The Armour Archive

Tibbie Croser

I've seen the armor cases of the gentleman in La Belle. They're like portmanteaux. Is there evidence of them going back to the early 16th century (my period of interest)? They're the sort of thing I might want to try making someday for my rapier gear.

Tibbie Croser

Hi, Antonis, this is Flittie of the Guard in Aratari. Nice to see other Dagorhirrim here. For those asking about the location, the current location for Dagorhir's annual weeklong campout (Ragnarok) is a campground in Cambridge, OH (southeastern Ohio). I believe that the hope is to find something wit...

Tibbie Croser

I may want to get metal demigaunts for Atlantian Cut and Thrust. Any recommendations on plain, simple demigaunts in mild steel or aluminum for small hands? The Ashcraft Baker website has clamshell demigaunts in small. Anyone have experience with those demis? Any other merchants? Leather (or steel ov...

Tibbie Croser

Thank you, Kevin. I read your paper. If I understand what you're saying, 1/8" diameter holes must be offset by at least 3/16". Holes smaller than 1/8" can be offset by less than 3/16". That makes sense. However, would every SCA rapier marshal interpret this rule in the same way? ...

Tibbie Croser

Deflagratio, Marco-Krieger Armory (mkarmory.com) sells Indian-made 18-gauge costume helms modified for rapier/Cut and Thrust with perforated-steel faceplates. I think they run about $200 to $250 or so. That might be your best bet. I don't know if you can do Cut and Thrust with a Hanwei longsword rig...

Tibbie Croser

Answer and question. Hew, my gorget has contiguous steel plates inside the collar. It's been passed by several marshals in Atlantia. Maybe they're not picky enough. Nobody has worried about a blade tip sliding in. As I said, the gorget actually covers more area than many fencing gorgets. Question fo...

Tibbie Croser

Actually, I'm not concerned about thrusts and draw cuts to the back of the head; I'm thinking of thrusts and draw cuts to the gorget and the front of a helm. I'm considering commissioning a custom helm and gorget for rapier and sidesword. I'll be posting a number of questions I have. I apologize for...

Tibbie Croser

The definition of Heavy Leather: Heavy Leather: stiff, oak-tanned leather nominally 11/64 inch (4.4mm) thick. Often referred to as 11oz. leather. So for rattan fighting, 2 layers of 11 ounce leather with no hardening treatment are by definition a "rigid material". My question has more to ...

Tibbie Croser

Thanks for the replies. I definitely see the wisdom in hardened leather gorgets. My confusion arises from seeing things like Stonekeep's 14-ounce leather demigaunts. There's no mention of them being hardened, yet they're apparently legal for SCA use. The current Atlantian Cut and Thrust rules requir...

Tibbie Croser

Iomtalach, how thick does UNhardened leather have to be to meet the SCA definition of "rigid" material for rapier and Cut and Thrust? The rules mention 8-ounce *hardened* leather but not unhardened leather, if I recall correctly. I ask because I want to get armor for Atlantian Cut and Thru...

Tibbie Croser

Konstantin, I looked at the January topic. You're talking about the pictures posted by Phil Crawley, correct? I saw the one with the points. The other original jacks pictured in the topic did not have points. You're right that it seems to be evidence for that jack having some kind of detachable slee...

Tibbie Croser

I think the jack was worn over a doublet, not instead of one. The doublet would have had sleeves, so the jack would not have been required to have sleeves. There seems to be little to no evidence of male doublet sleeves being detachable in period (women's doublets did often have detachable sleeves)....

Tibbie Croser

Nice pictures, Drew.

I know you've been busy. When would be a good time this year to approach you about a custom helm?

Tibbie Croser

Freiman, I suggest that your friend the leather armorer investigate the market for fantasy leather armor. I suspect it's a bigger market than SCA leather armor. I played Dagorhir for 3-1/2 years, and leather armor is very, very popular in Dag. Leather allows for armor to be made with pointy bits tha...

Tibbie Croser

I'm interested in the 1540s Lowlands and Borders. I have The Steel Bonnets book. I'm interested in how a farmer might hold his land and what obligations he has to his laird, what proportions of the population belonged to different social strata (tenant farmers, laborers, artisans, tradesfolk, etc.),...

Tibbie Croser

Drew, I'd like to commission a rapier helm at some point. What time later in the year would be good for approaching you?

Tibbie Croser

Vitus von Atzinger wrote:The Tenans are supposed to be outnumbered.

