With the construction methods of the buckler project showing consistent durability, it is now time to push the envelope. The D.3 buckler was designed to reduce overall weight by reducing the thickness of the buckler from .5” to .25”. A better rawhide liner will also be used for this buckler to improve impact resistance over the rawhide bones that were used in previous D bucklers for the project. Most of this post was written prior to the buckler failure. The second half of this post (indicated by the part 2 in the title section) begins the post-break research portion of the D.3 Buckler. ConstructionThroughout the construction, parts of the buckler were measured to understand better where the weight came from. The results of these measurements are shown at the end of this section. This buckler followed a similar construction method as the previous bucklers. First, the planks were cut and then overlayed to make the face of the buckler. Walnut boards were used for this buckler mainly because it was available in .25” thickness. Little project wood boards were used to create a handle solution for this buckler. Layers of the little boards were overlayed to add some amount of structure. The little pieces were then glued together and allowed to cure before attaching to the face of the buckler. Once the handle was glued together, it was then glued to the buckler face boards. Next, the boss and liner were attached to the wooden structure like prior buckler constructions for this project. The rawhide was soaked and then fitted around the edge of the buckler and tacked down. Clenched nails were used to secure the boss in place. The buckler was then covered in a layer of wood glue to provide resiliency. This was a change done for this buckler because prior constructions oiled the wood. Once the liner had dried, the buckler was weighed. Wood body: 266 gr Handle 45: gr Boss: 523 gr Without liner weight: 860 gr Final weight: 981 gr Durability TestingThe buckler withstood sparring against a messer, a longsword, and another sword and buckler. Similar to previous bucklers, this buckler took the hardest hits by the messer, and while some of the nails came loose, the clenching prevented the nails from being freed. Longevity Testing This buckler has been my buckler for nearly 3 months (roughly 30 classes) with very little damage. The nails on the boss had to be replaced due to impact on the boss, but even when the bucker was down to two nails, the boss stayed in place and lived to make it to the end of a practice when repairs could be done. Tacks for the liner have come off, but the hardness of the liner has secured it in place. Near month 2, the overlapping section of the liner was pulled up while sparring. The liner was not destroyed and later glued back down to secure it. Interestingly, wood under the liner has been chipped away. Instead of cracking a board, these chips have just slowly been whittled away with time. This seems to be a testament to the quality of the liner and how a good liner can make a difference in the survivability of a buckler. Observations I am stunned that the lego-brick style handle has survived but I believe that shows how much impact force the rest of the buckler mitigates. The light weight of the buckler also allows for good positioning in the later parts of a sparring match when fatigue is setting in. Failure (Beginning of Part 2)After just over 4 months, the buckler suffered a major failure. A plank cracked near the top of the buckler. This is the section where most of the impact force from descending cuts was received on the buckler. After the sparring match when this occurred, the top section felt loose which seemed to indicate both layers of the planks had been compromised. After the crack occurred, I sparred with the buckler one more time (first to 10 points) to see if the failure would prevent the buckler from being able to complete the match. To my surprise, the buckler was able to finish the sparring match. I believe this is a testament to how much work the rawhide liner does at cushioning impact force on the wood itself. However, even though the buckler successfully did its job, sections of the plank where the crack occurred had clearly broken loose and were only held in place by the liner. The loose pieces were removed to inspect the damage. As I had suspected during sparring, both layers of the planks were broken, which compromised the structure. Interestingly, the nail on the opposite side of the buckler from the broken planks was torn off and the wood cracked. This could have been unrelated or the boss transferring impact force differently. Could the buckler still perform? Maybe if I changed which side was on top. However, at this point the buckler was fighting for its life. It was time to retire it from this research project. Or was it? Field Repair TestSome of the bucklers in The Book of the Buckler feature what appears to be reused wood from other bucklers. A rough field patch may be sufficient to get more life out of the buckler. In the spirit of reusing wood that I already had lying around, the broken-off pieces and the lego-brick style would be used for the handle would be used for repair. I started with patching the broken areas with smaller wood planks that I could shape to fill the broken areas. Next, some of the broken wood and more of the smaller plank were applied to the back of the buckler to provide some structural support to the broken section. This was done if more cracking had occurred that was not identified. Finally, new planks were placed where the nails go since the planks in those areas had been worn and could use more friction to hold the nails in place. The repair was only put through durability testing due to the more compromised state of the buckler as a whole. The repairs were able to survive multiple rounds of sparring without issues. The small plank in the bottom left of the back-view was split during construction and not during sparring.
However, while the bucker was able to perform, there was still some looseness in the section that had failed. This was likely due to the broken sections warping and not aligning as well as initially, even with the structural boards added. Ultimately, while the repair "worked", it seems more likely that the good planks would be preserved while the overall wooden structure would be remade while still re-using the boss, liner, and possibly the handle.
