I have been searching the web for a British company which (at least in the mid 80s and early 90s) produced fiberglass casts of armor in the Leeds/Tower of London collections.

These casts were metal plated to give a more authentic "look". Of course, the pieces are worthless as armor, but invaluable as learning tools. Casts available included a complete Henry VIII’s foot tourney harness, the Pembridge great helm, a 14th C. houndskull/bascinet , several codpieces (!), etc.

John Vernier had a brochure/catalog, but all the contact information is out of date, and my web searches have not proved successful. Does anyone know what happened to this company? Is anyone else manufacturing fiberglass casts of historical pieces?

Any information is appreciated

Regards

Fibreglass or resin? If the later, I think I've seen some of their stuff, like the codpiece of Henry VIII's armour, plus some small-scale solid helmets (bascinet, visored sallet, great helm).

I think they actually retail it from (among other places) the gift shop at the armouries in Leeds. I'm up there within the next few weeks, so if that sounds like what you are looking for, I can try to find out the manufacturer

The replica castings are from a company called "Excalibur Reproductions", though I haven't seen any info on them for quite some time.

I have several pieces, namely the 1400's barbuta, gothic gauntlets, great helm, burgonet, german etched breast plate, and the 16th century rennen sallet. All are fibreglass, and the "metal plating" of which you speak is most likely an incorporation of metal powder (probably aluminum) into the gel coat of the layup. The main thing that makes them look real is the antiqued wash they give them which brings out the detail and aged surfaces of the original. These are most likely made in silicone rubber molds which are taken off the original items. It still astonishes me that they look so real, and you're right, they are great study pieces.

John mentioned the helm that you have from this company, and I'm hoping he can make a pattern tracing from it sometime soon!

Under Excallibur Reproductions, I found this online:

Excalibur Reproductions Limited - Radford Mills, Norton Street, Radford, Nottingham,
NG7 3HP. Tel: 0115 9780047.

Might this be the same company?

Regards

Took the liberty of phoning Excalibur, (0115 978 0047), and confirmed that they are indeed the chaps who make the medieval armour in fibreglass, and are still in business.

I've got them to stick a copy of their catalogue in the post to me, and I'll post details on this board once it arrives.

I've followed suit! They were very polite (and British) in their speech, and I can't wait to get my hands on their catalog. Apparently the telephone codes for their part of the country have changed, etc.

All the best

Most of the stuff is £1-200, going up to $4800 for the foot combat armour, complete.

They do have an e-mail address, which I really cunningly left at home this morning... I'll post it on the board tomorrow.

I tried emailing Excalibur, but the mail came back as "non deliverable". I tried sending it again by adding ".uk" at the end of the email address listed. I hope it goes through now.

Checked the E-mail they gave me, and it's exactly as given. Might want to try adding .co.uk on it, rather than just .uk

Good luck

The ".uk" bounced back also. I just tried resending it with ".co.uk". Thanks for the tip, I'll let you know if it works.

My catalog included the handwritten email address:

Exalibur@Lineone.net (Note, NOT Excalibur@...)

Please let me know if that doesn't work, as I am hoping to place an order in the next few weeks.

Regards

David

Thanks! The ".co.uk" also bounced back. I'll try sending them mail with the ".net".
I'm trying to find out if they take credit cards for orders outside of the UK.

My last post had an understandable typo. The handwritten email address is NOT "excalibur@..." but rather "exalibur@lineone.net" (sans quotation marks, of course). That pesky "c" is probably the culprit.

Did you have the same typo in your last message to them?

Regards

Thanks,I didn't catch the missing "C". I'll try again.

They are indeed very real looking. I bought the great helm, the copy of the Lyle bascinet (ex. Churburg) and the barbuta. These are indeed excellent study pieces. An investment well worth what I paid for them.