My Arming Coat is finished!

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:40 am

Here it is.
Comments / Criticisms welcome.

Details:
3 layers of linen
mostly machine sewn hand finished seams (there are a lot of seams)
hand finished points eyelets.
It just covers my hip joint.
It fits me better than my duct tape doppelganger.

Jost von Aichstadt · Post by **Jost von Aichstadt** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:33 am

Wonderful! Where did you get the pattern?

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 11:01 am

Pattern!

The body is adapted from a Period Pattern #23 cotehardie patern.
The arms are draped to the body. Tasha has instructions on how to fit the lower arm.

The upper arm is heavely adapted from instructions here:

http://thescholarsgarret.com/artifact/aissiette/

See figure nine. This should only be viewed as a strating point for further fitting to the body.
The gussets themselves MUST be fitted to you.

Jost von Aichstadt · Post by **Jost von Aichstadt** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 11:16 am

Guy Dawkins wrote:The body is adapted from a Period Pattern #23 cotehardie patern. The arms are draped to the body. Tasha has instructions on how to fit the lower arm.

Thanks. Again, very nice!

Tailoress · Post by **Tailoress** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:09 pm

Looks nice, David -- I really like the ties you added; folks don't do that enough, it seems.

At some point, show us pics of you wearing it with the rest of your get-up, eh?

-Tasha

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:24 pm

Thanks Tasha,
I could not have finished this without your help.

I've writtten this before; what ever anyone charges to make one of these for you is worth every penny!

Tailoress · Post by **Tailoress** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:29 pm

Now if only I could find the time to actually finish my languishing orders...

:cry:

But thank you for that nice compliment, David! You too are helping to make WMA prettier, one arming cotte at a time.

-Tasha

knitebee · Post by **knitebee** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:55 pm

awsome looking. I have one question, what are the points under the upper arm for? I"ve never noticed any in that placement before. I know that there is many such things that I've never seen from a historical point or not thought of from a modern point of view, so enlighten me :lol:

Henry of Bexley · Post by **Henry of Bexley** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:47 pm

The rerebrace of an arm harness most likely points to that location. That's almost exactly where I put the points to hang mine.

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 9:01 am

Yep! That is what it is for.

Here are a few pictures of me in arm and leg harness.
My doppelganger is better looking

MelanieC · Post by **MelanieC** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 1:27 pm

That looks wonderful! About how long did it take you to put the garment together? The husband wants one and I'm trying to figure out where to put it in the ever-expanding list of must-dos.

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 1:32 pm

On again off again...about 8 months. Someone who knows what they are doing would take much less time. I was also assembling armour.

Fitting to yourself is not easy. My wife, at the start, was not comfortable with not working from a pattern and instructions. I was too stupid to know what I was letting myself in for.

Once I got through the "grande aissiette" fitting thing were more or less basic.

Klaus the Red · Post by **Klaus the Red** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 1:33 pm

Really well done. It's always nice to see everything working together as a system (coat, legs, arms and spaulders) as intended. Let us know how it fights!

Klaus

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 2:09 pm

Thanks Klaus,

A system. I hadn't thought of it but that is exactly what it is!
I was afraid that hanging the armour would be a drag on the garment. It really doesn't feel that way.
have to see how it all holds up in combat.

Klaus the Red · Post by **Klaus the Red** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 2:50 pm

If strapped properly, armor should "hang" very little, and your setup seems to be working toward that goal. The weight will be distributed around the torso and limbs by the straps, and the attaching points to the coat simply serve to anchor the ends of the armor pieces in place. This is especially important in the case of legs- truly accurate 14th-15th century legs will have some of their weight transferred down to the greaves, and very little should pull on the coat itself. You don't have greaves, but on the other hand, leather legs should weigh less than (mild) steel.

Klaus

Henry of Bexley · Post by **Henry of Bexley** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 6:43 pm

Um... I see greaves. Now if they're actually attached to the rest of the leg harness is another thing entirely.

Josh W · Post by **Josh W** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 6:59 pm

Nice kit. What kind of body armour do you wear over the arming coat?

Klaus the Red · Post by **Klaus the Red** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 7:27 pm

Yes, of course those are greaves, sorry- my brain kind of overlooked them because what I was thinking of was enclosed steel greaves that are fully shaped to the calf and don't ride down at all onto the instep, to which the last lame of the poleyn articulation is attached by a pin.

K

Guy Dawkins · Post by **Guy Dawkins** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 9:32 pm

Josh Warren wrote:Nice kit. What kind of body armour do you wear over the arming coat?

Sorry Josh, but going to be a fabric coverd pl****c corrazina. That will then be covered by a sleeveless jupon ala the Black Prince.