[Tutorial] How to change default model tool size in MCreator 2025.1

I know that there have been a lot of forum posts asking how to make a weapon or tool bigger or smaller, and many of them have been answered, but I thought that it would be helpful for users to be able to search specifically for a tutorial. In order to change the size of a weapon or tool, you will need to use custom code, but it is very simple and you can basically copy/paste it in, then change a few values to customize it. This tutorial is for the default minecraft tool model, alternatively, you could use blockbench to create a custom model.

There are a lot of steps, but that is because I am explaining almost every mouse click as its own step.

Step 1: Create a tool or weapon.

Step 2: Lock the code of the tool or weapon.

Step 3: Click on the tool/weapon, the click on the edit code button on the left side bar.

Step 4: Click on the tool_name.json button that appears. The exact name of the file will vary based on what you called your tool/weapon, but you want the one that ends in .json.

Step 5: Copy the following code:

{
  "parent": "item/handheld",
  "textures": {
    "layer0": "your_mod_name:item/your_texture_name"
  },
  "display": {
      "ground": {
          "rotation": [ 0, 0, 0 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 3, 0],
          "scale":[ 1, 1, 1 ]
      },
      "fixed": {
          "rotation": [ 0, 0, 0 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 0, 0],
          "scale":[ 1, 1, 1 ]
      },
      "thirdperson_righthand": {
          "rotation": [ 90, -90, 130 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 7, 1 ],
          "scale": [ 1.3, 1.3, 1.3 ]
      },
      "thirdperson_lefthand": {
          "rotation": [ 90, 90, -130 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 7, 1 ],
          "scale": [ 1.3, 1.3, 1.3 ]
      },
      "firstperson_righthand": {
          "rotation": [ 90, -90, 130 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 7, 1 ],
          "scale": [ 1.3, 1.3, 1.3 ]
      },
      "firstperson_lefthand": {
          "rotation": [ 90, 90, -130 ],
          "translation": [ 0, 7, 1 ],
          "scale": [ 1.3, 1.3, 1.3 ]
      }
  }
}

Step 6: Replace all of the code in the .json file opened in MCreator with the code you just copied, just replace the entire file.

Step 7: Replace your_mod_name with the Mod ID/Namespace of your mod.

Step 8: Replace your_texture_name with the name of the texture you want for the item, using the internal name you gave it in the texture editor.

Step 9: Change the scale values to whatever you want. Make sure to make all scale values the same, or else the item's size could be inconsistent. Also, for reference, the default 1.3 scale means it is 1.3 times the normal size, a number less than 1 will decrease the size of the item.

Step 10: If you make any major changes to the scale, you might also need to change the translation, which is how far offset the player will hold the item. For larger items, you will want more translation, and smaller items will need less.

Step 11: Save your code and double check that it is locked before you close out of the code editor.

Final notes: If your item shows up as a purple and black square or cube, it means that you misspelled your mod's ID or the texture name.

Also, a lot of the code is from an old forum post, with a few minor tweaks to make it work in MCreator 2025.1 and also to fix a texture rotation bug in the original code.