Sir Vitus' mighty shields

D. Sebastian · Post by **D. Sebastian** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 9:49 am

If you have one of Sir Vitus' mighty shields, please send me a pic and testomonial so that I can add it to the site.

Thanks!!
mattyd@mattyd.com

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:01 am

I am taking orders again. I now have access to a spray-on type of epoxy that is ridiculously tough. Matty, I will be sending new text today to reflect the changes in manufacture.
However, I have to raise my prices slightly.
My shields are now $150 shipping included, but I am now confident that I have a product that is nearly bulletproof.
Now I have to figure out how many coats will give me the toughness required while keeping the weight to a minimum. I will have that squared away before I get any new payments deposited.
SHIELD EDGING IS NOW OBSOLETE.
Goodbye hose and plastic edging. Hello period appearance.
For you to be able to tell that my shields are covered with a modern epoxy, you will have to take a knife and scrape away the cosmetic paint job. Totally disguised and pass the five foot rule....hell, they pass the three foot rule.

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:16 am

ive only fought with mine once to date. i have repaired all ofthe damage it took and will have the actual paint job done tonight or tomorrow in time for my trip to the midrealms tournament of chivalry this weekend. will get pictures to you next week (before and after).

i will say that after using it last month the first thing i noticed was the sound i heard when blocking shots. i have used, for years, an aluminum blank with an oak face. my shield never made that horrid noise (which should be banned forever) that the silly alluminum only blanks make. but the gap between the oak and the aluminum on my shield gave it an odd pitch on my side of the shield when blocking. this was a much sharper sound. i liked it. while many of you might think that the sound ones shield makes when it gets hit has no bearing on anything........ well, in time you will learn that everything has bearing. :wink:

regards
logan

D. Sebastian wrote:If you have one of Sir Vitus' mighty shields, please send me a pic and testomonial so that I can add it to the site.

Thanks!!
mattyd@mattyd.com

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:25 am

Logan, I'm sending you a new prototype asap.

Jehan de Pelham · Post by **Jehan de Pelham** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:32 am

I am ready when you are, my lord Sir Vitus. Send word when you can.

Your squire

Nissan Maxima · Post by **Nissan Maxima** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:34 am

Ok, I sent you an e-mail and the check is officially in the mail. Very excited to see what this looks like.

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:45 am

vitus, are you going to be able to make ToC?

regards
logan

Vitus von Atzinger wrote:Logan, I'm sending you a new prototype asap.

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:53 am

No, my new harness is not ready.

Syrfinn · Post by **Syrfinn** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:55 am

They look very nice, will take a look at Malcolm's, when he gets his and get a feel for them.

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:02 am

My shields also seem to seriously reduce bounce from the opponents sword.
For those who can handle a heavier shield, I can make one that you could probably fire a rocket launcher at. More layers of epoxy.

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:10 am

I am also convinced that my shields will now handle any type of jousting out there. Minimal repairs after each tourney with Bondo.

Syrfinn · Post by **Syrfinn** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:14 am

Ooh, stop a rocket launcher. That might come in handy when the Apocalypse comes and I have no guns to fight back with.

I could be like Captain America! Can it stop bullets to.

Really love the look Vitus, looking forward to seeing Malcolm's, and get a feel for the weight.

B. Fulton · Post by **B. Fulton** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:17 am

So what exactly ARE they made of?

Also, can you do kite shields? I might be interested.

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:31 am

My shields are currently made of two pieces of 1/4 birch that are sprayed with a crazy Epoxy coctail.
Then I sand the front smooth and seal the front with a special primer, and over that goes a coat of gesso so you can take a pencil and draw on it.
The back is a glossy white, and you can sand it so that it flattens the color but I really reccomend that you glue a piece of felt on the back. Then it looks AWESOME.

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 11:32 am

I am making a kite shield right now.
Back to the shed.

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 1:27 pm

too bad about the harness.... maybe next time.

by the way, i hadnt really noticed any big difference in bounce from sword blows thrown at it. probably due to that event being a three man team melee, i was focused more on multiple targets and constant movement. i do think the blows that hit felt different. so, quite possibly true in my case as well.

on wieght. the one you made me came in at 14lbs (according to the shipping docs). while that is a good deal less than my last shield i found that i was comfortable with it and that it wasnt too fast (the reason i need a heavy shield) in my hand. so if, as indicated, a new prototype is in the works i would say that 12 - 14 lbs should be fine.

regards
logan

Vitus von Atzinger wrote:My shields also seem to seriously reduce bounce from the opponents sword.
For those who can handle a heavier shield, I can make one that you could probably fire a rocket launcher at. More layers of epoxy.

