GaffI SticK

The Gaffi stick is constructed from a Totokia which is a Fijian war club and some metal parts which form a mace. It is my belief that they probably found these objects in the prop shop, a Medieval style mace and a Totokia and put them together to form the Gaffi Stick. There were also other versions seen in the movie which used different clubs and mace heads. These two styles seem to be the most commonly seen in the movie and production photos:

Parts:

• Totokia available from Fijishop or Jacks Handicrafts Fiji
• 1'- 1/8" x 1-1/2" steel stock
• 4"- 5/8" / 5/8" steel stock
• 1 or 2'- 7/8" OD .065 wall steel tubing
• 3/4" lockwasher (for long style)
• 1'- 3/4" wood dowel
• Epoxy

Tools:

• Welder (you could have a shop do the welding for you)
• Cutoff saw, angle grinder or Dremel tool
• Files
• Hammer
• Grinder or disc/ belt sander
• Drill, 7/8" and 3/4" spade bits

The shipping on the Totokia will be quite expensive because they are heavy and come from the Island of Fiji in the South Pacific. Also you will find that the steel will only be availble at a steel supplier or might have to be custom ordered for those sizes. Unfortunately this is not a cheap or simple prop to build but it is worth the effort in my opinion particularly if you are doing an entire costume. If you don't want to go for complete authenticity then a hardware version can be built or you could use conduit and availble steel from the hardware store with slightly different dimensions.

MACE CONSTRUCTION

This is a pair of completed end the top being the longer style and the bottom being the short. Overall length is about 18 inches and 14 inches.

Click for a larger picture.

These are the parts you will need to make. There is more than one set here, The blades are on the left then the tubes and points. The length I used for the tubes is 10" for the short style and 14" for the long. The ring mounts at about 4" up the tube. The fins are cut from the 1/8" thick stock. You will be able to get 4 out of a 1 foot piece.

The points are made of the 5/8" stock and are about 4" long. I hot forged mine but you will probably have to grind away on each side until you get the point formed. About 1/2" of the corners will have to be ground off the bottom so it will fit snugly inside the tube.

Here is the progression of the points since i forge mine I can cut them a little shorter than 4". You can see the corners ground down on the last two.

Here is an assembled end with the ring, blades and point all welded on. The ring will have to be flattened before attachment you will have to heat it up to do this or hold it shut with a vise then weld it. This style has the tube left round but the short type has the tube formed sqaurely around the point.

INSTALLING THE MACE IN THE TOTOKIA

Parts Needed:

Totokia (Fijian war club)

3/4" dowel 12" long

epoxy glue

Tools needed:

Drill

1/8" bit for pilot hole

7/8" spade bit

3/4" spade bit

When drilling the holes you need to keep it in line with the handle as much as possible.  I used a piece of PVC pipe that fit over the handle and the chuck of my drill to keep things relatively lined up.

Be very careful during all the drilling since you don't want to crack the Totokia.  Patience is key here.

1. First you need to drill a pilot hole with a small 1/8” drill bit.

2. Drill a 7/8" hole with the spade bit ¼”-½" deep.

3. Drill the ¾" hole 3-5 inches deep.

4. Test fit the dowel in the hole then place the end on the dowel

and slide it down until it bottoms out in the 7/8" hole. I like to carve

ridges into the dowel to help the epoxy hold better.

5. If it all fits, then go ahead and epoxy it all together.

Step 1                       Step 2                                          Step 3

Using PVC pipe as a guide                   Step 4                                          Step 5