Mystery Armor-Making Tools Identified!

Since Adam's last visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Arms and Armor conservation lab, SO many of the mysterious tools in their massive collection have been organized, researched and identified. And it's all thanks to former intern Jennifer Kim, who even figured out the one piece that baffled hammer aficionado Adam, not to mention armorers and historians for decades!
Adam Savage Baffled by Obscure Armor-Making Tools: • Adam Savage Baffled by...
The MET's Arms and Armor Department: www.metmuseum.org/about-the-m...
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[@tested]

The MET's Arms and Armor Department: www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/collection-areas/arms-and-armor Adam Savage Baffled by Obscure Armor-Making Tools: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHeZZWaOitZ9Y9E

[@Sanyaenyenwa]

Jennifer bringing out the small dancing leg calipers and going "I made that. Just for fun. It's not well made at all. It was a joke." must be one of the best humblebrags I've heard in a while. Those look beautiful!

[@tested]

Right?!

[@kalieris]

When Adam Savage looks at something you made and says “duuuuuuuude….”, that’s a good day IMO.

[@kyrab7914]

I think she might've been embarrassed? Like she's doing an internship now, I'm 28 and watched mythbusters as a kid, so I can def imagine being like "omg it's Adam Savage omg ohh no, it's nothing special 😅" Honestly tho, girl's got mad skills. Organizing, research, metalworking, *French*

[@wendymontie5660]

This vid ticks all the boxes: history, conservation, behind-the-scenes-at-a-museum, metalworking, tools, armor, and Adam Savage! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@gsltbjoe929]

Reverse the order of those and I'm in😂

[@raidengl]

It's missing one thing. Ben Stiller.

[@paulkinzer7661]

Holy cow! Ms. Kim strikes me as one of those people who is blessed with an absolutely encyclopedic mind. It's very clear that she knows so much more about so much more than was revealed here, and that she has the added ability to have instant cross-referencing at her mind's fingertips. I hope -- ans assume -- that the museum know what they've gotten in her.

[@fabycho6791]

I don't think she really knows anything, to be honest she looks like an unqualified diversity hire 🤔

[@michaelnewell9662]

it a appears being fluent in French is another key talent

[@cecilbigman4250]

She's an intern who speaks some French. Calm down.

[@paulkinzer7661]

@@cecilbigman4250 Did you pay any attention to what she said? Whether in french or english? Do you make a regular practice of figuring things out -- as an intern who speaks 'some' french -- that museum experts hadn't done? Sheesh.

[@KCreep]

It's pretty obvious that the editing crew needed to cut around her talking circles around Adam.

[@donaldneill4419]

Pretty funny to see Adam's reaction as his bucket list visibly expands the moment she mentions "a tool museum in France".

[@ambulocetusnatans]

I wouldn't be surprised if he's planning a trip right now. I hope he takes the film crew.

[@michaelnewell9662]

Troyes is an amazing place to visit

[@slktool]

I may never get to see it myself in person but I would love to spend hours at the museum with Adam going there on TESTED. ROAD TRIP! C'MON PATREON! SEND OUR MAN TO FRANCE!

[@garyowen9044]

I noticed that too!

[@hunterpatterson8358]

My wife and I know Jennifer IRL. She made us our wedding rings. They’re as awesome as you imagine! Go Jennifer!!

[@cholulahotsauce6166]

Oh that's cool!

[@NitaKerns]

For not being an armorer, Jennifer sure knows all about it!! And her French is so lovely! 😊

[@samesong]

WHAT A INTERN!!! 😮 I bow my head to the level of dedication. 🙏

[@anonymes2884]

Very cool to see the historical research "in process" as described by the person actually doing it. (and I can't fathom the skill required to drive a rivet through from the other side of a sheet using one of those "holey hammers" - that's bordering on Jedi level metalworking)

[@michaelrumsey7932]

I know a really good carpenter who can draw an X on a piece of wood and go through it from the other side, even that is some Wizard shit but doing it 1 shot with a HAMMER is wild

[@AmpHibious]

I love how Adam gasped after finding out she made those leg calipers, the joy he gets from seeing peoples creations is contagious.

[@LarryKidkil]

10 hour extended cut please. Thank you to the intern for her incredible work!

