Subject: Re: Mail Making

From: [email-masked] (bill nelson)
Date: 9 Dec 93 00:27:35 GMT

[email-masked] (Saturnus) writes:
: I have been looking long and far for a set of special tools used in the
: manufacture of stainless steel ringmail armor. The first tool is called a
: cold forge swage. Its use is to stamp or mold a cold piece of metal into a
: required form. The other tool has no name (to my knowledge). It looks
: similar to a pair of pliers. One side of the plyers has a sharp point and
: the other a small hole. When pressed together on a metal ring it pierces
: the ring in a fasion that allows a small rivet to be used to close the
: link by hand. In my desperation I have looked for the assistance of a
: professional smithy, but he found the tools to be too intricate for him to
: design from scratch.

In the first place, they did not have stainless steel in the middle ages.
What's wrong? Can't stand a bit of rust?

A problem with stainless steel is that it tends to work harden. This makes
it just very difficult, if not impossible, to cold mold. Punching is also
a real problem - often you will get a hole started, but cannot open it up
without it cracking.

Very little of the mail in the middle ages appears to have been riveted.
Most seems to have been either butt welded or brazed, if it was not simply
butted together.

: Can anyone direct me to a source that could either provide me with an
: alternative or actualy help me find a retailer that could sell me these
: unique tools?

Sorry, I cannot help here. Most of the metal workers in the SCA make their
own punches.

Bill

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From: [email-masked] (James W. Swonger)
Date: Thu, 9 Dec 1993 15:43:34 GMT

Stainless steel welding rod is more ductile and brighter than the SS
rod stock I get at the metals/welding place. You can use a MIG with small
SS wire to join the ends leaving a very small bead, probably no bigger
than a rivet head. I have done so in making some custom lamp shades.
You could also try gas welding using the same MIG wire as filler. If
you have the touch, that might leave even less of a noticeable joint.
There's always touchup with a grinder if you go a little overboard, but
for mail that might end up taking more time than you want.
-- 
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#Irresponsible rantings of the author alone. Any resemblance to persons  #
#living or dead then yer bummin. May cause drowsiness. Alcohol may inten-#
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From: [email-masked] (bill nelson)
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 1993 06:38:54 GMT

I wrote:

: Very little of the mail in the middle ages appears to have been riveted.
: Most seems to have been either butt welded or brazed, if it was not simply
: butted together.

I received some e-mail that disagreed with this, so I looked for my
references.  It appears that I was partly wrong.

We do not have any surviving samples of mail from about 1100-1300 BCE. We
have to guess, based on earlier and later specimens.

The most complete example of Norse mail has interlocking links which overlap
but are not rivited. 

For the Normans, the usual pattern was alternating rows of rivited and
butted links. It appears to have been more substantial than that of either
the Saxons or the Vikings.

Such armor was quite rare, generally worn only by the richer leaders or
noblemen. In Norway, it was described as the "clothing/armor of kings".

I did some serious digging, in the attempt to find my two primary
references, but was unsuccessful.  I have had to rely on secondary
sources.

Bill