raysouth Report post Posted April 23, 2012 Nedd some assistance in making a large, round leather shield. Anyone here with experience? Any tips/ assistance will be appreciated. helmut Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kendog Report post Posted April 30, 2012 There are a couple of issues to consider. If you plan to use the shield in HEMA, I'd recommend getting a shield blank from windrose armories. Don't forget to order a shield boss. You don't need the premium Aluminum. You could also make due with a piece of thin plywood, 1/4" will be sufficient. Cutting a perfect circle can be an issue without the right tools. Search youtube for "how to cut a circle with table saw". You will still need a shield boss. I would not recommend plywood thicker than 1/4". If you want something a little more authentic, you can get 1/4" poplar planks and glue them edge to edge. I would recommend a layer of glued canvas between a plank shield and the leather. The canvas will add a great deal of strength to the construction. Wood shields (plywood or planks) can have issues with warping. When you attach the center grip, make sure the grip is against the natural curve of the wood, so the shield will be force flat. The grip will also offer you an opportunity to wrap it in leather, similar to how you'd wrap a sword handle. To assemble the shield, I like to use JB Cold Weld with rivets. One final touch I like to add is an oven-blued shield boss. You'll need to remove the acrylic coating the boss likely has, using sandpaper, steel wool, or scotch bright, heat your oven up to about 490F (gold) to 550F (blueish), bake the boss for about 30 minutes, then plunge it into a pot of water that has a thin layer of vegetable oil floating on top. Don't forget the rawhide trim. Unless shield making is something you are obsessed with (eh-um), I would strongly recommend laying down the $80 for a pre-fab aluminum shield blank. If you want the appearance of wood, you can always plane-down poplar planks to 1/8" thickness and epoxy them onto the back of the shield. Nedd some assistance in making a large, round leather shield. Anyone here with experience? Any tips/ assistance will be appreciated. helmut Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
douglais Report post Posted April 30, 2012 I've made about six plywood shields, and I simulate the planks by cutting grooves in the shield face,. I use wood stain in varying layers to make each "plank" look a little different from the others. I also just use gun blue to make my bosses darker. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