[@GardenGuy1943]

She only knows a little English and uses photoshop. This isn’t impressive, calm down

[@Joe___R]

The hammers that have slightly convex faces are that way to make it less likely to leave hammer marks in the piece you are working on. Modern auto body hammers are made the same way still today. What that museum really should do is get some very skilled old auto body guys to check out the collection. They could likely help them figure out a likely use for any of the tools that they don't fully understand yet.

[@TobiasTurkelton]

That's a really good idea!!

[@hisownsidekick]

This work is so, so impressive. And it'll help tons of people in the future, both caretakers and museum-goers. Jennifer deserves to be very proud.

[@86fifty]

Yaaay, Jen, Jen, Jen, JEN! Great JOOOOB! She deserves all the shout-outs and LOTS of money and I'm SO glad she gets to have this video to her name as well as part of her resume!! Wishing her ALL the best, she's done SUCH amazing work here!

[@tested]

She is AMAZING

[@toriwilson6961]

Kudos to her for her bravery in being able to say "I'm still working on this". Especially as an intern.

[@user-neo71665]

I'd like to say thank you Jennifer for jumping down that rabbit hole. I'm sure you regret it but boy it can be fun looking up and researching old tools. I done something similar years ago when I got a bunch of my grandpa's tools. That was before the internet and finding resources was way harder. Craftsman back then wanted to keep their "trade secrets" so they didn't really share.

[@Earthenfist]

So the two-sided planishing hammers, with the slightly convex and flat sides, are still used. They're basically two stages of planishing, or two types The convex side is the initial pass, to move more metal and even things out. It gives a peaky finish, and then the flat side can hammer those peaks down flat. But the round side lets you just make a nice regular surface and is less likely to give nicks, along with doing the initial polish, which makes the flat planishing a lot easier.

[@jabbertwardy]

Looks like they got the right person for the job! She's a maker, linguist, and lexicographer. I love how she could decipher the original armorer's French notes and correct subsequent mistranslations/misreadings. Her research turned up other tools with the same markings, as well as a valuable resource in a French museum of tools! I hope to see another video on the progress! Who knows, they might find the Ark down in that basement 😂

[@GardenGuy1943]

She’s only an intern. Calm down.

[@JohnSmith-xs4sx]

she's done a fantastic job and obviously did a deep dive into the research ....some of it in French no less (!) ....AND made some nice leg calipers....she's a keeper :)

[@antivanti]

Fascinating transition area between when things go from just being tools to also becoming historical objects

[@stevenbaker2175]

It is a joy to watch someone so enthusiastic about her work! I guess that might be the appeal of this channel, really.

[@jamesbeale4451]

Your genuine child-like excitement for learning and enthusiasm for making never ceases to inspire. I share your love of old tools. In fact, I recently acquired and restored a draw knife (spoke shave) with a bone wear plate for my own useable tool collection.

[@kyrab7914]

Honestly really cool to be able to go through history this way, learning how tools are made and used and passed down. I'm blown away by Jennifer's just... Sheer skills? We got French, we got research, we got acquisition, we got metalworking- and I'm sure more, super impressive. I'm also here for Ted, Sean, and Adam just fully being the cool uncles teaching her stuff, taking her down to tunnels to excavate old tools, and marveling at and learning from her work.

[@chrisbutterfield8743]

She might want to reach out to people that did old school autobody, specifically the ones that formed actual body panels etc as they still use some similar tools...though mostly are now dies for motorized tools, but they might be able to help with usage or context.

[@movingforwardLDTH]

How cool that the Met allowed the *intern* to present her findings to Adam herself … !

[@beermeneer]

as a student silversmith its quite interesting to see that most of these tools are bigger versions of tools that i use, we also have those flat and slightly convex sided hammers (be it slightly smaller) and use them extensively. i got taught that the slightly convex side is ment for pre planishing out the damages of your earlier tools (be that a raising hammer or otherwise). then the flat side would be used to get the final planish

[@michaelrumsey7932]

Jennifer is who we all dream of being at our internships.... AMAZING work

[@Nobody-hc2bo]

I could listen to her all day, this is super fascinating

[@tested]

She’s amazing, right?!

