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Mads Barnkob

Wed Sept 14 2016, 06:22PM

Registered Member #1403 Joined: Tue Mar 18 2008, 06:05PM
Location: Denmark, Odense C
Posts: 1968

Hi all

I would like to invite you all to share how you made your suits, helmets, gloves, leggings, boots, everything that is necessary in order to go into meter long sparks and still walk out on the other side.

Please describe from inner to outer, like...

Do you use flame retarded inners? Leather padding? Regular middleage reinactment inners?

Do you wear any insulating layers? Rubber? Line man gear?

How do you treat your metallic parts? Just with WD40 as most reinacters do?

Where did you source materials? Did you buy it all? Did you weave every piece of the chain mail yourself?

edit: I will add my own plan after first reply, as to avoid double posting and keep this main post free of contribution.

Finn Hammer

Wed Sept 14 2016, 08:42PM

Registered Member #205 Joined: Sat Feb 18 2006, 11:59AM
Location: SkÃ¸rping, Denmark
Posts: 741

Mads, Don't use chainmail, it is heavy and expensive. Use knit wire mesh instead, it is easy to sow on an ordinary sowing machine, and not overly expensive.
I buy mine in China, and have good results with a custom made variety with 8 wires @0,1mm in each loop that is 3x5mm. And it is stainless, so no need for WD40

I use it here:

sorry for the tilted video.
I use ordinary clothes below, and would like to progress towards "concealed carry", where an ordinary suit fits over the mesh. Would look cool, I think.
It is not easy to put things on fire with a tesla coil, so donÂ´t worry too much.
Gloves are chainmail, up to now, but even these can be had knitted, and they are much nicer, and 1/4 the price.

Cheers, Finn Hammer,

(we should get together one day)

Mads Barnkob

Fri Sept 16 2016, 09:13AM

Registered Member #1403 Joined: Tue Mar 18 2008, 06:05PM
Location: Denmark, Odense C
Posts: 1968

Just the weight of chainmail is certainly not in its favor, but then it comes to sturdiness it is superior :) Not a bad thing if someone attacked your with an axe while you were dancing in sparks.

I got a cheap, because it was slightly damaged (ripped 4 places), chainmail and it only took me a couple of hours to repair it back in original condition.

I also have some square meters, or more of stainless steel filter from food industry, it does however seem a little too stiff to sew into a suit, it is properly too fine a mesh.

Concealed suit would indeed be cool, I have not put much on fire with a Tesla coil, but the flaming piece of wood seen in some videos makes me want to test things thoroughly before wielding it.

Do you have some sources for the knitted gloves / other parts that you could share?

I am still up for meeting, Teslathon at Elmuseet or whatever we can arrange :)

Hydron

Fri Sept 16 2016, 11:31AM

Registered Member #30656 Joined: Tue Jul 30 2013, 02:40AM
Location: UK
Posts: 208

Talking of burning wood, I burnt the top of a plant without even hitting it with a streamer, just by coupling RF into it (was quite close to the topload, on non-breakout point side). Obviously was carrying a fair bit of displacement current in a high-resistance woody part of the stem and it burnt and fell off.

Maybe it's an issue when something is more conductive than air, but resistive enough to heat up a lot from streamer current.

Would suggest natural fibres (well, something not particularly flammable) if anyone tries "concealed carry"!

Finn Hammer

Fri Sept 16 2016, 04:46PM

Registered Member #205 Joined: Sat Feb 18 2006, 11:59AM
Location: SkÃ¸rping, Denmark
Posts: 741

Mads,

These will do fine!

Cheers, Finn Hammer

Mads Barnkob

Fri Sept 16 2016, 06:51PM

Registered Member #1403 Joined: Tue Mar 18 2008, 06:05PM
Location: Denmark, Odense C
Posts: 1968

Finn Hammer wrote ...

Mads,

These will do fine!

Cheers, Finn Hammer

I really wanted longer sleeves, so I ordered these:

I bought these, just because they are so cheap, worth checking out how much metal is actually weaved into it.:

Chainmail hoods are cheaper than I thought, so considering this:

I might also just go with a large "bird cage" style home made from chicken wire...

Pants could be done with my stainless mesh and properly the same for the boots.

Did you consider adding isolators to your shoes, I noticed Terry has on his, I assume this is to avoid getting welded to metallic surfaces?

Finn Hammer

Fri Sept 16 2016, 09:37PM

Registered Member #205 Joined: Sat Feb 18 2006, 11:59AM
Location: SkÃ¸rping, Denmark
Posts: 741

Mads,

You bought wisely!

About soles of

I did get burned a bit playing with Thumper (that beast!

), nothing serious but enough to draw attention, so in the future, I will add sheet metal soles as contact from sole to stocking. Just to avoid standing on that single arc to ground and increase the surface of contact.

Cheers, Finn Hammer

nzoomed

Fri Sept 16 2016, 11:06PM

Registered Member #54503 Joined: Sun Feb 22 2015, 10:35PM
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 288

I thought adding isolators to the shoes was more for visual effect, as the sparks would jump off the feet to the ground?

As far as fire risks go, i would say its pretty low, but i did notice that with my coil that the breakout point was melting with hot sparks dropping off the electrode on my coil.

Dont know if this could melt very fine wire mesh or not.

Either way, i was going to see if i could get some chain mail from some medieval re-enacting group.

Mads Barnkob

Tue Oct 18 2016, 06:21PM

Registered Member #1403 Joined: Tue Mar 18 2008, 06:05PM
Location: Denmark, Odense C
Posts: 1968

Mads Barnkob wrote ...

I bought these, just because they are so cheap, worth checking out how much metal is actually weaved into it.:

Chainmail hoods are cheaper than I thought, so considering this:

So the cheap China gloves does not contain any metal at all, it is just sales bullshit, when I found they did not contain any I sliced a finger off the glove with a kitchen knife without problems, these are not even worth considering for anything :)

The chain mail hood is however very nice and fits the chain mail hauberk perfectly :)

Finn Hammer

Tue Oct 18 2016, 06:47PM

Registered Member #205 Joined: Sat Feb 18 2006, 11:59AM
Location: SkÃ¸rping, Denmark
Posts: 741

Don't worry Mads, those cheap ones were too good to be true.
The long ones

will be fine, rest assured of that!

Cheers, Finn Hammer

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