The Armour Archive

Norman

If I had know that it was going to erupt into this, I never would have posted it. The religious discussion seems to be far more civil and educational than the flamewar over SCA sumptuary laws had been. I suppose that depends on exactly what is meant by the term "fragment." Supposedly, a l...

Norman

While we (or you guys ) are arguing about religion I have one to add to the list; people who push Wicca in the SCA. Preach on Brotha! I just ask people leave the modern religious agenda at home. For those of us who are deeply religious, it is impossible to leave our beliefs out of any part of our l...

Norman

I submit that a religion which demonstratively did have temples, and a priesthood, which has devolved into a series of folk-beliefs, without a priesthood and said temples, is no longer the thing it once was. And perhaps a religion that started as a small group of people that were opposed to the ins...

Norman

If you like lamellar and dislike mail and want all of the protection on your helmet as authentic as possible (ie: hiding or eliminating SCA inacuracies) may I suggest shifting your personna a little towards the orient. Lamellar was strongly in use in the steppes of what is now Ukraine. The Turkic pe...

Norman

The only caveat to all this is your own eyes. I tried to get prescription lenses in two different low-profile 'sport' glasses before going with Rec-Specs. My astigmatism is so bad the prescription could not be done with the curvature and shape mose of the sporty sport eye protection come in. Thankf...

Norman

Soft contact lenses. The costs might not be so very far apart. I've fought in them, and they work fine. I'd just avoid bridge battles with real bridges over real water... Not to get into too much detail but - contact lenses are not an option for me. The only question again is what brand/model of sp...

Norman

Many people I know who fight with glasses do so with Rec Specs. I see that there are a big batch of Rec Specs out right now - but none of the websites thought of showing a top view. My realy old Rec Specs are more "boxy" than my regular glasses. Totaly Useless. But there are a whole lot o...

Norman

So - I can make a helmet with a visor reshaped to fit my glasses. But I don't want to. Or rather - would like to minimize any required reshaping. I realy want a nice anthropomorphic visor and if I had to properly accomodate glasses, it'd wind up looking like an inbed Dutchman-frog hybrid out of HP L...

Norman

It is from a late 19th century Russian encyclopedia of armour. Never seen the book itself (just lots and lots of pics from it) but from the descriptions it was a massive thing like twice as big as Stones Glossary. While it is based directly on a specific collection of armour and the artist drew the ...

Norman

I have been shopping around for a backsplash for my kitchen awhile --
The steel pieces are either a very thin sheet of steel on a ceramic tile or just a ceramic tile glazed with a steel-grey finish

and arent 2x2 plates too big for a belt anyhow?

Norman

Chris Gilman wrote:The helmet looks too big or perhaps too round.

That helmet is supposed to be big and of round cross section. There are two fairly identical ones in existance.

However -
Mikhael,
Why a 12-13th centruy Kipchak helmet on a very very late (17 -18 century) Manchurian brigandine?

Norman

Guran, While Chef gets way too emotionaly involved in the debate, there is a basic issue in which the two of you are speaking past each other. To whit -- Christianity and Christmass originated in the South and East of the Roman Empire and were based on the Pagan religions of the South and East. As C...

Norman

We're working in leather because i have a friend who works in leather and needs the work. She is interested in 14th century Italian but don't let that be a prerequisite. With leather and 14th century being the two parameters, I'd recomend going with Coat of Plates / Brigandine designs -- Make a fla...

Norman

I believe David was referring to the orientation of the rings rather than the drape itself, the vast majority of historical maille was constructed with the rows oriented horizontally. I recall someone saying that there are a few examples of "vertical" maille, but it would have been except...

Norman

Sigifrith Hauknefr wrote:
DukeAvery wrote:Is it russia's turn again with afghanistan yet?

Doesn't it get kicked back to England? Turkey? Or perhaps Macedonia?

India is the new world power
...but I don't think they are ready for military adventurism just yet.

Norman

I am sure you are right that "Christ's Mass" had little influence from the Pagan Norse celebration. But we are talking about "Christmas", which in the current state has very little to do with "Christ" either. The current mid winter celebration of Christmas we observe t...

Norman

what kind of punches do you use to punch the leather with and how far do you space your holes for lining? I'd avoid punching holes for weaving links into altogether, and instead sew the links onto the back side of the leather. This is because that is at least a more or less period method of assembl...

