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Hello!

I'm new here and well to be quite frank, i need advice and help. I am first conducting research and asking a good deal of questions before i jump into leather working, as i understand it is an expensive craft and i don't want to mess up!

THe only experience i have so far is making Chainmaille Armor, and i would like to make a series of leather pieces. So, i would like to know a few things;

-Tandy Leather sells "Sole and Armor bends" (http://www.tandyleatherfactory.co.uk/c-291...rmor-bends.aspx) but states the ammount in LBS not in Square Foot. How much is 12-15 pounds of 14-16oz. leather? Everything else seems to be in Square Foot...

-So far tools for armoring (not decorating) seem to be, a leather punch, rivets, leather needle and thick thread, hammer (for rivets) and a hard surface (I have a 30lbs sledge hammer head which works fine). Am i missing anything?

-The "Armor i am planning are actually like 12oz. leather chaps and a coat of Wisby Plates.

Thanks for all your help! I hope i can get some!

Signed,

Musika

Edited by CitizenKate

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Hello Musika and welcome to the board. You've certainly come to the right place for your questions, I have found the board to be a wonderful community and quite helpful.

All that being said, I am unfortunately ill advised to answer your questions specifically having done virtually no armor pieces myself.

I too wondered why Tandy priced those armor bends by the pound. Seems a little strange to me. I thought it might have been a typo at first...

I do have one question for you though: Are you planning to actually use this armor in combat (mock or otherwise)- Or are these pieces more for a costume sort of application? Your construction may differ depending on your actual use of the items.

Perhaps some of the armor experts on the board here can chime in with tips for you...

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-Tandy Leather sells "Sole and Armor bends" (http://www.tandyleatherfactory.co.uk/c-291...rmor-bends.aspx) but states the ammount in LBS not in Square Foot. How much is 12-15 pounds of 14-16oz. leather? Everything else seems to be in Square Foot...

The math is not that difficult, really. The leather is 14-16oz per square foot. 16oz = 1lb. So if it were 16oz leather, that's exactly 1lb/sq. ft., and you'd be getting 12-15 square feet.

If it's closer to 14oz leather, it's .875lbs/sq. ft. Multiply 12 or 15 by .875 to get 10.5 to about 13 square feet.

Kate

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Strapt - I plan on using this for what most people call SCA combat. So i'd like it to be able to take a beating, and protect me at the same time. I figured 14-16oz leather wold do fine. I'm just making leather Chaps out of them, but i will have steel plates on the inside. (Own spin-off of Wisby Coat of Plates ^^)

CitizenKate - Thank you! That clears up a lot of points! Now my question is, how much do i need to a pair of leather chaps? Another question ancompanying this then is, am i using the right thickness of leather? It might be to rigid or to thick and could due to be a little thinner. Anyone know what motercycle chaps are made of as far as Oz?

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Now my question is, how much do i need to a pair of leather chaps? Another question ancompanying this then is, am i using the right thickness of leather? It might be to rigid or to thick and could due to be a little thinner. Anyone know what motercycle chaps are made of as far as Oz?[/b]

I've never made a pair of chaps before, so I'm not sure how to determine the amount of material you need. Maybe someone who makes chaps can chime in here...

I do know that 14-16oz sole bend would make quite a heavy, stiff pair of chaps! Leather normally used to make chaps is much lighter and more supple. I think most people who use the sole bends to make armor usually form a piece of armor into articulated segments. Again, there are others here who have more experience making leather armor than I do, so hopefully they will check in and comment further.

I added a sub-title to your topic so it's easier for others to see we are discussing leather armor here.

Kate

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Happened to find this forum looking for an answer to something of mine and saw your questions.

The armour weight leather from Tandy is usually thick enough to protect without splints/plates. If you're looking to make a Coat of Plates, you may wish to use a little thinner. I tend to use 8-10oz, so it'll actually be more flexible to fit as a garment. As for patterns and such, you may wish to peruse www.armourarchive.org which is a forum like this, but for armour. While mostly metal, there are several leather armour makers there.

Good luck,

Daithi

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