Greenwich Armour Project- The Armet

This is the first of a series of videos featuring details about my Greenwich Armour Project. There are 2 different helmets for this armour, and in this video, I'll cover the Armet. I will also touch on etching techniques, and uses for the helmet.

[@TopDwarf]

Jeff Wasson is one of the armourers, who did a tremendous amount of work on my Greenwich armour, you should check him out; www.wassonartistry.com/ Here is a fellow who is making some amazing pieces; Maks Izobov ; facebook.com/reel/3708899246043484 Another amazing craftsmen; instagram.com/old_world_armoury Albert Collins has produced some fantastic pieces, and has a book available; albertcollins.se/

[@JamesplontNL]

This is absolute top tier content, thank you alot for making this very clear and easy to understand video. Looking forward to seeing similar videos about all the other pieces! So that we can all fully understand the magnificence of this type of armor.

[@meatballsubrn]

Just saying, if I won the lottery I wont tell anyone..but there will be signs.. Absolutely masterful Armet, would love to see more!

[@caioac-nq2kc]

I am so thankful for your videos, it is absurd how rare it is to find legitimate, good content over precise, real medieval arms & armour, please continue and even try to add more than just content about your Greenwich armor, you could share so much more about the armor behind you and all your knowledge about medieval battles and the era itself!!

[@TopDwarf]

Thank you. There are so few armourers today, who have the understanding of what real armour was like, and fewer still who have developed the skills to make it so. I was fortunate to have Robert MacPherson and Jeff Wasson on this project.

[@TheAssassin409]

@@TopDwarf Mac is such a treasure to the armoring community. He's even personally helped me on one of my own projects. Great to hear he's had some involvement in your armor!

[@TopDwarf]

@@TheAssassin409 Well, more than some, he built most of the main armour, while Jeff Wasson made all the jousting pieces, pauldrons and all the stepping for the decoration.

[@steve_dudu]

I've dreamt of my own Greenwich-style Armour project ever since I saw Dr. Tobias Capwell's blued and brass-stripped example as a kid 10 years ago. This series provides a level of detail that I would otherwise not be able to find; Greenwich armour is an ultra specific niche that I've been a huge fan of for many years so your efforts to share your project are truly appreciated.

[@SixDeadZeroHEMA]

I can't believe the most popular question was "how can you see" lol. People focus in on the weirdest things. Personally my question is "what god do i need to curry favour from to be granted the divine smithing abilities required to make such a beautifully engineered harness?".

[@TopDwarf]

Unfortunately, I think many people come from the mentality, that we (they) are so much smarter than "those people back then" that they don't / can't see that these were made by very smart people. Like people, 500 years from now, thinking Northrop-Grumman had no clue how to build aircraft.

[@SixDeadZeroHEMA]

@@TopDwarf I think that’s very true - lots of people assume that everyone in history was just daft I guess. I’m not sure society would have made it if everyone was a dafty lol

[@bowmanruto]

@@TopDwarf undoubtedly, people 500 years in the future will look at the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye and go ''that's a terrible design for a spacecraft'' :D

[@tatumergo3931]

My question would be more like "what God do I need to curry favor from to be granted the monetary assets to be able to afford having one made for me"!

[@tatumergo3931]

​@@SixDeadZeroHEMA . The amazing thing is how people fail to realize how much advancement humanity has achieved in a couple of thousands of years. The dinosaurs and other species lived for a longer amount of time than humans and yet they did not achieved anything, other than eat, shit and fornicate.

[@lycanthropej]

Heat bluing cannot be convincingly replicated in any other way. How stunningly gorgeous; I wish I could see it person. Thanks for sharing.

