The Armour Archive

On many late period suits of armor, the paldrons are attached to the gorget or breastplate by means of a pin. I spent much time at the hardware store looking for anything that would fit the bill. I am looking for suggestions as to:
1. What to use?
2. Where to get it?
3. How in the word to attach it?

Thanks

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Watt

Would not small cotter-pins fit the bill?



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Robert Coleman, Jr.

The Noble Companie and Order of St. Maurice
<B>Those who beat their swords into plowshares end up plowing for those who don't.

Remember: In Living History/Reinactment, Real Life is the Great Leveler of Man.</B>

I have a 16th C. jousting harness with a hinge/pin arrangement to hold on the pauldrons. It uses a cotter pin. I would recommend against it.
The cotter pin is unauthentic and looks like crap.
The breastplate strap also rests on the gorget/pauldron hinge. This puts a lot of weight on the gorget, which puts a subtle pressure on your neck/throat. After about a half-hour, it is annoying. If you put the breastplate on first, then the gorget, you not only get a gap a lance could ride up, but when you raise your arms you choke yourself.
I think something mounted from the arming doublet would work a lot better, like my 15th C. Milanese harness utilizes. If I ever wear that particular harness again, I am going to rig something of that nature. I tried mounting the paudrons from the breastplate strap, but this only caused the straps to pull down towards the shoulders.

Mine consist of hand made hinges, heater-shaped, riveted with a loose rivet to the edge of the gorget, slightly behind the shoulder line. There is a approx. 1" long rod 3/16" diameter welded to the other side of the hinge. It has a hole drilled through it 1/8" from the tip for the cotter pin.

The pauldrons have a series if 3 holes drilled in a line to give it some lee-way for adjustment.

[This message has been edited by Bascot (edited 03-17-2002).]

I saw a lot of these at the Tower of London. Imagine a cotter pin which is about 1/4"-1/2" tall. That is to say, from above, it looks like a normal cotter pin, but from the side it is 1/4"-1/2" tall. I have not seen these in any hardware store, but then again I haven't looked for them. You may be able to fashion some out of pallet banding. Fold the banding around a nail or rod to make the eye. You can probably do this in a vice. Round the corners a bit, put a lace through the "eye". The peg that goes through the pauldron has a slot in it that this clip goes through. Squeeze the sides through and put them though the slot. They will spring apart to hold it in place.

- Scott