[@keithrosenberg5486]

I love the sign hanging in the armor lab. "Love your enemy but keep your gun oiled"

[@NormReitzel]

I'm old enough (71) that I remember when river-harvested ice was delivered to our house in a sawdust-filled cart that was (of courser) horse-=drawn. (Rural Pennsylvania). It was my job as a kid to move the giant ice cube to the ice compartment of the ice box, cleaning out the river gunk that was left behind from the last block. Great explanation for benefit of a mundane.

[@Babarudra]

Very cool. As always a great video, but it's always a thrill to see museum and museum behind-the-scenes being showcased. As someone who has worked in museums, I love when the general public gets to see a bit behind the curtain. Most folks think of museum staff as curators and security guards, and that's it. But the registrars, archivists, exhibits dept, handlers, etc are the unseen stars of the show(s).

[@michaelrumsey7932]

As someone who worked in museums do you know if there is any way for the general public to get little peeps behind the curtain. Obviously not this personal with the rare 200 yo objects but even a little taste would be an amazing experience.

[@Babarudra]

@@michaelrumsey7932 as a general rule the public don't get access to the storage spaces/vaults, but it does depend on the institution. If there is a certain topic you are interested in, and know a museum has objects in the field you are interested in, it would not hurt to ask them. Generally, most museums do have a space set aside for researchers to come in and study objects. But most storage is just rows and rows of shelves with closed boxes.

[@jayc9857]

I'm with a lot of people commenting that the most impressive and interesting think about this video is Jennifer. All that deep research and referencing being done part time over just a couple months in order to organize these amazing tools.

[@winterlighthome]

Holy wow! Jennifer Kim is fabulous!

[@tested]

We think so too!

[@jwalker2942]

Thank you so much Adam for updating us on the mystery hammer

[@Ice_Karma]

I'm so happy you were able to go back for an update! 😻

[@Shatterpath]

Ms Kim snows her STUFF and is well spoken! I think this peek at the history she's figured out is my favorite installment yet.

[@SierraLimaOscar]

Hi Adam! Long time listener, first time caller here :) Could you please thank Ms. Kim for letting us peek into her collection, work and mind. Such a great video and what a fantastic guest!

[@tested]

We will pass your comment along! Thanks so much for watching and in this case commenting!

[@robadams1645]

Her confidence is amazing. It would be intimidating to talk to Adam in front of a camera. I'd be a stuttering mess.

[@tested]

She told us ahead of time she was a bit nervous, because she doesn’t do a whole lot of public speaking, and then she absolutely blew us away. One of our favorite interviews.

[@glockparaastra]

Her passion and knowledge just took over. Really interesting!

[@kyrab7914]

Just public speak to the Internet and millions of ppl, nbd. I agree tho, warming up to her subject and she absolutely rocked

[@johnkim791]

Ms Kim gives me hope about our future. She’s clearly smart, well spoken, confident and driven. Go next generation!!

[@fraserbuilds]

i love these videos! what talent the met has in people like this

[@tested]

Truly.

[@Bad_Wolf_Media]

"It makes sense, if you're a working artisan, you want your tools organized, because you know exactly what to pull out when you need it." I was waiting for Adam to tell her she was singing his song, only his updated rendition is titled "first-order retrievability."

[@Babarudra]

he's been making a concerted effort not to man-splain, especially when it comes to folks who are experts in what they do.

[@kyrab7914]

​@@Babarudraaww. I think he just gets so excited getting to nerd out with everybody tbh. Like "yes, yes the thing!" 😂

[@Babarudra]

@@kyrab7914 I agree, but some folks have found his enthusiasm to explain, mansplaining. But I do have a feeling that it's more just a nerding thing, gods know I many others I know do it.

[@shubinternet]

There are still some professional architectural blacksmiths, and even some professional blacksmith armorers. I've met some, both in the Blacksmiths Guild of the Potomac (where former president Brad Silberberg has some pieces on permanent display at the Smithsonian), and in the Society for Creative Anachronism. I've worn some of the armor made by people like that. I would love to see a wider collaboration between people like that and the Met. I'm sure that the Met actually talks to experts in the field like this, but that only seems to happen behind the scenes. I'd love to see that on camera.

[@njones420]

Great vid! Love this stuff. Growing-up I had a friend whos father was a panel-beater for a famous british sports car manufacturer from the 70s onward...the best part was he only had one eye, which I always found amazing, and always wanted to ask him about depth-perception with such high-profile work. Obviously it wasn't an issue.