[@TopDwarf]

Here are the individual component weights: (I'm 190cm / 6'3" - 123kg /270lbs) Armet - 2.61kg / 5.8lbs Field visor - 1.30kg / 2.9lbs Visor reinforce - 0.35kg / 0.8lbs Tilting visor 1.37kg / 3.0lbs Burgonet 2.82kg / 6.2lbs 3-Bar grill 0.36kg / 0.8lbs Falling Buff 1.23kg / 2.7lbs Gorget 1.23kg / 2.7lbs Breastplate 3.45kg / 7.6lbs Backplate 2.04kg / 4.5lbs Fauld / Tassets 2.43kg / 5.3lbs Pauldron (ea.) 1.78kg / 3.9lbs Arm (ea.) 1.77kg / 3.9lbs Gauntlets (ea.) 0.83kg / 1.8lbg Cuisse (ea.) 1.58kg / 3.5lbs Greave / sabaton (ea.) 1.86kg / 4.1lbs Spurs (ea.) 0.05kg / 0.1lbs Lance rest w/ screws 0.32kg / 0.7lbs Grandguard 3.75kg / 8.3lbs Pasguard 1.62kg / 3.6lbs Manifer 1.20kg / 2.6lbs Locking Gauntlet 1.05kg / 2.3lbs Plackart 3.56kg / 7.8lbs Mail Sleeve (ea.) 3.10kg / 6.8lbs

[@jimjimson6208]

The upward view with the eye holes obscured by the angle must have been an intimidating sight back in the day. Nothing visibly human, just unbroken steel. Can't imagine what it would have been like looking up at a heavily armoured warrior on horseback, especially if they are bearing down on you at speed haha

[@TopDwarf]

I'm sure it was terrifying

[@samueltheblonde]

That is just a gorgeous helmet.

[@Evan-rj9xy]

Can't wait to see more! I would love to see more details about how each piece was made and/or how it works!

[@ArmourArtist]

Awesome. I am realy looking forward to seeing more.

[@TopDwarf]

Thank you. Check out my other videos and clips

[@sgregg5257]

A stunning work of art. Magnificent.

[@heilmodrhinnheimski]

I remember a while back you mentioned in a comment that the idea of “parade armour” is a Victorian misconception and not historical. This is a rather intriguing and controversial claim and I’d love to hear you expand on it

[@TopDwarf]

Yes. Most of the armour that people have thought was "Parade armour" was in fact real armour intended for use. If it got used or not can't always be known, but even some of the more decorated armours were built as functional armours, for either war or tournament. There likely were "parade" armours, but not at a level that was once thought. Check out Dr. Toby Capwell's armour talks here on KZbin, he has some great content.

[@heilmodrhinnheimski]

@@TopDwarf I was not aware that Toby had covered the topic, thank you, keep these videos coming

[@Sichel22]

awesome ! love to see and hear about the different techniques to make of armor parts. and im really amazed by the craftsmanship behind it :) ! great video thanks for sharing :) !

[@TopDwarf]

More to come!

[@ryanburns937]

Very cool and very informative video. This video practically had me at the edge of my seat haha. Thank you so much for sharing your passion for this part of history with us. What an incredible piece of craftsmanship you have!

[@nathanharrison9424]

Awesome! I'm so glad you decided to do more videos about this amazing armor.

[@Spartam235]

I can't wait to see the rest of this armor but it would be super cool to see videos of other armors in your collection like the ones behind you as well.

[@mementomori4972]

So seldom nowadays you see a reproduction helmet that actually fits like it should, and that is because of the 2 inch padding you've been talking about. A beautiful piece you have there.

[@sirfijoe450]

Absolutely amazing craftsmanship

[@real5teel]

Thank you for this video!!! This armor garniture ist my absolute favorite and I love the Greenwich style. I love all the details you show and I really enjoy and appreciate it! I tried to copy some of the technology and parts of this garniture at my own suit of armor. But its more for show and I enjoy the research and figuring out all the features. Looking forward to more videos :)

[@Jimm_y]

for the time that is some incredible engineering

[@blackdragon5274]

This project is amazing

[@Ptolemy-pz6tf]

Amazing reconstruction

[@FaykieRS]

Beautiful work, and yes, please link other craftsman making cool stuff!

