Rene's blog

[Rene K.]

This are the main tools i used to form the greaves. If my hands would not hurt that much, i would be able to do the whole work on the greaves without any heat, but no i must use my acethylen torch for the last steps.

[Rene K.]

Finished the main hammering and adjusting of the greaves and have the sabatons in work. Tomorrow i can assemble all and then the forging is done.





The heels became to thin trough hammering, and my arms got tired, so i choose a variation which we have here on a famous maximilian suit in the GNM. After grinding i will cut the characteristically slot for the spurs.
The finer and last planishing of the reaves i will do after the first rough grinding, when the lower spots get clearly visible.

[Rene K.]

Just finished the forging work on the suit this minutes.
Now i can start grinding work and creating the last hinges and closing-pins.

Because the feet will never be visible to the exhibition visitors, i let the sabatons very plain. Remember, the figure will stand on a podest, 3m high.





Before i start the disassembling, i will finish body of the mannequin to fit the armour without wobbeling and make some photos of the rough harness.

[RandallMoffett]

Very nice work. Those turned out amazing sir!

RPM

[Rene K.]

thanks

[RWWT]

I’m incredibly jealous of your work, Rene! Amazing stuff! Thanks for sharing the process!

[Rene K.]

here some quic pictures of my work on the body of the manequinn. it is a bit nervy to make the sceleton body over the main frame. The lower body part and the butt section is fiddly work. Later the frame will be covered with clothes and mail brayes, so the shape of the frame is needed to be relatively anatomical correct.

Like the last few weeks i had a 14 hour day and now i'm over and go to bed. Hope you enjoy.

[Rene K.]

[Rene K.]

Spent the whole day creating the hip- and butt-section and made some spacers at the arms of the manequinn.







Tomorrow i will finish the neck and helmetholder and try to find a universal working holder for the sword the knight will hold in his hand.

[valdred]

That mannequin is awesome (and the armour too!)

[Rene K.]

Today i was able to make the test mounting of the armour on the figure with the clothings unter the suit. Today it was very sunny outside, so i moved outside to make some better photos.
It was very nervy to adjust all elements of the manequinn because it is totally static in its single parts and not flexible like the human body, and all moving parts of the armour are stiff bolted together in the moment.
Spent the rest of the day to finish the mail for the armpits and groin.

But i'm very pleased with the final overall view.















More pictures in the pinterst gallery.

[Mac]

But i'm very pleased with the final overall view.

...and well you should be pleased! It looks very good!
Mac

[RandallMoffett]

Wow. That is really a lovely work of art! You have done an exceptional job on this!

RPM

[Rene K.]

Thank you guys !

[Nathan C]

Incredible work- Hut ab!

I was wondering: Does the helmet has that size because of the perspective that the visitors will have on the armour (looking up on the armour standing on a podest like a monument) or is it made after "normal" proportion?

Best wishes
Nathan

[Rene K.]

You mean that it seems to be a bit big ?
I created the size after a normal haedsize, about 58 cm, and with enough space for a lining. When you have a look at genuine examples you often see helmets that are a bit bigger than modern people want to have them most time. It is like a modern motorbike helmet to give the head enough padding around.

[Nathan C]

Oh I see! I had this missconception in my mind that the helmets had to be as small as possible to build to fit the head plus a thin padding. Thanks for clearing that!

[Signo]

On the contrary, often there kind of helms have a lot of space, especially on the sides. Having handled one, many years ago I was impressed how springy and thin it was built, so probably a different paradigm in term of protection than thick and fit.

[Rene K.]

Some pictures of the small parts that are needed for the suit.

[Jan van Nyenrode]

Really lovely work! Would you be willing to show how you do your fluting? Looking at historical maximilian armour the fluting almost seems a 'light' rimple of the surface. But I have a tendency to make ridges when I do my fluting. What is the trick to get the proper effect?

[RandallMoffett]

Are your buckles flat stock filed a ton? Those are lovely!

RPM

[Rene K.]

For the buckles i have lasercuted blanks. But doing the filework is tiring enough, also without cuting the blanks myself.
Surprisingly there are not that many buckles on this kind of armour.

@Jan: when i have finished this project and installed it in the museums exhibition, i gladly make a picture series about how i personaly make the flutings.

