The Armour Archive

Hew

Here's a nice page specifically about different helm styles and helm parts: http://gemstone.play.net/etimes/et9/armory.htm

Somewhere (possibly on one of the Archivers' site) there's an image of a sort of tree diagram showing the development of European helms throughout history. Can't find it now. There's a similar one for swords, IIRC.

Hew

So, the outer edge has to be longer than the inner, to allow for this curve. That means hammer the outer edge with a ball pein or one corner of a cross pein (about 1 cm of the pein's edge, I mean) to make the metal thinner and thus stretch it out, hammering the metal between the hammer and the anvi...

Hew

The Ghurka knife is bent, but most commando knives are straight. Go figure. As for the Hungarian warhammer mentioned above, I wonder if it was a hammer in common use for some construction or craft activity, and then rehafted as needed for battle? If the original hammer style fell out of common every...

Hew

I made a fairly wide dish in the middle of a piece of poplar (which barely qualifies as "hardwood"), using a table saw. It works best if the stump is perfectly round, or nearly so, and it can't be too large to easily lift and turn. Measure the radius of the stump and set the rip fence at that distan...

Hew

If you can get it from a library somewhere, you must have a look at The Crossbow - Medieval and Modern - Military and Sporting - Its Construction, History & Management - With A Treatise On The Balista and Catapult Of The Ancients And an Appendix On The Catapult, Balista & The Turkish Bow by Sir Ralp...

Hew

I've got the Triplette R11/T03 on my shopping short list. Any feedback on that combination, for balance and handling?

I liked the the 37" Hanwei Practical blade too, when I tried one out. Do you happen to know if the Triplette furniture fits the Hanwei blades?

Hew

This is what I made: http://northernelectric.ca/medieval/armoury/buckler/buckler_clip.jpg *Jedi wave* You see no rust. There's no frog or anything, it just hangs on the belt. The clip is a band of 16 gauge steel, about 1" wide. Used 2 1/4 inch nails for rivets. Next time, I'd make the inside rivet h...

Hew

i'm a noob when it comes to armor, so i don't really know much when it comes to the names of the diffrent peices. This might help a bit. See the illustration at the top, based on a 1450 Italian suit: m More parts named and defined in this glossary, but you have to look for the word first, rather th...

Hew

Hey there, I work for Zen Warrior! Just the man I wanna ask about something. m ZWA mask frames used in the 1999 carbon steel and the 2001 FIE 304 stainless mask are available, without bibs. Those who want to construct their own head armor can do so with the assurance of passing the 12K test. No bib...

Hew

- I'd lengthen the collar band to connect to the cheekplates (whether or not it's authentic.) - When you change the slats, make a few out of cardboard and tape them on to get a feel for the length. Use some sort of padded liner (even if it's not the permanent one) to get a reasonably correct height....

Hew

... For example, water driven polishing wheels are commonly illustrated in period artwork. ... "Harnischpolierer" 1523 http://homepage.univie.ac.at/rudolf.koch/mendel/071.jpg m And this detail of "Venus at the Forge of Vulcan" by Jan Brueghel the Younger - Flemish Master (1601- 1678) http://www.kar...

Hew

Maeglin Oronar wrote:I wasnt planning on doing this for any near future armours- but how do you roll the edge of armour like in breastplates or vambraces?

Check out mattmaus' post in http://forums.armourarchive.org/phpBB2/ ... hp?t=51171 - photos show a nifty swage for rolled edges, and some step-by-step photos.

Hew

Are you talking about garb or for a fighting kit?

Also, which European culture?

About a year ago I posted a question about the extreme length of belts that many SCA knights and squires wear. Some of the replies might help you out a bit. - http://forums.armourarchive.org/phpBB2/ ... p?p=448947

Hew

http://www.badgersden.com/Rattan.htm

http://icefalcon.safeshopper.com/16/cat16.htm

http://www.hhperkins.com/hhperkins/serv ... &parent=21

http://www.franksupply.com/rattan_poles.html

NOTE - I've not bought any rattan from those suppliers, just naming a few I've heard of.

Some tips on selecting rattan for weapons: http://www.io.com/~caladin/sword.htm

Hew

I saw a guy get knocked out by a buffet... Yeah, I sometimes get sleepy after I eat a lot too. Oh. You mean something else. I saw a guy *CoughGuthfrithYrlingsonCough* take his good old time getting up after taking an arbalest bolt (tennisball on siloflex) to the head. It left a noticeable dent in h...

Hew

Kevin O'Shaughnessy wrote:...while swinging my blade towards his right hand.

Say what?

SCA RULES OF THE LISTS wrote:C. Target Area
[snip]
7. Arms: From the shoulder to one inch above the wrist.
8. Blows that land outside the legal target areas shall not be counted. Fighters may not intentionally
strike areas outside the legal target areas.

