The Armour Archive

Sean Powell

I suggest AGAINST using metals softer than steel for use in a combat helm despite the fact that they look very pretty. YMMV. Happy hammering, please post pics when you are done. Sean Does this include for decorative trim? I always thought a early period helm would look really cool copper plated. It...

Sean Powell

Metal is really the best way to go for cops. Simple, unpolished metal cops are really very, very affordable. That said, if you get plastic very hot - in an oven - you can mold it over a metal cop, or if you are just doing simple boiling, you can cut a roughly rectangular piece of plastic and then m...

Sean Powell

Historicly speaking, the panels of a great helm were riveted together and a safe helm can be made for the SCA and most Larps without welding. Rivets can be purchased from Mcmaster-carr, R.J.Leahy and several industrial supply houses including some farm equipement suppliers. They come in mild, stainl...

Sean Powell

Wow! Well done! Some of you have armour that's almost as spiffy as mine This is SCA? Do you guys look this good all the time, or only for public demos? I'd like to see your spiffy suit. I always seem to have my back to the camera but at least there is a good picture of my new demo shield: m The onl...

Sean Powell

As I understand it... Split rattan pole arms is a piece of 18"-24" ratan split lengthwise and then attached with glue and tape to the front and back of a ratan shaft. The end result resembles more of a boar-spear than anything in the pole-axe family. From what I have felt by being hit with them (I d...

Sean Powell

My shire has a potential new fighter who is the antithisis to the newbies we usually help armor. He is in his early 40's has a well paying salary and is willing to jump in head first but would rather spend money than time building his own armor. I'm looking for recomendations for armorers who have q...

Sean Powell

Strength is a funky term. Fluteing armor makes a piece STIFFER and less likely to dent or bend perpendicular to the direction of the flutes. Bending in the same direction of the flutes is reasonably the same (assuming aneal to remove the work hardening) Fluteing will do noting to prevent a bullet fr...

Sean Powell

Benches serve many purposes. I have fixed wall benches moveable benches for better lighting, large top saw horses and layered wood benches for stakes. Without re-drawing my blueprints: Wall Bench: 4x8' of 3/4" pre-sanded plywood. Shelves, Back and sides, 4x8, 1/2". Have Home Depot cut the 3/4" and o...

Sean Powell

Thats gotta be an expensive way to make maile. I bet it looks very cool though. What size washers is he using?

Sean Powell

I can forgive plastic on a COP since it will be hidden and rarly makes noise. My SPORT suit is kydex and 5-gallon pail plastic and it is hard to tell. My demo suit is stainless steel and wows the crowd. The best tool I know for cutting the bucket is a jig saw and wood cutting bit. Split the bucket d...

Sean Powell

I think I have seen other pictures of this brig. Surprisingly I think this IS right side out. Over time the fabric has stretched and deformed over the edges over the plates underneath untill the edges are clearly deliniated. In the picture I recall, the plates are small and horizontal with 3-4 rivet...

Sean Powell

Wisby Type 1 Riveting question. I am helping a new fighter in our group upgrade armor. We are building him a (slightly modified) canvas covered Wisby type 1 coat of plates. The COP is the one with 3 vertical plates on the upper chest, 4-6 horizontal plates on the belly and assorted vertical plates a...

Sean Powell

I asked the same question several months ago. The best answer is: It depends. The assumed answer for anvil faces is standing shoulders square make a fist and set the anvil face where your nuckles are. This is good for heavy pounding but not fine work. I prefer riveting somewhat higher. For raising a...

Sean Powell

I have a 12ga stainless close helm from Illusion Armory. My neck is just fine and I wouldn't trust my head and neck to anything lighter. A helm is not ment to deflect bullets, case hardening light gage steel would be fine for that. A helm protects by not deflecting in its elastic range (a function o...

Sean Powell

My recomendation is either use a forced air convection oven (People who bake bread and cakes REALLY love these) or look in a kitchen store for a fan that can be hung up inside the oven to force the air around.

You don't want certain parts harder than others if you can avoid it.

Good luck
Sean

Sean Powell

I had a track piece that long when I started. I handed it to a machine shop who cut it in 3 and I gave sections to friends who needed them. I use my track for tasks that I don't want to abuse my anvil with like drilling dimples in the face to keep from deforming round headed rivets. If I had ANOTHER...

Sean Powell

Very beautiful. I love Schiavona's. The styling is so unique. I had one made for my heavy weapons sword years ago but I based it on my recolection of what they looked like. I was thinking of having a new one built but I am having trouble finding good pictures of originals (not reproductions) Can you...

