Leather ARMOR DIY / Cuirass / Breastplate

Follow along and learn how to make Leather Armor, specifically a Cuirass / Breastplate for SCA, Costume, Cosplay, or LARP. Come get some ideas for your own projects or follow along and make something epic. This Cuirass comes complete with Viking Knotwork and a full tutorial. Pattern available on my website.
PATTERN
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[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Who's here mainly for Armor Videos? Also if you are, what kind of armor should I build next?

[@rebelmarshall3632]

🙋🏻‍♀️

[@leon.benedict]

Vambraces/gauntlets are always welcome, they have great variety and probably the most popular/useful for the general audience. (also that's how I found you on pinterest, so probably good for the algorithm too). Great build again, Magnus!

[@mcewenhandcraft]

I'm just here to support you and also give you a hard time whenever possible! Of course!

[@coryigneczi2040]

Any kind of helm head wear. I know it’s not functional for SCA, but there’s not many good resources out there for making leather hardware in general

[@joshfreeman3264]

War Dog Armor 🐕

[@shaunhall6834]

Thanks for making the patterns available. This sure helps us beginners.

[@edenconeby8227]

I get so scared to attempt stuff like this because my mind can’t comprehend it in steps. Watching this come together definitely helped me want to actually start leatherworking

[@jennylawson1980]

The armor is beautiful and the possibilities are endless for its uses

[@davidkelly1638]

I’ve made your gauntlets, elbows and hand guards. In the process of making your greaves, knees and thighs. Really great patterns, easy to make and look super nice. Hoping to have a whole set done by halloween so I can be my Jedi character from SWTOR games, 3D print little lightsaber crystals and hand them out with some candy. Thanks bud, love your work.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

That's great. Glad to have played a small part.

[@jasonbayles6261]

Not just armor, but techniques in carving, waxing, dyes, tooling. My main craft is chain maille, but have been mixing it with leather (think I even sent you pictures in a DM).

[@joshfreeman3264]

Whenever I see those shoulder pads I think of Eomer of Rohan ⚔

[@larrycumba2741]

I use the same blade for long straight cuts. On the front edge, the short side of the blade, I have used a black marker on this edge at the very tip to mark a small v at the tip of the blade. This contrast has helped me to follow the lines. My old tired eyes need it.

[@jamesault7832]

Great film, love your work! While watching the high speed beveling I was struck with an idea to try beveling with an engraver. I ran out to the shop and grabbed a scrap of leather and tried it. The result was amazing. I shaded a design perfectly in a fraction of the time. Put the speed on low and put the point of the tool into the cut and hold it about 45 degrees.

[@ScottGrow117]

I am here for armor! I’m wanting to make a medieval take on stormtrooper armor.

[@codystich4597]

Just got into SCA rattan combat and by proxy leather working. Thank you for your videos, Sir.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Excellent! It's a never ending pit of fun. ;)

[@4hoovesmore410]

Do you have an armour patter for ladies? I think more chest space would be beneficial while straping myself into one 😜 I'd love to see a video of you making one ❤ BTW I love your jewelry box vid, I made one myself and my husband instantly stole it from me after it was ready 🤣

[@Aj-po9dc]

Love the video, man! I especially loved how that wax bath darkened that leather so much but made that white design pop so much. Great work. Thanks for sharing.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Appreciate it!

[@EarnestElephant]

I love it. You inspire me to level up

[@donlapham1265]

I am! I'm hoping to make myself armor for the Ren Faire next year and am starting to look into it! 2 years leatherworking experience but haven't done armor.

[@mcewenhandcraft]

I taught you that strap trick where you rivet it under. I remember it. We were working on Man in the High Castle and you wanted to hide the strap end and I showed you that trick. You just grunted at me and said "good idea" You've used it a few times since then. Lol. To be fair tho. I've picked up more than one trick from you!

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

To be fair it's all over those old stoleman books but I just never thought to use them. Haha. I like it, not totally sure if it was the best idea here but it wasn't the worst idea? ;)

[@mcewenhandcraft]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop there is nothing new under the sun. I am sure All Stoleman got the idea from someone else.

[@dom4002]

Never tried any leather work before, now let's see how my expectations vs reality come out

[@blizatrex]

This paired quite nicely with your shoulders.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Ya, I thought so. Should have done this build ages ago.

[@SeverusSnapes394]

I'm here to see how I should make my armor

[@thediamondprincechristian]

Im studying your techniques before I build my white Roman armor with gold details

[@codylloyd5092]

I enjoy all of your builds, if I'm being honest

[@AlbyCervitaur]

Will you ever do a video where you buy leather armors from internet? Something like Aliexpress and such? Love your videos!!

