1410 Italian Arms project

[bryanrobbins]

I've shelved my greathelm project (in light of the fact it has nothing to do with my actual kit) and I figure while i wait for rivets for my corrazina Ill start on my arms. My kit is (eventually going to be) a Nobleman from the northern border of Italy. Ill be updating this regularly, i plan to use 14 ga. for the cops and 16 ga for the lames, and 14 ga. for the rest of the arms.

I'm also interested in joining the local SCA chapter here in Cambridge, I've not been able to procure any information on the whereabouts of meetings.

Here is the pattern laid (lain?) out on steel https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/1097 ... KqarsbWxAE

thanks
Bryan.

[wcallen]

I expect you will end up taking the points off of the center of the cops. 15th c. Italian arms don't have enough point (usually none) on the edge to merit that kind of point. You can cut it off before you form the cop, or afterwards....

I expect you can make the main parts of the arms out of something a little thinner. 14g for the cops will let you dish a lot. But 14g for the arms will be a bit heavy to want to wear for long. 16 should work in mild and be a lot more comfortable.

Wade

[bryanrobbins]

I've got the cop dished shallowly and the wing nearly finished, link:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/1097 ... KqarsbWxAE

wcallen, the points are only there for reference and I'm afraid that the only steel I have is 14 ga.

I've managed to burn myself on the steel (thanks to hole in glove) so I'll not be working on it for a few days.

Thanks
Bryan

[bryanrobbins]

I've got it dished and roughly planished now, Ive ground off the points as to make it historically correct and im fairly confident that with some more shaping and planishing ill have a rather nice peice of armour.

All critique is more than welcome because I have (almost) no idea what I am doing and am going purely by feel.

picasa album (i think ill put this in my sig.) http://tinyurl.com/bey7qyv

Thanks
Bryan

[Gaston de Clermont]

Your first try is more elbow cop shaped than my first one was. Grab what pictures you can of the originals- there are a few from Churburg around the era and locale you're shooting for. Put copies of them in your work note book or pattern folder, and post them around the shop while you're working
. Different angles are great. You'll get a more accurate shape if you move from sculpting "fruit" to "this bartlet pear in the bowl in early morning light."

[wcallen]

This is a sort of minimally dished elbow for the 15th c.

http://www.allenantiques.com/A-186.html
Print it out full size. get a feel for how it looks bent and straight and how it fits with the rest of the parts of the arm.

The sort of rounded but coming to a blunt point form is what you generally want because it blends well with the arm plates when the arm is bent. I wouldn't "finish" the wing until you have the rest of the arm done and attached because generally it is supposed to fit the arm plates.

Wade

[bryanrobbins]

I plan to be working on it some more this weekend, so I should be dishing it some more and fitting the lames.

What is the rib on the bottom of the vambrace for? I've not seen one like it before.

How would I go about installing sliding rivets on the vambrace?

Is the shoulder mounted to the back or is it on leathers? I've seen later armours with fitted plates that slide inside each other but i doubt that is feasible in this context.

I've found (though my experiments) that armouring conflicts with my personality, I love making it but I hate the time it takes, I love taking my time to get a nice result though it frustrates me to no end. Its like I'm trying to achieve perfection without a grasp of the concept! That said if I could do this for the rest of my life I would be more than content.

Thanks
Bryan

[Pitbull Armory]

Hi Bryan, The rib on the vambrace is a stoprib, To help protect the lames, I always thought they should have been mounted on the inside of the arm to protect the inner arm joint but ive never seen one there.

Strange how there is no fold or roll at the cuff on those arms, and the wing seems to indicate that there were other pieces that covered the elbow like for a joust.

What you think Wade?


Have a good week

Pitbull

[wcallen]

The stop rib is a stop rib. Pitbull got that right.

At this time they often flaired the rear edge of the inner vambrace plate or had a little plate with a flair - it did the same thing as the stop rib.

Yup, no roll on the wrist. Weird, eh? It does have lots of little rivets there, but I can't prove what they were there for. More than you would expect for brass borders.

The wing has been trimmed at some point. It would have been larger originally. I expect the ugly trimmed wing is one of the reasons I was able to afford something that is (mostly) this early. It was actually sold as late 14th c. but neither Talbot nor I believe that.

Wade