[@TopDwarf]

See pinned comment

[@whatme3473]

I got to make one for myself all info appreciated 🙏

[@TopDwarf]

Go for it!

[@Wrestlingswannn]

That is so beautiful.

[@whatme3473]

What metal is it ? And what gage metal is it made of ? And what type of heat treatment was involved ? Thanks dude. Really nice armet .

[@TopDwarf]

1050 spring steel. Various gauges from 12ga-18ga, more info on my blog diligentdwarves.blogspot.com/

[@SiriusYTChan]

Enjoyed this vid with the Armet! Thanks for explaining how it differs a close helm and the mechanics of its design. For the armor video, I'd like to see how far up can you extend your hands vertically with the pauldrons on? Most of what I see are just enough to make a 90 degree with their elbow, what I'm curious is how straight up can one extend their whole arm vertically without bending the elbow.

[@vorynrosethorn903]

Hello Tanya, you're scary enough without getting hold of armour like this.

[@skenzyme81]

If there were a blow down on the head from above, does the neck mechanism transfer any of the force to the shoulders? Or is the helmet unsupported in that way?

[@TopDwarf]

The gorget will compress down, so it does not really support the helmet.

[@skenzyme81]

@@TopDwarfThanks, I suspected as much. Attempts to structurally link helmets to the shoulders have almost universally failed. Today, we only see it in motorsport. Or in systems where the helmet does not move with the head, like spacesuits.

[@TopDwarf]

@@skenzyme81 No, not the case. There are a number of armour helmets that sit on the shoulders. Also, a number of spacesuit helmets do not rest on the head. Spacesuit helmets come as "conformal" fit the head, and move with the head, and Non-conformal" where the helmet is supported by the suit, and the head moved freely inside.

[@skenzyme81]

@@TopDwarf Thank you. Are you referring to the "Great Helm" as an example that sits on the shoulders? I had been led to believe that they did not, at least mostly. Will take another look. Again, thank you for the amazing content.

[@TopDwarf]

@@skenzyme81 No, a Great Basinet, jousting Stechhelm are two examples

[@danielfloyd1679]

Absolutely masterful work boss! thanks for the video!

[@Btfvt]

Wonderful!

[@iangrant2330]

im afraid your videos have awaken in me my life long need to have a suit of armor lol

[@lildragon0]

That is beautiful ❤️

[@ArmourArtist]

Question. If you were a knight and could ride any animal into battle. What Dinosaur would you ride? ;)

[@Ckaldren]

I am a blacksmith and armourer but the biggest problem I have is making templates, is there a way to get templates for this? Or if not a way to learn how to make them?

[@TopDwarf]

At this level of work, templates are 1% of the work and skill required. The armour archive is a great source. Anything posted by Robert MacPherson should be read twice

[@Ckaldren]

@@TopDwarf I realize that, but that does not negate the fact that I would very much like to get my hands on templates for this armour. The skill required is well within my grasp, I have been a blacksmith for over a decade, it would just save a lot of precious time to get templates that are more sure to work than anything I can draw up, rather than to risk failure-wasting even more time-simply due to a bad template.

[@Ckaldren]

@@TopDwarf thank you

[@PoorMansHEMA]

Let's see the visor down!

[@freestylebagua]

Hey! I'm back from Pennsic, I showed a few of your videos around Caid and elsewhere several people knew you, amazing. Anyway I'm back at UCLA I'd love to see the armour, and I do want to say that I wonder if you may find a little more chin room in a period helmet so that yelling orders on the battlefield at the top of your lungs would not be constricted. I do feel though you are right about the padding in the armet being sufficient, the close form of the helm to the skull shape allows padding all around the head to cushion a blow rather than just the padding directly opposite the force.

[@lucasdiniz9313]

damn i gotta build or get one of these

[@Paul9443]

It looks majestic! How come the metal is blueish?