[@Christopher19990]

Amazing work! SKOL!

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Thank you! Skol!

[@KubanaHAFANANA]

some people advise to not boil the leather in wax to harden the leather, instead they advise to bake the leather to harden it. WHats your take on that please :) ty

[@DrakkarCalethiel]

That armor looks lovely, definitely getting the pattern! That one will do lovely for my battlemage.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Battlemage? Awesome! :)

[@DrakkarCalethiel]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop Yep, working on a LARP battlemage for a year now. Your armor will fit him nicely when decorated with tooled casting runes and dyed black with violet accents. Can't wait to get a new batch of leather and dyes in so that I can start working on it! Silent follower for a long time, the War Belt was the first pattern I got, was just perfect for my warlord. Might even add more armor patterns from you to the battlemage, maybe just slightly modified. Since they are pretty easy, they are perfect for me as a non experienced leatherworker.

[@filstewart2380]

Looked for McEwan handcraft on your recommendation, but without a link I couldn't find it. Great tutorial.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Here ya go. :) www.etsy.com/shop/McEwenHandCraft

[@gonsolop2429]

Question ( 2 ) Paint in wax: 1) Will Tandy Eco paint work in wax? 2) Does aryllic dye work in wax? ( pigment seals itself without need of a finish, yet of course the wax is for hardenning the leather into real protective armor for live steel & ratan. )

[@faewatkins5869]

I wanna make cool looking leather armor but add bulletproofing to it. I already know the materials I'm gonna be bulletproofing with and all I need is knowing the correct sizing

[@OmariFs]

I was just in your warzone game we love you

[@JaapGrootveld]

That face you pull at the end 😂.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Glad someone appreciated my sillyness.

[@nathanferraro6459]

Bro i was just playing with you on warzone i love you

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Haha fun games. Gotta get the dub next time.

[@waltercobb4675]

Master skills

[@IPv6Freely]

Where does the shirt come from that youre wearing under the armor? I love it.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

A friend of mine made it for me with my artwork and design ideas.

[@PhoenixIronworksNS]

Damn that’s sexy man. How do you like the ceramic swivel blades? I recently switched to them and I find small rounds way easier with them. Nice work!

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Ya they've been my go-to for years. Love them

[@raydendrakk7502]

awesome, I love it =D

[@ScottGrow117]

I’d like to see a breast plate that is rigid on the thorax but has articulated lames in the abdomen so you can bend more easily, be more flexible. I fight HEMA, a challenge there is making it so the lames overlap enough that a sword tip doesn’t come in between the plates.

[@CutTimeBrony]

Is there an easy way to make it wider? If i try to just size it up when printing it runs off the page and the stitch line gets too stretched out. I need like an inch or two more width

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I personally would print it as is, rough tape it together with masking tape then add some paper under it to rough out the expansion spots and holes.

[@craftingoutofscratch2980]

wow finally instructions on armor. will you make a helmet too? where else do you get templates?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Lots of patterns on darkhorseworkshop.com

[@craftingoutofscratch2980]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop ok thanks you

[@craftingoutofscratch2980]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop I was already afraid that the armor cost about $ 160 and it's a pack Sometimes I see that I would buy it for me it's hard to draw a template

[@Ryker2608]

Next we need a helmet

[@dragonsofthesky7459]

Question. Could you use a dremel to do designs faster and easier on the hands? I have carpeltunel [however you spell it lol]

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

You can do all sorts of things, it doesn't mean it will turn out very well. If you want faster use a laser cutter. I think a dremel would be a pain in the ass... But it never hurts to ask.

[@feanehtar5855]

Did I understand correctly that this pattern will only be for sale for a limited time? Will it still be around by the 30th?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

On sale forever. Discounted for a limited time

[@coryigneczi2040]

Do you use a specific kind of anvil? Ive tried looking for a small anvil like this that I could mount to my work bench so I can start using the brass rivets like you do, but they are all either really small, or just bigger than what I would ever need. Thank you!!

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I just found one in a hardware store and snagged it. Had it so long I don't remember where.

[@emilianogavioli1604]

Buongiorno, posso sapere quali sono le tinte che state usando per il cuoio nel video ? Hello, may I know what are the colors you are using for the leather in the video?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Bone I think

[@patmarshall8641]

what do you use to make your patterns on? is it an ipad and is there an app you use as well with it

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

PC. Check out my latest live stream in the live stream playlist.

