Then and now

My new helmet next to my old one. Bit of a difference, huh?

Full kit

Finally got some photos from Rose Tournament--the first time I wore my new helm and new fighting clothes. I gotta say, I'm really pretty happy with my on-the-field appearance right now.



I still need to make some tweaks--the naruchi (i.e., bazubands) are the big thing. Then I need to extend my greaves so they cover my boot laces; then... well, after that it's small stuff. Trim on the tunic so I look fancier. Greaves mark 2 with tooling. New metal lamallar (but that's kinda expensive, so it's farther down the road).

This is the best I've looked in armor EVER. Dare I say it? I look like a Knight.

Finally.

Helm Update -- it is here!

The new helm is here and it is awesome. Tonight I pad and strap the thing, just in time for Wednesday night fight practice.

There will be pictures.

Helm update -- en route pt. II

Come on!


It took 10 HOURS to load my helmet onto a truck and start heading for Cleveland?! I could drive to Arizona in 10 hours!

Maybe I should have. Then I wouldn't have to keep checking FedEx's website.

Helm update -- en route

My helmet is on the way! Donngal gave me the FedEx tracking number, and I've been obsessively looking at the progress ever since. Estimated delivery date is 6/16. MONDAY?! It's going to take an entire WEEK to get to me? Dammit! In this day and age, it shouldn't take more than three or four days to cross the country with anything!

I had hoped to have the entire weekend to pad/strap the thing... now I'm going to be pushed for time get it done in time for the Wednesday practice. I do want to fight in the thing at least once before Rose Tournament.

Hurry up, already!

Helm update -- it is done!

Sir Donngal just sent me this photo:


I opened that photo and just sat and looked at it for a good five minutes. It's stunning. Amazing. I'm blown away. All I want to do is look at it. No, screw that--I want to put it on!

It's mailing out Monday. Which means I should have it Wednesday or Thursday.

Sir Donngal also started a thread on Armour Archive about it. People liiiiiike it!

Just caught myself staring again.

New Helm Update

Sir Donngal tells me that all that remains is to add the stainless welded aventail, which will be delivered by Master Knut today. Once that's attached... it's done. His plan is to FedEx it to me on Tuesday.

I stopped and got a big fat cashier's check this morning and sent it off certified mail. It's exponentially more than I've ever paid for a helmet before; but clearly I've never owned anything even remotely close to this helm. Because it is carved from a single block of awesomeness.

In his last email, Donngal added this:

Nikolai,

I can't tell you how many people have come by the shop trying to walk out with your helm. I'm pretty impressed with the shape. I don't expect to see too many of this shape in stainless anytime soon. It was intense. I would shape it and the next day it would relax, then repeat.

I'm glad you'll be at Pennsic. I can't wait to see it on the field. It's going to be very distinguished.

Awe-SOME! I wondered if that once he figured out the shape that he might start making more of this design. There's at least one other in mild already. But it doesn't sound like high-production is really viable. All the better.

Assuming all goes well, I should have this damn thing in my hands by this time next week.

Holy. Shit.

Helm update -- plaque

Working with Sir Donngal has been a real pleasure. He responds to my emails, sends me photos and, above everything else, gets his work done on a timely basis. 

After emailing me to say he had the artwork prepared, I asked him to send me a copy of the art. He did so, and promptly, I might add. Then, this morning, he sent this:

I have to admit that this isn't exactly what I had in mind when I first started thinking about the helmet. I was thinking of something much more over-the-top and elaborate. I told Donngal this, but he stood his ground and said he was thinking of something that would be closer to the style of artwork that better fit the actual time period of the helmet. The guy wants to maintain the integrity of the piece, I respect that (he is a Laurel in armoring, after all, as well as a knight).

Regardless, the overall effect is stunning. He's polished the dome in the above photo, and it kicks more ass than an ass-kicking ass kicker. 

Now all that remains is attaching the grill and the maille, which should be simple compared to the rest of the construction. I've asked if I can get it delivered in time to wear it to the June 21 Rose Tournament (at which Her Highness Annelyse has asked me to fight on Her team--very cool) and he says that shouldn't be a problem.

Actually, the problem is going to be that I have to drill a couple holes in the thing to attach a chin strap. My luck with strapping helms in the past hasn't been fantastic (my current helm has the chin strap attached at SIX points) and I'm going to move to an entirely internal system, which is to say, it won't be tied in the back like my current helm. Good Lord how I hate that. It works well, but I hate how it looks. Then again, maybe it doesn't work that well, considering that every time the cord loosens up and I get smacked in the face I cut open my nose.

Anyway: new helm damn near in my hands. 

Coolio.

Helm update

Got an email from Sir Donngal last night. He tells me that he's getting the art "back" this week (so I take that to mean he is having someone else do the actual drawing). He gave the translated inscription to whomever is doing the artwork for him, and he thinks this person can fit it in.

