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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 8, 2019 19:17:37 GMT
So, I am planning on getting some armor in the next few years, depending on how much disposable income I will have. I plan on getting some samurai armor as well as a "Low fantasy" kit based around 15th century brigandine armor. What I am wondering is what armor would be too dangerous to wear for any length of time in an environment that regularly gets in excess of 90 degrees Fahrenheit with 50%+ humidity? I know Spanish soldiers wore at least some armor historically around these parts.
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pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Sept 8, 2019 20:10:56 GMT
You didn’t state what type of armour. I find in hot weather, I live in the tropics, padded is more comfortable. Mail is breathable and relatively cool. I do wear some plate; helmet, vambraces, and greaves. A thinner gambeson as opposed to my battle grade is more comfortable. In short I find loose fitting padded armour cooler and more comfortable. Not only more comfortable but that works more efficiently for protecting than tighter fitting garments. I use my legs and butt as a heat exchanger wearing short pants, with loose fitting padded leg armour allowing better air flow. A padded skirt I found offers additional protection and not the least bit hot. I can go into more detail about the upper but I found the key was to allow heat to escape from the lower parts. The head is another good area to allow the heat to escape but I prefer more protection up there. I can began to feel a difference just with my arming cap.
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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 8, 2019 20:27:12 GMT
You didn’t state what type of armour. I find in hot weather, I live in the tropics, padded is more comfortable. Mail is breathable and relatively cool. I do wear some plate; helmet, vambraces, and greaves. A thinner gambeson as opposed to my battle grade is more comfortable. In short I find loose fitting padded armour cooler and more comfortable. Not only more comfortable but that works more efficiently for protecting than tighter fitting garments. I use my legs and butt as a heat exchanger wearing short pants, with loose fitting padded leg armour allowing better air flow. A padded skirt I found offers additional protection and not the least bit hot. I can go into more detail about the upper but I found the key was to allow heat to escape from the lower parts. The head is another good area to allow the heat to escape but I prefer more protection up there. I can began to feel a difference just with my arming cap. Thanks for the info. I would imagine it’s even more tropical where you are. I was thinking of an arming doublet, brigandine breastplate, along with plate paldrons, vambraces, gauntlets, greaves, and Sabatons for the low fantasy kit I want to put together. So similar to what you said is fairly comfortable.
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pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Sept 8, 2019 20:29:53 GMT
some samurai armor as well as a "Low fantasy" kit based around 15th century brigandine armor. A brigandine something like this? Here's one with a light gambeson.
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stormmaster
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Post by stormmaster on Sept 8, 2019 20:36:01 GMT
im afraid u would be dying no matter what armor u wear, hell i think in that type of weather i would be dying in shorts and a tee shirt
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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 8, 2019 20:41:42 GMT
some samurai armor as well as a "Low fantasy" kit based around 15th century brigandine armor. A brigandine something like this? Here's one with a light gambeson. Yes, something extremely similar to that kit.
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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 8, 2019 20:42:59 GMT
im afraid u would be dying no matter what armor u wear, hell i think in that type of weather i would be dying in shorts and a tee shirt You are telling me Storm! It’s dangerous to go outside at all in the height of summer, so I was thinking more of fall, winter, and spring for this topic anyway.
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Post by paulmuaddib on Sept 8, 2019 20:46:23 GMT
Damn pgandy, that kinda hard core test there. I notice you didn’t let Hazel test it like in your other video! She might have enjoyed it to much but I don’t think you would have. Haha
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Post by demonskull on Sept 8, 2019 21:19:03 GMT
If you are going to use it for an outdoor event, as pgandy said maille is cooler than you'd expect. I took a pair of plastic kids soccor shin guards cut them down and sewed them to a collarless pullover shirt over the collar bone area. This distributed the weight better without the use of padding underneath. Putting a light surcote over the maille hid the plastic from view. The effect looked good and was a lot cooler than you'd think.
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pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Sept 8, 2019 21:21:40 GMT
Damn pgandy, that kinda hard core test there. I notice you didn’t let Hazel test it like in your other video! She might have enjoyed it to much but I don’t think you would have. Haha Hehehe. I think you are right. She was very reluctant to make that first strike. Unfortunately she found out that she enjoys taking a stick to me, it makes her day. But now you have my curiosity up, maybe one day, seriously.
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christain
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Post by christain on Sept 8, 2019 22:10:31 GMT
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pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Sept 8, 2019 22:48:39 GMT
I was thinking of ...gauntlets,... So similar to what you said is fairly comfortable. I have these instead of gauntlets or mittens as I felt they would restrict handling to some degree. These are lighter and cooler(?) easy/faster to put on. And none restrictive, I can move my wrist and fingers in any direction as I please and can pick up any sword I please. Both gauntlets and mittens will ward off blunt trauma better but I am not sure the trade off is worth it. These should prevent lacerations. Attachments:
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Post by MOK on Sept 9, 2019 19:18:16 GMT
Closed helmets are the only thing you really need to worry about, regardless of the type of armor. Body armor is only dangerous insofar as it makes you sweat more and thus speeds up dehydration, but a closed helmet can actually induce heatstroke because it traps heat around your brainpan (and greatly hinders breathing, at that). If you stay hydrated and keep your head cool - literally - then wearing armor in hot climates is no bigger a deal than wearing armor in general (aside from getting all sweaty and gross that much quicker).
