The Armour Archive

Fenrix

Hello, I wanted to see what people thought about making a linen arming coat with as heavy an outer layer as possible (I found 10.2oz per Yard^2) and a medium weight lining of 5.3 oz linen? I wanted to avoid adding a layer of filling to avoid heat. I overheat way too fast in armor and have no complai...

Fenrix

Yes, I've done exactly that to my breast plate. I gained a little bit of rotation movement (rotating at the waist) from the leather strap holding the breast plate together instead of a solid rivet. I also gained a bit more flexibility for bending over at the waist. I now have no problem picking up i...

Fenrix

Thanks for the help everyone.

Well, I decided to bite the bullet and just do it all hot. It really was easy, like insanely easy to get the plates to match up =)

Fenrix

I have tried medium & heavy weight steel hammers as well as a rawhide mallet. The bottom plate is supported with a flat surface of a stake.

Fenrix

I've been having a bit of trouble getting two pieces of metal to fit together flush. Examples of this would be lame in elbows, the top and bottom portion of a breastplate, or faulds. What I have been doing is holding them together to see where they gap the most, then hammering slightly on them, then...

Fenrix

I like the wooden fixture you have made to ensure the holes are consistant from plate to plate.

Fenrix

Say Icefalcon,

Is there any chance that you will be offering a stainless steel riveted skirt in the near future?

Thanks,
Fenrix

Fenrix

After 6 years I am still tweaking my shirt. I made a long sleeve design with a 45 degree seam at the shoulder (something I can only find sketchy evidence for btw, if someone has a good photo of this I'd LOVE to see it). My problem was that the back needed to be expaneded a lot because with a long sl...

Fenrix

I get my greaseless cutting compound from Jantz knife making supply. I can not get it on the wheel by rubbing it on (like I do emery compound). I put it in a tin catfood can and heat it on the stove after adding a little water. I then paint it on the wheel with a paint brush and let it dry (I use th...

Fenrix

Thanks guys. I couldn't have asked for a better description of what was nearby. Its great to belong to a forum with so many people willing to help and to share what they know. I've sent a PM and hope to be able to meet up while I'm there =)

Fenrix

Thanks for the quick answer Tom. I'm going to keep looking, sadly while some of those are exactly what I am looking for, none of them are open on Monday =(

Fenrix

I am about to fly out to Germany tomorrow (feb 2nd) for what will likely be a once in a life time trip. I hope to have a chance to study some period pieces of armor. Unfortunately it is business but I will still have one day to spend site seeing. Does anyone know of a good museum to see that is near...

Fenrix

The shoulder cop looks nice and even. It must have been hard to keep the curve that smooth across the entire piece.

Fenrix

I saw your post that a B2 is about $700. I didn't see anyone else mention it so I'll through this out there to you, try the Harbour Freight throatless shear for $100. It is a cheap knock off and still what I use to this day. It may take a little bit of effort to get it adjusted to the point that you...

Fenrix

I think there are commercial bluing kits for stainless, however a normal bluing compound for steel will not work on stainless.

Fenrix

I do not think that will work on an AC motor. AC motors need a change in frequency to change speed, and a cheap variable frequency unit is about $100.

Fenrix

If you like the idea steel combat in America you might be interested in checking out the Adrian Empire. It doesn't have full power combat, but its a heck of a lot of fun to get to use a steel weapon and know that the armor requirements are high enough that its no more dangerous (probably less) than ...

Fenrix

I have some 16 ga 304 mail that I have welded on. I use a mig welder on a medium setting with argon shielding gas. A quick zap is all it takes. About 4 out of 5 rings go ok. About every fifth ring gets fried and I have to replace it before I weld it again.

Fenrix

I wanted to check here to see if anyone has had luck using lithium and silicon grease to protect armor from rust? I have been using just 3 in 1 oil and it seems to wipe off too easily leaving the armor open to the air. I was hoping that a grease might cling a bit more and in steel combat it would sm...

Fenrix

Hello, I'd recommend 304. Its one of the cheapest out there. The only issue is that it can't be heat treated to harden it and you can not weld on it with an oxy/ace torch (use mig or tig instead). I'd look up in the yellow pages metal suppliers and start calling around. If you need a 4' X 10' sheet ...

Fenrix

Hello, I have not myself made a set of gauntlets before but I have done some arms and leg (with similar articulations). I have looked into that particular pattern and there have been several posts on the archive (including some from Clang) that say the wrist is not the best design and was later perf...

Fenrix

I have found that "Nevr Dull" will damage many finishes. I would not use this on blueing. For example, I found that when I polished the tarnished brass rings in a maille inlay that has brass, stainless, and blackened stainless rings, the blackened rings were quickly cleaned to a shiny color.

Fenrix

Thanks for the quick feedback.

I agree about the brass things, the first thing I'd do is remove them and set them aside to be melted down for some future casting project.

Wolf, have you seen any issue with exposed skin when raising your head?

Fenrix

http://www.casiberia.com/product_details.asp?id=AB0472&mg=0 With a little bit of work I think I could make this combat legal for the Adrian Empire (similar to SCA requirements other than tighter eye slot rules). I am a bit concerned that if you raise your head it will expose your face over the bevor...

Fenrix

I spent several days looking around for air compressors about a year ago. I found that compressors that need oil are always better than the oil less type. I also found that for the price if you can get a non-portable vertical compressor you get soooo much more power and tank volume. If you have acce...

Fenrix

I have just started hot raising 304 SS using an oxy/ace torch. It really has sped things up (even more so now that I bought a gas saver). I have however found one problem. After raising a trial piece I noticed what looks like stress cracks. They do not go all the way through, in fact some can be rem...

Fenrix

A whitney punch #5 has punched hundreds of holes in 16 ga stainless for me before I had a die fail. For $10 I had another die mailed out to me in 3 days. As for drilling stainless, use a drill press, not a hand drill if possible. Use cutting oil. If you don't use cutting oil then just save yourself ...

Fenrix

Eric rather than the diameter, is there a number on it that tells what size it is? For example I have a number 8 heating tip for my oxy/ace set up (stamped on the top portion of the tip just a few inches from where it joins the handle).

Fenrix

Eric,

Absolutely amazing to watch!

Might I ask you what size of torch you are using in the video?

Fenrix

Ok, thats good to know (about normalizing being enough to avoid it). I would hot work it but at the moment I don't have much elbow space and would prefer not to have a flame near me while hammering.

So if thats how I can avoid it, how do I fix it? Can I weld it with my current torch?

Fenrix

Would that also work if I did my hammering cold, heat it red hot every so often, and let it cool slowly?

Fenrix

I have been working with 16 ga 304 stainless steel for a little while now and have just begun to encounter stress cracks in some of my more complicated projects. These are areas that require shaping one way then another (like a crease that needs to be readjusted several times as it tries to unfold) ...

Fenrix

That was such a great read!

...Its too bad that it made me feel really lazy. The amount of work needed to put that together would dwarf the actual amount of time I put into the pile of projects I have stacked up =P

Fenrix

I have heard of theft of armor or wapons, but I can't believe they took your pavilion! Thats pretty low. My best wishes to you and getting your items back.

Ps those are some beautiful chairs =)

Fenrix

Sean,

That explanation makes things so much clearer on many pieces I have been looking at for years. Thanks for the insight.

Arming coat for supporting armor only, no padding

Fitting two pieces of stainless steel flush together

Help finding a museum in Germany near Essen

Rust prevention (lithium & silicon grease)

Anyone ever seen this casiberia sallet in person?

Cracks during hot raising of stainless

Stress cracking in stainless (how do I avoid & weld it?)