Sean Powell

Once upon a time, when I lived back in the midrealm, there was a minimum thickness requirement for shield edges of 3/4". At the time even my shield did not qualify. Now that I am back in the east kingdom I have the option of switching to something thinner but I prefer my siloflex edging. I think tha...

Sean Powell

I'll forward this to some people in that area who are off the archive. You might get lucky.

I assume this is LH standards for armor and basic SCAjun won't quite cut it?

Sean

Sean Powell

Let me say this again... lightest toughest material available with minimal maintenance = Titanium 16ga cold rolled can be replaced with 20 ga titanium for the same strength and it has the weight of 25ga mild steel. Not even spring steel can match it. Well it can match the strength to size issue but ...

Sean Powell

There are varieties of baked on enamels that are damn near indestructable... mind you the baking process COULD re-normalize the armor removing all the spiffy spring characteristics. For my oppinion, If I can ever afford period spring steel armor it will include period blackening techniques as well. ...

Sean Powell

... and how did you arange to get the site? I was lucky to start in a group with strong college ties. The practice was on campus which was convenient for lack of transportation and recruiting. After graduating I've moved between several baronies and shires. I have fought in parks, churches, backyard...

Sean Powell

Without seeing the inside and handling them myself it is very difficult to tell what the true source of the problem is. Any form of repair is going to be a complete disassembly, but that is a lot better than reshaping plates as well. You MIGHT be able to get away with using a forked shim as a spacer...

Sean Powell

Hello All, I am in the process of finishing my new pretty shield for demo's. (of course the demo is this weekend... if it wasn't for last minutes things would never get done.) The shield is 2 pieces of 1/4" birch plywood, glued in a press, with glued canvas front, alluminum plywood edging, yellow pl...

Sean Powell

Pre-curved Rattan from a papasan (sp?) chair? perfect for use as a Klingon Batleth.

Mind you, you will be hunted down and mercilessly beaten for doing so.

Sean Powell

Inconell is what they use on jet engines when titanium wouln't take the load, because of the HEAT. I think you will get a better strength to weight ratio from titanium or maybe some 400 series stainlesses if you are looking for performance at temperatures that a human body can withstand. It will def...

Sean Powell

And I was waiting for someone to mention "An ATTEMPT at medieval garb". There are so many things we talk about not being able to change with the SCA because of backwards compatibility or because it is written into corporra... Come on broad broush and big ideas here. Would you propose a start date ra...

Sean Powell

I want to see how they do the Thing and not make it look like a rubber suit...

Sean

Sean Powell

I have a table I built to compare different thicknesses of material of different tempers. Assuming that the primary purpose for chosing thickness is resistance to bending: The standard for stainless lamellar seems to be 20ga (.0359") this is equivilent to .048" mild (.047" = 18ga) and is equivilent ...

Sean Powell

If someone wraps a sword accross my grill in a meele and I am not activly engaged with an honorable fight with another opponant I'l probably say "Thanks, good" and drop to the ground. I have done so in the past. There are other melee's to fight in later. It dosn't have to be any harder than the posi...

Sean Powell

(SCA) Knowing what you know nowÃ¢â‚¬Â¦ Lets say its 30+ years ago and you are sitting around a camp fire in someoneÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s backyard in Berkley California. A few people have wall-hanger grade steel swords on their hips, rattan is for lawn furniture, mild steel comes in one color: galvinized, butted...

Sean Powell

As shield to weapon contact is permitted I see no reason why I couldn't TRY to trap a weapon, but the shape is not particularly conductive for doing so... unless I use the shield AND a weapon, which I could do anyway or unless I used it to pin my opponants weapon while fighting at a barrier in which...

Sean Powell

Straping a late period shield. Hello, I am nearly complete with my newest shield. It is 2 layers of bent plywood, canvas, aluminum edge reinforcement, nylon rope edging and leather stretched & riveted in place to hide the mundane (didnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t have any raw-hide when I started the project). The over...

Sean Powell

Ideally you want to look into water-jet cutting for titanium. The heat from the laser will cause hydrogen embrittlement (or was that nitrogen?) Anyway I've been instructed that the only time we hot cut titanium (laser, torch, edm etc)for the medical industry we machine away the outer .030" to .040" ...

Sean Powell

Kingston NY isn't far from Albany. Try looking up the company: Albany Steel. They sell (or used to sell) half sheets, drops and scratch&dent pieces for very reasonable prices. As you are looking for non-premium material the gages you want may not always be in stock. If you are building SCA grade arm...

New Armor Quickly?

Wisby Type 1 Riveting question.

Where do you fight?

Protecting Paint on Wooden Shields

(SCA) Knowing what you know nowÃ¢â‚¬Â¦

Straping a late period shield.