The Armour Archive

Greetings MiLords and Ladies

I have posted this to two different boards, so please forgive if you’ve seen it twice.

I have an old barrel helm that I used over 14 years ago. It has a very flat top. (And yes, the people I fight just love it.) I recently got it out of storage (it has been in storage for about 8 years.) The padding was old and not usable. So I am currently re-padding it.

I am using both closed and open form to pad it. I have a leather chin strap that is riveted to one side and a leather lace come out of two holes on the other side. I pull the chin strap tight by pulling the two laces and tie it off. This method worked 10 years ago…

However, now after I padded the helm, I cannot keep the chin strap tight, many times it come untied or loosened when I push on the front of the helm.

Also, the helm (when the chin strap holds) is good and my face does not touch the front of the hem when I push on the front. However, if I push on the lower part of the face plate of the helm, to pushed the helm against my face. That would be bad if it happened while fighting…

I know that there is only so much advice one can give without seeing the helm, ect.. But any ideas about the chin strap and how to tie it, secure it on the non-riveted side and any ideas about padding it so the face plate does not hit my face when the face of the helm is pushed on.

Thank you for any ideas you can give.
Eric von Wald

Try riveting a strap with a buckle to the side where the laces are. That way, you can buckle it to one side of your face. I don't think buckles would come off as easily as laces would. Also, consider doing a chin-cup. This could prevent the front of it coming up when hit from below. You may also want to put some foam padding at your chin so the helm won't be pressed against your face. I'm not an expert on this, so I'm not too sure. It sounds like it could possibly break your jaw if hit there, so don't take my word for it. However, it's supposed to be padding, so it should absorb shock. Right?
Maybe someone else could help you more.

Artemis