Jehan de Pelham · Post by **Jehan de Pelham** » Wed Mar 29, 2006 3:10 pm

God wasn't paying attention when he was pouring the preux in your mold, Your Grace. He was probably in a conversation or something, looked down, and went, "Oh, crap. I'm gonna have to short the next guy. Bring Jehan de Pelham's mold up."

Thirty some odd years later, one man at arms is saying "Hey, I like this shield, but could you affix some lead weights on it? I can't move it slow enough to block effectively." while the other is saying "Hey, can you lighten this thing up, I'm puny and can't move it fast enough!"

:lol:

John
Jehan de Pelham, esquire and servant of Sir Vitus
www.mron.org

Tristan vom Schwarzwald · Thu Mar 30, 2006 8:56 am

Is the integrity of the epoxy adversely affected at all by drilling holes to mount hardware for using teh shield?

Sinclair Hawkins · Post by **Sinclair Hawkins** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 10:24 am

Vitus,

I got to examine the shield that you got to Logan but other than fighting against it I cannot give you much feedback. It looked great and the weight was nice as well when I tried it on. (Like Logan's shield, mine is heavier than the 14 lbs this shield claims.)

I look forward to getting a chance to try it out and see it in a few more tourney's this spring. Keep up the good work.

Sinclair Hawkins · Post by **Sinclair Hawkins** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 10:27 am

Vitus,

I got to examine the shield that you got to Logan but other than fighting against it I cannot give you much feedback. It looked great and the weight was nice as well when I tried it on. (Like Logan's shield, mine is heavier than the 14 lbs this shield claims.)

I look forward to getting a chance to try it out and see it in a few more tourney's this spring. Keep up the good work.

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 11:40 am

i did not notice any at all. i use elevator bolts formy basket and t-nuts for my strap. i then backfilled those with a caulk-like spackling, sanded, and then painted over it. this is how i keep all of my shield faces free of any bolts. i would suggest either a two part epoxy resin or bondo instead. either of the latter two would reseal the coating making it a solid piece again.

i will try and get some images to d. sebastian tonight after i finish the fine details on my shield this evening.

regards
logan

Tristan vom Schwarzwald wrote:Is the integrity of the epoxy adversely affected at all by drilling holes to mount hardware for using teh shield?

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 12:06 pm

i appreciate the compliment jehan although i dont know that i deserve it.

i did, in fact, have to keep increasing the weight of my shield. the problem is that i have fairly well developed triceps (the punching muscle) and deltoids. while that combination is required for boxing it did cause me some problems with over-reacting with shields. that over-reaction allowed the better fighters the opportunity to fake me out more easily.

as my fighting developed i found that a heavier shield slowed my blaocing down a bit and gave me more control over it. there were many great side effects beyond just that. here are some off the top of my head:

shield manipulation:
i do a lot of shield manipulation. some from range (slapping, pulling) and a lot from up close (pinning, misdirection, slapping, pushing, pulling). conversly when someone doesnt know any better and they try swatting my shield aside with their silly aluminum blank they get a fun look on their face when they hit my 28lb shield with their 7lb o9vergrown sheet of foil. :shock:

counter balance:
a fair amount of the "freaky" angled stuff i do is aided by having a counter balance of sorts at the end of my arm. i would not be able to get the deep matrix like bend over backwards junk i do without the help of that counter balance.

anti blow by:
i throw shots often enough that table shields away. im able to do that via solid technique and overly light shields. many fighters do that as well. its fun when they try that against my heavier shield and get this odd look on their face. its even better when they crank their next one up to try even harder witht he same result. a side not to this is that with my new vitus shield they get much less bounce back when they hit it. although the fiberglas one from vitus is much lighter it is still solid and heavy enough (for me) to do many of the same things.

regards
logan

Jehan de Pelham wrote:God wasn't paying attention when he was pouring the preux in your mold, Your Grace. He was probably in a conversation or something, looked down, and went, "Oh, crap. I'm gonna have to short the next guy. Bring Jehan de Pelham's mold up."

