I'm planning to add another heater shield to my very small collection. They are fun to make and the raw materials are cheap too - excellent!
There is one aspect of making shields that I do not know how to get right though (besides my paint jobs), which is securely attaching the straps to the shield. I am a student with limited funds, tools and literally no workspace, not even a workbench.
With my last two shields I fastened the leather straps with screws roughly 2~ mm shorter than the shield. That kinda works but its really not that secure and the straps are bound to come off when sparring. I do not want to buy any riveting specific tools, so am wondering whether anyone can recommend a method to securely attach the straps with only basic tools. I could put screws through the shield and secure them with nuts, but that'd be really ugly and I'd like to avoid that if possible.
Happy for any input!
Alex
| Alexander O wrote: |
| I'm planning to add another heater shield to my very small collection. They are fun to make and the raw materials are cheap too - excellent!
There is one aspect of making shields that I do not know how to get right though (besides my paint jobs), which is securely attaching the straps to the shield. I am a student with limited funds, tools and literally no workspace, not even a workbench. With my last two shields I fastened the leather straps with screws roughly 2~ mm shorter than the shield. That kinda works but its really not that secure and the straps are bound to come off when sparring. I do not want to buy any riveting specific tools, so am wondering whether anyone can recommend a method to securely attach the straps with only basic tools. I could put screws through the shield and secure them with nuts, but that'd be really ugly and I'd like to avoid that if possible. Happy for any input! Alex |
I went the rather difficult rout of using mild steel rivets, and cold peening them with a hammer. It took a lot of effort, and I should have probably done it over a couple of different sessions (instead of straight through), but it looks really nice.
Get forged nails (they usually have nice flat heads, and square shanks) and drive them through the face and the strap, and fold over.
@Hardy
Seems like a lot of work, but I'm sure the result is sturdy and visually appealing. Is this also the way that enarmes on high-late medieval shields were secured with?
@Bjorn
I think this is the route I'll take for this project. How much longer than the shield should the nails be? The thickness of the shield is 10 mm.
Seems like a lot of work, but I'm sure the result is sturdy and visually appealing. Is this also the way that enarmes on high-late medieval shields were secured with?
@Bjorn
I think this is the route I'll take for this project. How much longer than the shield should the nails be? The thickness of the shield is 10 mm.
| Alexander O wrote: |
| @Hardy
Seems like a lot of work, but I'm sure the result is sturdy and visually appealing. Is this also the way that enarmes on high-late medieval shields were secured with? @Bjorn I think this is the route I'll take for this project. How much longer than the shield should the nails be? The thickness of the shield is 10 mm. |
i would say shield thickness + strap thickness + at least an inch. If they are too long just cut them off, forged iron nails are usually soft (that's why it works well to kinch them over)
This is also possible with regular wire nails from the DIY shop as they are very easy to peen.
Buy 6mm shank nails, 6mm 'repair' washers (the big ones about 25mm diameter) and drill through the Shiel;d at 6mm so the nail is tight in the hole. Pass the nail through the strap and the washer and cut it cleanly with a saw so that 1mm stick out the back of the washer.
Place the nail head against a block of metal or if not a big concrete block and use a small 200g approx ball pain hammer and use the round end to tap around the perimeter of the nail shank to mushroom it out over the top of the washer. If the nail is tight in the hole it should go quite easily and cleanly.
Good luck
Tod
Buy 6mm shank nails, 6mm 'repair' washers (the big ones about 25mm diameter) and drill through the Shiel;d at 6mm so the nail is tight in the hole. Pass the nail through the strap and the washer and cut it cleanly with a saw so that 1mm stick out the back of the washer.
Place the nail head against a block of metal or if not a big concrete block and use a small 200g approx ball pain hammer and use the round end to tap around the perimeter of the nail shank to mushroom it out over the top of the washer. If the nail is tight in the hole it should go quite easily and cleanly.
Good luck
Tod
| Leo Todeschini wrote: |
| This is also possible with regular wire nails from the DIY shop as they are very easy to peen.
Buy 6mm shank nails, 6mm 'repair' washers (the big ones about 25mm diameter) and drill through the Shiel;d at 6mm so the nail is tight in the hole. Pass the nail through the strap and the washer and cut it cleanly with a saw so that 1mm stick out the back of the washer. Place the nail head against a block of metal or if not a big concrete block and use a small 200g approx ball pain hammer and use the round end to tap around the perimeter of the nail shank to mushroom it out over the top of the washer. If the nail is tight in the hole it should go quite easily and cleanly. Good luck Tod |
A few extra notes on general peening:
I like to slip the hole at the end of a 30cm ruler over the nail and cut the nail flush. That leaves just enough material sticking out to peen properly. It also helps to buy a washer with a hole whose diameter is slightly smaller than the diameter of the nail so that you can force the washer down the length of the nail with a bit of pipe (do this before cutting the nail). That way the washer is stuck on the nail and does not bounce about when you peen it. That's also why I like to use these faux-antique nails, because they taper towards the point and look better than the modern hardware store nails:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/874448626/hand-forged-nails-iron-spikes-with?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=antique+nails&ref=sr_gallery-1-15&organic_search_click=1&pro=1
The hole through the buckler/shield should also be drilled to the minimum diameter of the nail, i.e. if you have a constant width nail of 3mm, drill a 2 mm hole, if you have a tapering nail , drill it to be slightly smaller than the shaft of the nail at its narrowest point where it exits the wood. Other wise the nail will bend in the hole when you peen it. Finally, I use washers on leather as well as bare armour plate because when I want to replace something I can grind off the peen down to the washer without scratching the hell out of the underlying material, probably not very period but convenient.
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