[Matthew Harrington]

1. Large Spear Head from KultofAthena.com mounted on a 6 ft. ash haft.

2. An A&A Nordland Axe

3. Hanwei Tinker 9th Century Viking sword

4. Viking shield I made, it's my beater for re-enactments, I'm in the process of making a more historical one.

5. Good ol' blowing horn handmade by Jarl Olaf Thorssen of The Vikings of the Great Lakes.

Post your viking, anglo-saxon, rus, even vendel gear!

[Marc Blaydoe]

A viking really needs a ship. This is ours, the Sae Hrafn.

[Marc Blaydoe]

Here is my Viking sea chest.

[Matthew Harrington]

[Peter Messent]

Sword, spear and shield - sword is a Windlass Leuterit, heavily modified - I filed off the raised diamonds and the white-metal plating, cut down the guard and used a center punch to apply some decoration. The grip was filed down and wrapped with leather with a central turks head knot. The tip was filed from a diamond cross section to a lenticular spatulate tip, which definitely improved tip slashing ability. It's been in the sheath for a while, hence the patches of corrosion (it's character, honest). The spear was a KoA purchase, and the handle is about 1.5" I think - feels great in the hand but I'm thinking of making some throwing spears with a 1" or maybe even a little smaller diameter shaft. The head is attached by riveted nail. The spear is a mean piercer! The shield was made out of 1/2" plywood, faced with canvas and painted with a rawhide edging. The boss is another KoA purchase, I tried to make it look a little more real/used by greasing it and burning the grease on with a blowtorch, then steel-wooling it. On the back is a straight bar handle of oak, no straps though I intend to put on a carrying strap to carry it over the back.


Hilt close up.


And the spear!


The rawhide edging. Copper nails were used primarily, with steel staples (I was pleased to find a staple that looked as though it had been smithed rather than machine-made - I'm not sure of the historicity of staples, but consider it plausible and ideal for purpose) where one piece of rawhide meets another - the hide is overlapped.




The scabbard was the first I made and primarily used to experiment with carving on a slightly more awkward surface. Turks head knots (square leather lace) hold on the strap bridge which is decorated with a herring bone. Further turks heads serve as decoration and reinforcement (it has suffered a wee bit of damage as you can probably see). I carved a large herringbone, with alternating cross hatch for contrast, and a valknut as decoration. Both the chape and throat need some work...

[Matthew Harrington]

Wow Peter amazing gear! I really like the upgrades on your sword and the sheath is beautiful. Where did you get the rawhide for your shield edge? I've been told by some that you can soak dog rawhide then let it dry and it becomes usable.

[Peter Messent]

Thank you very much That's exactly what I did - I used to get rolled up rawhide chews or the rawhide bones (with the knot at either end) to make knife sheaths, but I found a 1lb bag of rawhide at pets barn for $10 that just consisted of a bunch of relatively flat 3x5" (or thereabouts) strips which seemed suitable. It was fairly inconsistent in thickness but I suppose that would be typical anyway - the thinner bits were definitely easier to use, though. Not sure how much of a difference the thickness makes, practically speaking.

The rawhide I used to get dried more translucent and slightly brown colored - different animal, perhaps? It was generally thinner (some of this stuff I got was about 3mm) so easier to stretch and dried a bit harder and more brittle. I think it would look better, but perhaps not be as tough. This stuff felt as though it may have even been tanned slightly - but again, perhaps just a different animal! After applying it to the shield, it dried harder than it was when I bought it. This did remain fairly tough after soaking, as opposed to the aforementioned stuff that achieved a barely-solid gel-like consistency - I recall a few times when I pulled the thread right through it when I wasn't being gentle enough in my stitching.

I recommend tacking the front of each strip (the side facing the enemy!) before doing the back rather than trying to alternate sides - it seemed to me after doing a few strips that it was easier to stretch it over the edge of the shield this way, while keeping the lines even on the front. I wound up trimming the back with an exacto knife after I was finished, rather than pre-sizing the rawhide to the right width.

[William M]

Best photo I currently have is of my now sold Albion SL Vinland.

The sword looks awesome but personally I found it a little too heavy for my tastes.

[Marc Blaydoe]

[Matthew Harrington]

[Matthew Harrington]

[David Wilson]

Here's a sample from my collection:
1. Patrick Barta Viking sword
2. Gransfors Bruks Viking battle axe
3. Viking-style shield I got off eBay. Don't remember the maker.
(Actually, I got all these off eBay. There are some great deals there on occasion, if you know what to look for).

[Chad Arnow]

These are on the tail end of the Viking era, but are close enough.

Albion's Gaddhjalt and a custom broken back sax by Tod's Stuff.

[David Lewis Smith]

Some Albions, a Deltin and a Kris Cutlery Viking

a sword the MAD Dwarves made for me


an old display of my migration stuff with my long sax in the back ground

[Marc Ridgeway]

Awesome stuff everyone,

David : awesome wall display in that first picture.

I'm afarid I have only this to add

[James Barker]

I have a Armor class blunt, a spear head from Magic Badger, maille shirt is round riveted alternating with solid links 8mm, helmet is Historic Enterprises (made for the Norman segment on Mail Call), made the shield and the sheath both of which are do for replacement.

[David Lewis Smith]

Thanks Mike, I kind of went overboard on viking and migration era stuff LOL. There is more stuff floating around as well

I have admired your sword for some time, its very nice

[Marc Blaydoe]

Some camping gear made by our resident blacksmith Bruce Blackistone, along with our smaller boat, the Gyrfalcon at the Swedish-American Museum in Philadephia for Viking Day.

[Viktor Abrahamson]

An old pic of some viking gear.
Some are sold now and some are modified.



/Viktor

[Troy G L Williams]

Our work in progress.