[Thomas Dunbar]

I'm Tom Dunbar, newly joined,altho' I was involved in medieval time lines and living history earlier in the century but stepped away for War of 1812, WW1 Centennial and WW2 - coming back to the medieval period and would like to do something with plate instead of the earlier maille and fabric armors I used before. Unless I win the lottery I'm probably never going to have bespoke armor but would like to try to find something "off the rack" to see if you pay attention to detail you can put something together which is not too glaringly "WORNG!" After a cram course I've been able to see flaws in most of the backs & breasts being offered (thanks to many hobbyists taking time to educate on the likes of YouTube) One item offered which based on only the front and rear views provided on seller's websites, looks maybe close is "Ulfberht's" Early 15th Century Milanese Harness". I'm trying to discover if this has functional faulds and would love to know if the breast has got the proper "globose" shape for the period ( think the model must be the Churburg #18) Long way of asking if anyone on the forum has seen this product and can answer my questions about the faulds and the shape - any other thoughts and info on this would be deeply appreciated! Thanks for putting up with this long post.

[Dan Howard]

Don't even think about armour until you get your soft kit sorted and don't buy it off the rack. If you can't afford to pay someone to tailor-make it for you then wait till you can.

[Chris Gilman]

Tom,
Check out the Armour Archive. http://forums.armourarchive.org/phpBB3/
It is a forum centered more around armour specifically, rather then arms.

I have not seen any mass produced "Off the Rack" armour that was worth owning. Virtually all of it is incorrectly shaped / proportioned and most often poorly articulated. (I love when these really bad armour say "wearable", somewhere in their description, because, a cardboard box is "wearable" if you cut holes in the right spots)

I would recommend commissioning a cuirass and or helmet and start fleshing out your kit from there. There are some very talented armourers in Eastern Europe, who's prices are very reasonable. There is also a number of used pieces for sale from these smiths, as others upgrade their kits.
If you don't have a specific period or culture in mind, it may be easier to find some of these used armour bits and develop your soft kit around the period / culture of the used armour you find.
If you commission armour, then these 2 can be developed in unison, once you decide what you can/ willing to afford. But do pay close attention to your soft kit.

[Thomas Dunbar]

Thanks for the replies - I had forgotten Armor Archive !