Rolf Devinci

 Although often over shadowed by its sibling, Lorica Segmentata, the chain maile haubert Lorica Hamata was extensively used by legionaries of both the Roman Republic and Empire.Originating with the Celtic tribes of Europe the Roman's quickly realized the protective qualities of maile and adopted the use of the armor for their legions. Not only does maile offer good protection from slashing weapons but it is far more comfortable to wear and field repair. Maile is heavy but the use of a waist belt supports the weight upon the hips not unlike a modern rucksack. More importantly maile moves with the body so is far less restrictive than a stiff linothorax or plated armors. Additional protection from blunt force trauma can be gained by wearing padded clothing under the mail in addition to the usual linen or wool tunic. It is surmised that legionaries may have worn a subarmalis, an early variant of the medieval gamberson.   Maile was also modified to suit the military tactics of the ...

 Heading into Spring I was looking for better options for archery targets. Up to now I was using animal feed bags filled with leaves and other materials but they were not (really) portable and were starting to disintegrate due to use and exposure to weather.   Found these traditional targets on Amazon made from dried grasses. Environmentally friendly they are easier to carry over a synthetic archery block target and were less expensive. I opted to purchase one triple layered target for testing purposes.   First thing I noticed is how convenient it was to carry the target. I placed it in a black shoulder bag to be discreet when heading into the local woods. Relatively light weight but how would it hold up to arrows from my bows which are all in the 45 - 55 pound range?   I was using my Alibow #45@28 short Turkish bow along with field point wooden arrows from Flagella Dei.The arrows made a resounding and somewhat pleasant "thunk" when hitting the target. Surprisingly t...