The Armour Archive

Bob H

Am I mistaken, or aren't those meant to be worn over a regular bascinet sans visor, or at least a cervellier? That's my understanding as well, the same as "flat-top" great helms, and the bascinet seemed more common. I was working on such a rig with an armourer here and he built a wonderful plain ba...

Bob H

That doesn't exactly qualify as "hidden" though does it? If you wore it under pants... :D I've used motocross knees from Thorlo and Alpine Star as hidden knees. Only in conjunction with a High top late period leather boot upper as the side protection is a bit short for my liking without. But really...

Bob H

Sean M wrote:Since a gentleman of CAROLINA acquired an arming carpet, boxes of REAL SIXTEENTH CENTURY ARMOUR have appeared at his door. Coincidence?

"There was room for his ass, and a gallon of gas, but the rest hung out and he lost'em".

Bob H

Needlenose, and I use a stiff leather square in my Palm behind tools when pushing, it spreads out the pressure and reduces aches. I use the needlenose to push/pull needles My diamond awl was the best investment I ever made for working leather. Don't even need to use sharp needles when saddle stitch...

Bob H

... The thing about spanning with your leg is that the bio-mechanics work in a way that gives you greater leverage as your knee straightens. This is convenient because your leverage improves as the bow gets harder to draw. If your hook is the right distance from your belt, your knee will come strai...

Bob H

I finally got down to writing this on PDF on shift the other day. I wrote out a tutorial on patterning and assembling splinted arms and legs meant for complete newbies. Here is the link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B9reN5z-YNy5b3RfLWRieUFMNEk\ Nothing new for the guys here but it comes up a l...

Bob H

I've never been entirely happy with the look of mail flush with the bottom of a helmet; as a coif-under-helmet simulation, it only works from a distance. If you have control over the build process, I suggest either A) making the helmet ever so slightly oversized to allow extra circumference for pro...

Bob H

Now that eBay/Amazon sell "like new" books for $.01 and postage, I gave up on selling anything but the rare ones. In the last move I realized that I was carting around books that I'm unlikely to ever read again; some, I never got around to reading at all as my interests had changed more quickly than...

Bob H

If you want to look at good medieval practice for crossbows, have a look at your local library for Payne-Galway's 'The Crossbow' - lots of mid to late medieval crossbows. It has gone through several reprints over the years so if you find one second hand for sale it is not particularly valuable unle...

Bob H

When I used to shoot, I found a #150 crossbow to be very convenient. My wife shot one as well. With a bit of instruction and couple of hours practice, any adult can learn to draw one with a belt hook. Performance-wise, they are not unlike a #60 hand bow, but easier to draw. If you weigh more than 1...

Bob H

But.. and not being a wiseass.. why? 150 is overkill for target shooting. It eats bolts and wears you out. Yes, yes, in the crossbow world there's even more macho BS than the longbow world, I know. Guys kiling themselves to shoot 200# bows to prove something, and getting one shot per bolt and eatin...

Bob H

I used my wedge for both 18thC and 14thC, and ran into the same problem. Wedge-tent shaped structures can be found on Karen's site, but canvas wedges are thin on the ground, I think I found one in an Italian print. To make mine look medievalish, I made a set of extra long metal dowels for the uprigh...

Bob H

Check out Elk Ridge. They make really nice stuff, and it's literally a mom and pop operation. Think you are strong enough to draw an 85 with a foot stirrup? No mention of crossbows on their site. I don't mean this as throwing cold water in the face of asked-for advice, but you know my limits on the...

Bob H

After a long absence, I've finally found a niche in the SCA that will let me rejoin my friends at events, a target crossbow. I believe I can be at least a little bit competitive at it, and I'd like to avoid any glaring anachronisms. I'm looking at the 2C from newworldarbalest,com, aka "Iolo", with a...

Bob H

http://www.zoombang.com/product/zoombang-knee-pad/ These have pads on the important sides of the knees, something most sport pads don't have. Like most Zoombang products they are a bit expensive (note that they are sold "per each", not per pair), but it's worth considering. I really wish I'd had the...

Bob H

This is preliminary, from looking at him I'd judge him a 24" or so head. I'm sure he knows he isn't going to get a superfly hat for what he can afford, but I don't want to see him get somethiing that is either (a) grossly out of period, or (b) piece of crap. That's pretty much the criteria beyond 11...