Hew

I had trouble with this a while back. There's lots on info on the net...here's the site that cleared it up for me. It has pretty good explanations and pictures. and the technique works, i've done it myself numerous times... m I tried that method on a straight edge, and it sorta worked, but no luck ...

Hew

Barring that, you can 'dress up' a fencing mask by making a decorative over-helm of sorts. I think Uillieag of House of the Wolf has made a few. Baron Gerhard's pattern is in the archives - m ... but that doesn't incude the photos. See m for those. It's not bad, a friend of mine made one. He dyed t...

Hew

The 14" 20 ga. buckler from Mandrake looks pretty good for rapier, but I prefer an umbo that's not so deep (about 1" from inside of handle) so I can open up my hand without it falling off. I also have the handle off-centre by about 1/2 inch, and two rivets on each end.

Hew

Coat hangers do not have the mass to see the pattern. Yeah. They have the right stiffness and price, but if you were to look through a visor with coathanger wire grille, a misplaced bar would not obscure you vision the same way as a thicker bar. That's why I was thinking of coathanger inside of 1/4...

Hew

Check out http://www.vertetsable.com/demos_buttons.htm
Although, I'm not sure I'd want to use spherical cores between armour and skin. (Nice hemispherical bruises?)

Hew

Sheet metal is to cardboard as steel bars are to ... what? I'm trying to think of some material that could be used to mock up 1/4" bar grilles, basket hilts, and the like, much like you might use cardboard or bristol board to mock up a plate steel project. It must be cheap, readily available, easy t...

Hew

A friend of mine is going to make a spear thrusting tip out of a fist-sized rubber skull.

I had a viking axe (camping mat foam blade) for a Rapier rigid parry device, but it seems to have disappeared. Got the idea while watching "Pirates of the Caribbean".

Hew

I'd try an articulated gorget, with a generous flare at the front of the top lame. (Kinda' like an articulated bevor?)

(edit)
I guess I'm thinking of a compression articulation, like this: http://carmelemanuel.com/Compression.htm .

Hew

Are there any other examples of musical instruments played using 'an alternative method'? I'm curious now! Detail from "Garden of Earthly Delights" - Hieronymus BOSCH m - note the guy supporting some kind of wind instrument at the left. He's got a flute in his butt. Wider view of the same panel: m ...

Hew

1) fighters were gone because there were other things that were more fun scheduled at the same time. 2) Fighting was preceived by up and coming fighters as too difficult, either too difficult to do, or perhaps too dificult to acheive success. I wonder if there is a lot of pressure to fight well? So...

Hew

The third device is already registered by the Shire of Lyndhaven: Name: Lyndhaven, Shire of Type of Registration: Device Kingdom of Registration: East Date of Registration: 04/96 Blazon/Notes: Argent, three bendlets wavy azure overall a laurel wreath vert. And it looks like this: [img]http://lyndha...

Hew

I have an unfinished page for images of headwear, plus a few how-to links - http://northernelectric.ca/medieval/hats/hats.htm

You might find something useful there.

Hew

Coathanger wire makes a good core if you want to roll it over a wire. There`s just enough length in a coathanger for something like a 13 or 14 inch buckler. More, if you hammer out the twisty part.

Hew

If you want to use some open-cell foam, go to a fabric or upholstey supplies store, where you can get 1 inch thick slabs of open-cell foam used for cushions and such. Look for the light blue stuff, which is noticeably denser than the white stuff. As far as the blue camping mat closed-cell foam pads`...

Hew

Kilkenny wrote:Why would it get you strung up ? They painted helms in period.

Yeah, what he said.
Check out the Maciejowski Bible illustrations, they're polluted with several types of helms in different colours.
http://www.medievaltymes.com/courtyard/ ... _tymes.htm - use "helm" for the search term.

Hew

ian wrote:I agree with Ken, welding gloves make pretty good heavy work gloves. Or fighting gloves, even.

Especially so for Rapier combat, since they cover your sleeves nicely.

Hew

InsaneIrish - That chair looks good enough for a camping event court throne. Verra nice.

What kind and colour of stain did you use on it? What kind of finish?

Hew

Pietro, try this book: The Crossbow - Medieval and Modern - Military and Sporting - Its Construction, History & Management - With A Treatise On The Balista and Catapult Of The Ancients And an Appendix On The Catapult, Balista & The Turkish Bow by Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey, BT., in 1903. Published by T...

Hew

I've finished the seams on my wool tunics by hand while my wife drives us to events. My wife finished putting frogs on my latest fencing tunic in the car on the way to a tourney ( a camping event). The cuffs got done the morning of the tourney with her doing the left side and a friend sewing the ri...

Re: questions about making leg armor

Re: rolling edges

Re: Sword and Buckler Scenario - Part 1

Sheet metal is to cardboard as steel bars are to ...???

Re: How to fix a fighting group with political/fun problems

Re: at the risk of being strung up....