Cold workable steel for mittens?

Jens Schuetz

Jens Schuetz

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Jun 24, 2013
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Is there an easy to shape steel which doesn't need much equipment and is still strong?

I'm looking to make myself a pair of sword mittens. Currently there isn't anything safe and in my size. Even the new Koning gloves aren't really good.

My idea is take a pair of flexible sparring gloves and losely stitch a rigid shell to the backhand also covering the four fingers and another one for the thumb.

I got everything for stock removal. Angle grinder, wheel grinder and belt grinders, even a metal shear. Also got a few hammers but no forge!

Therefore I'm looking for a sheet steel which I can cold hammer into shape arround a wooden template and without any need for a forge and which doesn't have to be heat treated and will still be reasonably strong against focused impacts.
If that kind of steel doesn't exist I might just shape some Kydex I have though I've no clue how it performs when impacted by a blunt sword. Maybe some other plastic could be better?

Thank you.
:-)
 
If you wish to form the steel, you will need some way to heat the steel. As far as I know all steels will work-harden (become ridged and brittle as you form it). If you wish to cold work it, you will need a way to anneal it. A simple campfire or small torch would suffice, though hot working would be ideal.
Some sort of thermo plastic would be much easier to form, but since I do almost no work with them, I can't advise on its durability.


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I use 16ga 304 stainless in my armor. Works fine. It isn't as easy to form as the same thickness of mild steel, but makes stronger armor in my opinion, and is WAY more user friendly maintenance wise.
 
elementfe said:
Copper is a lot more malleable for that kind of work, isn't it?
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Too malleable. Copper's not really going to offer enough protection for any kind of combat/sparring equipment in usable thicknesses. And it work hardens like a sonofabitch. And it's expensive ;)
 
Thanks guys for all the great suggestions and input. You rock. I mean it's a knife forum but there's so much knowledge here beyond that, it's amazing.
I'll look into 1018 and 304. Stainless is probably best. I don't mind maintaining steel but the way I envision it I'll be only able to keep polishing it on top but not be able to do anything much underneath and that's where the sweat will end up.
I'll make sure to post whatever creation I end up with though it might take arround 3 months due to travels.
Thanks again!!!!!
 
304 SST is hard to work with. It's resistant to bending and springs back. It's also hard to punch, saw, machine etc... That said, it's much stronger than CRS or HRS and is EXTREMELY corrosion resistant.
 
Jens-
What is the end use? I assume you're part of some sort of organized recreation or training group, and they will almost certainly have their own rules as to to what degree of protection is required for your hands. If you have limited metalworking tools I would also recommend 16 gauge 1018 CRS as a starting point. You'll want to make some sort of dishing block/bowl to form the steel into. "Easy" ways you can make that would be by carving a hollow into a stump, casting a lead slug, or using a large leather sand bag.
As you mentioned thick Kydex is popular for making fighting gear out of because it's easy to work, but can get brittle in extreme cold. It is however a fantastic medium to use for checking you patterns out before you try forming them in steel. 1/16" Kydex is cheap, and can be cut out and formed into very similar shapes as the 16 gauge steel to give you an idea if your patterns will work out. Another good tip is to use small nuts and bolts to mock up your rivets if you're going to do articulation. That way you can pull the pieces apart to adjust them if they don't quite line up the way you need them to.
 
MKarish said:
Jens-
What is the end use? I assume you're part of some sort of organized recreation or training group, and they will almost certainly have their own rules as to to what degree of protection is required for your hands. If you have limited metalworking tools I would also recommend 16 gauge 1018 CRS as a starting point. You'll want to make some sort of dishing block/bowl to form the steel into. "Easy" ways you can make that would be by carving a hollow into a stump, casting a lead slug, or using a large leather sand bag.
As you mentioned thick Kydex is popular for making fighting gear out of because it's easy to work, but can get brittle in extreme cold. It is however a fantastic medium to use for checking you patterns out before you try forming them in steel. 1/16" Kydex is cheap, and can be cut out and formed into very similar shapes as the 16 gauge steel to give you an idea if your patterns will work out. Another good tip is to use small nuts and bolts to mock up your rivets if you're going to do articulation. That way you can pull the pieces apart to adjust them if they don't quite line up the way you need them to.
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Yes, how did you guess :-) I joined a group which does mostly long sword fighting though some work with rapiers and pole weapons on occasion. Some are into reenacting outside the classes but most are there for the training.
There are a few rules like wear a mask, fencing jacket and gloves for training but no specifics on what exactly. Things like shin guards arm guards and cups are strongly encouraged but not required. Outch. Some wear Lacrosse gloves but they don't even protect the finger tips. People are aware it's not ideal and wouldn't let you wear this for a tournament but at least it allows everybody to get some training, at their own risk.
For a tournament as far as I know there arent many official standards. They look at the equipment individually and decide case by case if it's sufficient or not. The responsibility for a person's safety lies mostly with that person. Since I'm a bit paranoid and existing gloves are either flexible or safe or the right size but never all 3 together I decided to make my own. At least in theory the shell (maybe segmented) should cover my hand exactly and its sides be flush with the handle so that any force gets transfered this way and not through my fingers.

I like the idea of testing out shapes with Kydex before moving on to steel.
Also I didn't think of making a negative shape like a bowl and hammer it into it. I would have made a positive shape and hammered the steel over it. I might try both unless you tell me the bowl just makes much more sense.
Leather sand bag sounds intriguing I might just try to find a video on it to see how much it holds a shape when being hammered on.

Nuts and bolts for testing that will safe lots of time! Will even use wing nuts.

Thanks again, I appreciate your and everybodies help. It makes me feel much more ready and I can't wait to get started.
:-)
 
The amount of copper you'd need for this wouldn't cost much- work hardening isn't an issue, since it's so easy to soften when that happens. If it's not hard enough, you need a thicker gauge.
I guess I tend to think of metalwork in terms of a balance between cost and time- if one option looks like a tremendous amount more work, I'll always spend a bit more up front, since my time has been money (in metal work) for a long time.
304 stainless is kind of horrible to work with....if you can find 1018 (cold roll) in sheet, that would be pretty nice, but be aware that it's not annealed when you get it- you'll need to soften it if you're going to form it.
It comes rolled, and the rolling process work hardens it.
 
I've done quite a bit of cold work with 304 SS, and I have never found it to be that bad to work. More difficult than equivalent 1018? Yep, but it'll yield to the hammer if you're patient with it. And it's precisely its resistance to bending and deforming that makes it such good armor steel to begin with ;)
 
On the Armour Archive that Metalhead linked, look for a guy named Halberds. 15-20 years ago he started selling a beginners armour making kit for a great price, and I think he still makes the kits.
 
aarongb said:
On the Armour Archive that Metalhead linked, look for a guy named Halberds. 15-20 years ago he started selling a beginners armour making kit for a great price, and I think he still makes the kits.
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Ron's a great guy, and he's still selling those kits. Quite reasonable too.
 
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