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South => Texas Renaissance Festival => Topic started by: BarbarianQueen on October 05, 2009, 06:59:45 PM

Title: Chainmail question
Post by: BarbarianQueen on October 05, 2009, 06:59:45 PM
Howdy!
I have a chainmail question for you experts -
I am making an outfit and I need just a small, butt-sized  :D piece of chainmail.  I would say approximately 9-10 inches wide and maybe 12 inches long.  Where could I buy such a small piece?  I am looking for simple 16 guage, butted 4-in-1 style mail.  The only things I've seen online are entire finished pieces (haurback, shirt, coif, etc), the cheapest of which is about $100.  I could buy one and deconstruct it, but that seems WAAAYY to much $ to pay for such a small piece.
Is there somewhere online I could check?  Is there someone at faire who would have something I could use?
Thanks for your guidance,
Lyn
Title: Re: Chainmail question
Post by: Zaubon on October 05, 2009, 08:48:26 PM
You can always check with Lord Randolph.
http://www.chainmail.com/ (http://www.chainmail.com/)
Title: Re: Chainmail question
Post by: Lady Kett on October 05, 2009, 09:43:20 PM
Here's info from a vendor we saw at Middlefaire. They had some interesting pieces and I bet they'd be willing to make what you want.

www.fullcirclechainmaille.com

Good luck!

Title: Re: Chainmail question
Post by: BarbarianQueen on October 06, 2009, 07:59:56 PM
Thanks for the input!
What would be a fair price to pay for a piece that size (9" x12")?
Thanks again.
Title: Re: Chainmail question
Post by: Al-Nimer on October 06, 2009, 10:42:22 PM
I've been doing chain maille as a hobby for over 4 years, mostly just for family gifts & such, but have sold a few small jewelry items.  My first project was a hauberk, then a coif.  The price you would pay would depend on how many rings it takes to make the piece, as well as the material used (Aluminum, Stainless Steel, etc.)  The number of rings depends on what size ID (inside diameter) the rings are.  For stainless steel 16ga 3/8" ID rings, it would take about 850 rings for a 9"x12" piece, which would cost about $10-15 in material.  A good rule of thumb is to charge approx. 10 cents/ring for the finished product, so that would make it $85.  However, I usually don't charge near that much.  Something this simple I'd probably sell for around $40, so long as you don't want ot butt-shaped  ;)