The Armour Archive

Steve S.

If it's not a period pattern, then using a medievally available material does not in any way, shape or form make the safety-gear more 'period appropriate'. A black plastic gauntlet is, IMO, less jarring to the eye then a bright, shiny steel clam-shell gaunt on a Viking. At least the plastic is da...

Steve S.

Marshal: "but the justification for plastic ( concealed ) under mail is that in period in many cases no plate at all would have been worn underneath, apart from the theorized iron or cuir bouilli "plastron", which as far as I know is unconfirmed." You are correct. But - I like the philosophy that sa...

Steve S.

"Do not attend the "Pennsic Virgin's party". I cannot vouch for this, as I missed the party my first year (if they even had it). I have heard from several people that they wished that they had not. I believe it may be in very poor taste. The idea is that the "virgins" are the entertainment, rather ...

Steve S.

"Hotsticks don't give a damn about anything but hitting people with a rattan sword. They don't care about looking the part." Not all of them. There are some damn good fighters out there who do dress the part. Ingelri Kelvin and Sigurd come to mind. Frauhirsh posted a thread recently which showed so...

Steve S.

"Steve- there are as many reasons for using plastic as there are fighters." "I wear chainmail with plastic plates under it; am I wearing it to save weight or move faster? Of course not, if that were my goal, I wouldn't wear the mail." O.K., then, why are you wearing plastic plates under it? Why not...

Steve S.

Looks great!

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

Here's my take. I've only been to 3 Pennsics. Proposed to my wife on top of Mount Eislenn last year! http://www.armourarchive.org/ubb/smile.gif After I got back from my first Pennsic, I remember being a little bit disappointed. It took me months to put a finger on it, and once I did, I came to love ...

Steve S.

I think SyrRhys has a point in that most of our armour is too heavy compared to medieval armour. Though one might consider that medieval armour made specifically for tournament was generally heavier than armour made specifically for war, during the times when there was a difference between the two s...

Steve S.

Thanks for the plug!

See:

http://www.forth-armoury.com/research/wire/authentic_wire.htm

For my article on wire drawing.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

An excellent article for the novice armourer is here:

http://www.arador.com/articles/armourstart.html

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

One of the nice things about maille is that it covers such a broad period of time. I do not know the provinence of 45 degree sleeves, but the basic style of the shirt could easily be appropriate from before 1066 to the 14th century, depending on your station and what you wore with it. The only real ...

Steve S.

Often, hot rolled steel comes with "mill scale" on it - black iron oxide that is tough as hell to grind off. You can, though, buy hot rolled steel that has been "pickled and oiled". This means the oxides have been eaten off with acid and they have been oiled to protect from rust. Steve -------------...

Steve S.

No worries.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

Ya know, what happened to all the free trade that NAFTA was supposed to help out with? I just sent a guy a riveted coif to Canada in trade for web site services. They want $150 in fees for a $390 item. What gives? Steve ------------------ Forth Armoury Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

The gauntlets look very good.

The elbow cop on your arm looks like it needs to be dished a bit deeper.

Great job!

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

Some folks roll the metal over a piece of wire - maybe that would help?. I understand this is a period technique as well. I don't know if it will help for your round edge though.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

I know some folks have ground chisels and railroad spikes into specific-task stakes. Chisels can be had cheaply from Harbor Freight: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=4885 Not all of these are useful for making stakes, but they are cheap. Also possibly useful starting ...

Steve S.

Great resource page!

I think the leather washers would be great under rivet heads for coats of plates made with cloth jupons - keeps the rivet heads and burrs from cutting into the fabric.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

Another great overview book is Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight by David Edge and John Miles Paddock. It does not really go into much detail on how to make armour, but it is an invaluable reference for armour from the 9th through the 16th centuries. If you are a new student to arms and ...

Steve S.

"has anyone bought one of the welded flat ring hauberks that Museum Reps is selling?" I knew that Museum Replicas was selling flat-washer butted maille, but was not aware that they sold welded maille of any kind. Do you have a URL to their product from their web site? As for your persona, yes the C...

Steve S.

I'm with Chef, too. These folks are part of what makes the SCA great. Sometimes I regret that I know what I now know, and that I see so clearly the gears that make the SCA machine run. I still remember the feeling when I went to my first SCA event. It was about D&D come to life. It was about fun. It...

Steve S.

Wouldn't surprise me - I used his book as a reference!

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

I admit, my 16th century plate armour knowlege isn't the best - I have only studied armour past the 14th century lightly, since anything past that is so far beyond my armour making abilities at this time. Nonetheless, to my semi-trained eye I still say it looks damn good - much like the suits standi...

Steve S.

Bob: I think you under-rate his work. By no means did I go through his entire site, but I did pay attention to articulations and form. Engravings and gildings aside, I'd say this fellow makes armour better than 90% of those on this board. I'd rate him as one of the top 15 armourers I've seen the wor...

Steve S.

Sorry, don't have any - I just found these locks that look vaguely medieval. I don't know a thing about locks and have no idea what time period these are appropriate too. They look cool though.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

[img]http://www.forth-armoury.com/Product_Catalog/locks/lock1.jpg[/img] These tough iron and brass locks will look right at home on a wooden chest or iron door! Each lock comes with two keys, and so far, no two sets of keys have been alike! These are real, working locks, and not toys. They key must ...

Steve S.

Unfortunately, I have been a slacker and have not fought in some time. So I have not yet fought with the liner.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

I use Front Page and like it immensely.

Screw non-Microsoft Browsers...

Steve

Steve S.

Wow - that's inspiring! I hope you make a nice documentary of this thing and it's construction as you go! I also bought some of those nails but have been to chicken to start. How do you tin plates? Is is just a matter of getting a vat of molten tin and dipping the plates in? Steve ------------------...

Steve S.

No kidding Bascot. I hope my friend and supplier over there doesn't disappear in a cloud of vapor. Hell, maybe our maille will become collector's items? heh. Durin: Saw cuts are the most superior cut available for butted maille. They are also the most labor intensive. Please see: http://www.forth-ar...

Steve S.

I, too, believe from the picture that this maill is of flattened, mostly D section. There are 2 rings immediately to the right of the buckle that are edge-on to the screen that support this. Further, I also believe this shirt utilizes wedge rivets. The right-most ring to the right of the buckle is s...

Steve S.

I believe it is Arms and Armour of the Medieval Knight which talks about separate coifs during the 11th century, and how if they were used it was a fashion that did not last. From 11th-13th centuries it seems quite common to find coifs integrally attached to shirts of maille. However, I for o...

Steve S.

"All armour is evenualy about nothing more then improving your odds. none of it is completelyproof against thrusts, cuts or just about anything else except sparrows." Sasha the wise answers well. I would add this: In general, a given piece of maille will provide better protection against slashing c...

Steve S.

Hi guys!

All of the rings are of riveted construction. No word on alternating-row maille yet.

Steve

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Forth Armoury
Highly authentic, affordable riveted maille.

Steve S.

"Coif Starter" <img border="2" src="http://www.forth-armoury.com/Product_Catalog/coif_starter/coif_start_1_small.jpg" alt="We've done the hard part!" width="100" height="75"> <a href="http://www.forth-armoury.com/Product_Catalog/...

New Product! Medieval Locks!

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