The Armour Archive

Richard Blackmoore

Quote: "Sorry I bowed out for a while. It's cold and flu season in New England. I'm sorry that you and the others don't get it. "Reality" calls for things that work. Medieval "REPLICA" armor is not what most people wear. Don't state as fact what is your desire. "Documented safety problems"/No reason...

Richard Blackmoore

I think that we all too often forget the main reason for the close in fighting: It is fun and exciting. In the SCA, you are not really going to get hurt most of the time. You may not even get a bruise or a sore head. So there is very little fear involved once you get past the newbie stage. If we wer...

Richard Blackmoore

Someone recently when I was at the Met in NYC browsing for books, asked me if there were any alternatives to the SCA, available nationally preferably, where combat is similar in terms of being full contact with limited safety rules like the SCA, but no pulled blows, no choreography and the armour is...

Richard Blackmoore

Hmmm. The size of the plastic as a guideline? OK. "Plastic may be used as an exposed armour component, provided that each component is no larger than one created by a 20 horsepower Toro Chipper/Shredder. To ensure that no one violates this rule, all plastic components will be passed through the afor...

Richard Blackmoore

I agree with Tom.

Richard

Richard Blackmoore

Hmmm. I like the idea of forcing plastic armour merchants to only display it with a covering in place. It would reinforce the idea that it must be covered when worn too.

Richard

Richard Blackmoore

Hi Andre! Wanda is worried sick about you. I only admit to having normal 'manly' levels of 'concern'. We are all very proud of you. Come home safe and sound when this is all over. Richard P.S. In reality I am worried sick about you. We are all very proud of you. Take good care of yourself and kick a...

Richard Blackmoore

And before someone posts it, I do remember Musashi fighting without armour in some of these duels, I was just trying to give an example that might correspond to SCA practice (rattan weapon/wooden Japanese weapon).

Richard

Richard Blackmoore

Effingham: "The trouble is, if I make the thing accurately it would cost -- no kidding -- about ten grand (lacquer and the proper rawhide are both horribly expensive), and I'd have to replace the suit after every fighter's practise or tournament because the lacquer would be totally destroyed. I'm no...

Richard Blackmoore

Hi David. I agree that if you paint plastic, it would be less offensive than fully exposed plastic. My problem with using paint as a covering for non-period materials, is that I doubt most people would maintain the paint, so it would end up being exposed quickly anyway. Though I will admit that pain...

Richard Blackmoore

Hi Owen. Your point is well taken. But... You made a coat of plates and covered the plastic up completely. That is not what we are talking here, which is exposed plastic. In a perfect world, we would not use plastic even for a coat of plates. But I can live with that in the SCA as it is covered up. ...

Richard Blackmoore

Hi Effingham.

No, I probably won't be at Pennsic. My boss is a real jerk and I can't get time off (I'm self employed). I do suspect we agree on most things. Hopefully some day we can sit down and talk in person.

Richard Blackmoore

Richard Blackmoore

Paul: "You state in the quote above that a suit should be made of the original material or a close modern equivalent. Effingham has said on several posts that lacquer is, essentially, natural plastic which some would say makes plastic a close modern equivalent. You go on to state that a Japanese sui...

Richard Blackmoore

"Is it possible that your lack of tolerance for Asian personae is interfering with your ability to understand that for this one singular solitary sole and lone example, plastic -- as a simulation of lacquered leather -- is the only viable route? Effingham" I don't think so, but I will take some time...

Richard Blackmoore

Effingham quote: "The argument still stands. A well-made suit of stainless would look better than that leather monstrosity. The law as proposed (saying stainless is the issue) would ban a perfect suit of Milanese Gothic if it was stainless, but allow that leather crapfest because *it* is a period me...

Richard Blackmoore

Quote snip "To my mind, the issue is not, nor should it be, one of medium of the armour. The issue should be the appearance of the armour. If you can't grasp that that is the point, then there's no reason to discuss the issue with you. Effingham" Well, my apologies if you took offense at my attempt ...

Richard Blackmoore

Using a badly designed leather harness to justify a well designed plastic harness, is like trying to justify sleeping with your sister by pointing out that she is prettier than the local girls.

It just doesn't make any sense.