[@nikkipackham2234]

It’s so great to see so many of my tools in a museum. So good to see they are in use too.

[@TAFFY5652]

Man half the battle of finding good metal working hammers is knowing the name for them! I'd love a breakdown with spellings of the hammers from left to right 🤞🤞

[@richardsmith548]

Great vid Adam. You would love Maison de l'Outil in Troyes. I could have have spent 3 days in there; one of the most amazing collections.

[@wadewilsondp07c31]

Fingers crossed that this ends up being a recurring series here! It’s an incredibly interesting subject.

[@robbieward7026]

What a stunning selection! Thanks for continuing to revisit this beautiful collection, I can't get enough of it.

[@ConardCarroll]

Wow! So many great videos of Adam with museums lately. I just can't get enough. I just rewatched the Terry English set and now this, so great. Keep up the great work!!!

[@Games_and_Music]

I am not a maker, or anything close to it, but i think Adam's suggestion about the riveter being hit with a hammer makes more sense. Considering you're literally about to punch a hole in something that took a lot of time/effort to make, i don't think you want to just 'free hand' that specific part. I would think that, and i've seen other commenters about it as well, apparently they call it a "top tool", i think that would make a bit more sense, to keep it stationary and hit it with something heavier. They might've known if they checked what material it is made out of, if it's the hard but brittle kind, then it was not to be hit (hard), because you can shatter them, like Adam was alluding to. Again, i am no expert on any of this, but that was my guess as well, and some commenters added a lot more info about it.

[@johnfreiler6017]

I want to upvote this ten times more. Fascinating stuff!

[@rickj6348]

My grandfather had a lot of old tools like these, but sadly when he sold his farm, he left the tools with the family who bought it. About two years later, the shop burned down and all of those antiques were lost. It is good to see that the MET has so many amazing tools, and that a lot are still used.

[@docschro6847]

This makes me want to travel to the MET for a vacation. I'm not much on museums but this one on particular really interests me

[@mm9773]

Adam: “You have bellows? Oh no way, wow!” Every antiques dealer in the world: “Bellows, no thanks. I have dozens, nobody wants them.”

[@KaydianBladebreaker]

The hammers with the hole in the face may be what we call a 'rivet setter' today. Its for forcing the burr down the shaft of the rivet without smashing the shaft itself.

[@nuvoflo]

One of your best, Adam!

[@seitenryu6844]

If you like nerding out on tools, I'd highly recommend the Takenaka Carpentry Museum in Kobe Japan. There's a dizzying array of everything carpentry.

[@strawberrylemonadelioness]

Oooo, it's always nice to see a guest with Adam!

[@kneesturnedvelvet3725]

Love all the excitement, on all sides, in this video! Fascinating deep dive.

[@jonanderson5137]

I wish the cameraman would have simply mic'd them and started looking through each drawer while they talked.

[@randallyons8745]

that was a thrill and what a job Jennifer has done, hope she will be back again.

[@user-fk8zw5js2p]

You went back and Jennifer has solved some of the mysteries! Tytyty!

[@Budaniel]

Adam needs to make one of those round, ball-like interior riveting hammers; it seems right up his alley

[@z0mb13h0rd3]

Not all things that look like hammers are hammers. Things like chisels, punches, fullers, flatteners, swages, drifts, and such; can all have handles and look amazingly like hammers. Sometimes the chisels and tools with handles are called “sets”. Many of the tools on the racks with long thinner handles may fall into this category as they aren’t meant for swinging. Testing the hardness of the opposing faces could also tell you if one side was meant for work and another side was meant to be struck by a hammer. The side meant to be struck is usually not the same hardness (softer). The riveting set as shown (the one with the hole in it) are often used to tighten the joint and push the sheet metal together at the rivet site where the hole is already punched or drilled. The handle gets the smiths hands away from the work and the smith could then strike the tool with a hammer, but the added length also allows room for a striker (an assistant) to hit the tool with a hammer. In modern blacksmithing, with various mechanical hammers, it moves the smiths hands out of danger there too, to have these various tools on handles. I would be surprised if these were used for punching virgin holes into the metal, the resulting slug would get wedged in the tool. Many of the forming tools with a beveled edge are meant to not imprint a cut, crease, or marks into the work as it shaped. The postillion hammers are still used in body work and the finishing of sheet metal. I’m now interested in the practiced use of the ones without the beveled edges! Lay people with exceptional expertise are less than an hour away from The Met. They could help decode what the manuals are trying to convey with a practical eye. Many of the blacksmiths on KZbin could also provide answers to the various tools uses. It must be amazing to have access to this collection! Thanks for this video, and thanks if anybody bothers to read my comment. Accurate to the best of my knowledge, but I’ve been wrong before.

