The Armour Archive

Josh W

not trying to be a smartass here ( I swear!) but did it occur to anybody that maybe all these accounts of armor turning arrows exist precisely because they didn't happen very often and were therefore newsworthy? Well, right back at you. I think the accounts of arrows piercing armour were the except...

Josh W

I do believe that the vast majority of arrows loosed at Agincourt did NOT penetrate armor enough to cause a serious wound. Some missed entirely of course, but of those that hit, many would have failed to penetrate because of angle of impact, range, quality of armor, thickness of armor. Then I guess...

Josh W

War, Cruel and Sharp is a neat book, even if the HYW isn't my favorite conflict. I'm not convinced that the historical record completely supports the notion that arrows unequivocally pierced plate at Agincourt. Doesn't Jean Juvenal des Ursins relate that ""The French were scarcely harmed by the arr...

Josh W

No worries, chief.

I didn't take it as an attack at all.

I know we don't use plate as a standard...

...but I think it'd be cool if we did.

Josh W

To be fair, the primary source material that features arrows killing men through plate armour is almost always a lot more vague than the sources that say the armour worked as it was expected to. I've been debating the arrows vs. armour thing across about four different boards for the past week, and ...

Josh W

Why wasn't my daddy that cool?

Sweet job as usual, Wade.

Josh W

Yes, it is. Argue what you want about CA in the SCA: don't minimize the scholarly record because doing so is convenient to your argument. Let's hear more on this, elsewhere if necessary. What primary source evidence do you have for arrows killing plate-clad men that I haven't seen? It seems to me t...

Josh W

So I've been spending some time debating longbow aficionados across the internet lately. In that time, I have gained a pretty good idea, I think, of the capabilities of that weapon and the effect it would have upon armour. I'm in line with Hardy and others about it being able to drive an arrow throu...

Josh W

Plate (including helms) is proof against arrows and single handed weapons.

I really like this idea.

That, combined with the one listed after it, would make shieldmen easy pickings for me?

Josh W

I still think Joe Viking would have thrown on his thickest wool tunic (or maybe even two tunics!) under his mail and would have been fairly well cushioned.

Josh W

m I fight in these. They're prettier now because I sent them to Patrick Thaden for some re-working and clean-up since this photo was taken. The thumbs are hard-riveted to the metcarpals, and the finger-scales are heavily padded and do not ground out on the rattan. ...silly Marshallate nonsense made ...

Josh W

I don't want to sound like a parrot, but I like everything that Rhys said, especially the bit about implementing a certain degree of "armour as worn." I'd like to see the upper-end guys in the game push for more armour, instead of whining about being required to wear a couter behind their shield.

Josh W

I'm waiting to order a copy until I hear that someone here has actually received theirs...

Josh W

I still think you're judging according to modern idiosyncratic notions of chivalry, and not in the "what chivalry meant in period" terms that Rhys sees this issue in.

Josh W

Try the Hugh Hastings Effigy.

[img]http://www.mbs-brasses.co.uk/images/ElsingCarter.jpg[/img]

Is that what you're looking for?

Josh W

Nice pics.

This game is slowly looking better and better. If I could change just one thing, I'd get rid of kidney belts worn over mail. For some reason that's just visually jarring to me.

Josh W

This sounds extremely cool. I'd play in my full plate, Ken, if your ideas get off the ground...

Josh W

Sinner.

Josh W

A stout hinge on one side, taking the place of straps might help keep the two plates aligned. It works on my own cuirass.

Josh W

Is POD really 6'11"?

Josh W

I have no dog in this fight. Wearing only one elbow cop looks silly, IMO, and I'll always wear both of mine, even if this rule winds up being struck down. Just the same, it does strike me as kinda odd that Atlantians seem more passionate about this issue than people from other kingdoms. Why is that?...

Josh W

Looks like fun.

I wish my shire would support something like this...

Josh W

...nowhere did I say that it was... What I said was that many knee injuries are the result of a leg harness that is very common throughout the SCA. What you said was: Most of the SCA is using a medieval leg armor design ... That's what this statement implied to me. It does sound like you're blaming...

Josh W

. Josh when you had your legs made. are they just a "in stock/generic size" or did you have them custom to your leg so that they fit you? m My greaves were custom made for me by Patrick Thaden, and the upper legs were made by William Hurt, sized for him, and I just happen to be exactly the same siz...

Josh W

I don't think you're correct. My legharness is prevented from rotating that few degrees you mention by the pin attaching the "demi-greave" to the greave. The greave fits too tightly to permit the rotation. If your scenario is correct, then it's poor-quality reproduction legs you've based your theory...

Josh W

Well, a book on the subject at the local university library tells me that most bronze cuirasses were about 1mm thick, with exceptions (one cuirass was very thick at 2mm). Greaves were thinner, and helmets were a bit thicker, IIRC. Not sure about the hoplon. Given those thickness figures, I can't rea...

Josh W

I'm bumping this because I'm interested. If the backplate turns out well, I might have to buy one...

Josh W

I don't think a well-made back is any more hindering than a breastplate. Maybe even a little bit less. My cuirass is the least troublesome component of my harness.

Josh W

Unfortunately, this was indeed a common practice.

Josh W

Dante della Luna wrote:You know very well why I only ordered one gauntlet Josh... we talked about this in chat.

I do? Was I drunk again?

Josh W

Wait a minute?

You ordered just one half-gauntlet? Why not a pair?

Am I misunderstanding?

Josh W

I hope this isn't too forward but you don't get hit in your butt cheek at all? Or are just able to block it? Yes, I get hit there sometimes. In fact, I just re-mounted my butt-tasset on my cuirass again for that very reason; here's a very old photo of it: m There are also two small tassets that mou...

Josh W

http://josh.mediumaevum.com/Picture%20019.jpg

http://josh.mediumaevum.com/Picture%20008.jpg

My legharness don't "hang" really. They point to the arming doublet, but that's more to keep them in rather than up so they don't catch on the tassets. They stay up on their own.

Josh W

I once drilled through my left hand, when a drill bit snapped on me. I was trying to drill a hole in a culet plate. I switched to using punches soon after.

Josh W

I don't get it; first you say that one spelling of the term is incorrect, then you post a link that uses what you say is the incorrect spelling.

In which I advance a theory about armour and bows...