Newsletter July 14

South Tower and Armoured Company of the Sword

newsletter 1 July 2014

Walk for cancer went really well. 
Thank you Dominique for
ramrodding such a complicated event.
Perhaps I can get her to be our squire wrangler. 
pictures on facebook of the walk.


July 11th and 12th...Osgoode Medieval Festival
Schedule of events
Saturday....
http://www.osgoodemedievalfestival.com/schedule_files/2014%20Saturday%20Schedule.pdf
Sunday
http://www.osgoodemedievalfestival.com/schedule_files/2014%20Sunday%20Schedule.pdf

The idea of this schedule was to give
visitors from a goodly distance
like Kingston a chance to get here
without having to get up at Oh dark thirty.
(crash space and camping space
is available guys! )

And NOT conflict with the jousters. 
Or anything else. 
Props to Phil L. for creating the finest
schedule I have ever seen!

Friday is the "knight's pub" upstairs at
the arena. A couple of armoured knights get in
for free because they will act as greeters,
otherwise it is 25 bucks for some
great food, and if past performances are
any indication, all the beer that
people will foist upon our hard
working sweaty knights!
Who gets to be greeters?
Well, sounds like a reason for a fight to me!
 

The summer tournament will
take place at the Osgoode Faire.
Devon and Jeff will determine
times and dates for the tournament,
and post their decision as required.
We have the following times available to us.
(from the above schedule
which is now cast in stone)
Saturday.
tournament... 9:45 to 10:30
meet the knights...10:30 to 10:45
demo-tournament 1:15 to 2:00
Meet the knights 2:00 to 2:15

Sunday,
Demo 9:45 to 10:30
Meet the knights 10:30 to 10:45
Demo 4:00 to 4:45
Meet the knights 4:45 to 5:00


  
I will provide a prize. 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

We are still taking orders for the
dinner at the Russell House on Saturday,
July 12, 2014 planned for 6.30.
Check our facebook page, or get ahold
of Brenda for any last minute additions
tudorlady@gmail.com
Its okay if you book and cancel...
they just might have trouble filling in
last minuite additions unless you order
off this set menu. 
So get onto that soonest guys!
Do I have to mention the home made
lamb hot-pot, Guinness shepherd's pie,
the baked chicken and the  ribs
each for under ten bucks a plate?
Dare you to finish them and not be full.
Deserts and gratuities are extra
of course. (sticky toffee pudding! Oh my!)
Terry reminded me that they are a pub
first and a restaurant second, and
he is as proud of his 18 beers
and ciders on tap
as Edna is proud of her meat pies!

Me... I am proud of this undiscovered
gem of a pub in the heart of the
Ottawa Valley.  It should no longer
be the best kept secret in the Ottawa
Valley. 

  
Up coming classes...hot summers are
keeping people away from doing classes.
Of course we shall keep on, its what we do!
The usual sign ups are required at both
Algonquin College and Plant Bath.
email me for more info
or you can go to the ACS forum site
where Jeff has updated all the
contact information required.


Bill Fedun
Armour Maker
www.southtower.on.ca
www.armouredswords.ca
MarshalBill@gmail.com
 

Skulls

This is the kind of work we are putting out these days.  Less armour (Thanks India and Pakistan!) and more custom pieces.  This was a set of gothic skull bikini tops for a most delightful client. I think you can enlarge them by clicking on them. 
      I would not be so crass as to have her pose without a bathing suit underneath on the interwebs, but seriously, these cover quite well.
      Am I showing off?   No.  This is all Mark's work so I am showing HIM off!

Monica's Armour

 These are the new buckles we got from Mr Hand in Pakistan.  He does VERY nice work.

 And below, that darned side lighting makes it look all dented.  It isn't of course, in person the wheel rolled it VERY nicely and its as smooth as a baby's bottom.

More of Elysse's Armour

Solid stainless steel.   The tiger stripes on the armour came up as a result of the bending.  I think (and Elysse things) they are VERY cool.
      Now of course these have not been strapped up.  When the time comes, some of the nice gold plated buckles I got from Italy may work.  Or I may find some stainless steel ones.  I think the ss would work better.  

