Need Websites or plans on how to make real armor

[Arcanus]

I have been thinking of joining an SCA that might start in my area and was wondering if any of you knew of any websites that show how to make armor.

Or if anyone here is in the SCA that has plans or pictures etc...on making your own weapons, shields, helms and body armor.

Still not sure what time frame I want to represent. Anything goes from 600AD to 1600AD

You can e-mail me at skrewged@mchsi.com

 

[Avarice]

Here's a link for chainmail that you might find useful...

http://www.theringlord.com/patterns/

 

[evileeyore]

go to google.com and do a search. You'd be amazed.

 

[Arcanus]

Thanks guys.

Anyone else know anything on making armor or has anyone seen or done it?

 

[Umbran]

The major thing to note is this - making "real" armor is not for amateurs. To make it, you don't need instructions from the Web. You need a few years of apprenticeship.

Many fighters in the SCA don't wear what looks like "real" armor of a specific period. They wear a hodgepodge of things that work, usually including anachronistic things like hockey gloves I have seen some types of SCA armor made out of heavy guage plastics (the sort of plastic some recycling bins and garbage cans are made from). But the vast majority of people in the SCA who wear metal armor buy it from professional armorsmiths. Expensive, but unavoidable.

A relatively inexperienced person can make chainmail (I myself buy from the Ring Lord). But, chainmail does pretty much nothing against blunt attacks. All SCA combat is blunt weapons. You'll need something made out of plates. And working metal plates into armor is simply beyond the skills and equipment available to the average joe who hasn't done it before.

If you want to get into SCA combat, the best way to do it is to go talk to SCA members. Go to an Event, ask where you can find the "heavy list fighters". Ask them how to begin. They will be eager to tell you

 

[joejoe]

Wats sca? is that real fighing or in the game cuz if its real then i want in lol

 

[Galethorn]

What is the SCA?

Idealistic?
A modern recreation of the medieval melee; a contest of martial prowess, where speed, strength, and skill win the day.

Cynical?
It's where large, sweaty men in armor made out pickle-barrels hit each other with sticks, based on an ultimately unrealistic set of rules which includes a banning of attacks to legs, heads/necks, and grappling in general.

Realistic?
Somewhere in between.

 

[Theron]

For patterns, instruction, and discussion with folks about making armour, I recommend The Armour Archive.

 

[Umbran]

The SCA is the Society for Creative Anachronism. In essence, it is a (very large, international) club of folks who do medieval recreations.

Depending where you live, fighting may be a lot of what goes on. But, society-wide, it is by no means the only thing going on. Any potentially interesting or fun thing you can think of from medieval life is probably done by somebody. Brewing and fiber arts and dance and cookery and storytelling and archery and thrown weapons and siege engineering and fighting and translation and theatre, etc.

 

[Theron]

Cynical?
It's where large, sweaty men in armor made out pickle-barrels hit each other with sticks, based on an ultimately unrealistic set of rules which includes a banning of attacks to legs, heads/necks, and grappling in general.

Actually, SCA combat allows head/neck shots. It's the exclusion of the leg below the knee and the hands that strikes me as odd, and that's after spending 17 years in the organization.

FWIW, the period fencing side of things doesn't exclude any body part as a target, but it's got its own set of odd issues.