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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 9, 2019 19:27:43 GMT
Closed helmets are the only thing you really need to worry about, regardless of the type of armor. Body armor is only dangerous insofar as it makes you sweat more and thus speeds up dehydration, but a closed helmet can actually induce heatstroke because it traps heat around your brainpan (and greatly hinders breathing, at that). If you stay hydrated and keep your head cool - literally - then wearing armor in hot climates is no bigger a deal than wearing armor in general (aside from getting all sweaty and gross that much quicker). Thanks. I was planning on something like a kettle helmet for the low fantasy euro kit, so that should be a bit cooler than a sugar loaf helm or something similar. Of course I wasn’t planning on wearing a helmet much anyway because everyone knows the hero never wears one!
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pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Sept 9, 2019 19:51:15 GMT
About 25% of the body’s heat lost is through the head. I find my kettle helmet a good choice. I believe my arming cap trap more heat than the helmet. I find the heat saps my energy and tire more quickly.
Just got to thinking, as a medic working events such as with re-enactors and week-end soldiers heat took a large toll. These people generally had soft comfortable jobs indoors that weren’t demanding and were out of shape. Then suddenly they were exerting themselves in high temperatures.
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Ifrit
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Post by Ifrit on Sept 10, 2019 18:21:48 GMT
That's definitely something I don't envy about Texas. The only thing that keeps me from going there, aside from present finances This advice is pretty useful for me, as a northerner with freakishly high body temperature I'm built for the cold, so any extra layers in summer kills me. I didn't even bother with my knife vest when doing security in summer I hear chainmail doesn't affect body heat too much, so I can see a coif and mail shirt being fine, along with greaves and bracers. But I have never actually tried it so I wouldn't know
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christain
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Post by christain on Sept 10, 2019 22:31:47 GMT
That's definitely something I don't envy about Texas. The only thing that keeps me from going there, aside from present finances This advice is pretty useful for me, as a northerner with freakishly high body temperature I'm built for the cold, so any extra layers in summer kills me. I didn't even bother with my knife vest when doing security in summer I hear chainmail doesn't affect body heat too much, so I can see a coif and mail shirt being fine, along with greaves and bracers. But I have never actually tried it so I wouldn't know Mail and partial plate are really not bad at all even in hot (90 degrees+) weather. If you are wearing linen or cotton clothing underneath, they may get sweat-soaked--but will actually keep you cooler. That's my experience anyway. As I said earlier, wearing a padded garment in spring/summer to a Ren-Fest or whatever is completely unnecessary. There's no need for padding unless you are planning on getting hit. The padded collar I mentioned isn't too bad, and it does take some of the weight off the shoulders. Wearing mail is all about weight distribution. Properly belted, it seems to cut the weight almost in half. When I say 'properly' belted, I mean having someone put your belt around you while you have your hands up. This lets the mail slightly overlap the belt. Everything from the belt down is then resting on the hips. Doesn't seem like it would make that much difference, but it does.
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Post by nerdthenord on Sept 10, 2019 22:37:19 GMT
Thanks for all the good info folks. This is the kind of SBG thread I was starting to miss: informative, polite, and completely devoid of drama.
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christain
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Post by christain on Sept 11, 2019 14:41:25 GMT
Looking at the MRL Deal of the Day this morning, reminded me: The brown under-tunic that is shown with this is excellent for wearing under mail armor. It's on the same page at the bottom. I bought it a few years ago specifically for that purpose. Looks good by it's self too. The material is a rough-weave cotton, and very breathable, and it is very well made. When I first got it, it seemed rough and felt like it would be irritating on bare skin, but a quick hand-wash with some fabric softener made a ton of difference. I let it air dry outside on a hanger, and didn't notice any shrinkage. If this comes up later in the DotD, I recommend it highly. www.museumreplicas.com/huntingdon-brown-under-tunic
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Post by RufusScorpius on Oct 4, 2019 1:23:55 GMT
I've worn modern military body armor and full kit for 20+ hours at a time in 110F (43C) heat for days and weeks on end. I've sweated through the leather of my boots. My predecessors in the military also wore uniforms, helmets, backpacks, armor, swords, lances, pointed sticks, etc in all kinds of hot weather while in combat and on the march.
Romans did it in Italy in the summertime. Samurai wore armor in the hot sweltering Japanese weather. Crusaders and Muslims wore armor in Jerusalem year round.
Suck it up, buttercup. Soldiers don't get to pick the weather they fight in. A little sweat never hurt anybody.
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