[@timd7709]

oh man.. all these armoring videos are making me want to get back into armoring...

[@atexc5604]

8:57 I think they are too light for this. IMO they are for setting on leather/washers on rivet. When you have hand made washers they usually have undersized hole to catch properly the rivet. You put the rivet from the outside, then place leather strap on it (for sewing lining etc) then washer and smash - you punch the hole in leather and press the washer on. Then you can flip the hammer and form the rivet head.

[@SAwfulEPM]

Talk about built to last. I've seen veteran co-workers with tool racks that look pretty much like that, just add some twisted wire kludgery to hold stuff.

[@RobbBoswell]

Amazing collection of tools.. 😊🤘🏼🇺🇲

[@SAOS451316]

You can tell Jennifer Kim really loves their job.

[@CollisionPending]

This is awesome. Love to see people passionate about history

[@mysticmarble94]

0:05 That ( flintlock ? ) pistol looks beautiful 🤌

[@timbergel8147]

Totally fascinating, thank you

[@twowheelfan]

I cant love this enough. Thanks

[@TesserId]

16:13 From what I was taught, that is a spoke shave, working more like a plane than a knife.

[@jonanderson5137]

Adam said they had a bone blade in it, so maybe used with an abrasive or to work out minor imperfections in thin sections. It could have been used as a therapeutic tool to help arm muscles recover.

[@slade652]

I love these videos from the met as a armour and and blade smith I learn so much I have to go see this exhibit

[@jamiesuejeffery]

I so much appreciate that organization. I have a doctorate, so my brain is trained in a certain way. I also have a shop with a full woodworking section and a full automobile shop section. My shop is amazingly organized. I'm currently sitting in my amateur radio shack. If you were to ask me to go grab a certain tool, it would only take me the time it takes to walk from my shack, across the kitchen, out into the shop, grab said tool and back where this computer resides in a time span of about 2 minutes (I'm not wearing shoes). Awesome job!

[@914Rocky]

World’s best intern!

[@Seven50ml]

Always use the tools. Repair them if need be but keep using them. That's why they exist, that's what gives them meaning.

[@TheMattwasherein1992]

can you imagien if adam and terry english did a tour of this room and the armour. the history terry with the knowledge and adams amazing knowledge and enthusiasm. awwww amazing!

[@glennmorganfan9411]

These videos catch me on a very deep level of a Faire kid and a maker.

[@DarkInfinity2814]

Man I love watching you Adam, Please don't ever give up making things just so inspirational these vid's are amazing 👍

[@jamesbizs]

Lol what else would he do? He is never going to stop

[@DarkInfinity2814]

@@jamesbizs Good 😉 been watching since mythbusters

[@cavalaxis]

Jennifer, you have the COOLEST job.

[@pixiniarts]

I bought a hammer just for the handle it's probably Victorian and the handle looks more like a truncheon or a priest, it's wonderfully grippy. Loved this one! Thanks!🙏

[@ToddTevlin]

Love this!

[@TylerDollarhide]

Imagine 100 years from now when current museum curating labs will be their own museum. A museum on past curating and preservation techniques.

[@8BitZ0mbie]

Who doesn’t love the perfect tool for the job? It’s a beautiful thing

[@michaelmcbride809]

Wonderful! You really are like a kid in a candy shop there.

[@marcisaacs9407]

Thank you so much

[@smartgorilla]

amazing french skills and knowledge

[@user-ti9vh3je9x]

I have done a great deal of research on different metalworking techniques over the years, and I am an armourer. I believe the Fleur-de-lis block mentioned at 13:30 would most probably have had a sheet of soft annealed metal placed over it with a lead block on top. This would then have been placed in a press, or hammered, to force the metal sheet into the form. A similar technique called Pressblech was used by Anglo-Saxons to create the decorative plates for their helmets.

