The Armour Archive

Alright! Another update. So I've finally cut out all the pieces for my armet, and shaped a few main pieces. Also, I'm going to be using a title relevant to the project I'm working on now, so now all new updates will be posted in this thread. These are progress pics, so if you see any pits or stray bumps that I haven't corrected with a finishing hammer, don't worry. I'll get to it eventually.

If you want to see the other progress pictures, the links are here and here.

I've also been cutting out the plates for the next part, the articulated gorget!

(Sorry everyone, but my internet is really slow right now, and I have somewhere to be. I will post pictures later in a few hours.)

Hey Zetheros,

Just checked out your progress stuff. I'm a young whippersnapper like yourself but have been around here for ages, it seems. Just wanted to say that the way you shape metal shows signs of some of the most natural talent I've come across on this board or any other like it. Do keep up the awesome work, and always find something to be inspired by. The process can be grueling and resources slim, but as long as you've got your two hands, a hammer and a piece of metal, make it happen. You're doing lovely stuff!

What sort of fantasy styles have inspired you in particular? I see what I'd consider to be some RPG-style winged helmet/pauldron ideas floating around in your head, but possibly would go as far as to say that you've been playing Magic: The Gathering or Warhammer to get some styling queues, too... On top of gosh knows what else. What games do you play or what shows do you watch, etc? Cheers!

-Gerhard

Gerhard, I also see an influence that suggests Peter Jackson's LoTR version of Sauron's armour.

Zetheros, you got mad skills man. Keep posting the pics, we love it!

Nanning is getting flooded, apparently my grandma's apartment was filled with knee-deep water yesterday, and since the electricity goes out even after a light rain shower around here, it's a miracle that the internet works at all! It'll be nice to return to the US in four months.

I hope I'll be able to complete my suit by then.

Here are three of the five images I was going to post. The other two are stuck at a 37% upload.

I'm basing my armet off of a Florentine armet, here's the back plate.



...And it also takes an element of the three crown design from Egypt.



All the pieces are finally cut out and mostly shaped! Well, except for the jaw piece and hinges/latches.

This...is...awesome!

I can't wait to see this come together!

Seriously. I've been considering making some fantasy armor based on Tolkien's descriptions of stuff and my own imaginative input... Totally draggin' ass because of my love of history. Zetheros may have put a new fire under my ass that just might not be simmered. This is righteous.

-Gerhard

Fire !!!

lol.

Here are the other two:





Unfortunately, part of the filed decorations broke off after I shaped the back, (it's the small piece of metal that looks like an arrow) However, I'm working around this and am thinking of installing a long white horse hair tail inside an etched/engraved steel tube at the end.

If you have the ability to make some how tos... I know of some ppl that would be devote followers. Normally I can look at a peice of armor and see where something is shaped and come up with how to duplicate the shape. Yours, honestly makes me go cross eyed...

Haha, well there are already plenty of tutorials on making flutes and shaping armor. In fact, the knowledge I'm using to build this suit all came from this website and Brian Price's book, "Techniques of Medieval Armor Reproduction".

The only thing that you might not find on this website or TOMAR, is that I build most of the patterns free-hand on folded cardboard (as if I'm drawing!). while this uses up a ton of cardboard, it gives me more creative freedom.

This project is very cool, I hope to see it finished soon.
Keep the pictures coming!

The basic theory I get, but disecting an artisits flare is something different altogether. Actually would you mind if I PM you about a project im working on?

Holding half of the visor and balancing the armet was fun! Here's what it will sort of look like when it's done, it's missing the bronzework, glass jewel, jawpiece, horse hair tail, and a few other bits though. I'll be done with the three main parts tomorrow and will be working on the visor a few days from now.







I like this photoshop. It's like my drawings have come to life.



Sure Veltez! PM me whenever you want. I usually check the forums daily.

Your work is amazing, friend.

Thanks!

Gerhard von Liebau wrote:Hey Zetheros,

Just checked out your progress stuff. I'm a young whippersnapper like yourself but have been around here for ages, it seems. Just wanted to say that the way you shape metal shows signs of some of the most natural talent I've come across on this board or any other like it. Do keep up the awesome work, and always find something to be inspired by. The process can be grueling and resources slim, but as long as you've got your two hands, a hammer and a piece of metal, make it happen. You're doing lovely stuff!

What sort of fantasy styles have inspired you in particular? I see what I'd consider to be some RPG-style winged helmet/pauldron ideas floating around in your head, but possibly would go as far as to say that you've been playing Magic: The Gathering or Warhammer to get some styling queues, too... On top of gosh knows what else. What games do you play or what shows do you watch, etc? Cheers!

-Gerhard

Oh sorry, I missed this post!

