I guess this qualifies to go on here. I attached a couple of pictures of some 1st attempts at mail. Wooden shield crafted by son.Mail will be installed ona helm of some sort. A just for practise and theactrical use. Bout all I can do right now. Just got 9 stitches in my forearm. My side I hammer with.

Nine stitches don't sound like a fun thing to have on your hammer arm, got in a sword duel I guess? I tried making maille but it just bother my wrist to much with the start of carpal tunnel that I have so I though better of it. Looks like it may be a good thing to do in the winter while watching TV. Have fun with your project. B)

The Maille looks good, keep at it.

If you can stand it good for you! I used to do this to battle my insomnia but my wrists and joints could only take sooo much.
I did manage a shirt and coif set of over 15k rings and countless pouches and balls/hacky sacks for friends, all of this before theringlord.com was around or at least popular. I would spin my own rings on a mandrill and spend hours clipping and spreading, one gallon bucket of open rings, another of closed then I would set off for hours at night watching bad movies, it becomes like knitting after a few days you don't even look at the work!


Edit: Also I got lucky enough that a friend of my father machined me a ring shear, was very nice to have clean cut rings on the final product, I think I still have it somewhere if your still interested after a few weeks of chainmaille

I finished my shirt of 1/4" ID 4in1 back around 1981---doesn't fit me anymore...

Back when you were a wee little lad, eh, Thomas? :P

26 years of not having to eat my own cooking and I have reached a mature gravitas so to speak....

I've been thinking about trying some maille lately (I did a very little when I was a kid), but I have this feeling that after a few hundred rings I'd suddenly have the urge to end it all. Kind of like that feeling I get sometimes when I'm at 300 grit on a blade that I'm hand-sanding, and I realize that I really should to go back to 220 or maybe even 120.

I know what you mean, Thomas, I have now reached the point where I look like a gravid ape and I'm not of that gender. :blink:

My step daughter had twins and there was many comparisons twixt the two of us---just wait till I buy *both* of them ballpeen hammers for their second birthday---next year!

Looks like he'll have some nice garb. My niece and nephew love weaving when they stay with us, they're machines.

Hey, hey! Looks good!

What gauge wire are you using? What are you wrapping the coils on? I've been making maille for well over a third of my life, so I know what's going on.

If I might offer a bit of advice: try to work on your closures. A smooth closure will be more comfortable (won't catch on your hair), and you won't have to fix the maille as often. Uneven closures can catch as the sheet moves, and force the weave apart.

Again, looks good, and keep at it.

Hey, hey! Looks good!

What gauge wire are you using? What are you wrapping the coils on? I've been making maille for well over a third of my life, so I know what's going on.

If I might offer a bit of advice: try to work on your closures. A smooth closure will be more comfortable (won't catch on your hair), and you won't have to fix the maille as often. Uneven closures can catch as the sheet moves, and force the weave apart.

Again, looks good, and keep at it.

Hey, hey! Looks good!

What gauge wire are you using? What are you wrapping the coils on? I've been making maille for well over a third of my life, so I know what's going on.

If I might offer a bit of advice: try to work on your closures. A smooth closure will be more comfortable (won't catch on your hair), and you won't have to fix the maille as often. Uneven closures can catch as the sheet moves, and force the weave apart.

Again, looks good, and keep at it.

I made this small practise section from #10 aluminum wire. My son and I worked on a LARP helmet for him with some scrap around the shop, and old aluminum hard hat and some pop rivets. Kinda fun although it probably makes some one who really makes armour shudder to see it.

Looks like the maille is oriented 90 degrees out of phase compared with medieval usage; OK for LARP though.

The pattern hangs open in that orientation making it a lot prettier to look at but inviting arrows and sharp tips to get sucked into it. Hanging the other way it tends to sag closed making it less pretty but more steel between you and the bad people's weapons.