plastic-armor-msg - 10/17/00
Making plastic armor.
NOTE: See also the files: armor-msg, p-armor-msg, armor-leather-msg, shields-msg, Shield-Balanc-art, gambesons-msg, coat-of-plates-msg, armor-chklst-msg.
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Stefan at florilegium.org
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Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: fixit at astro.dasd.honeywell.com
Subject: Re: How build plastic armour?
Organization: Honeywell Inc. DASD
Date: Tue, 14 Sep 1993 17:22:34 GMT
Good health to you Lord Kimura
your words:
> Those barrels are uglu blue colour and thick plastic. Does anyone know
> any hints how we can work with that material?
My experiences:
Rough cut it to size with a saw (power)
Heat in an oven at 350 degrees until pliable
Shape to fit or press over a mold
Quench it in cold water to preserve shape
Fine trim with a jewelers saw or drimmel
or
Clean up the edges with a torch
Warnings:
To much time in the oven will burn the piece
Use the original curvature as much as possible in design
It melts very easily with a torch
Recomendations:
Unless you WANT to look like Robo-Cop, cover it. Tabbard or Skarta
and baggy pants. Paint doesn't adhere well. One person tried heating
a piece of mail and melting a pattern into the plastic. The piece was
then painted. The paint in the pattern lasted much longer.
It makes very protective armour but it doesn't look so great. I like
the low cost for getting new folk on the field. Most everyone 'round
here replaces it eventually when they can get better gear.
> Sorry about my english :-)
No apologies necessary. Sorry I can't write Finnish.
Gunwaldt
From: faust at ace.com (Faust)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: How build plastic armour?
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 93 17:30:38 EST
Organization: Argus Computerized Exchange
a saw designed for cutting metal should work nicely, (a hacksaw)
avoid any sort of melting, or 'hot knife' stuff, as plastic tends to be
very toxic when burning.
you will need to smooth the edges with fine sandpaper or polishing
cloth.
faust at ace.com Thomas of Berwick
p.s. hit the barrel with sticks for a while, and see if the plastic
takes the damage in a manner you can tolerate
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: treid at morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Ambrose)
Subject: Re: How build plastic armour?
Organization: Memorial University of Newfoundland
Date: Fri, 17 Sep 1993 13:22:19 GMT
faust at ace.com (Faust) writes:
>a saw designed for cutting metal should work nicely, (a hacksaw)
>avoid any sort of melting, or 'hot knife' stuff, as plastic tends to be
>very toxic when burning.
>you will need to smooth the edges with fine sandpaper or polishing
>cloth.
>faust at ace.com Thomas of Berwick
>p.s. hit the barrel with sticks for a while, and see if the plastic
>takes the damage in a manner you can tolerate
Our little armour makeing group has found that a jig saw quickest to cut
the plastic. Then a piant scraper can be used to take the sharpness and
the frills (produced by the jig saw) off the edge. A paint scraper is
reuseable unlike sand paper.
Then a heat gun to mold the plastic.
Remember, everything loks good with a nice tabard!
Ambrose
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: mchance at nyx.cs.du.edu (Michael Chance)
Subject: Re: How build plastic armour?
Organization: University of Denver, Dept. of Math & Comp. Sci.
Date: Fri, 17 Sep 93 22:26:33 GMT
Kvedjur fra Mikjal!
Be sure to check out the temperature range of the plastic you're making
armor with, if at all possible, especially if you plan to do any
outdoor fighting during cold weather seasons. Some grades of plastic
barrels get brittle below certain temperatures.
Baron Devin may remember the incident better than I, but I recall the
early attemps at plastic barrel armor in the Shire of Swordcliffe,
Midrealm (Springfield , IL). The full leg harness I saw worked fine
all summer long. However, at the first real autumn tourney outdoors,
the first solid shot to the cuisse blew a great hole in it. Seems the
particular type of plastic got very brittle around 55 degree
Fahrenheit.