Norman

well yes there are riveted bits but only the armet cheek plates on hinges, it is in no way a spangen construction piece is my point. See my detail image below - highlights the separate plates and some rivets. To me it seems pretty clear that the skull is in 5 pieces. This is how I remembered it fro...

Norman

Around here, avoid calling it "brigandine COP." They are distantly related types -- very distantly -- but the 15th-16th century brigandine fastens its scales distinctively differently than the mid-14th COP, and it is an armor type laid out and tailored differently from a coat of plates, w...

Norman

Interesting suspension system on the pauldrons and skirts.
What is your documentation on that?

Norman

The top of the skull is one piece, the "bands" are embossed. Matt, While there is embossing, the separate plates and the rivets that hold them together are very distinctly visible in the picture you posted as well as (not quite as distinctly) on the photo here (from the set you linked) m

Norman

From a historic point of view, riveted is the obvious best. From POV of standing up to SCA fighting -- butted will do you just fine Until bout 8 years ago no one made riveted mail except as experiments. I believe the standard for an SCA-worthy butted mail is 14 guage wire, 3/8 internal diameter. (th...

Norman

My thinking was the "fantasy representation" had to come from somewhere and these looked very plausible. You must have missed the recent argument over Scimitars. went for over 5 pages if I rightly recall. Turned out that the fantasy "scimitar" is actualy based on Western Europea...

Norman

Oh, and I would love to replace my greathelm, but I cannot yet make a bascinet and the wife would have kittens if I bought one after the money I spent on my hammers. I tried splaining to her that I am a hack, and I accept this, but she just does not have a mute switch. If anyone would like to trade...

Norman

I actually have another question. Im not doing this to extreme accuracy and this is just kind of for looks, not fighting. Should I put the plates on the outside? Just a thought. The coats found in Wisby all had internal plates. This seems to have been the common way European Coats of Plate were don...

Norman

Very pretty dress I'll echo Takeda. Looking at the painting you offered as an example, the shoulders appear to attach very near the neck and the pieces are edged in a contrasting color that definitely gives the harness a visual impact greater than without defining the edges. The one in the illustrat...

Norman

Donngal wrote:Im not a fan of verveilles style.

Curious -
Is it because you have seen failures in SCA combat or is it just a personal aesthetics thing?

Norman

Showing up at a SCA tourney with it = ok, if you want too. There was mention about designing a fully enclosed locking gauntlet... Am I mistaken, or are locking gauntlets prohibited in SCA? (maybe it was just a kingdom level prohibition...) But I have never seen one in the SCA anyhow. -Takeda I hear...

Norman

I have seen the documentation on how they historically were attached. My struggle was with how the customer requested it and what was gonna be practical and something maintable for the rigors of SCA style combat. We were steering away from leather attachments and such. I'm curious what you have see...

Norman

Foolish me for wanting a harness where I can actually adjust my boots, or pick up something I drop without doing funny splits. (Unlike real knights, I don't have a squire to do that kind of stuff for me.) It sounds like I'll have to upgrade to a later era. Not sure what era you were originaly think...

Norman

http://www.highfiber.com/~bohemond/Bootshop/persian-page/persian-images/persian-shoe-hp.JPG Can anyone help me with some historical sources of similar shoes? I'm ideally hoping for evidence right at the turn of the millennium. I don't remember ever seeing anything like that in a historical source. ...

Norman

Very pretty interpretation of the late Khazarian helmet. The part of the back plate that's exposed was really me just not having any clue how I was gonna attach the mail, what it was gonna do or need to have done. ...lets just say this at first made my brain hurt. You should have asked - The methods...

Norman

So let me just get a straight forward answer on this --
Does anyone have a recipe for these 14th century English "ludicrous" wontons or not?!?!

Norman

I saved the site and will bring it back up at some point on my own site: www.srdarts.com However, I realy had not put in anything ancient on my site anyhow. The best source we have for this period are the Assyrian stelles some of which show the invasion of Israel. If I was doing this sort of personn...

Norman

If I'm not mistaken I've sen pics of Varangian Guards wearing some kind of splint greaves. Not sure if thats even the right term for it. Based on what I've seen in discussions on this Forum (Egfroth mainly) it is my current understanding that all of the Byzantine reenactments of splinted greaves ar...

Best glasses to wear with a helmet?

Re: female body armor ideas needed - pix requested

Re: Persian shoes