Bob H

If you can pay for the shipping from MN and have a monitor, I can donate one to the cause... :twisted: Cause you are making your living from this craft and need to stay in contact. The fact that I LOVE your work has.. Uhm something to do with it.... Let me know. You, Good Sir, have really spun your...

Bob H

I don't fight anymore, not able, but I have a young friend who's just caught the bug. Naturally he doesn't have much money (you've never heard that before, I'm sure). I know that he isn't going to end up with top drawer, LH quality gear, but I don't want him to end up with clown-car stuff either. I'...

Bob H

A while back I fell over on the motorcycle and broke my shoulder blade (it's healed completely), and I was wearing an armoured motorcycle jacket. I shudder to think what I'd have broken had I not been wearing armour. However, since I've gotten back to riding I've been fairly disappointed in the armo...

Bob H

Ran across these on an adventure motorcyling forum: http://www.bohn-armor-pants.com/ I haven't seen them or tried them and I imagine they'd need some beefing-up for SCA combat, but I did think they were an interesting possibility as they are designed as a very-low-profile garment to mitigate injurie...

Bob H

Try Boldo's Armoury: http://www.boldo.com He's a wee bit slower than estimated delivery date in getting a new piece done (but not terribly so), but his work is good and the price is right. You'll have to scroll through his "Oriental & Other" link to find the Mongol helm. I fought for several years i...

Bob H

You needn't be secretly initiated under a full moon into a priesthood of couturers and women to grok ye Mysterie of Cloth. :? <-- directed at myself after coming up with a phrase like that one -- and leaving it in the post I don't like working with cloth, it's all wiggly and shit. :P Leather has a ...

Bob H

Az, I'd just buy a cotton-batting-padded arming coat (medium thickness, not a full-on gambeson) and cover it with a tunic. I imagine if you think back you'll remember seeing me lay my arming coat/gambeson on the ground and wetting it down before I put it on, on hot days. Once it's wet it's cool(er)....

Bob H

lanars/William leads with a bid of $75, going twice!

Bob H

William leads with a bid of $75, going once!

Bob H

Looks to be Archibald @ $70, going twice!

Bob H

Email en route

Bob H

I have $70, do I hear $80?

$70, going once ...

Bob H

Dredge at $65 ... going once!

Bob H

It's open - $55 going once!

The way we've done this in the past is your current high bid gets a "going twice" tomorrow, and "sold" the following unless you get outbid. This gives people time to think about their bid without dragging things out forever.

Bob H

Yes, I'll go back and correct the first post, shipping to USA addresses is included. I'll work with those in other countries on a fair basis (actual cost less the cost of US shipping).

Bob H

Me too. $50, going once! (includes shipping)

Bob H

Bump!

Bob H

Wait until you have personal dealings with him - out of five stars, I give him a fifteen.

Bob H

Hagan's rock solid. Shit happens ... but seldom to Frank. If things go wonky check with him because it may have fallen through the cracks, but that seldom happens with him.

Re: Who here uses a Great bascinet?

Re: Hidden Leg Armor Opinions

Re: PSA: Do you have your arming carpet?

Re: Hand stitching canvas tents?

Re: Advice on a target crossbow?

Re: Wrote a long tutorial for making splinted stuff hidden p

Re: Creating an 11th Century Kit

An idea about placing books you no longer need.

Re: Advice on a target crossbow?

Re: Advice on a target crossbow?

Re: Advice on a target crossbow?

Re: Decorating a wedge tent to simply look better.

Re: Advice on a target crossbow?

Advice on a target crossbow?

Better kneepads from Zoombang

Re: 11th-12thC Byz helm, need ideas to help a friend

Re: Knotwolf off the Radar

11th-12thC Byz helm, need ideas to help a friend

Some very nice under-armour padding

Possible hidden leg armour resource

Re: Looking Affordable Mongol Helm.

Re: Looking for a Viking-Age "Gambeson"

Re: Looking for a Viking-Age "Gambeson"

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Archive style auction - Luther Anselm hilt and pommel

Re: Review of Talbot

Re: Paging Viking Leathercrafts