Moral: Check the cold weather properties of your plastic armor before
trying to fight in it under those conditions.
Mikjal Annarbjorn
--
Michael A. Chance St. Louis, Missouri, USA "At play in the fields
Work: mc3078 at sw1sta.sbc.com of St. Vidicon"
Play: ab899 at freenet.hsc.colorado.edu
mchance at nyx.cs.du.edu
From: rcml at acpub.duke.edu (Robert Lonon)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: How build plastic armour?
Date: 20 Sep 93 00:16:47 GMT
Organization: Duke University; Durham, N.C.
If you're going to use plastic, a good way to hide it is to make
it into Wisby plate armor. This gives you great protection, and hides
the plastic at the same time. It's reasonably simple to make,
and really low in cost. As an added benefit, it's (essentially)
period as well.
I've made more than one set, and if you cut the plastic at the
correct angles, you don't even have to heat-form it.
I've written up instructions on how do this, altho it hasn't been tested
yet (ie given to people who don't have me on hand to ask questions).
If anyone's interested, I'd be happy to try to email them a copy
(altho I'm not that heavy of a net user; it might tak me a few trys
to get it right).
If you'd like a copy, email me at rcml at acpub.duke.edu. Any feedback
would be appreciated as well.
Corwyn Sinister
Barony of Windmaster's Hill
Kingdom of Atlantia
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: blaxson at shade.UWaterloo.ca (Brian A.Laxson)
Subject: Re: How build plastic armour?
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Tue, 28 Sep 1993 16:35:31 GMT
BTW, You can reshape the plastic with a propane torch, a tub of
water and two layers of gloves. Soaking the gloves in water gives you a
"heat capacitor" which slows the transfer of heat from the plastic to your
hands.
You will have to hold the pieces briefly in the tub while the cool
and fix to shape. This also "recharges" the gloves with cold water. Best
bendings come from heating both sides of the bend, apply a bit of water to
the surface of plastic, and reheating again before bending. This leads to
a more uniform "softness" through the plastic and prevents melting of the
outer plastic.
Brian Goodheart the Warper
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: amlsmith at morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Andrew ML Smith)
Subject: Re: Plastic Armour
Organization: Memorial University of Newfoundland
Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1993 23:22:15 GMT
Dan_J._Hurst at thequest.com (Dan J. Hurst) writes:
>Yea, verily Yea! Mikjal, thou didst say unto All ...
>
> M(> Baron Devin may remember the incident better than I, but I recall the
> M(> early attemps at plastic barrel armor in the Shire of Swordcliffe,
> M(> Midrealm (Springfield , IL). The full leg harness I saw worked fine
> M(> all summer long. However, at the first real autumn tourney outdoors,
> M(> the first solid shot to the cuisse blew a great hole in it. Seems the
> M(> particular type of plastic got very brittle around 55 degree
> M(> Fahrenheit.
>
>Those leg harness were made from Kydex, not barrel plastic. The barrels
....
>I had assumed they were using a similair material, because it was
>described as "those ugly blue barrels". But then, we all know what
>assumeing does.
OK, here is the guide that I go by, and it seems to be OK:
Ugly Blue barrels are OK, but chill a 2x6" piece in the freezer first.
If it snaps, don't use it. (This goes for _all_ plastic)
Barrels that contained the following should be OK:
Kerosene (Dark green)
Rust Check (Black, with textured surface)
Industrial Pink Cleaner (Black, very variable thickness *caution*)
If you can find out what sort of plastic it is, and you are not sure of
its mechanical properties at cold temperatures check with an engineer or
a chemist, they will be able to find data for you. In the near future, I
hope to compile a list of 'acceptable' plastics. If such a list already
exists, let me know. I plan on both a tensile strength test on real
pieces at room temperature, and impact (charpy?) testing at 30, 20, 0,
-10 Celcius. These I can then cross check with data from tested 1040
steel samples which would cover a similar area. I don't think that any
harness tests would give any useful data.
Any Opinions?
