Bandwarden Hand Forged Steel Manica Arm Guard and Flared Bracer Set | 18 Gauge Articulated Bands | Brass Rivets and Russet Leather | Reenactment Gift | RK-1517

Two arm defences built as one set. The first is a manica, a sleeve of overlapping steel bands riveted to internal leather straps so it wraps the forearm and elbow and still bends with the joint. The second is a flared plate bracer with a roped border rolled along the top edge, a cut knotwork panel on the face, brass rivets down the sides and russet leather backing and lacing. Both are polished bright, both are built to a stated arm measurement, and together they cover the whole length from wrist to above the elbow.

The manica had a bad reputation among historians for a long time. It was assumed to be arena equipment, something a gladiator wore and a soldier did not, mostly because that is where the sculpture showed it. Then in 2001 a near complete example came out of the ground at Carlisle in the north of England, iron and brass plates from a Roman fort rather than an amphitheatre, and it settled an argument that had run for a century. Combined with the arm guards visible on the Adamklissi monument, it is now clear this was frontline military kit for troops who expected to meet a weapon that came down rather than across. Both pieces here were cut, formed, riveted and engraved in our Memphis workshop. The stone bench and the rolled leather in the photograph are studio props.

Specifications

How a segmented arm guard bends when solid plate cannot

An arm is the hardest thing on a body to armour. It has to fold to well past a right angle, rotate almost half a turn at the forearm, and still be covered while it does both. A single tube of steel can do none of that. The manica solves it with lames, narrow bands that each overlap the one below and are riveted not to each other but to leather straps running up the inside.

The leathers are the hinge. Because the rivets pass through slots or through the leather rather than pinning band to band, each lame can slide a small distance against its neighbour, and twenty small movements add up to an elbow that closes fully. The overlap always runs downward toward the hand on the outer face, so a cut travelling down the arm skates over the laps rather than catching a plate edge and stopping.

The bracer works on a different principle. It is one piece, so it cannot articulate, and instead it is shaped. The flare at the top is not a style choice, it is clearance for the elbow, and the roped edge rolled along that rim does two jobs at once. It stiffens the mouth of the plate so it cannot be bent open, and it removes the raw edge that would otherwise cut into your sleeve and your skin. Every rolled or roped edge on a piece of armour is doing that same double duty.

Steel, gauge and fittings

Both pieces are mild steel at 18 gauge, which is roughly 1.2 mm. That is display and light reenactment weight. It holds shape, takes a knock and looks and sounds correct, and it is not certified armour and not rated for full contact steel combat. Buhurt and heavy list leagues publish their own minimum gauges and impact rules for limb armour, and you should buy to those rules if that is your sport.

The rivets are solid brass rather than plated steel, so they mellow rather than flake. The straps and the bracer backing are russet vegetable tanned leather, which firms up as it ages and takes the shape of the arm it lives on. Buckles are steel. There is no welding in either piece, everything is riveted, which means everything is repairable with hand tools.

Engraving, runes and your own design

Use the rune converter on this page to turn a name, a date or a short phrase into Elder Futhark and we will cut it into the steel or the leather. If you would rather have a Viking pattern than a rune line, choose your own design in the engraving option above the add to cart button and tell us where it goes. Where a piece already carries an engraved design, your chosen engraving replaces it rather than sitting alongside it. On this set the bracer face is the obvious canvas and it already carries knotwork, and a short rune line reads well along the topmost lame of the manica. See the engraving page for cut samples at this scale.

Fit and sizing

Send three measurements. Forearm circumference at the widest point, bicep circumference just above the elbow, and the length from the wrist bone to about two inches above the elbow point. Measure over the sleeve or padded arming garment you intend to wear, not over a bare arm, because a padded sleeve is worth close to an inch of circumference.

Arm armour is more sensitive to length than to girth, since the straps can take up girth and nothing can take up a manica that ends short of the elbow. If you are between sizes, we build to the larger and shorten the strap runs. Left arm and right arm are not interchangeable on the bracer because of the flare, so tell us which arm you want it for, and say so if you are buying it for a shield arm rather than a weapon arm.

Care

Bright steel is the whole surface here, so it wants a routine. Wipe both pieces down after wearing, because sweat runs to the inside of an arm defence and sits under the leather where you will not see it until it has bloomed. Keep a thin oil film on the inside and outside faces. Feed the straps twice a year with a neutral dressing so the leather does not crack at the rivet holes, and check the rivets at the same time. Store the manica laid out flat or hung by its top strap rather than crushed in a box, since the lames take a set if they are squashed for months. Brass takes any metal polish. The routine on steel care is exactly right for these.

Forged in Memphis

Every lame was cut, rolled, drilled and riveted in our shop in Memphis, Tennessee, and the knotwork on the bracer was cut on our bench. This is not an importer catalogue piece with our sticker on it. That is why the lifetime warranty against defects in forming, riveting and fittings has no end date and needs no receipt.

A note on handmade variation

This is hand made, not machine made or bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Lame count changes slightly with arm length, the roped edge is worked by hand so its rhythm is never identical, and leather grain and tone vary from hide to hide. The dimensions, the material and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Do I get both pieces

Yes. The listing is the set as photographed, one articulated manica and one flared bracer. If you want a matched pair for both arms, say so before you order and we will quote the second set.

Which arm does it fit

Tell us. The manica can be built for either side and the bracer flare is handed, so we make it to the arm you name. Most buyers put the manica on the weapon arm and the bracer on the shield arm.

Can I fight in this

Light contact, LARP, stage and display, yes. Full contact steel combat, no. It is 18 gauge display and light reenactment weight with no impact certification, and heavy leagues set their own standards for limb protection.

Does the elbow fully close

Yes. The lames slide on their internal leathers so the manica folds past a right angle and you can bring your hand to your shoulder while it is strapped on.

What do I wear underneath

A padded sleeve or a gambeson with sleeves. Steel bands directly on skin will pinch at the laps when the arm closes, and the padding is also what stops the straps needing to be over tightened.

How long does it take to make

One to two weeks of processing because every set is built to your arm measurements, then free shipping inside the United States.

What is in the box

• One articulated steel manica arm guard on internal leather straps
• One flared plate bracer with a roped edge and engraved knotwork
• Russet leather straps, backing and lacing, fitted
• Brass rivets and steel buckles throughout
• Care and fitting sheet
• Lifetime warranty against defects in forming, riveting and fittings
• Forged and finished in Memphis, Tennessee

Explore the range

See more in plate armor, viking armor, leather armor and roman and greek helmets, or read the guides on measuring for arm armour.