Making Tongs

 As part of making my forge I had to make a set of tongs. I decided to make a very basic set of round stock tongs for my first time. Because my propane forge is made of an old air compressor tank, I added extra length to the handle to make it easier to pull out pieces, and I can hold it closer for better control.

I started by pounding the end of the rebar flat; then I curved it into a semicircle. Then, about an inch away from that, I pounded it flat at the opposite angle. To cause the pieces to fit together, I bent each end slightly.  To make the joint, I drilled a hole in each piece and slid a nail through. I heated up the nail and pounded it flat. The tongs are done. 

World War 2 Movie - Costumes & Props

Check out the special features section to see how I made all of the costumes for this movie.  I also designed and created all of the props....the Howitzer was my favorite!  And I did the special effects (with the limited stuff my mom would let me use).

Training Kopis, Khopesh, and Xiphos

Unlike most of the weapons I've made so far these are made for actual combat. They are made to fight with and not get as torn up, but they might take slight dings here and there, which gives it a more authentic look.

 Start with a basic outline of your sword. This is where you want to make adjustments. Don't worry about the guards, these can be added later.

 Then, reinforce it with the wide popsicle sticks. After that, put an exact copy of the first cut out over the other one so that they line up.

 Secure it so the sticks won't move around; then secure it all the way around so that there are no openings.

Now cover it all the way...    This is where you add the hilt if you want to paint it use masking tape.

You can do this on any sword, but this works best for curved blades.  

 Here, I just wanted to show you the difference between my prop and battle khopesh.

Medieval Movie

based on MONTY PYTHONS HOLY GRAIL
and GEORGE of the JUNGLE

Medieval Shields

This is my shield, I used a black background with a silver out line. I spray painted the eagle on.

   

As I was running out of ideas for my project, I decided to get an idea from one of my favorite toys.

 

I started out by taping two pieces of cardboard together. Then, I coated it in fiberglass. For the painting, I made a base coat of light tan, and then checkered it with tan-yellow. I used a dark green for the dragon, then outlined everything.

This is the third and final shield. The colors are white and silver with a gold crown. I gave this shield a more classic design for the knight in shinning armor.

Ancient Battles - Movie

We used all of my Greek and Roman armor, and put it all together to make a fun short video right before Thanksgiving break.  Our friends came over and we had a lot of fun!  It was really cold and windy, but we only lost one shield.  And then we got hot pizza for lunch!

Here are the special features, where I tell about the armor used and all of the actors talk about how we made the film.  The special features film is always the best part of movie day!

Here is the video itself.

Imagine a historical figure is brought back to life. Who is it? What's their favorite mobile app?

Ictinus was a Greek architect during the golden age of Athens.  He and Callicrates were the main architects of the Athenian acropolis, more specifically the Parthenon. Ictinus was also the architect of the temple to Apollo at Bassae, one of the first structures to use the Corinthian column. The building was commissioned by Pericles, a prominent statesman and general during the golden age of Athens, who wanted a grand temple for their patron goddess, Athena. It is said he himself turned the Delian League into the Athenian Empire. 

When designing a building, whether to a god or any normal person, one would like to know what your building looks like before you spend hours of labor building the structure only to find it in a shape you don’t like. You could draw it out to see, but that only shows a two-dimensional shape. You could make a scale model, but that is time consuming and you can’t walk into a model. So a 3D design program would be Ictinus' favorite architectural app. Graphisoft has created a 3-Dimensional Architecture program called BIMx. BIMx allows an architect to create an entire building and view it inside and out in the first person, allowing an architect to make minor changes quickly and view the finished product before it’s ever built. I’m sure both Ictinus and Callicrates would have greatly appreciated this when they designed the Parthenon!

Ancient Roman Costume & Weaponry Updated

This is the new and improved version of legionare armor

These are the individual pieces 

• helmet 
• breast plate
• shield 
• spear
• centurion underamor  

The Scutum is a shield that was used by the centurions in Ancient Rome and was made to protect the whole body. 

This is centurion submaralis or underarmor which was used to protect your body from the armor and your upper legs.

Above is a tunic which was the most common clothing at the time it was worn under the armor.