Sir Vitus, how would the organizers of a pas d'armes ensure that the Venans outnumber the Tenans? Would they have to require the Venans to preregister and then select the Tenans in the right proportion to the Venans?

Tibbie Croser

I can help. I bought the "Scottish Burgonet" a few years ago from By-the-Sword.com. It's 24 inches in inside circumference, and my head is about 22.5 inches. So there should be room for some thin padding.

Tibbie Croser

I appreciate your comments about conduit. The gentleman whose tent I saw was using sturdy metal fittings with round wooden poles. The fittings I'm looking at from McMaster or easyfit.com are galvanized iron, not conduit fittings, and I too would use round wooden poles. The frame would be a "swi...

Tibbie Croser

I think I may have found the site that my fellow camper was describing: http://www.easyfit.com I suppose the set screws could be replaced with eyebolts. McMaster has similar structural pipe fittings. I need to compare the two sites, but fittings like these open up a number of possibilities for a mod...

Tibbie Croser

James, civilian leather doublets are uncommon but not unknown. In Patterns of Fashion, Nils Sture's clothing includes a leather doublet, and it seems very unlikely to be a fencing doublet from the context. Arnold speculates that it was clothing for traveling. One of the paintings reproduced in Patte...

Tibbie Croser

D'oh. I'm an idiot. Everybody support the BoD's proposal. The solution is for every fighter to carry his own water in a sturdy, re-usable period container. Every fighter has to buy a waxed leather bottle! I'll be rich!!! Hey, Gavin, do you have any costrels in a half-gallon size or larger? As a fen...

Tibbie Croser

Baron Alejandro, how was the rapier pas? Did you fight in that, too, or just in the armored pas? I know some of the Lochmere fencers who went down for it. From Donal's account, it sounds like the rapier side had fewer challengers than defenders. I suspect that's related to the gas prices, the low nu...

Tibbie Croser

Kindyr, those couplings with the eyebolts look like the fittings I saw on the tent last weekend. Thanks. Now I have a better idea what to look for.

Tibbie Croser

What types of substances do you mean by acrylic? Does that mean Titebond glue, or could it include the floor wax that some people have recommended?

Tibbie Croser

I saw some jack plates at Jamestown and tried to take rough measurements through the display case glass. I think the plate was about 1 inch square or more, and the central hole was 1/16" to 1/8" diameter.

Tibbie Croser

Hi, Maeryk. Your picture isn't showing up. Do you have a link or name I can check?

Tibbie Croser

I'm seeking information on land ownership and social structures in Lowland Scotland of the 1500s. What kinds of obligations existed between landowners and tenants? What kinds of tenancy were there? What were "bonds of manrent"? Does anyone have books or articles to recommend?

Tibbie Croser

At an event this past weekend I was talking to a gentleman about his internal tent frame, which was made of round wooden poles connected with steel fittings. The fittings were somewhat like pipe fittings, but had adjustable screws with loops. I have e-mailed him for the link to the vendor, but I won...

Tibbie Croser

A silly question: is it possible to harden predyed vegetable-tanned leather if the flesh side has not been dyed or treated? For example, suppose I bought heavy leather demigaunts which were dyed on the outside but not hardened. Could I apply floor wax to the inside (flesh side of the leather) to har...

Tibbie Croser

Stonekeep, while you're on here, I have a question about your leather demigaunts. Are they hardened leather? Could they be ordered in hardened leather?

Tibbie Croser

Thank you, Baron A. I feared I had seriously exasperated you. Your advice about consorts sounds wise. I myself have a husband who doesn't play SCA, so it would be inappropriate for me to attend any event where consorts are required. Not only could I not fight for someone else, but I would have to tu...

Tibbie Croser

I apologize for my questions, Baron. The chivalric stuff is none of my business as a fencer, and High Speech is a foreign language to me. I do regret that you won't be at Highland River Melees, as I would like the honor of meeting you. We might get along better in person.

Tibbie Croser

Deleted.

Tibbie Croser

Syke's Sutlery has men's clothing for the period. http://sykesutler.home.att.net/clothes.htm They don't update their website often, but you can e-mail them for more information. Unfortunately, their doublets are for a later period (English Civil War). There are also a number of sewing patterns avail...

Steel demigaunts in small sizes?

Books on 16th-century Scottish social structure?

Steel fittings for round wooden tent poles?

Possible to harden predyed leather?