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Today, we have the wonderful opportunity to sit down with Betty, the artist behind Blade and Swords. In this interview, we discuss how Betty became interested in art and her journey into HEMA. We also discuss our passion for sword and buckler and her latest project, Ultima Custodia. The book is available for purchase via email or form from her main site, Blade and Swords. I want to thank Betty for taking the time to do the interview. The opportunity to discuss I.33 and art with you was an absolute pleasure and showcased to me and the viewers your level of passion for the topics. Betty also took the time to make me a work of art that features my club's logo and a sword and buckler fencing rabbit. My club and I are incredibly grateful for this gift and hope to showcase it in the future! More about Betty and Blade and SwordsBlade and Swords Links:
Blade and Swords Other Links Betty does work ranging from logos, digital Art, digital Coat of Arms, Illustrations but also paintings on canvas, charcoal paintings, acrylic, other mediums, and tempera painting. She also likes to do HEMA projects like Ultima Custodia. Last weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to conduct a lecture workshop at Uhuburg Castle. The lecture focused on judicial dueling in the 13th and 14th century of the Holy Roman Empire and introduced the visitors of the castle to the Saxon Mirror, Codex Manesse, and MS I.33. This post contains one of the lectures we gave and a series of pictures from the workshops throughout the two-day event. This event was an absolute blast and hopefully inspired other HEMA practitioners to help make history fun and tangible for everyone! About Uhuburg CastleUhuburg Castle is located in Helen, Georgia and is a beautiful work of art. It just opened up this year and is already selling out tickets with visitors. Rooms will be available for an opportunity to stay and see the night sky at this wonderful location. We had the opportunity to stay in the gatehouse as they renovate some of the other rooms and enjoyed our stay at the castle. The staff was wonderful and knowledgeable about the castle. We talked quite a bit about the process they used when building the castle. Unfortunately, I was unable to take the guided tour but based on what we learned about the castle from questions we had, I am sure it was informational for al the attendants. About 10 minutes from the castle is Helen, Georgia which is a small German village that features vacation activities like tubing down a river. It was great after a long day of working the event to go see the sites and experience the local cuisine. The Lecture We conducted the lecture every hour at the castle and began with a handout to the audience as a primer and visual aid for the attendants. We then introduced ourselves and what HEMA is all about. Then, we focused on the legal sources that structured judicial dueling in the Holy Roman Empire. This was used as a springboard to introduce the crowd to sword and buckler. Then we explored some biographical sources like the Codex Manesse to show that these duels and the use of sword and buckler were also documented. We then introduced I.33 as a manuscript that taught the use of sword and buckler. Danial and I then did light sparring in period clothing. We did not want these fights to be staged so we had a gorget, gloves, and a helmet on to keep us safe. We also have been training together for years and know each other well which goes a long way in staying smart with our sparring. After each exchange, we would talk to the crowd about what we saw, and what we were thinking during the exchange. Our goal was to highlight how tactical sword fighting was while also highlighting how fast it can be. After a short demonstration of light sparring with a sword and buckler to expose the crowd to the techniques of the manuscript, we would highlight that this was one weapon system, in one region, at one point in time. This allowed us to end the lecture by informing the crowd that different systems exist and martial combat changes with different weapons and different levels of protection. The WorkshopsAfter telling the crowd about the broader world of Western martial arts, it was time to show them. We had examples of mail armor, brigandines, and gambeson that people could touch and feel to see how protective these armor pieces could be. We also had a table of swords that people could pick up and feel for themselves. For anyone interested, we conducted mini-workshops with them using a sword type of their choice to show them one way the sword can be used. For sword and buckler workshops, we focused on the seven wards from I.33 and the attacks from them. for the longsword, we highlighted how nimble of a weapon it can be and how strong is countered with weak and vice versa. For rapier, we would place our swords in one position and have the student think about how they could place their sword so that if we both thrust at each other, they would be safe while striking us. Finally, we would teach the basic guards and how they are used for military sabre and then would go over the first play from John Taylor’s saber system. These workshops were designed to be about 10 minutes so people could swing swords and get an idea of swordsmanship. HEMA and Community OutreachOne of my favorite things about HEMA is teaching people about swords. It is just great to see peoples’ faces light up when they get to use a sword for the first time. It is also great to see people getting excited about history and their eagerness to learn.
We in HEMA have a unique knowledge of a piece of history that many people are interested in. Even if they are not interested in learning swordsmanship themselves, they are likely interested in the history around it and how it was done verses what is shown in the movies. I encourage everyone in HEMA to find ways to reach out to the community and help teach history to those interested. One of my favorite interactions at the event was with a woman who studied art history. She was more interested in the castle tour for its architecture. However, she attended our lecture and was enamored with the sources we had on display. By having manuscript examples from the early 14th century to the late 16th century, we could showcase how the evolution of art improved the ability to communicate techniques. She also highlighted several other details in manuscripts like the Gladiatoria that we would not have seen in earlier manuscripts because of the evolution of art styles. Those types of popcorn style conversations was exactly why we kept the lecture short and opened up the remainder of the hour until our next show for freeform questions and answers. Sometimes we were asked questions where we had to say we did not know but many times the questions were about the sources we had on display and the weapons people could try. So, please, reach out to your community and help make history fun for all! |
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