Elysse Valkiri

 This is Elysse   We are making a lot of armour for her, including this one. 
Come back in a month or so and we will be showing off the armour Mark is making for those most magifient mammaries. 

I think she is VERY pretty, and maybe even a little scary. 

Buckles

New buckles in the South Tower Kit Shop.  These run about 9 dollars each mounted. Less if you do the mounting.  

And the viking gripping beasts.

 

 

 

 

Making armour for Gods!

My latest attempt to make  Toronto client happy....
Wings should be big enough now!
Lots of snow for a ninth of November.  Later on, there was enough that we called it a "winter Wonderland.
     Thats MY war hammer.  Hits hard.  Kicks ass.  Kicks pumpkins too!

Wall of weapons!

When the Turks attacked Vienna, they were thrown back.  There was a lot of good stuff lying on the battle field, and it all ended up in the War Museum.   At the very bottom of this pile of closeups is the original wall.
      Some of the pics are a little blurry.  Oh well....

Nice little cuirass

nice little armour

 

 

 

 

 

This is one of the Armours in the War Museum in Vienna.  I like it because it  is so clearly USED!

Wonder how it got used.  Who did the damage.  And most importantly, why was such a fat man going into combat?    (Well, I suppose I only need to look to myself)

It is fire blackened, with those nice lead lines across the top.  No buckles under the arms, but a belt to go under that rather cool peascod placqart.

Its a heavy one though...likely 16, maybe even 14 gauge.  The back is light 18 gauge iron.  The surface plate was probably a plain anvil which left a lot of scars on the surface.  The owner probably liked it that way!

A Vienna Armour, close up.

 A random piece of armour in the war Museum in Vienna.   Unlike the Kuntsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. (a monument to the sport of jousting.  Over there in the new palace is the huge collection brought together by the Hapsburgs.  Basically,  Arch Duke Ferdinand of Tyrol,  Maximillian's collection. There is a war armour section as well.  There will be a lot more of that in the months coming!)   The war museum on the other hand,  is about...um...war.  Below are some close ups with some of my commentary.  First of all...check out the above full view.  A beautiful fire coloured armour with symmetrical shoulders.  This does not look like a jousting or sport armour...the fellow who wore this was prepared for some serious war work.  Its footman's armour...

Lots of good visibility.  I note that the cheek pieces are long enough to be intercepted by the gorget. So its not as open as you might think.  OTOH, I would not want to look up into the arrow storm. 

The barrels on the upper arms are very interesting.  I don't think they are attached to the spauldlers. That is to say, they don't have that interlocking rotating thing that was all the rage at the time.  I suspect the arms are held up by internal leather strapping.  Same as most of the arms that come out of my shop come to think of it.  But the total wrap around of the upper arm is unusual enough for me to point it out.      And look at that beautiful spaldler.  The body is in lames as well as the usual lames up above.  Mobility would be stunning.  I love the matching armour nails (rivets) for the picadills on the topo and bottom.   Lend a nice "boiler" look.

If you look closely, you can see that the harnesshmidt  made the upper arms rounded to fit the arm underneath.  I "should" do them that way...but it takes time and adds to the price. I just leave them flat, same as most of them did back in the day.

The gorget in the picture above is interesting.  It seems almost like a "dog collar" gorget.  Never saw one like it anywhere else.  I wonder if the row of rivets we see along the top held a sort of grande guard of heavy leather once upon a time.  I see that the breastplate is uncomplicated. 

The elbow is very nice.  It would have a LOT of mobility 

The gauntlets are, again, very "ordinance".  The deep flute in the thumb base is interesting. 

 And you can so easily see how nice the tassets and the leg armour come together with those pins at the waist.

Well, there you go.  A nice close up of a random Vienna armour.  I have no idea of its provenance, its age, or anything else.  But it IS the bar we try to conquer here in the shop.


http://www.khm.at/en/visit/collections/collection-of-arms-and-armour/