This spade was made for Mistress Ellice de Valles who’s portable mini-medieval pleasure garden and classes on medieval gardens and agricultural inspired me. You can find her blog here: https://ellicesblog.wordpress.com
Materials:
The portion of the spade (blade, shaft and T-grip) was shaped from a single seasoned timber of Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra L.) The metal “shoe” that covers the working edge of the spade’s blade and forms a hard abrasion resistant cutting edge was forged from a scrap of angle iron. The wooden portion was treated with pine tar to seal and preserve it.
Dimensions:
Overall height: 57-3/4 inches (147cm)
Shaft diameter: 1-1/2 inches (4.0cm)
Blade length: 10-1/2 inches (26.7cm)
Blade width: 8-1/2 inches (21.2cm)
Blade thickness at centerline between top ends of iron shoe: 1-1/8 inches (2.8cm)
T-handle length: 7-3/4 inches (19.5cm)
T-handle diameter: 1-1/2 inches (4.0cm)
Tools:
Marking tools included a pencil, twine, chalk and straight edge.
Measuring “tools” included a piece of twine and my hand. For measurements derived from and measured with the human hand see: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hand_Units_of_Measurement.PNG A modern tape measure was used once to measure the thickness of the timber and adjust a band saw according.
Tool for initial wood removal: A modern bandsaw was used to shape the timber to the rough outline of the spade.
Wood shaping tools: drawknife, chisel, rasp, and scrub plane.
Metal working tools: Coal forge, anvil, tongs, hammers, file, modern drill press (for drilling nail holes in the iron shoe).
Tarring tools: Boar bristle brush and a propane torch.
Process:
I followed the steps in this video with some exceptions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roZBuE96QbQ. Unlike in the video I used a bandsaw only to remove the waste wood outside the rough outline of the spade I had drawn on the timber. After that step I confined myself to woodworking hand tools that would have been available to medieval woodworkers.
Shaping the Wood
The oak timber with the rough outline of the spade marked on it. 
Using a drawknife to shape the shaft and the edge of the blade. 
The spade clamped onto my “Roman” workbench. The scrub plane shown was used to remove wood from the flat faces of the spade’s blade. 
The nearly completed spade shown next to a modern spade for comparison.
Forging the Iron Shoe: A failed First Attempt.
A piece of scrap steel. 
Heating the metal in my wood stove. 
The “shoe” has been folded over. This dull red was as hot as I could get it in my wood stove. 
Here I’ve begun to forge the curve of the spade’s blade only to discover that the metal has gotten to thin to continue .
Forging the Iron Shoe: A Start on a 2nd Iron Shoe.
A thicker piece of iron in the fire. 
The curve of the shoe being checked. 
For speed and ease I drew a chalk outline of the spade blade on my shop floor and marked my progress as I went. 
This was as far as I could get without a real forge.
Forging the Iron Shoe: Now We’re Forging With Coal!
William of Wyndhaven saved the project with his forge, advise, and by lending me an extra set of hands.
The forge and the anvils in the background. 
The shoe heating in the coals. 
The spade’s shape marked on the anvil. 
The shoe is almost U-shaped! 
The layers of the shoe have been chiseled apart to match the edge of the spade’s blade. That was a two person job! 
William holding the finished shoe.
Tarring and Assembly:
Fitting the shoe to the wooden blade required some trimming of the blade. 
Pine tar was brushed on and heated to help it soak into the wood grain, 
The shoe finally in place. 
Another coat of tar and nails to hold the shoe and it’s done.
References:
Making a 14th Century Spade
https://medievallondon.ace.fordham.edu/exhibits/show/medieval-objects-4/spade
The Barefoot SCAdian 
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