Gauntlets - Ascroft / Baker
Jun 8, 2007 23:13:55 GMT
Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2007 23:13:55 GMT
When it comes to armor in general there is a lot of fine tunning that is required to make it work for you. Not only must the individual piece need to be comfortable and allow the necessary mobility and protection but it must also fit in with the rest of your armor too. This is even more the case with hand protection. Of all the serious injuries in the SCA, broken fingers are the most common. This is usually the result of bad strapping resulting in fingers slipping out and getting hit.
I ordered a pair of Clamshell Gauntlets from Ascroft/Baker. I have ordered from them before and have found them very reliable. All armor is made to order and it takes anywhere from a week to a month depending on how backed up they are.
I ordered the mild steel gauntlets for $90.
I had a problem in that the thumb was not long enough and the cuffs were too tight around my forearm armor for any wrist mobility. I contacted A/B and explained the situation. They offered a refund but I told them that I prefer they adjust them. I shipped them back with a note to increase the cuff diameter from 5 inches to 8 inches and extend both the fingers and thumb by one inch. There was not charge for shipping back to me or any adjustments.
I received them back a week later with the said modifications. I then decided that the wrist mobility was still not enough. I then decided to break the rivets at the wrist and attach the cuffs by means of flexible leather. The thumbs where also too long now, so I did the same with the thumbs. I also rust-proofed the mild-steel and temporally taped my gloves in place for testing. I know they look better nice and shiny, but mild-steel rusts fast.
Finally, I strapped the inside with leather to keep my fingers in place and allow for me to feel the weapon better. I ended up also applying some duct-tape to help keep my fingers in place, but far less then before the strapping. In all I spent about 10 hours, working on these gauntlets to get them right for me.
In practice I found that these gauntlets are best suited to a polearm because they are so big and bulky. If you are going to use a longsword you will need a two foot handle. These gauntlets wrap around the hand for maximum protection. The metal on the side rests right up against the polearm, so that the force of the strike is transfered through the gauntlet onto the polearm. The thumb tips are extra long and overlap the finger protection, so that a strike on the thumb would be transfered through the metal and I would not feel any pressure on my thumb. This is one of my modifications. I can set it so the thumbs tuck under the fingers too. That will improve gripping ability at the expense of safety. This is something I can modify on the spot and is a result of my picking the proper thumb length to have both options.
Under the gauntlets I wear padded street hockey gloves that I bought from Ice Falcon for $35. They are not necessary, you can wear unpadded gloves, but padded ones feel better.
I have permanently taped the gauntlets and gloves together so they slip on as one item (not pictured). Each gauntlet weighs 3 lbs 3 oz. My glaive weighs 3 lbs 9 oz.
It has been suggested to me and I will pass on this suggestion, that when buying armor, especial gauntlets, you show up with the rest of your armor and try them on at an SCA event. However, when you buy steel gauntlets at an event you typically pay up-wards of $300. So that said, and given that I have the time and tools to adjust my gauntlets, I am very happy with my purchase of $90 + $10 for shipping.
The nice thing about buying A/B armor is that you know it is intended for hard hitting action and that it is not display armor. If you are interested, here is A/B's website:
www.ashcraftbaker.com/
I ordered a pair of Clamshell Gauntlets from Ascroft/Baker. I have ordered from them before and have found them very reliable. All armor is made to order and it takes anywhere from a week to a month depending on how backed up they are.
I ordered the mild steel gauntlets for $90.
I had a problem in that the thumb was not long enough and the cuffs were too tight around my forearm armor for any wrist mobility. I contacted A/B and explained the situation. They offered a refund but I told them that I prefer they adjust them. I shipped them back with a note to increase the cuff diameter from 5 inches to 8 inches and extend both the fingers and thumb by one inch. There was not charge for shipping back to me or any adjustments.
I received them back a week later with the said modifications. I then decided that the wrist mobility was still not enough. I then decided to break the rivets at the wrist and attach the cuffs by means of flexible leather. The thumbs where also too long now, so I did the same with the thumbs. I also rust-proofed the mild-steel and temporally taped my gloves in place for testing. I know they look better nice and shiny, but mild-steel rusts fast.
Finally, I strapped the inside with leather to keep my fingers in place and allow for me to feel the weapon better. I ended up also applying some duct-tape to help keep my fingers in place, but far less then before the strapping. In all I spent about 10 hours, working on these gauntlets to get them right for me.
In practice I found that these gauntlets are best suited to a polearm because they are so big and bulky. If you are going to use a longsword you will need a two foot handle. These gauntlets wrap around the hand for maximum protection. The metal on the side rests right up against the polearm, so that the force of the strike is transfered through the gauntlet onto the polearm. The thumb tips are extra long and overlap the finger protection, so that a strike on the thumb would be transfered through the metal and I would not feel any pressure on my thumb. This is one of my modifications. I can set it so the thumbs tuck under the fingers too. That will improve gripping ability at the expense of safety. This is something I can modify on the spot and is a result of my picking the proper thumb length to have both options.
Under the gauntlets I wear padded street hockey gloves that I bought from Ice Falcon for $35. They are not necessary, you can wear unpadded gloves, but padded ones feel better.
I have permanently taped the gauntlets and gloves together so they slip on as one item (not pictured). Each gauntlet weighs 3 lbs 3 oz. My glaive weighs 3 lbs 9 oz.
It has been suggested to me and I will pass on this suggestion, that when buying armor, especial gauntlets, you show up with the rest of your armor and try them on at an SCA event. However, when you buy steel gauntlets at an event you typically pay up-wards of $300. So that said, and given that I have the time and tools to adjust my gauntlets, I am very happy with my purchase of $90 + $10 for shipping.
The nice thing about buying A/B armor is that you know it is intended for hard hitting action and that it is not display armor. If you are interested, here is A/B's website:
www.ashcraftbaker.com/