Newbie Shield WIP

[Emmet]

I'm working on my first shield and wanted to log what I was doing. (Plus if it is online I have to actually do some work on it or look like a chump )
Still to do;
Leather rim,
Glue twine on handle for comfort,
Boss.

The 2 ravens need a bit of a touch up and are clearly inspired by the Raven Banner.
There are 2 to represent Huginn and Muninn.
Anyone got any shield making tips to share?

[Nerva]

Salve Emmet!

Looks like you're doing a great job, do you plan to use the shield for combat? If so you may want to consider using rawhide rather than leather for the edging. Rawhide is a little tougher and cheaper than many leathers. Also [if using it for combat] you may consider running 10mm diameter rope around the circumference secured by tacks before putting on the leather or rawhide, adds a bit of durability to the edging.

Vale,

Martin.

[Emmet]

Heill Nerva,

Thanks, yeah it is going to be a combat shield. Some of the lads had used rawhide from dog chews and reckoned it left jagged cracks. Is there a better source of rawhide that works better than dog chews? I have some leather based on this advice and I think impatience will force me to use that for this shield, rather than waiting to find better rawhide. I plan on making more shields until my back garden fence looks like the side of a Drakkar.
The rope around the rim sounds like a great idea, I'll add that to this one. Thanks.
I'm away for the weekend so will probably edge it Tuesday, if anyone else has some tips before then, feel free to chip in

[Billy]

Dog chew rawhide works well enough if you get the longest pieces you can, and make sure they overlap sufficiently, as they shrink incredibly as they dry. Also, I would advise tacking on the rawhide with a few nails, and then drilling and stitching on the rawhide, and removing the tacks afterwards. It's more work, but it is a fantastic result, and you don't have loose nails falling under people's feet in a combat situation.

[Ambiorix apsealgair]

I use rawhide and it works much better for protecting the shield then the leather. I have one shield thats 6years and never need replacing of the rawhide, If I use leather it needs constant replacing. Also great minds think alike on the shield design :p

[Nerva]

@ Alex, is that Graig?

[brendan]

hadn't heard of the rope idea before but it does make sense
On the dog chews... NEVER EVER use smokey bacon flavoured dog chews. No more needs to be said.

Heavy use of PVA and fabric front and back makes it very strong. looks like you have fabric front but the back is not visible...it also takes away the plywood look

[Emmet]

Right the rope has been added around the rim and I am most of the way done with the leather rim. Like everything else medieval it takes longer than I thought and is a good reminder that while the middle ages are a nice place to visit, I wouldn't want to live there. Got interrupted by training. The shield boss is due to be dispatched on the 15th, so everything should be done and dusted in time for flags. Which, incidentally is what we were training for. Spear drills to try and make sure us newbies in the group aren't a danger to others when we go down. I think Waterford are sending about 10-12 to flags.
So after all that work, the shield will probably just be hanging on my back as a nice decoration until I earn some more xp.

@Ambiorix
Yeah, nice design buddy.

@brendan
Surely the berserks would prefer the smokey bacon ones?
The front of the shield has 2 layers of fabric and PVA. The layers are offset by @45 degrees. The back is just painted to remove the plywood look and to waterproof it.

Thanks for the advice/comments guys.