Does anybody know anyone selling steel umbo's for curved legionary scuta?
Here you go
[url:29i7ec46]http://www.rudis-kuenstlerwerkstatt.de/gallerie-helm-engl.htm[/url]
I think that in the UK some can make them too. Thinking about Len Morgan, etc.
Len can certainly make them, but possibly not to the same 3mm thickness that the other supplier can.
3mm????? That seems suitable for a WWI battleship! Most of the bosses I have seen or have pictures of seem to have been much thinner than this.
Crispvs
My boss is about 3mm, made by Len. :? roll:
And it's a great little boss too!
3mm (approx .1", or something like 10ga) steel typical rectangular flanged scutum umbo would probably weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of around 12 lbs (5 kg). I don't think originals were quite that stout, even if they were made of bronze.
Steel that heavy would likely repel small calibre bullets, probably. But there I go again, getting out of era. :wink:
Naaaaa, surely not.....12 pounds...never!!
3 mm is not much you know! :? ?
hmmmmm I probably need to go to bed, now you have confused me Demetrius! My brain hurts :lol:
No bashed knuckles when you mock fight :wink:
Well, the umbones I've made for scuta are around 8" wide, and 10" tall, so maybe that is the issue. Also, while I have some steel plate that thick, I never considered using it for an umbo...
I generally make them from 16 ga, once from 14, but I thought that one too heavy. So I'm just estimating from the chair, not the shop.
If you have a heat source better than propane, it's not too hard to make one, given the forming tool. I had one made at a welding shop from a piece of 24" steel oil pipe. Just have a circular hole cut in it, and have them mount it on a simple stand. Clamp the tool to the table top, the sheet metal to the tool, heat the middle and strike the iron when it's hot.
Picture of the tool can be found on
http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd29 ... oTool1.jpg
and the flat one
http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd29 ... oTool4.jpg
Both are made from steel, flat one is about 1/4" thick metal, but the curved one is much stronger at around 5/16".
Quote:3mm (approx .1", or something like 10ga) steel typical rectangular flanged scutum umbo would probably weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of around 12 lbs (5 kg).
I have their steel scutum umbo, of 3mm and I just measured his mass, and it weight a litle more than 1.5 kg.
Quote:No bashed knuckles when you mock fight
exactly , and I know that Martin's group do this.
I have never seen an original umbo (rectangular or otherwise thicker than about 1.0 - 1.5mm).
Quote:of 3mm and I just measured his mass, and it weight a litle more than 1.5 kg
I sit corrected. As I said, though, just going by memory. Umm...have you tried it against a small calibre bullet? :?
BTW, I don't ship anything outside the US, too complicated for me, and if you decide to go the make-the-tool route, you'll need a large round-faced hammer, and a good heat source. I just use the oxyacetelene torch with a large brazing tip, or a small cutting tip, whichever is on there at the time. I heat about a 2" spot at a time to red hot, and move around the hole, tapping the metal down from the big side to the center. Seems to end up stretch more evenly that way.
You'll have to adjust your clamps from time to time, as the impact tends to move things around. And beware of the surface under the bowl. It gets pretty hot from radiated heat. I found out wood isn't the first choice there. :oops: :lol:
Great idea Demetrius, I was trying to solve the problem of adding the curvature to the newly dished/raised boss and let me tell you it is the opposite of easy :evil:
Need to get that baby built asap!
No, if you've made a flat umbo, it's nearly impossible to correct it without curving the backplate AND adding some dish to the sides of the bowl. The curve of the umbo will not allow the back plate to curve smoothly and neatly. Tried that one time, then had the tools built.
If you don't mind me asking... what are the dimensions of that form?
Also what is the depth of the curvature? Guessing that the form is about 18" long, 12" wide with about a 1.5" depth of curvature to it?
It is my hope with this new found knowledge that I will never have to suffer making an umbo the rediculous way ever again.
Also your umbos you mentioned were typically around 8" x 12"?