Friday, September 4, 2015

Bascinet with Camail/Aventail Added

Well, no sooner after the last post, I decided to press on with the camail project. It is done except for running a wire or leather thong through the vervelle holes along the leather strap.
With my wife's sound advice, I ended up cutting a "V" out of the strap right after the third vervelle. It ended up pretty nice and stays on the helmet very well.
Here's my impression of the Cherbourg helmet.
The camail has to go around the bottom edges of the visor to allow the visor to seat down fully. I may try to route leather thongs at the opening of the mail to see if it can be tightened up below the chin. Addendum: I got the visor to seat properly - all I did was squeeze the bottom front edge of the bascinet in.
The leather strap fits snugly along along the base of the bascinet. Not bad as I bought the camail separately from the helmet and wasn't sure if it would fit properly. A padded liner should probably be worn under the camail.
Not a bad way to spend the morning on a day off - still in my PJ's too :)

19 comments:

  1. Looks extremely cool, and a little bit scary...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Soren. Not sure where I'm going with this, but it's been an interesting project so far. My fingers are a bit tender from the work too. Warm Regards, Dean

      Delete
    2. yeah, its a fair bit of craftsmanship you've invested in this piece. But its definitely going to increase the coolness factor of your gaming room! You could even try and wear it for a game, I'd be terrified to roll dice against such a dedicated foe ;0)

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Appreciate your kind approval, Jonathan. Best, Dean

      Delete
  3. Replies
    1. Thanks a lot, Michael! Glad you like it - it's pretty nice to have a full-size replica of something I've always admired. Warm regards, Dean

      Delete
  4. That's quite something mate! As someone who once wore a bascinet and got belted about the head for "fun" it brings back quite a few memories. Mostly memories of the lack of vision and the ringing in my ears to be fair :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michael - that's the best thing about these - they can take a beating and you should be able to still be ticking :) Best, Dean

      Delete
  5. Collecting armour is a cool thing to do, but let's not see the jim jams in future!!
    If you're going to pursue this 1:1 gaming hobby could I recommend the Armstreet website, lots of good stuff there.
    Regards HGA.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, HGA - for the fashion tip and also the website. I've been lucking out on some pretty good deals on ebay. A padded jupon and a pair of hourgalss gauntlets may be in the future. But I have to make sure I don't go overboard :) Warm regards, Dean

      Delete
  6. Replies
    1. Thanks, Rodger. It's interesting to note the weight of the camail - but once on, the weight is evenly distributed over the shoulders a bit - I bet even more so if there was a padded hood beneath it. Best, Dean

      Delete
  7. That is a brilliant piece - as a former re-enactor myself, I can only approve!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Evan. Although the thought of dressing up in full battle gear intrigues me, I'm not sure if I have the guts to join a group., but who knows. Best, Dean

      Delete
  8. Replies
    1. Thank you very much for visiting and glad you liked the post. Warm regards, Dean

      Delete
  9. Interesting project Dean. Any more surprises coming from eBay?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Jason - well, hopefully a couple more wins off of ebay may be coming my way. :) Regards, Dean

      Delete