Amtgard Armorers Guild

These instructions will show you how to knit a mail (often called chainmail) vest. Using a European 4 in 1 weave, this vest is a good project for anyone interested in making mail.

The biggest investment in this project is time. Expect to spend 40+ hours knitting your first vest and even more time if you are making your own butt rings.

Materials List

The Rings

20 pounds of , steel "butt" rings (14 or 16 gauge, about 1/2" inside diameter)
or Cut your own butt rings

The Tools

1 pair of linesman pliers
1 pair of needlenose pliers
1 flexible "tailors" measuring tape
a few all wire clothes hangers
4 twist ties from garbage bags
pencil and paper

Safety Stuff

1 pair of leather gloves OR
1 roll of fiberglass finger wrap (jewelers supply shop)

Measurements

Have someone else take these measurements from you and write them down.

A- Shoulder from 2" below armpit, front and back.

B- Around shoulders.

The rest of the vest is fitted as you go.

Knitting the Vest

Remember to wear gloves or finger wraps to prevent cuts and blisters!

First you've got to learn the pattern or weave. The first thing you are going to knit is a shoulder strap. It will be 10 rings wide and the length of A from your measurements.

Take one of the clothes hangers and use your pliers to open the twisted part. Then close 10 rings (the ends should be "butted" together) and put them onto the hanger. Now use the pliers to close the hanger again.

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The rings on the hanger will make up the first row of your shoulder strap and the hanger will keep the rings in order.

Put the hanger down on your worktable or hang it from something, whatever position is more comfortable for you to work on.

The top rings should all be parallel (all facing the same direction). Run new rings (red) through the top row (black) and close them with your pliers.

All of the rings in the second row should all be parallel. This is important because every row in this mail will have parallel links. If they get mixed up the mail will have odd marks and holes in it.

Your mail should look like the image here except that it is 10 rings wide.

The third row will be attached to the second row the same way. It will just be facing the other way.

Continue adding rows until your shoulder strap is the right length. Take the hanger apart again and slide the mail off. You've got your first piece of mail.

Then make another shoulder strap exactly the same length (you may want to count rings instead of measuring it).

Now you have to knit a piece to finish the base of the vest. The base consists of the shoulder straps and one wide base that will be the beginning of the body.

Multiply your shoulder measurement by 3 and close about that many rings. Slide about 50 of the closed rings onto the hanger. This time you only have to knit 10 rows down, but you also have to knit all of those closed rings into one horizontal band.

If you have to work on the base in pieces and then connect them together, make sure the top row is always facing the same direction!

Once you have the base together stretch it out on the floor or a table and check it against your around the shoulders measurement. Add or remove columns of rings to match the measurement.

Join the ends together so it forms a loop. Your shoulders should fit through it. If they don't fit through it, take it apart and add more columns.

Now the straps need to be joined to the base at equal distances. Write down how many columns are in the base and divide it by 4. Now take a bag tie and tie it to a ring at the top of the band. Use the other 3 bag ties to mark the columns at each 1/4 of the way around.

Join one end of the first strap to the base where you have a bag tie. If the rings don't line up, try the other end. If that doesn't line up either, you may need to add another row to the strap.

When one end of the strap is connected, join it to the base where the next bag tie is. You may need to add another row to the strap to make it line up. Make sure the strap isn't twisted after you have connected it.

Connect the remaining strap to the last two points with bag ties. Again, make sure the strap isn't twisted. Try it on, it should fit very loosely. With lots of room for your head.

Extend the base of the vest by adding rows until you get to your desired length. If your vest hangs below your crotch you may have to put slits at the bottom so you can walk in it.

Then you need to add a few more details to the piece to make it more than a mail tank top (which you will see many of in Amtgard).

The shoulder straps need to be made wider. This will lessen the pressure on your shoulders and will protect you more in battle.

Add rings inside the neck hole, but make sure you leave enough room to fit your head through. In the back of the vest build it to the top of your shoulder blades. In the front leave it a bit more open, you can always use leather laces or even hooks to close the gap when you are wearing the vest.

Customization

This is where a lot of people stop and end up with a plain vest. But with a few minor additions it can look really cool.

Small points or dags ( \/\/\/\/ ) can be added along the bottom edge to give the vest a fancy look.

Some brass or bronze rings can be knit into a pattern on the chest or back. Perhaps your coat of arms? Maybe racing stripes?

Small metal plates can be added easily by drilling holes in the corners and attaching it to the mail with spare butt rings.