For inspiration, I've played a lot of Morrowind, Oblivion, Diablo 2 LOD, Warcraft 3, WoW, Neverwinter Nights, Torchlight, Dragon Age, Gothic, Age of Empires...I'm sure I've forgotten a few. Strangely enough, I have not played Magic or Warhammer. I've also yet to play the Final Fantasy series, despite being an RPG fan. Also, I don't really watch TV, but I watched the Game of Thrones recently, and enjoy most medieval or medieval-fantasy movies! And anime. Anime is amazing. I recommend Code Geass, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Neon Genesis Evangelion. Very inspirational stuff.

I have so many sources of inspiration that I often forget where an idea came from, haha.

Ah, ha! An RPG fan. I should have suspected, what with all these computer games these days. Ha, ha. I've only played a ton of WoW, myself, but it's been a while now, thank goodness. The real world is a nice place to be in. Looking forward to your progress!

-Gerhard

Zetheros wrote:Oh sorry, I missed this post!

For inspiration, I've played a lot of Morrowind, Oblivion, Diablo 2 LOD, Warcraft 3, WoW, Neverwinter Nights, Torchlight, Dragon Age, Gothic, Age of Empires...I'm sure I've forgotten a few. Strangely enough, I have not played Magic or Warhammer. I've also yet to play the Final Fantasy series, despite being an RPG fan. Also, I don't really watch TV, but I watched the Game of Thrones recently, and enjoy most medieval or medieval-fantasy movies! And anime. Anime is amazing. I recommend Code Geass, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Neon Genesis Evangelion. Very inspirational stuff.

I have so many sources of inspiration that I often forget where an idea came from, haha.

Ooo! You looking forward to Skyrim coming out next month?

Definitely, too bad this 2006 computer can hardly play minecraft. I need to get back to my computer in the US.

Hell's Bells. That's awesome.

It looks like something Garrus would wear. ...when he wasn't in the middle of some calibrations.

Looks great so far! I'll be eagerly following your progress.

Thank you for the progress pics great works so far.
I like it.

Hal

this makes me wish for a fantasy section for the patterns board...

Masterfull work , pleasure and privelege to see it

Thanks everyone for the supportive comments!

Here are the designs for my cuirass.



The armpits will be covered in articulating plates, I just didn't want to draw them in since it would make the blueprints look too busy. I'm trying to remove the amount of latches and hinges as well, while keeping with the original design. Note that the blue plates wrap all the way around the middle gorget-shaped piece. And if you're red/green colorblind, I'm terribly sorry, just PM me and I'll fix it.

That's gonna look insane. Insanely cool, that is.

Can't wait to see the whole armor done !
Do you intend to use it for larp ?

though its for a costume portfolio, i wonder how well this kit would stand up to somw whomping...

If I were you I would curtail the gorget shortly after where you have the hinges placed. otherwise It will be a huge pain to put the thing on, and also where does the gorget open up? I can't wait till you have this thing finished! You have a real talent!!

Ahh, electricity outage for several days here. This is only a costume since there are dangerous pointy ends that could be hazardous in mock fighting, and also because I'm just working with 18 gauge mild steel. If I were making a suit of armor for mock combat I'd use thicker gauges of stainless and a much more rounded design. Pretty much SCA gear!

And the gorget opens up normally, however the middle plate is one solid piece, so the neck hole is the diameter of my head. Thanks Ckanite!

I can wait to see that segmented abdomen area take shape... looks interesting.

Gerhard is absolutely right. At 18 you're making this stuff?! Natural talent indeed! Incredible work, not just in the metal work, but in your ability to makes such complex designs functional and aesthetically pleasing as well. Very, very well done!

Thanks so much! Here's the rest of the armor in cardboard, the waist-down area needs a little more work, but everything is there (or already made/being worked on downstairs) except for the vambraces and sabatons.

It's only half of the armor since I'm not designing any asymmetrical parts, so if you see something missing, it's probably a mirror of something else. No, it's not laziness, it's efficiency. Anyways, I'm going to power through this and design, cut out and hammer each piece into their basic shapes in the next two weeks or less. Wish me luck!

this reminds me... i need to score some cardboard. I cant wait to see some more progress pics >_<!!

So after viewing more pictures of armor and gathering more inspiration, it occurred to me that if I wanted this suit to look more 'authentic' (even though it's fantasy) I would need to use thicker and varying gauges.

I told my dad to get some 16 gauge, however I think it's a thicker gauge, since my fingers feel like they've been run over by several loaded shopping carts on a black friday after taking three days to hammer out these middle pieces of my cuirass, and since it's 2.5x thicker than 18.










I'll be adding roping in the next few days.




Maaaaan I feel so tired. I have to stop working at around 4:30 instead of working until 6, otherwise my hammerstrikes just flop around on this new steel.

If you look to the upper right of some of the photos, you can see the other two pieces of the cuirass. They're also made from the same gauge, and I'm going to be hammering several dozen flutes into each of them...

That is definately interesting. is the cut into the metal at the collar a planned addition or was it a happy mistake?