The Armour Archive

Cap'n Atli

Here is the eldest daughter with her first anvil, a little 50 pound Vulcan. We sent her to college, and she majored in Theater... But it's okay, she's a "techie"; lights, props, sets, TIG and MIG welding, and all sorts of useful skills. She serves as a technical director at one of the loca...

Cap'n Atli

We just festoon the rigging with ours. Nothing like a set of clothes hoisted up on the halyard or dangling from the yardarm.

Cap'n Atli

Tapered "hardy" tools and stakes (the quotes are because not all of these tools are actually meant for hardy holes in anvils) work well in custom built or matching tool plates. They also work really well in stumps. The trouble arises when folks leap to conclusions and try to fit anything t...

Cap'n Atli

Here's an original "Made in USSR" Russian anvil that I acquired in about 1995, before the flood of smaller, softer Russian anvils (and their Chinese cast iron knockoffs) flooded the country through Harbor Freight. The anvil weighs 100 kilograms or 220.26 pounds, give or take a couple of pe...

Cap'n Atli

It's 12' X 24' (3.66M X 7.3M) about 288 square feet (27.7 Sq.M). This is just under the permit level of 300 sq. ft. for our county. This simplifies life, (as long as I don't put in plumbing). Very nice. Out of curiosity what's the permit level for, above 300 sq ft what are the extra requirements? W...

Cap'n Atli

>>>SNIP<<< One should spend as much money on books as one does on kit. Oh good, now I can ask my good wif to raise my medieval clothing allowance; except that would tip her off as to how much I'm spending on books! "When I have a little money, I buy books. And if I have any left, I buy food an...

Cap'n Atli

They must have softer rocks where they ran aground; this is what it looked like at Lake Mead (I love working for the NPS!):

Cap'n Atli

Where's Your Ship; Where's Your Horse? I certainly advocate people to get all the first hand experience that they can on whatever vessels they have access to, or work with knowledgeable horsemen and maybe even get in a little riding experience. There is nothing like first hand knowledge, and also kn...

Cap'n Atli

Okay, I just can't leave the Haflingers in the mud, so here's a nice picture...

Cap'n Atli

Avedon: I don't plan to insulate at this point; I dress pretty heavy (long sleeves, boots, etc.) winter and summer, and it doesn't get too cold in the tidewater. Electrical service is the next "big ticket" item; about ~$1,000 to get the power run from the nearest transformer and pole. Pret...

Cap'n Atli

Chef: Excellent information on the thrum hat. What's the earliest date (to your knowledge)? Piracy is pretty much a continuous state of affairs as soon as anyone ventured out on the water; the late 17th and early 18th were just one of the "golden ages". It thrives on weak governments and u...

Cap'n Atli

Vikings vs. Pirates Same job, different date. Similar views about private expeditions and state sponsored whole-sale conquest 9except we haven't incorporated "privateering" as a legal concept yet. Both groups are much more romantic 9and less objectionable) at a safe distance of time and/or...

Cap'n Atli

And here we are with the gable filled in and some additional work on the windowless south wall. Now, I'm working out smoke stack and exhaust systems on the east end, as well as the 40" door.

Cap'n Atli

More pictures from the new forge building:

Cap'n Atli

Finish on Boat Model:

I suspect that your "zwavellever" may be what we call "liver of sulfur".

Does this look right?

http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/nenam/l ... sulfur.htm

It's a beautiful job, by the way; the model actually looks fairer than the original! Wonderful work.

Cap'n Atli

Here are some Haflingers, behaving... wellll....

Cap'n Atli

When a mouse put some holes in one of the Gyrfalcon's linen gear bags we made sure to patch it with three different weaves and colors of wool and linen. Neat, seamanlike, but "patchy". There really is a "lost art" to patching, and placement on or off the bias makes a big differen...

Cap'n Atli

I tend to wash things only when they smell bad; and when things wear-out and get "patchy" we give them to the newer, younger "poorer" members. Gentle washing, brushing, airing-out (especially in the sunlight) are all effective techniques depending upon the "dirtyness" o...