[@TopDwarf]

@@Paul9443 this is how the original world have looked like, but over 400+ years it has lost it’s color from over cleaning. The color comes from heating the steel to 300 C / 572 F

[@Paul9443]

@@TopDwarf That's so interesting! Thank you for sharing that fact. I didn't know.

[@PoorMansHEMA]

YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH

[@emperorcrawl]

can you go into detail about the etching process? i have some electrolysis experience, but would love to know more about this recipe/method. also how much did the entire kit cost?(if you could manage to calculate a price on something worked on for almost 20 years lol) that armet is fucking insane.

[@TopDwarf]

All of my tests and notes on the etching are recorded in my blog here: diligentdwarves.blogspot.com/search/label/Etching As for cost, There are less than 15 armourers alive today with the skills & experience required to build a helmet of this quality. For the full garniture expect to pay $100k - $150k. For just a helmet $10k-$15k

[@ducomaritiem7160]

Wow❤Wow respect! I never heard your name before 😢 are you also on ArmourArchive? I'll definitely try your etching method. Done stuff - armouring, etching etc and reenactment.

[@Klomster88]

I'm not jealous..... not at all.... *single tear* Also, what if you get stuck in there? Then you'd be constantly FABULOUS!

[@dariongrey3695]

Is this set of armor a 1 of 1 creation?

[@TopDwarf]

Yes

[@1oddentity]

How heavy is the entire set of armor?

[@TopDwarf]

Here are the individual component weights: (I'm 190cm / 6'3" - 123kg /270lbs) Armet - 2.61kg / 5.8lbs Field visor - 1.30kg / 2.9lbs Visor reinforce - 0.35kg / 0.8lbs Tilting visor 1.37kg / 3.0lbs Burgonet 2.82kg / 6.2lbs 3-Bar grill 0.36kg / 0.8lbs Falling Buff 1.23kg / 2.7lbs Gorget 1.23kg / 2.7lbs Breastplate 3.45kg / 7.6lbs Backplate 2.04kg / 4.5lbs Fauld / Tassets 2.43kg / 5.3lbs Pauldron (ea.) 1.78kg / 3.9lbs Arm (ea.) 1.77kg / 3.9lbs Gauntlets (ea.) 0.83kg / 1.8lbg Cuisse (ea.) 1.58kg / 3.5lbs Greave / sabaton (ea.) 1.86kg / 4.1lbs Spurs (ea.) 0.05kg / 0.1lbs Lance rest w/ screws 0.32kg / 0.7lbs Grandguard 3.75kg / 8.3lbs Pasguard 1.62kg / 3.6lbs Manifer 1.20kg / 2.6lbs Locking Gauntlet 1.05kg / 2.3lbs Plackart 3.56kg / 7.8lbs Mail Sleeve (ea.) 3.10kg / 6.8lbs

[@jamesj4827]

It's almost a shame gunpowder was ever invented, I'd love to know what armour tech would have reached today without it

[@Specter_1125]

It took centuries for firearms to actually outpace armor. Like he says in the video, this armor’s important parts would’ve been made to withstand contemporary gunfire.

[@jamesj4827]

​@@Specter_1125 Sorry I didn't make myself clear I am talking about the later eras when firearms made armour almost obsolete due to the weight plates needed to be to stop bullets The armour in the video is more or less the peak of plate armour technology, I'd have loved to see another hundred or so years of development without the increasing power of firearms/massed firearms. Obviously it could be done like with the French Cuirassier but that armour was far less impressive in terms of the skill in smithing it vs the late 16thC armours. Voiders of plate were just works of art

[@TopDwarf]

