Issue 44

This issue was a true surprise. Although the work did match what I was expecting, the process was quite the opposite. When I completed the left sleeve in issue 34 I had so much difficulty with threading the leather cord through the holes in the armoured plates.

However, for this issue the instructions included one tiny change: rather than cutting the cord square, it's cut on an angle. This apparently minor alteration had a major effect on the work. It was much easier to thread the cord through the holes because the the thin edge could fit in the narrow gap much easier, and once it was about halfway in I could grab it with my pliers and pull the rest through. This greatly cut the time need to make this part.

The rest of the steps to finish this issue were not overly complex. I once again made two 'knots' in the cord on the back of the hand guard that are actually just twisted and held in place with glue. Once I finished the removable joint section at the top I closed the sleeve by gluing the backing down and then stitching it shut. To finish the issue I attached the other half of the removable joints to the main body of the armour.

In the next few issues I'll continue to work on the thigh guards and soon I'll start the shin guards.