Making Samurai armor costume.

I got the drilling templates sorted out on the front of the Do. Done for tonight.
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Awesome job, it's really starting to come together and it looks a lot like the real thing. That's the nice thing about Japanese armor, it's relatively easy to make using cheap materials. It almost makes me want to try making one as well, however, I'm too lazy to A) cut out all of the lames and drill the holes in them, and B) to do all of that lacing. My hats off to you for having the patience to lace up all of those pieces, that is a whole lot of lacing.
 
I would love to hear how much lace you finally end up using in this project when its complete. beauty job so far!! :popcorn :thumbsup
 
This makes me wonder, when soaking wet, does a typical suit of Japanese armor end up weighing as much or more than a full European plate harness because of all of that lacing?
 
This makes me wonder, when soaking wet, does a typical suit of Japanese armor end up weighing as much or more than a full European plate harness because of all of that lacing?

Dunno. Some of them were made from metal and the soaking of the laces would add weight I suppose. However some of them were made from paper mache and some from lacquered leather. I wounder how bad that would be if the water got through the laquer?
 
Dunno. Some of them were made from metal and the soaking of the laces would add weight I suppose. However some of them were made from paper mache and some from lacquered leather. I wounder how bad that would be if the water got through the laquer?

I've heard of that but I'm not entirely convinced that the Japanese really did that, it always sounded like something that Europhiles say just to put down Japanese arms and armor. I think that it's mostly pushback as a result of some katana fans that seem to feel that they have near magical abilities due to their folded steel construction.

Anyhow, keep up the good work, I can't wait to see the final results. Seeing what you've done so far almost makes me want to try to make a set myself, but as I said previously, I'm too lazy to seriously thing of attempting this.
 
Are you referring to the drawings from the Nihon Katchu Seisakuben online armor web site?

Since they were PDF's, I opened them in Adobe Illustrator and scaled them up per the notes on the files and printed them 1:1 scale on 8.5 x 11 paper. Then I made a card stock paper model of the pieces to make sure it was right. You might try scaling them up in a PDF reader? Not sure how that works.
 
I got the front of the Do done. I will be making the Kohaze toggles to hang the Sode and connect the Watagami to the Munaita on the front of the Do. After that I need to figure out the suspension of the Kusazuri.

Alas, for the next two weeks we will be concentrating on our Viking Living history schtick. Our first two events of the year are on back to back weekends so we've been spending our weeknights repairing clothing and getting our gear sorted and packed. So it may be a few weeks before I can dedicate solid time to this.

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Yes, it is a naalbind cap.
I got to spend 3 days living in the (Reconstructed) long house at Ribe, in 2006. Using my period tools, I fashioned this bag from period fish tanned leather, I purchased the week before from a merchant at the Moesgaard viking event.
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I've been playing SCA for over 30yrs and Texas Renaissance Fair on and off since it started. I do most of my own costuming and much of my own armor and have friends that do the rest. Nice viking outfit! Quit fighting a few years back as I lost sight in my left eye and as a spearman I need depth of field to keep from lighting someone up.
If you need info on acurate lame size etc. I have a friend that has made a few sets.
 
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Sweet! That looks great. What a wonderful experience to have had. My wife and I are planning a trip to the Ribe Viking Center in the next two years.

Yes, it is a naalbind cap.
I got to spend 3 days living in the (Reconstructed) long house at Ribe, in 2006. Using my period tools, I fashioned this bag from period fish tanned leather, I purchased the week before from a merchant at the Moesgaard viking event.
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Visited Ribe two years ago... The Long House felt like home somehow, with places both cool and cozy warm. I could really get used to that... (as long as there was a computer to check the forum once in a while :))
 

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