What do I need to shape a guard?

[SveinD]

I was wondering what kind of equipment I need to shape a guard for a bowie?

I'm making knives for my closest friends and my parents for xmas, and one friend wants a bowie.
A lot of retailers sells the brass/stainless guard slotted to fit the tang, but state that I must do the shaping myself, which I kinda like  

Thanks for your input!

-Svein-

[Wampus]

A round file and a flat file to get the shape.  A piece of hose with a bolt or dowel in it to make it rigid and then wrap different grits of sand paper around it to finish it out in the curved areas.  A regular block of wood with sandpaper for the areas you can use a flat on.

A belt sander can speed things up, but it can also quickly ruin your work if you're not careful.