A Piece of Armor

Among my many hobbies in the past, I used to make armor for armored fighting.  I was recently contacted by an old friend who wanted a specific piece.  He wanted a demi-gauntlet, which is protection for the wrist and back of the hand.  I said I'd make it for him.  And today I had time to do it.

 First, the paper pattern is used to draw the necessary shapes on a piece of 16 gauge steel.

The pieces were cut out with a jigsaw (yeah, it is tedious and loud, but it works) and I took off the dark grey surface with my belt grinder.  I also deburred the edges so they won't catch on skin.

The cuff is the first part to be shaped.  I put a hint of a ridge in this one to emphasize the point in the cuff.  Flaring the edges is not just for show.  It reinforces them against bending when hit.

Now I'm working on attaching the cuff to the wrist plate.  I used three nylon straps.  I've made several of these that have lasted for years with the nylon straps.

The assembled demi-gauntlet.  Providing very good protection.

A hand strap keeps it snugged up close to the hand.

A shot to show the coverage of the base of the thumb.

It allows the hand to bend back as far as it can bend without any armor.

And it can bend to the side as far as without armor.  This should give full mobility and very substantial protection to my old buddy.  May he wear it well.