[@alwaysfallingshort]

My favorite part of Adam Savage's comments section is that it's one of the few comments sections where someone might actually have first hand niche knowledge, but all of the comments are deferring and hailing the knowledge of the expert on screen instead of trying to correct and one-up them.

[@alwaysfallingshort]

People who know add to the story instead of challenging. And it's been that way for almost 10 years.

[@tested]

@@alwaysfallingshort You're right, and we are also VERY grateful to our supportive community.

[@clivemacken552]

I know that hammer my great grandfather who would have been someone that was taught this earlier than this gentleman in Ireland not sure where his trading and apprenticeship was as died in late eighty hundreds. That would be used by a wheel Wright who repairs the wheels of the coaches those hammer’s are use to re distribute the steel rim if damaged etc he was buried in balentubber abbey

[@WanderingLostMC]

So... I've got a hammer head in my shop, that bears a J.B. Mark as well. Much newer looking than the one in the Met Collection. I got it in a bucket of hammer heads. Though it is a different form, more of a "embossing" hammer to use silversmithing terms though far heavier than a silversmiths. In my own reasearch on it I found a maker called Jean Baptiste Descreux who was producing cobbler's hammers at least in the 19th century, which would mesh with the timing of the Met's hammer at least. Not so sure on my own though it has a similar diamond shaping around the eye of the head.

[@StoutHammerForge]

As a blacksmith (certainly no master) and someone who's done a bit of armoring and been reading about this since i was in the single digits this is such an amazing video and i would love to come see this collection sometime

[@TheManLab7]

I've done a bit of metel work at college and at home (which I loved), but the only tools that have holes in them are either setting tool, a hammer or anything else that's got a hole in is only used for one thing n that's rivetting to my knowledge. But I'm guessing yous already knew that and your just explaining it to the audience I'm guessing? I really enjoy doing metal work and making stuff from bits out of metal 😊 I've made tools, a couple boxes, a paint tin/kettle (which my grandad loved n used but unfortunately, the college wanted it back to see if it was water tight which it definitely ended up being because it's been used for its intended purpose). When I made everything, nothings signed off until one of the teacher checks the dimensions and makes sure it's water tight. One of the teachers asked me to make another metal box but longer so we could do some oil quenching and that teacher. He also showed me how to braze it instead of soldering, like we've done with all the others. They showed all of us how to stick weld n had to make bits n do acid tests but I also learnt how to TIG when there wasn't classes and go in when I didn't have any classes. I also used a spot welder to fix a kitchen roll holder for my mum which she still uses to this day and that was in 2015 I think 🤔 They also showed us how to use a mill n a lathe but as you can guess. I went in there to fix, alter, and make my own bits from scratch. It's such a pain in the arse that I don't have enough money to build a tiny workshop in my postage size stamp of a garden n stick some machines in there. I'd love a free standing lathe with a quick change gearbox, powerfeed & DRO on X & Y. I'd also like the biggest mill that's not free standing (because I don't have the room) n that definately needs powerfeed and a 3 Axe DRO. I'd also like a HF AC/DC TIG that goes from 5A to over 200A, with pulse and a handful of sine waves. So building a tiny workshop, sticking some machine's in there and getting all the tooling (which is the expensive bit), your looking around the £20k mark and I haven't even got 1% of that.

[@sethcarson5212]

Anyone else want a follow-up ODB where she comes back and they make a pair of legs?

[@lorawaring883]

Wow. Great job, Jennifer!

[@tested]

Right?!

[@roryoutdoors5431]

Doo do do do... di doo di doo Hammertime! Wow THAT is some first order retrievability! Awesome!

[@davidwarren9204]

They might get some idea of these tools' potential uses from a guy named Ron Covell. He is not an armorer, but is very famous in the custom car world for his ability to craft sheet metal into amazing hotrods etc. As a guy who has spent his whole life moving sheetmetal, he might be able to see stuff we mere mortals cannot...

[@bubbasplants189]

For the hammer with the hole, i'd imagine they create some kind of jig to line up the hammer tips or start the rivet with the poking tool to line it up before finishing.