Richard

Richard Blackmoore

Effingham said: "The issue here is armour and how it is made and what it should look like and what is acceptable. My argument is that it is not the materials that determine acceptability. It is the look of the armour. We've all seen total crapjobs of metal and or leather. And we've also seen some ve...

Richard Blackmoore

Hi Paul. You wrote: "The part about these two paragraphs that I don't understand is that you appear to be asking Japanese armour to not be made out of one inaccurate material and process and instead to be made out of a different inaccurate material and process. Question: In European armour would you...

Richard Blackmoore

It depends on what I wanted and needed. If I was in shape and in practice and primarily looking for sword and shield help, I'd probably pick Duke Inman. Otherwise my choice might be different. Inman was amazingly good not only at training intermediates, but at helping knight level and above fighters...

Richard Blackmoore

I absolutely, 100 % disagree that plastic should stay. However, I will agree that your arguments in favor of it are well reasoned and have some merit. The same sort of issues have come up with European armour, for example trying to make gauntlets that are lightweight (like originals tended to be), s...

Richard Blackmoore

Y E S !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Richard Blackmoore

Molly Hatchet rocks dude! "I'm traveling down the road and I'm flirting with disaster..." But I agree the T-shirts don't qualify as garb. Well, maybe in Trimeris or Meridies... http://www.armourarchive.org/ubb/smile.gif Richard Ducks, runs, thinks of all the Trimerans that used to fight in T-shirts ...

Richard Blackmoore

See Vitus? Another reason to ban exposed plastic. Then again, forcing Dietrich to put a tabard over his plastic display harness may not muffle the sound that much... Dietrich, I will readily concede that in some uses, plastic armour is just as safe if not safer than metal. To me that is not really t...

Richard Blackmoore

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Bascot: <B>Don't some of you get embarrassed walking out on the field dressed as a hockey puck or and escapee from a Mad Max movie? Where is your pride? Who cares if you are a ...

Richard Blackmoore

Cheval said "Well, we could ban asian personas in the list. There is no evidence of their participation in western Medieval tournaments (at least, not recognized as such), they did not conduct tournaments of a similar vein, and they had no military exposure to western medieval warfare as a people or...

Richard Blackmoore

Items which include exposed plastic as a component, may not be worn or used by participants in SCA rattan combat. OR (for the rules lawyer kingdoms) Plastic may not be used as a component of any armour, clothing, decorative accessories, weapons, footwear or other item worn or used by a participant i...

Richard Blackmoore

Hi Effingham. I am hardly a Japanese armour expert. Far from it. Though I do admire Japanese armour, I don't personally care to wear it myself. Nor do I see why anyone in the SCA needs to wear it. At least, no more than I need to wear fluted Maximillian or say, German Gothic circa 1490's. All three ...

Richard Blackmoore

Plastic is plastic. If it is exposed, you have to cover it up.

Thank God.

To paraphrase Ash in the Army of Darkness:

"Good plastic, bad plastic, I'm the guy with the rules of the list."

Richard Blackmoore

Terrific book. A must read.

Richard Blackmoore

I went last Sunday. The Davinci exhibit had a two hour line so we skipped it. However the Mongol exhibit was still there and it was quite good. We made the obligatory visit to the armour areas and checked out the special exhibit of acquisitions of armour since a particular date (I forgot the date). ...

Richard Blackmoore

In addition to surcoats and gluing plain fabric to plastic items, some fighters glue suede, canvas, velvets or thin leathers to their plastic. Often you will use rivets to help attach the materials to the plastic or to enhance the look.

Richard Blackmoore

I remember watching one for quite some time, I think by torchlight at Pennsic, probably in the late 1990's. I did not participate because of my general feeling that the Tuchux don't belong at Pennsic. That being said, I thought it was for a good cause and the fighting was very interesting. I remembe...

Richard Blackmoore

My books are packed away (house construction), but there is a somewhat older but useful manual by Duke Olaf. I think the title is "Real Men Don't Wear Shields". It is a paper coverd plastic bound manual with an introduction and explanation of how Olaf fights florentine. I think Olaf is living in Atl...

Richard Blackmoore

Yippee!

Another reason to love Atlantia.

Plastic sucks.

Richard

US Nationwide More Historical Alternative to SCA

NY Metropolitan Museum of Art