Cap'n Atli

Oddly enough most of the horses used by the U.S. Park Police mounted units tend to be donated thoroughbreds. These horses are trained to be calm and stable in all sorts of really sticky situations, and I've been amazed at some of their abilities; not to mention kids running under their bellies. ( ) ...

Cap'n Atli

Atli, I'm working on new swatch packets which will go out this week. The packet includes swatches of all of our new fabrics for fall, as well as a rundown of the items in our Dark Ages range. If you'd like me to send you one, please drop me a note at gwen @ historicenterprises.com. Oh, I should add...

Cap'n Atli

Just checked out the video of your viking longship. It is beauteous. What does it take to get the honor of pulling an oar on her? Basically, there is no charge for going out with us. Check the date for the voyages ( m ) confirm that the voyage is taking place, show up and pitch in. There's usually ...

Cap'n Atli

It's 12' X 24' (3.66M X 7.3M) about 288 square feet (27.7 Sq.M). This is just under the permit level of 300 sq. ft. for our county. This simplifies life, (as long as I don't put in plumbing). Here's another view from the southwest corner, showing the 40"+ doorway. I'm doing a custom door with c...

Cap'n Atli

...and here's the work party on the July 4th weekend with friends from the Longship Company and Camp Fenby setting up the trusses that I pre-made and nailing on the purlins for the roof. Since then we've tinned the roof, framed in the window openings (on the west, north and east sides, none on the s...

Cap'n Atli

Since the old forge (a former tobacco stripping house) is on the portion of the farm my brother and sisters sold, I've been constructing a new building on my portion of Oakley.

Here's what the building looked like in March...

Cap'n Atli

I quit WoW shortly after I found the SCA. I stopped playing video games when I started reenacting also; never did WoW. I will however play Diablo 3 when it comes out All the time I spend crafting for the hoddy I don't have time for games. Before I started I did play alot of games, I even have a deg...

Cap'n Atli

Most of our â€œold handsâ€

Cap'n Atli

What's the target date for the reenactment?

Cap'n Atli

As unto a barn raising- I can't get those 12' wide trusses up by myself!

Once the new forge building is finished and powered-up we'll get back to raising metal to make armor so we can raze cities.

Cap'n Atli

Saint Maryâ€™s County, Maryland Summer Work Session Objectives: Primary objective will be the new forge building, with a secondary work party working with the power boat under Leonard. Anything else depends upon skill and imagination. (Please keep it creative and legal!) Schedule: Friday morning I'l...

Cap'n Atli

I've just finished looking through my library at all sorts of iron-bound coffers, caskets, chests, etc. from the medieval and early renaissance periods. No sign of dovetails. A few of the chests had the corners completely covered with metal so I couldn't really tell; most had "elbow" strap...

Cap'n Atli

The Navy has the ship, ( m ) but we've got the Charlestown Navy Yard: m and the U.S.S. Cassin Young: m With the possible exception of the U.S.S. Constitution, the Navy has a very utilitarian attitude towards historic vessels, mostly in the mothball-against-future-use/scrap/target mode. These days mo...

Cap'n Atli

Good to see the Fyrdraca floating high! Looks like everybody's having fun; and the Skelmyr was there, too!

Cap'n Atli

MelanieC wrote:I heard mention of a Viking ship prowling the Potomac during a Washington Post ad on WTOP this morning and I wondered if that was about you guys. Heh.

Except, of course, we're on the Patuxent!

More pictures:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 03157.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 03162.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... index.html

Cap'n Atli

The article is up, and I would hope it's published in the hard copy today.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 03149.html

Link to a short video is on the page.

Tries to strike a balance between our "reenactor" and "civilian sailor" side.

Well, we'll take what we can get.

Cap'n Atli

I think the architectural term for a lot of what we see (especially in the Victorian era) is "castleated mansions". There were also a number of minor defensive living quarters, such as fortified manor houses and (in Ireland) tower houses. Not full castles, per se, but dwellings with some d...

Pictures of New Forge Building

Best Commercial Sources for Viking Age Reenactment Clothing

â€œForge Raisingâ€

Longship Company Article in Washington Post (X-Post)