Roping question.

[Mad Matt]

So I've never done any before. I'm making this breastplate. http://www.allenantiques.com/A-156.html

The grooves don't look very deep and the parts between the grooves don't look all that rounded. Wondering if I should go about this with a file or a sharp chisel or a combination of the two?

[wcallen]

In this particular case the roping is very shallow and not well defined. I expect you could do it either with a chisel then file or just file. Just make sure you have enough thickness in the base material so you don't go all the way through.

Nicer ones are at least slightly embossed before they are cleaned up. Like this one:

http://www.allenantiques.com/images/A-61-front.jpg

I have looked inside that roll and you can see little, subtle bumps. The actual roping effect is still defined by filing.

Wade

[Mad Matt]

Thanks Wade hadn't thought about running out of thickness. Chisel and then file it is.

[wcallen]

Thanks Wade hadn't thought about running out of thickness. Chisel and then file it is.

If you start with 12g or even thicker like they did on the gussets on the second one I posted, not really a problem. If you start thin, you have to worry. So a chisel will dent it a little as well as cutting so you can get a little more depth without pure stock removal.

For really cool, big rolls you want to do the forming of the ropes before the roll is closed up. So you can back the roll to keep it from collapsing with all of the whacking you are going to do. For the subtle stuff you can probably do it after it is closed up. You could also try to fill the roll with something like lead or pitch and then melt it out, but I haven't done that.

Wade

[Bender]

I modified a cheap bolt cutter to do stuff like that when I had to make a helm in stainless. Basically just notched one of the blades. Then you make interval marks and go crimp crimp crimp.

[Pitbull Armory]

Cool Idea with the Bolt cutters Bender.

Take care

Pb

[wcallen]

There are lots of types of roping on lots of different types of rolls. I expect that each of them can be done in several ways. I was limiting my comments to the types appropriate for that breastplate.

Wander around my site and you will see some pretty odd things and many different styles. A lot of the "little" rolls like on the edges of morions are just dented to simulate roping.

This one is really weird...
http://www.allenantiques.com/A-154.html
(oops, had the local reference in there again, fixed now)

Wade

[Mad Matt]

The bolt cutter idea is great. Too bad I'd already done all the work with a chisel already. Lots more to do though since this is just the test breastplate.

Thanks for the help guys.