Category
Acta non verba (deeds not words)
Terra firma (firm ground)
Verbatim (repeat exactly)
Veni, vidi, vici (I came, I saw, I conquered)
Entrant
Ben of Ildhafn
Entry
15th century vambraces
Historical reference and comparison
The item is a pair of vambraces to match my leg armour and while the material is a little modern (stainless rather than spring steel) and I have used the same pattern for the elbow cop and lames as my legs (scaled down slightly) to provide a consistent overall style for my armour, the overall construction and in particular the shape of the upper and lower cannons is based on a piece in the Royal Armouries collection of Italian manufacture sometime between 1430 and 1440 (https://royalarmouries.org/collection/object/object-56600 and https://royalarmouries.org/collection/object/object-56607). One key difference between mine and the original is that I have followed the more common style in reenactment armours with the hinge on the outside and buckle on the inside while the original is the other way around.
The original left and right arms are also slightly different with to lames on the upper side of the couter on the left and only one on the right. I have used two on both sides on my recreation.
Unfortunately, there is only one image of each so I have been unable to see the inside and the wings on the couters cover some of the detail around the inside elbow.
Construction
I made my version by cutting parts for the elbow and lames and forming them with a combination of dishing into a wooden base using a steel hammer and finishing with a wooden mallet against various metal stakes to adjust the shape. To form the wing on the elbow, I initially used a steel flat bar and 5lb hammer to press the crease into a wooden form then used a cross peen hammer to further curve the tip of the crease. The cops were formed in two halves and welded in the centreline as a single cold hammered dish to make that shape can excessively thin the material and is significantly more difficult to form the right shape.
Once I had an elbow test assembled with both lames, I patterned the upper cannon and lower half of the lower cannon in cardboard before building the finished parts.
The upper cannon is mostly cylindrical with a slight taper and only a small dish at the bottom edge. It was formed with a combination of hand bending and hammering with the wooden mallet onto a form, then the exposed edges were rolled out using various steel forms and stakes. The lower cannon was dished to create a better profile and the exposed lower edge rolled then these parts were test fitted and the inner half of the lower cannon was patterned and shaped including rolled edges on the upper and lower edges.
The vambrace was then polished and riveted together with the hinges installed in the lower arms. Due to time constraints before CF, I used modern hinges with a similar appearance to those used in period rather than making my own as I have done for other pieces.
Finally, the arm was strapped and fitted with the leather points on the top edge.
Results
This arm provides a good range of movement and has a turn out at the wrist end to avoid limiting movement in this area. The level of protection was excellent with no
The inner half of the lower cannon overlaps inside the outer half so there is no gap when worn and to ensure there can be no pinching in this area. When the arm is bent, the contact point between the upper and lower cannons is offset from the edge of the lower cannon to avoid the potential for the parts to bite the wearer.
The upper and lower cannons are slightly longer than my last version, to more closely match the shape of the original. On the lower side this is fine, on the upper it does start to pull on the arming point when I rotate my arm however when I replace my gambeson, the more historical shoulder construction may mitigate this. The difference may also be a result of the original wearer having longer arms than I do as the originals do have a slimmer appearance than mine.
