and also sprayed them with Super Glue Accelerator. I then glued the two halves of the guard together and also applied Accelerator to them. I glued the Pummel to the end of the Grip and inserted the grip into the Guard gluing and spraying each with Accelerator. Lastly I inserted the Blade into the top of the Guard after gluing and spraying with Accelerator. After assembly the sword looked and felt good to hold.
Overall Impressions
The STL files that you purchase for this print have been designed with care. I found no irregularities in any of the files. My only gripe would be the handle and its need for support. While the supports did release with ease, I would rather not use supports or rafts when printing. The prints look smother and more professional without the use of supports, but on this print I will overlook this because of how easy the supports were removed.
As for printing the files it would be great if Corsec Props provided suggested settings for those who are new to the hobby. In conclusion, I loved this print, It printed fast, using very little material and assembly took only about 15 minutes. My daughter, who is into cosplay was apprehensive at first of a 3D printed sword actually looking good, she fell in love with the finished product. She has requested me to purchase and download the files for the Genny’s Staff and build it too.
I am very impressed with the quality and price of the designs presented on this site and am more than willing to make further purchases in the future. Please check them out for yourself if you don’t believe me.
How well does the super glue work for you? I have used that before and it leaves a white residue around the joints that I’m not a fan of.
@Tom, Super glue is not my friend when it comes to 3D printing materials. I really hope the 3d Gloop stuff on kick starter works the way it says. I saw people pulling on it at ERRF so I guess there has to be some legitimacy to it. I guess I find out when they start shipping. Hopefully, it will make assembling prints much easier.
I love prop”making” with 3D printer technology and this sword is a clear example of what can be achieved with it!
Liked this article on making a sword using 3D printing. Easy directions to follow, thanks !!