I did a little browsing at a local home improvement supermarket, and I looked and asked some employees and I could get the tools and supplies to make my own swords for for 100-150 bucks.

A reciprocating saw 50$
Appropriate metalcutting blades 9$
Bench grinder 20$
Materials to make bench 10$
Files 10-20$?
Shop clamp 10$
1/4-3/8 in spring steel .. dont' know but
Grandpa tells me I could get in it a junkyard for free or virtually for free.

Anyone ever try to make a sword with similar tools? Any tips you can share for me before I decide to try to make a sword?

I've got one made of stainless that I have going right now. It's a medium length tanto point sort of thing, and so far I've used nothing but a vise and an angle grinder. I only have the blade and handle weights thus far - I still need a guard and some grip material, as well as a sheath. The stuff holds a good edge once you temper it a bit, too...

~Zero

Swords made by cutting them out of a sheet of metal are weak, flimsy, and pretty much useless. All quality swords made, even today, are forged.

For the most part, yes. Sheet steel isn't made for lateral stability or edge holding properties. It's fine for stars and medium sized knives, though.

Forging a sword without specialized equipment is rather difficult. Those anvils are a bitch to move.

I make mine from strips of extruded steel, which is a bit better for longer shapes (sword blades) than sheet steel. Tempering the steel properly is an absolute must, though, otherwise the sword will completely and totally fail to hold an edge.

The exception to all of this is spring steel, which does not need to be forged for use in any type of blade (as long as it is of the proper dimensions). It's rather expensive, though, and unless you have free access to truck leaf springs or something it's not an option for most people.

~Zero

I made one out of a flattened copper pipe, with a thin rod though the "blade" to stiffen it. Very crude.

I plan on using spring steel. Couldn't I get it cheaply by going to a used auto parts store/junkyard?

I haven't a clue how much it would cost from an auto parts store. You can get it cheap or free from a junkyard, but inspect your metal very carefully for corrosion and damage. Metal exposed to the elements for a long time can be significantly weakened.

~Zero

How thick are those individual leaf springs?

Depends on the vehicle it's for/from. I've seen ones ranging from 1/8 of an inch to about 1/2 an inch (railroad cars) thick.

~Zero

you can NOT unbend a leaf spring thats nearly impossible

I thought those assemblies were several flat leaves bound together. They're bent, Zero? or no?

and a 1/2 inch leaf spring.. damn. Gives me an idea for a very thick sword. The blade cross section would be a short isosceles triangle and 1/2 to 3/4 an inch wide. The blade would be about the size of the wakazashi.

I'm no weaponsmith nor real sword enthusiast, but i did weapons as part of taekwondo/hapkido training and something about them was appealing to me. Does anyone know the name of the type of sword that is between a katana and a wakizishi(or whatever it is)? As an aside, some designs at http://www.swordsonline.com are interesting, and its worth taking a look there if you are interested in swords.

You can unbend a leaf spring if you heat it enough before attempting to do so - Spring steel will bend and hold a new shape if it is heated.

The only official japanese sword designations I know are the following:

A Tanto is rather like a long knife.
A Wakizashi is a short sword, part of the diasho.
A Katana is a long sword, part of the diasho.
A Tachi is akin to a katana, but is more curved and has a different sheath layout. They were used by commanders and generals in war, as far as I know.
A Nodachi is an exicutioner's sword, and is rather like a very large and thick katana. Rarely seen in combat.
A nagatina is rather like a sword-on-a-stick. They were not carried by the samurai elite, but were commonly wielded in battle by lesser soldiers and also supposedly used by a housewife to defend her home (as women were forbidden to touch the 'sacred' katana or wakizashi).

Most any of the above can come in shirasaya form. A shirasaya blade does not have the traditional cord wrapped handle and iron/bronze guard, but instead has a natual wood sheath and handle with no guard and no pommel. Shirasaya swords are usually inscribed on the handle and/or sheath and authentic ones are very rare.

In addition, there is the classic "ninja" sword, which is supposedly a straight edged sword of a length between a katana and wakizashi. I don't know any actual historical details about this blade, as I have been unable to find any. I find it doubtful that the ninja used a straight edged blade, as the curve of the Japanese blades is what gave them their stability. If there is anything a ninja would need in his travels it would be a very sturdy blade. I do not know the proper Japanese name for these blades off the top of my head, nor if there is one at all.

~Zero

Is the ninja sword you are talking about called a 'Ninja-To'? I have heard that name from somewhere and i'm not sure whether it is accurate or not. I find it hard to believe that the profession would be named after the sword, but the sword could've been named after the profession. I dunno. But if you know what 'To' means it could figure it out.

Straight blades are usually only found in archaic swords, and are extremely rare in daito size.

Lengths:

Daito is the long sword. This would include the tachi and katana. These are swords longer than two shaku, a shaku being very close to a foot in length. Tachi and katana refer to the mounting of the blade. Tachi have hangers on the saya and are worn edge down on a sword belt. They were usually reserved for those of high rank. Katana were worn edge up and placed through the sash.

Shoto is the short sword, aka wakizashi. These are the swords between one and two shaku in length.

Tanto are those shorter than one shaku.

There are borderline cases, however. There is the kodachi, which is a tachi sword less than two shaku, and the O-wakizashi, a wakizashi that is very near the two-shaku limit.

Also, the shirasaya is not really a sword. It is just a wooden handle and scabbard designed to protect the blade during storage. It is not a weapon.

The attention to detail and perfect lines put into the shirasaya eventually became an art form and some swords were actually made and completed with a shirasaya design. They were display pieces only, even in their own day, and as I said before it is very rare that an authentic one is found.

A permutation of the design came about in the early 1800's when carrying swords was outlawed in Japan. At that time, hiltless swords concealed in wooden and bamboo walking sticks became quite common.

~Zero