Thirty some odd years later, one man at arms is saying "Hey, I like this shield, but could you affix some lead weights on it? I can't move it slow enough to block effectively." while the other is saying "Hey, can you lighten this thing up, I'm puny and can't move it fast enough!"

John
Jehan de Pelham, esquire and servant of Sir Vitus
www.mron.org

Tristan vom Schwarzwald · Thu Mar 30, 2006 12:34 pm

dukelogan wrote:i then backfilled those with a caulk-like spackling, sanded, and then painted over it. this is how i keep all of my shield faces free of any bolts. i would suggest either a two part epoxy resin or bondo instead. either of the latter two would reseal the coating making it a solid piece again.

regards
logan

Your Grace,

Thanks for the info...I have long admired the art work of the piece of M1A1 armor you call a shield

If you could take some pictures of the bolts and how you deal with them I would be deeply thankful (I have never heard of elevator bolts and am uncertain as to what t bolts are). I assume you get them from Lowes/Home Depot or the like?

Again, thank you.

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 2:50 pm

elevator bolts (available at home depot) aare used mostly in furniture applications:

[img]http://www.milspecfasteners.com/reference/images/bolts/flow_elevator_bolt.gif[/img]

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 2:55 pm

t nuts are also used in furniture. they have spikes that bite into the wood and allow you to keep hardware hidden. i counter sink those in as well.

[img]https://www.lacumbreonline.cl/tienda/images/tcop.jpg[/img]

(edit/ not sure why the above link isnt showing. copy the url to view)

and on my shield they look like:

Leo Medii · Post by **Leo Medii** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 11:10 pm

Hail Sir Vitus, I'm interested in one of your sheilds for jousting and I'd like to take a look at one for SCA. You said they can take the impact of lance? The lances my wife and I use are 10' 1 1/4" douglas fir with a 1.5' balsa wood tip with a copper cap held on by a copper sleeve (the basic NRGA ren faire lances). Or, we use the standard SCA ones for unarmored practices.
Also, I saw a picture of one I think with a red felt backing with period furniture. Is this an option on them?
Thanks a bunch,
Sir Kieran

MalcolmdeMoffat · Post by **MalcolmdeMoffat** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:42 am

Sir Vitus,
I'd be intrested in one of your shields if you can ship to me here in Iraq.

sarnac · Post by **sarnac** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 7:56 am

I would be interested in seeing the kite when you are done.... or possibly an oval?

is this possible?

Tristan vom Schwarzwald · Fri Mar 31, 2006 9:07 am

Your grace, thank you for the pictures and the descriptions!!!

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 10:53 am

a picture of the almost finished shield ( a little touch up painting and some red in the tongue :roll:

is all thats left) can be found at:

http://ebonwoulfe.com/projects/logan.htm

no edging looks soooooooo much better.

regards
logan

Syrfinn · Post by **Syrfinn** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:44 am

Very nice Logan. Looking forward to hear how you like it after this weekend.

Strongbow · Post by **Strongbow** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 11:47 am

Vitus,

I have one of your shields (strapping it up now), but I also have a larger birch blank I got from GAA some time ago. Could I ship it you you and get the edges smoothed and the blank glassed up? How much would that cost?

I've considered trying to do it myself, but it seems a major pain in the ass, and smelly to boot!

Tristan vom Schwarzwald · Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:15 pm

dukelogan wrote:a picture of the almost finished shield ( a little touch up painting and some red in the tongue is all thats left) can be found at:

http://ebonwoulfe.com/projects/logan.htm

no edging looks soooooooo much better.

regards
logan

24 x 38 ?

dukelogan · Post by **dukelogan** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:27 pm

it was copied from my old heater which is 23" x 35". icant measure it right now since its all boxed up ready for my flight out to the midrealm ToC today but will measure it when i return.

regards
logan

Tristan vom Schwarzwald wrote:
dukelogan wrote:a picture of the almost finished shield ( a little touch up painting and some red in the tongue is all thats left) can be found at:

http://ebonwoulfe.com/projects/logan.htm

no edging looks soooooooo much better.

regards
logan

24 x 38 ?

Vitus von Atzinger · Post by **Vitus von Atzinger** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:28 pm

Malcolm, I will ship to Iraq if you pay the additional shipping charges.

Kieran, Sarnac- my squire Pol will have a heater shield made in the new fashion at TOC. Check it out.

-V

Sir Vitus' mighty shields

Sir Vitus' mighty shields

Re: Sir Vitus' mighty shields