Sebastian, who is momentarily playing the part of:
Andrew Smith
Mech. Engineering Student.
M.U.N.
amlsmith at morgan.ucs.mun.ca
From: DDF2 at cornell.edu (David Friedman)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Plastic Armour
Date: 4 Oct 1993 23:16:50 GMT
Organization: Cornell Law School
Eric Huber writes:
> It's very affordable, I bought a really large sheet of it (more than enough
> for what I need, I think it was around 7 or 8 square feet) for less than
> 40 dollars.
>
> It's *doesn't* look very period however, so I plan to cover it with garb or
> whatever. The Baron covered his armor with suede to make it look period.
Leather of a thickness suitable for armor (about 13 ounce) can be purchased
by mail for under $5 a square foot. Add another $1/square foot for beeswax
and you have hardened leather at something pretty close to the price quoted
here for plastic. It is easier to cut than plastic (a utility knife instead
of a saw). You shape it by soaking instead of heating, which is probably
means fewer burned fingers (although you will have to heat it after it is
shaped, in order to harden it). On the other hand the leather is probably
less flexible soaked than the plastic is heated, so it will be harder to do
something which is supposed to end up very convex.
And you save the cost and trouble of covering it with suede.
David/Cariadoc
DDF2 at Cornell.Edu
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: parr at acs.ucalgary.ca (Charles Parr)
Subject: Re: Plastic Armour
Date: Tue, 5 Oct 1993 08:48:33 GMT
Organization: The University of Calgary, Alberta
amlsmith at morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Andrew ML Smith) writes:
> Dan_J._Hurst at thequest.com (Dan J. Hurst) writes:
>>Yea, verily Yea! Mikjal, thou didst say unto All ...
>>
>> M(> Baron Devin may remember the incident better than I, but I recall the
>> M(> early attemps at plastic barrel armor in the Shire of Swordcliffe,
>> M(> Midrealm (Springfield , IL). The full leg harness I saw worked fine
>> M(> all summer long. However, at the first real autumn tourney outdoors,
>> M(> the first solid shot to the cuisse blew a great hole in it. Seems the
>> M(> particular type of plastic got very brittle around 55 degree
>> M(> Fahrenheit.
>>
>>Those leg harness were made from Kydex, not barrel plastic. The barrels
>....
>>I had assumed they were using a similair material, because it was
>>described as "those ugly blue barrels". But then, we all know what
>>assumeing does.
>
>OK, here is the guide that I go by, and it seems to be OK:
>
>Ugly Blue barrels are OK, but chill a 2x6" piece in the freezer first.
>If it snaps, don't use it. (This goes for _all_ plastic)
>Barrels that contained the following should be OK:
>Kerosene (Dark green)
>Rust Check (Black, with textured surface)
>Industrial Pink Cleaner (Black, very variable thickness *caution*)
Barrel plastic is low and sometimes medium density polyetheline.
It isn't very good for armour. I reccomend buying a 4x8 sheet
of the high density stuff from a plastic company.
Carolus
--
Within the span of the last few weeks I have heard elements of
separate threads which, in that they have been conjoined in time,
struck together to form a new chord within my hollow and echoing
gourd. --Unknown net.person
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: ARCHER at utkvm1.utk.edu (T. Archer)
Subject: Re: Plastic Armour
Organization: University of Tennessee
Date: Tue, 5 Oct 1993 20:18:13 GMT
DDF2 at cornell.edu (David Friedman) writes:
>And you save the cost and trouble of covering it with suede.
But it does have the tendency to go limp in hot weather or when it gets
soaked. I would also tend to think that it sheds beeswax.
>David/Cariadoc
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Mail to PA142548 at UTKVM1.UTK.EDU. Mail to ARCHER at that address will
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From: doconnor at sedona.intel.com (Dennis O'Connor)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Plastic Armour
Date: 5 Oct 93 13:18:42
Organization: Intel i960(tm) Architecture
WRT to cheap armour :
I recently completed a set of Wisby-style torso armor.
