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Post by Dalaran1991 on Feb 22, 2012 22:02:56 GMT
I love bracers and would like to wear it as accessories for normal wear as well as training gear. I love the looks of bracers with a short sleeve shirt. Now I'm considering between steel bracers vs leather bracers. The steel look badass and shiny, however I'm assuming they will have maintenance issue and won't be very comfortable when the weather is hot. Though I tried that look on on Halloween day and really dig it. Will the steel maintain the shininess with time? www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=300348&name=Steel+VambracesThe leather looks good too, and I assume that they will probably last longer than steel? Is it true that the more worn leather is, the better it will look? Is there lots of maintenance work involved? www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=200852&name=Warrior+Leather+BracersPlease give me your opinion Thanks
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Post by Elheru Aran on Feb 22, 2012 22:09:17 GMT
Leather won't last longer than steel; metal is almost always tougher than organic materials if properly maintained. That said, for everyday wear, bearing in mind you'll probably get a few funny looks for it, I'd use leather. Just plain more comfortable. Worn leather sometimes looks better-- depends on the leather, honestly. You can get some very nice bracers beside the ones you posted. Steel will stay shiny as long as you keep it maintained. It's going to draw more weird looks, though. The ones you post are a Windlass product-- basically okay but don't expect it to last forever, you might have to change out the hinges and straps eventually, but that's normal for armour. If you're fine with funny looks, then by all means wear whatever you want, man
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Post by Dalaran1991 on Feb 23, 2012 5:45:12 GMT
Thanks Elheru! I definitely don't wanna go out and be given weirdo looks, so I'll stick with leather Can you suggest me some better alternatives that you just mentioned?
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jhart06
Member
Slowly coming back from the depths...
Posts: 3,292
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Post by jhart06 on Feb 23, 2012 6:03:21 GMT
leather.. no thicker than 4-5oz, and that's pushing it, to be honest. it looks cool, but avoid black. it's going to get warm and you can actually get sunburn under the bracer, when the rest of your arm is fine. if you dont feel confident in dying it, run to tandy, see if they have a pre-dyed kit of appropriate scraps. if not, tell them what you want to do. 90% of the bracers on the market are overpriced or of shoddy quality. sorry, but it's true.
as a note, bracers you wear daily shouldn't and couldnt be the same thickness as armor grade ones, which are absurdly not so comfy. ask to see 4oz or 3oz leather, then 8 oz (typical armor thickness i work with)... the 8 oz is flexible, but at the edges, which will typically rub on your wrist, are nowhere near flexible and take a long time of mink oil and wearing to break them in right.
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Post by Odingaard on Feb 23, 2012 14:45:52 GMT
I have owned and worn both for extended periods of time. It's definately a trade off:
Steel is more durable and offers better protection. However, steel to me is very uncomfortable over long periods of time.
Leather is more comfortable over an extended time, but offers less durability and protection.
For costuming, I wear leather more. For actual swordplay, I wear steel in the form of a vambrace on a set of armored arms, typically doubled up over the wrist area in the form of the cuff of my gauntlet. Give some different things are try and see what works for ya!
Good luck finding what is the best fit for you. Let us know what you decide.
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Post by Dalaran1991 on Feb 23, 2012 20:36:04 GMT
thanks everyone for being so knowledgeable and helpful If possible, could you share more of your specific experience? Does the leather smells bad with sweat? Just how uncomfortable it is? Is it the same thing with wearing leather boots? If so I can probably deal with it. Odingaard: what do you mean by long periods? 2-3 hours? And how does the steel feel actually? Hell, judging how dangerous my hometown is I might probably have to wear steel when I go out at night. It's not uncommon to get into a knife fight by saying the wrong word. Then maybe a forearm block/deflect might save my butt lol
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Post by Don Boogie on Feb 28, 2012 18:18:08 GMT
The leather one's do really look cool
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