"Boarding pikes in 25/28mm? Cutlasses?" Topic

I know I can use brass wire for a straight pike.
But what about pikes with a hook and a point? Who makes them in 25/28mm?

I can use them for sailors, but on this case I would like to arm some of Lord Dunmore's Ethiopians with boarding pikes.
Or sailor axes or cutlasses for that matter.

I am not convinced boarding pikes had hooks of necessity; it seems to me they were basically spears. That said, you might use these Mirliton weapons: link

#109 might work (with leftovers to arm your peasant mob), though they may not be long enough. The hook would need a bit of a trim, but that's no big deal.

Yes, the ones "in use" on the USS Constitution ARE just cut-down (surprisingly short) pikes, but I don't know about earlier designs.

Thanks. It's looking like brass rod, then.

I also used to have an Irish army of the '98 and their "pikes" were of the agricultural implements type.

Wargames Foundry, Pirates and Swashbucklers

I've done quite a bit of research and have not come across any instances of boarding pikes with hooks. The heads were mostly identical to pikes used ashore, just much shorter. Usually 8-10 feet.

Thanks. That will make it much easier.

Boarding pikes were generally half-pikes of between 7 and 8 feet. The tips were of a few designs but can broadly be classified as flat, broad and pointed or fluted, narrow and pointed. Since they were a thrusting weapon, a crook, like used on a boat hook, was not conducive to offensive application.

A good reference is BOARDERS AWAY Volume 1.

As a note and using the same reference, I tend to make cutlasses in the 1728 sea service sword pattern which is not much different than the 1804 pattern of the same sword. They were straight bladed with a double disc (or figure 8) pattern guard. I use a piece of brass wire and flatten it out, leaving a stem for inserting into the drilled hole of the bearer's hand.

I realize the cutlass image of the short curved blade, and they existed, to be sure. But I have a majority of sailors in the service of the King in my collection so I tend to keep Royal Naval pattern weapons a priority.