The Armour Archive

Here is the start of my third project, The first was a set of soupcan knees, and elbows, then on to easier things to get started.

I started a set of mitten gauntlets, but (TAKE NOTE HAMMERHAND) I haven't finished them, mainly due to not needing them yet.
I also did not count my coat of plates or any of the leather items I made like gorgets and vambraces. So here goes:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/Do ... /Knee3.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/Do ... /Knee1.jpg
This is just what I got into last night, and I ran a wire wheel over them briefly to clean them up for the photos, what I would call a first pass.

Suggestions are appreciated....

Thanks to AB Hammer for posting his pattern!

The curvature looks pretty uniform for someone who hasn't done a lot of dishing. What tools are you using to do it?

Find out whatever is making the long marks on the outside and prevent that. They can be taken out but each of those marks will require 10-20 precisely placed hammer blows over a stake. It's easier if they don't get there.

When you cut out the pieces, if you have a large diameter punch for a whitney (1/4" to 1/2") they make really nice inside curves for where the fan meets the cop. I'd also put a little more work into the edges. You should be able to hand it off safely to a 4 year old. Always finish edges while it's still flat.

I really like the crease in the cop too - most people can't get something that straight right away.

Keep it up!

Thanks Schreiber....

For dishing I used a heavyweight rawhide mallet, a 32 oz rubber mallet that I curved the end of on my lathe and a modified engineers hammer in a dishing stump. I also used my huge vise to "squeeze the top and bottom together in between dishing to try and get some uniformity.

The straight marks happened when I started to get tired...I should have stopped but stupid me kept on. I was planishing on my repro cannon ball, actually a zinc round that was too big to fit in our 1863 12 lb Napoleon, that we shoot competitively in the N-SSA. It was the edge of my hammer that did it.

The punch idea is a good one, I do that when I cut tight curves in leather, so I should have thought of that. Didn't turn out to bad cutting them out with a scroll saw though. And I agree I should have done more edge prep BEFORE I dished, I got impatient.

For the cop crease...I bent it in my vise...My quick and easy tip that worked well.

As for any metal experience...I did have some minor metal experience in a body shop years ago...but with armor you can use bondo to "cover up" your mistakes!

Bastard. You've been holding out on me
Ehem... and uh, have you forgotten that there's a pile of stakes at my place that you can borrow?

Not holding out...Just did it last night....
And yes I know you have the stakes, it was just one of those things!
Hey you have a shear also, but I still cut it out with a saw! Dumb me!