18 ga. Armor???

[jason77]

I've noticed some armor listed in the marketplace section which was previously for sale and others from outside this forum who are engaged in Harnischfechten with 18 gauge steel armor. I don't quite understand the choice of this gauge since it doesn't seem to be sufficiently thick enough to protect against steel blunts; or at least will become dented up quickly. I understand it is cheaper than 16 or 14 gauge but is that the main reason why some people choose such thin steel? Maybe I'm wrong here since I've never personally worn 18 gauge steel armor. Any thoughts?

[Thorsteinn]

You don't need 14-16 ga everywhere. In fact our ancestors had differing gauges not only in the helms but in the breast plates, maille, leg harness, and so on. Some of the plates got as thin as 22-24 ga. It all depends on what you plan to do with it and what you expect to be facing.

[Sir Rodney]

18 gauge poorly shaped mild steel and 18 gauge custom shaped hardened steel are two completely different animals.

[Sir William]

18 gauge poorly shaped mild steel and 18 gauge custom shaped hardened steel are two completely different animals.

^^^ This.  Worlds apart, they are.  Modern purveyors tend to go with uniform gauges probably because its simpler and cheaper than varying thicknesses based on use.

[Sir James A]

What Sir Rodney said.

Gauge is only part of the equation.

[Allan Senefelder]

Modern purveyors tend to go with uniform gauges probably because its simpler and cheaper than varying thicknesses based on use.

Actually its because most organized fight or larp orgs have a material thickness minimum for use in their hobby. For LARPing generally 18 gauge is accepted, in heavier sports it tends to be 16 ( actually for SCA I believe they list 18 for most parts but given how the sport is played 16 is considered the bare minimum ). When referencing " different thicknesses " in historical context it is also important to remember what this true meant on period pieces, while plates were thinner in areas that did not require as much protection they also often were intentionally of different thicknesses arcoss their length for the same reason ie. breast plates that were thicker at the center along the medial ridge than at their sides. This was achieved using a technique called thinning, using directed hammer strokes to push metal from where its not needed to where it is. This is increadibly!!!! time consuming to do. If you find armour expensive now ask your hammerman to include this technique in your build. It will however save some weight.