(The latest Creative Anachronist is an Excellent treatise
on armour-made-from-metal-plates-and-leather-or-fabric BTW,
including the Wisby finds and later brigadine armour!)
Total cost :
about $5 for the 1/16" 6061T6 aluminum (doesn't show)
about $7 for the heavy canvas it's riveted to
about $1 for the little leather squares to reinforce
the cloth under selected rivets
about $7 for the rivets themselves ( #9 copper rivets)
Took about 14 hours over the course of 5 days to build.
Weighs under 10 pounds, breathes well (important in Phoenix AZ!).
Very very comfortable, very protective when worn over the
canvas-and-half-inch-felt gambeson I wear (which breathes and
wicks sweat, BTW). The gambeson weighs as much as the armor,
uses about $10 in materials, and about 20 hours of sewing to do,
(sewing half-inch felt strips inside 2 layers of 11 ounce canvas
takes time!) and is great in hot or as-cold-as-it-gets-in-AZ weather.
I would have no reservation recomending this setup to someone who
wants comfort, protection and good period _appearance_ in torso armour
for under $30 all told. If you want to spend more, use leather
instead of canvas : but that ups the price 100-200% !
Of course, having people around to teach you how to build
this kind of stuff, and who have Beverly Shears (may they
never rust!) is an enormous help.
--
Dennis O'Connor doconnor at sedona.intel.com
Intel i960(R) Microprocessor Division Solely responsible for what I do.
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: parr at acs.ucalgary.ca (Charles Parr)
Subject: Re: Pickle Barrel Plate?!?
Date: Thu, 7 Oct 1993 05:54:47 GMT
Organization: The University of Calgary, Alberta
doconnor at sedona.intel.com (Dennis O'Connor) writes:
>zutzba at malins.mala.bc.ca writes:
>]I would like to know if it is possible to fasten plate steel to pickle
>] barrel? Would it cause the plastic to crack? It would not be of too heavy
>] gauge metal, as the weight factor. The protection would be by the plastic
>] and the looks by the metal.
>
>I can't for the life of me imagine why anyone would go to all this effort
>instead of just using a light-weight metal without any plastic. Aluminium
>at a scrap dealer is $1.25 a pound, which is about 1 sq.ft. of 1/16th inch
>aluminium. This is for nice never-used big sheet metal peices, not rubbish.
>
>Admitidly, it doesn't quite have the same color and patina as steel,
>and it does not deep-dish well. But surely it's easier to make
>and better looking than a metal-plastic sandwich !
>
>Unless someone is building a plastic-metal sandwich shield, of course.
>I wouldn't count on such a beast lasting too long, tho : metal and
>plastic react so differently to impact, I'd be afraid such a shield
>would be badly beaten out of shape before too long.
I am on a quest to make my 1350 era harness look, and weigh,
to truly period standards. The easiest way to do this is
metal/plastic composites.
My leg armour is extremely durable (no denting in 5months
of use), attractive, and made of 1/8" high density poly
etheline plastic, covered in heavy suede, studded with
rivets for that 'splinted' look, and reinforced with 18ga
metal.
Based on it's current performance, I expect it to last
many years. It's an unqualified success.
Carolus Malvoix
--
Within the span of the last few weeks I have heard elements of
separate threads which, in that they have been conjoined in time,
struck together to form a new chord within my hollow and echoing
gourd. --Unknown net.person
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: jr1417 at albnyvms.bitnet
Subject: Re: Pickle Barrel Plate?!?
Organization: University of Albany, SUNY
Date: Fri, 8 Oct 93 04:14:42 GMT
doconnor at sedona.intel.com (Dennis O'Connor) writes:
>zutzba at malins.mala.bc.ca writes:
>]I would like to know if it is possible to fasten plate steel to pickle
>] barrel? Would it cause the plastic to crack? It would not be of too heavy
>] gauge metal, as the weight factor. The protection would be by the plastic
>] and the looks by the metal.