His plan is to transfer the art to the brass this week. After the plaque is attached, all that's left is attaching the grill and the maille, which should be simple. He also wrote this:

"BTW, this helm is making people who stop by the shop very jealous and they all want to switch to Russian."

To which I say, yer damn right.

Helmet update -- Russian translation

My new helmet is based, to a large degree, on the so-called "helmet of Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich" (if it was really Yaroslav's helm is apparently up for debate). It's a stunning relic discovered in 1808 by a peasant woman who noticed something shiny in the dirt while out collecting nuts.

It's not clear from the above photo, but only parts of the entire helm were recovered. Most impressive, of course, is the large central plaque:


That's St. Michael (the patron saint of Russia). It's kind of hard to see, but there's an inscription around the outside of the image that reads, "Great archangel Michael, help your servant Fedor."

When Sir Donngal and I first starting talking about this helmet, we both agreed that the plaque was the focal point, and the helm would appear a little bare without it. This has been the part I have been most concerned about... the shape of the dome is critical too, of course, but what people are really going to oh-and-ahh over is the plaque. I'm still nervous about it, honestly, but Sir Donngal has done such good work up to this point that I'm confident that the plaque will be up to the same standards.

Recently we discussed the plaque, and I inquired if he was going to include the inscription. He said he hoped to, if he could fit it in. Then I started thinking about how cool it would be if instead of "Fedor" my helmet had MY name on it. How cool would that be? Answer: extremely.

So I spoke to my Baron, knowing that he works with some Russians and has had things translated for me in the past. He sent the translation to me just this morning:

Великий Архангел Михаил, помоги рабу своему Николаю

"Great Archangel Michael, help your servant Nickolai"

I immediately forwarded it to my armorer. I am super jazzed. Cannot wait to actually get this thing!

Helmet update

When I first started talking to Sir Donngel, the guy building my helmet, we agreed on May being the delivery date for my new helm. For the last week or so I've been thinking about emailing him, just to say, hey, where are we at? Can I still expect the helm sometime in May? I've tried really hard not to be obnoxious about it, or a pain in the ass. So I was going to sit on my hands until around May 3rd or so.

So imagine my delight when I got this email this morning:

Nickolas,

Attached are a few pics I have of the helmet. The brass is worked out, the skirt /wrap plate is done. I just have to finish up the drawings for the the etching.

And even more exciting, of course, were the attached photos.




Look out! I'm pinhead! Wow... just, wow. It looks really, really cool. The damn thing is nearly a reality now. I'm still a little anxious about what the final plaque will look like... but everything up to this point has been so amazing, I expect no less for that.

Damn.

Latest helm news

I got an email from my armorer, Sir Donngel, a couple weeks ago. After the successful mild steel test piece, he moved ahead on the stainless. But, after he had the top more or less completed, he discovered it was too small. He wasn't sure if the stainless just didn't stretch as much as the mild, or if his calculations were off. And, he told me that the friend he was going to have do the brasswork told him that he doesn't have the time to do it.

So, it seemed, we were basically back to square one.

This was pretty disappointing news, of course, but I told him again that I was willing to wait. Even though we had talked about a May delivery, I wanted the helm done right, not quickly. But, he said that he thought May was still do-able.

Then! I got an email from him this morning saying that he had the new top nearly completed! And there was a photo attached!

Awesome, huh? Looks really smart! This fills me with hope, because the top is the tough part. There nothing fancy about the rest of it.

Well, except the brasswork. That's the part that I'm worried about. Because if I can get this helmet anywhere near what it looks like in my head, it will be absolutely stunning.

Sir Donngel is suggesting that he etch the brass. He says it's not a period technique for this kind of helm, but I don't really care. I only care what it looks like when all said and done. I'm exploring some brass options on my own, too. So, I hope, I hope, I'm really close to getting this new helm.

Helmet update

After being screwed over by two different armorers, I half-expected it to happen again, great reputation or no. So, when I asked if my armorer had any photos of the work-in-progress and he drug his feet in getting them to me, I feared the worst.

I was overjoyed to find these photos in my inbox this morning:

This is a practice helm in mild. Sir Donngal wanted to be sure he got the shape right before making it in stainless. He worked the metal hot and pulled it up from one piece. I know next to nothing about making armor, but this technique is apparently a huge pain in the ass.

He's also penciled in where the brass plaque will go in the front. I think it looks amazing. I can't wait for the real thing.

Merry Christmas.

Helmet plaque inspiration

NOTE: the helmet of my dreams has been commissioned. Master Sir Donngel of Windrose Armory is making it.

The most important piece will be the large front plaque brass. While the dome shape will be cool, the brass will be the focal point. I've recently been emailing with Donngel (and he emails me back! Promptly! This is nothing short of astonishing compared to my experiences with other SCA armorers) and these are the inspirational images I sent him:





These are all St. Michael, who is a patron saint of mother Russia. There are historical examples of Michael being used on helmet brasses.

I especially like the last one. The pose has plenty of drama and action... and a big, fat spear. And I do like to fight me some spear.