Well, I'm not sure that this is true...completely. Metal armour was capable of resisting fire arms well into the 17th C. (20th C. if you count pieces developed for WWI & WWII) The main development, I see in the decline in armour use, was the implementation of fire arms in warfare. I think I have a modern example: The Iraqi war, was possibly the last war we will see with a large deployment of tanks. Why? Helicopters. Not the invention of helicopters, but the adaptation and implantation of their use as a "Tank killers" Once newer generations of military leaders, and strategist, look at a weapon /technology with "new eyes" and then encourage the development of these weapons, to make that weapon / strategy viable, which then results in that weapon being used in a different an effective way. A way, which had been "unseen" in the earlier generation. Helicopters were at first, not seen as a offensive weapon, but then in Vietnam, they were refitted and deployed in a way to make them effective as an offensive weapon. Then, once their potential was proven, newer generations thought, "what if we improved this or that, and used them "this way"? So 57 years after they were used in WWII, they become the destroyers of tanks, which in WWII were the backbone of ground warfare. ......more or less....

[@jamesj4827]

​@@TopDwarf Sorry TD, I spoke poorly, and was not so much asking why or how armour disappeared, after all we are capable of creating plates that can stop a .50bmg today (though you'd probably die anyway lol) Armour will always develop inline with weapons, and doctrines will shift I meant to speak solely about the incredible complexity of pre 'highly effective firearms' armour. The master works so to speak And how I would love to see what we would have been developed, if there was another hundred years before these highly developed armours were replaced with simpler construction bullet proofed armours, out of the necessity of weight as the thickness increased the area covered naturally decreased. But morning the end of skills that were almost utterly lost. Only a few armourers today have the skills to make fully functioning harnesses with voiders of plate, and as the cost of these suits is high, we don't get to see many. Let alone see many put to the test in mock combat. I'd have liked to see what kings and emperors would have worn on the field if they'd had a few more years of the full plate harness in thicknesses that are reasonable, being viable. To see if some of the incredibly enclosed armours of the royals for the tourney, were made workable for the battlefield through ever improving skill improved the practicality of almost 'fully enclosed armours.' Seeing some of the elbow, back of knee, groin, backside and even armpit lame voiders is an amazing testament to the incredible skill of the smiths of the era. And it would have been interesting if we had another 50 or so years of progression in that vein.

[@luxubu_freedom]

Tôi nghĩ bạn sẽ bán được những bộ giáp này cho cận vệ giáo hoàng hoặc cận vệ nhà vua anh quốc với giá hời . Vì hiện nay chỉ còn 2 đội cận vệ ấy còn sử dụng vũ khí lạnh !!!

[@craigdavidson4845]

How do I give you my money!? I need it!

[@TopDwarf]

This was made by a team of the best artisans in the world, and you can commission something like this. The armourer who started it, Robert MacPherson, is now retired from armour, but still makes amazing things. His web page is here: www.billyandcharlie.com/ The other armourer is Jeff Wasson He is still active: www.wassonartistry.com/ I did all the heat-treating, decoration (etching & Golding) and final assembly. If you were to order an armour like this from a top level armour capable of making a piece like this, expect to pay $15k-$20k for the helmet and $100k to $150k for the whole armour. BE AWARE - Shops in India are notorious for stealing images off web sites (They stole images of this armour) and claim they will make it, they cant. Like stealing a photo of a Ferrari and claiming they can make it, not going to be the same thing! See my other videos & shorts, to see the field visor for this same helmet, the legs and some of the build. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sHOxYoKMq92Zgrssi=OKV3SINZeYlD2FKC kzbin.info/www/bejne/fmecqJuBr7tmrbMsi=xihyxiYMSVuou775 kzbin.infoWGBGalXESVE?si=7BIUAfPM_D2qHbBc kzbin.infolq4UWgs6vw4?si=vSIh5wtuRm9s08Ov

[@yashasvi_handa]

What is stopping us guy to make and wear something like this everyday??

[@TeutonicEmperor1198]

probably οur inability to pay for a suit of armour that costs as much as a sports car

[@djyhemme]

Thank you very much Sir for your time and for showing us how it works. I will watch the next videos for sure.🫡