RomanArmyTalk

David,, There's a really interesting online step by step for raising metal here..
http://www.ageofarmour.com/education/raising.html

An absolutely amazing effort Matt. Really sterling work.

Well thanks everybody- I wasn't fishing for compliments, it's just too cool a process and result not to share LOL I really appreciate the kind words though- it certainly prompts one to keep going and continually strive to improve

I'll take a few photos of the various tools as requested- I'd intended to but didn't get the chance to yesterday.

Dave, I presume you're interested in the smaller tools I used to make the shapes on the prognathids, neckguard, etc. since the raising doesn't involve any more than the proper hammer and T-stake- correct? And hammer blows? Gotta be at least 30 thousand now... the pain in my arm's a definite testament to it LOL

Think how good you will be at arm wrestling after raising a few more of these fantastic works of art.

Yeah, no kidding LOL The trick will be to try not to just be all Popeye-esque on one side and not the other.

Anyway, here are the tools: a T-stake, my raising hammer- based on one from the Mästermyr set, but suitable for a Roman - and various punch tools for shaping the ridges, terraces and eyebrows.

I don't have the wooden 'forms' I used really anymore since they were all simple and essentially disposable; they've all gone on to become other things or were malformed after use so I chucked 'em in the fire. But one was a small block of oak with a little about 5mm wide and deep 'shelf' cut into the end for sinking the edges of the neckguard terraces and the raised portion of the prognathid centre, one was just basically a short slit for doing the eyebrow lines (every line used it) and I used a block of softer pine, edge on, for starting the terraces, etc. first with a line impressed with the short blunt chisel- just for a little support with spring so I wouldn't pierce the metal accidently but could still make the line. I also used the edge of my anvil a good deal to allow for working just one small section of a piece while the rest was isolated. The key, as it is for all metalworking, is restriction- design the forms to allow movement only exactly where you want it and restrict it everywhere else. Wood is great for forms because you can quickly cut a bit out where you want the movement to occur, and hold it back everywhere else- and it doesn't mar the metal surface like a metal form will (which is also considerably harder to make).


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Looks like you've welded your anvil onto a heavy base...is that to increase the mass of it?

I got it that way- apparently it's from an old logging camp north of here; it's just a 10mm thick plate with 6 holes in for securing the anvil to a base- not enough mass there to make a difference with respect to function, but it's awesome for stability.

When you make your rolled hinges, do you roll the whole end, then trim off the part you don't want?

If you mean do I cut out the middle part before rolling, yes- it's much easier to roll short lengths than a whole long edge.

As always, very cool, and very high quality stuff. Its great to see something take shape, and turn into something that amazing!

As always Matt, your work is impeccable

As I have said time and again and many of you have read before, Matt Lukes, in my honest opinion, is where the buck stops in armoring, hands down.

I too have pieces by Matt and can truly say, as Mark has, that all pieces are made with much pondering, reasoning, and exhaustive research. Always through a project things come up and details are added or detracted allowing the final piece claim to originality. In other words, when you present a piece by Matt to the public, it would not be overboard to mention that looking at the reproduction is virtually looking at the real thing (more or less).

avete omnes


FANTASTIC JOB!

Quote:when you present a piece by Matt to the public, it would not be overboard to mention that looking at the reproduction is virtually looking at the real thing (more or less).

I'll vouch for that as well. The piece from him that I have are fantastic!

Brilliant work, Matt, just simply brilliant.

Looking at the photos and the results, again! Amazing work Matt!