[@zanderchiasson8064]

Can we get a collab with skallagrim or Shadiversity to really test out this wax hardened armor? Or even explore the feasibility(if not historical accuracy) of using leather armor

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Wouldn't bother with wax hard-earned armor. Doesn't make sense for anything but blunt forced trauma which is what it's made for

[@zanderchiasson8064]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop would still love maybe just a test video of how much of a difference it makes for sport fighting compared to plain or water hardened learher

[@theulfhednar2655]

How big would my start-up budget be if I wanted to get into this? And what should I get.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Really you need to decide which project you want to dive into first and build out from there. Lonsdale Leather has a few great kits, but I also supply links to a lot of the tools in the description of my videos. Lonsdale Leather: bit.ly/3X1XwTV

[@theulfhednar2655]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop Thx for the tips :D

[@Ash_Fritsch]

As you said in this video I tried to go and make sure that I had notifications turned on and it said that it couldn't do that. So I did more investigating and apparently if a video is set to be made for kids. As in, you the person posting the video clicked the "this video is made for kids" button. You're not able to set notifications on for some reason. So maybe dont set the video as made for kids. Or maybe thats not on you. Idk man

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

None of my videos are made for kids. Odd problem though.

[@Ash_Fritsch]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop yea i dont know what the issue was.

[@lexsycraftsllc]

I've tried to pattern my own leather tiara/circlet, and I just can't seem to get the pattern right (I've been using paper so I'm not wasting leather). Think you could take a crack at it?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Can certainly put it on the never ending list.

[@pcar-knee5744]

If you get a build up of wax on the piece. How do you remove some of it? If you can...

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Heat gun

[@ianmccrimmon387]

Great video. Where did you get that anvil with the round holes and what size rivets are those?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

1/8" rivets, and I just drilled the holes into a crappy little anvil I bought. Don't drill too deep on cheap ones, they're often filled with sand or something and not full casts.

[@jasonmundt4206]

The tunic you have on under your armor. Where is it from?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

A friend of mine made it for me

[@aallen9603]

Is there a specific type of wax you suggest for the leather forming? Sorry if I missed it. My guess would be beeswax but....?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I would only wax leather for armor that is being used for rattan combat. Anything else I'd water form/harden. But that said the wax I use is just paraffin.

[@aallen9603]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop Many thanks. The thought of that much beeswax was a bit terrifying at the cost. Lol. I made some chest armour a couple years ago for a cosplay that turned into a halloween costume and the form was an issue. Before i shared this and was roped into making some new stuff, I figured i would line everything up. Thanks again.

[@user-lu4tc7zs5g]

красивая работа, желаю каналу дальнейшего развития)) привет из Украины))

[@opeboi1539]

I know this is for like a costume but for real armor purposes wax actually makes the armor less effective and easier to cut through. Not sure how relevant this information is in the modern day but it’s something to think about

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

100%

[@bear5687]

Where can I get an anvil like that with rivet setting divots?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I drilled it. Be careful though some you'll just drill right through if they're cheap and filled with sand.

[@kstorym]

What is that paint pen!? That looks so handy!

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Angelus Paint Pen, link in the description.

[@maeveLCurtis]

What is the punch you use for the belt ends??

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

A Crafttool Strap End Punch like this one: amzn.to/3zkvtqX

[@JexusXI]

Hey magnus, what grade paraffin wax do you use? I'm having a really hard time finding the appropriate wax to boil my leather in for SCA combat and I don't want to make anything that's going to soften in the sun

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I just go to a candle making shop and just buy the highest melting point they have. Never read anything or written anything down. They just hand it to me.

[@Wyi-the-rogue]

How could we harden this? make it arrow-proof, perhaps?

[@Wyi-the-rogue]

For totally normal reasons, of couse. Totallly normal.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Arrow proof pretty impossible. The right arrows can punch through steel.

[@lisahodges8299]

Big loud laughs. Birdy

[@krislight2383]

What thicknes of leather are you using for SCA?

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

Depends on the area. 12 to 16 or so

[@vitor8782]

up

[@hollyingraham3980]

Post or post not. This whole premiere schtick is just annoying.

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

As a creator there's things I like to do, one of them is engage with the people that watch my videos. Premiere's enable me to do that. Just a heads up, if you wander away for 15 minutes, the video will still be here.

[@gollumsstupidfathobbit6354]

I know sizes vary, but should 1 side be enough? The leather shop I'm looking at says one side is typically 18-24 square feet. Not used to looking at leather patterns so I'm having a hard time visualizing

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

1 side for chest front and back is plenty.

[@gollumsstupidfathobbit6354]

@@DarkHorseWorkshop thank you so much!!

[@Johnny2tapp]

Can I order a suit of armor from you

[@DarkHorseWorkshop]

I've kind of priced myself out of making full suits of armor for people, but I'd never say it's impossible. You can contact me here: [e-mail]