[Ilkka Salokannel]

Hi Rene:

How did you make the spring shoulder pins?

I need to do that for myself and still struggle with the idea.

Ilkka

[Rene K.]

Hi Ilkka,

There was a discussion about the springpins and how to do them last year. But if i can help you, i can make a kind of tutorial when i finished my project.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=175548

[Scott Martin]

Hi Rene

That was a useful discussion, but I'd love to see your tutorial, since your pins came out very nicely!

Scott

[Indianer]

I really don´t get those pins. The other thread shows nicely how to make 'em, but...where do they come from?

- They are affixed to the gorget here and hold the shoulders? The pauldrons hold the arm, so...the arms entire weight hangs on the spring loaded pins? Is there anything else holding the pauldrons?
- And on Gothic armor I´ve now read them to exist to, again to hold the pauldrons. How are the pins suspended there?
- Anywhere else to expect those things? Thx a lot!

Some pictures of the small parts that are needed for the suit.

Those screws are scary.. what are they for? Not on the armor itself I hope? 0.0

[Rene K.]

Hi Indi,

normally the arms that are worn with pauldrons are fastend to the armingdoublet with lacings. Arms with small spaulders hangiing with theyre whole weight on the pins.
But the weight is not the problem for the pins, they are much more solid than a lacing or a leather strap. But they came out of use because they are to solid and exponated that a weapons blow can break them more easy. At last this is the most common thesis about this pins. Maybe they simply were a temporary fashion that was to expensive and sensitiv.
Sometimes you can also see longer studs with a knob on the top and without a springloaded latch. These worked by gravit and the tension of the arms. But also a short living method.
For 15.th armour i don't know a genuine example. In my opinion the became common with the new transitional style of armour of about 1500.



The screws on the picture are simply the stock i made the turning-pins from. The threaded part is just the rest of the screws and a useful handle till the pins are installed.

[Indianer]

How can one comprehend all that... I´ve been at it for so many years now, and still a simple pin humbles me.

Of course..the lacings... that gives me the idea for a new drawing!! Thank you Rene.


EDIT: Rene, you´ve offered tutorials - we´ve had some on fluting and there is the thread on spring loaded pins. But the sharp bend in this piece hasn´t really been covered anywhere so far. I mean, Dubé has shown how to make an italian grandguard, which also has that vertical ridge. But his method* won´t work for the style you´ve made. I´d love to see how you do that.

*It is a more..passive way to create that vertical part. It is simply left untreated during most of the raising involved in the piece, which makes it stand somewhat erected later in the process.

Best, Indi

EDIT: Jup, I know they are riveted on along that narrow "bridge"? to the pauldron. What mesmerizes me is how one can put a bend into a piece that is curved in two dimensions already, and *opposite* to one of them at that. Maybe I overthink that and it´s just a matter of hammering it over an edge..it usually is, after all

EDIT 2: The more I think of it...doesn´t seem much different from rolling a gothic legs upper edge. Just without rolling the roll.

[Christian Wiedner]

I´d love to see how you do that.

Just go back and look again, you can find the answer yourself... you can even see it in this picture

[Rene K.]

Grinding, grinding, grinding...

[Rene K.]

...grinding...grinding...

[Johann ColdIron]

So many flutes to grind. Are you doing it all with an angle grinder or do you have some form of profiled wheel on a stationary grinder too?

Love the suit. Some one should be very happy with that!

[Rene K.]

I use an anglegrinder and my beltsanders for the first steps of grinding, then i go to my 400mm wheels with greaseless compound.
When i'm done with it, i can spend some of my 400 overtime hours to give more infos about my workshop setup.

[RWWT]

I hope that someday my finished work looks half as good as your work before grinding and finishing, Rene. Thanks for taking the time to share your progress and answer questions about your methods. Following along is invaluable to me and, I’m sure, others.

Everything looks amazing and keep getting better!

[Rene K.]

Finally the suit is finished and arrived at the museum. Tomorrow i will travel again tho the exhibition and assemble all parts on the figure.
Here some quick shots of the armour. I will do more and better photos when the suit is built up on his new resting place.
For your interest, this suit is the result of 900 hours of work.

Hope you enjoy