Right, I'm looking into new shields, as we're using some right old antiques for training currently.
I reckon we need a minimum of 3 - Adam or Tom, Ella, and Freya.
Ideally, shields should be 31" in diameter. Unfortunately, as plywood comes in 8' X 4' sheets, this means you can only get 3 shield blanks from each sheet (with a lot of waste).
The thickness we want is 12mm.
There are two materials: marine plywood and structural hardwood plywood.
Marine plywood is tougher - about the toughest you can get. We've had shields out of marine ply before, the original Draum shields (which have lasted forever) are marine ply. So it could be a worthwhile investment. I can get a sheet of marine ply for about £72 inc. vat & delivery. That would be £24 per shield blank. https://www.wburton.co.uk/
Structural plywood is cheaper, but it is used in the Dogs shields, so it's acceptable. I can get a sheet of this for about £40.80 - that's £13.56 per blank.
However, there are other costs: every shield needs a boss, a handle, and a hide rim.
From my research, I've found bosses for about £15.
Handles should be hard-wood preferably, a single piece that fits the hand comfortably and is about 12-18". I know someone who knows someone, so I'm hoping to get these for free-ish.
For hide, we soak dog chews in warm water, which makes it nice and pliable (and slimy).
I found a pack of 10 on Amazon for £18.76, and I think that's enough for 3 - so about £6.25 per shield. https://www.amazon.co.uk/HOWLERS-Giant-Natural-Rawhide-Knotted/dp/B017NNPXZS
In total:
Hard wood faced structural ply £13.56 + Boss £15 + hide rim £6.25 = £34.81 per complete shield
Marine ply £24 + £15 + £6.25 = £45.25 (about £10 more than structural)
~
Alternative shield sizes
If we go down to 30" per shield (still reasonable), we can still only get 3 out of a sheet, and one little 26.5" shield (too small to be any good).
However, if we go down to 29" diameter shields, we can actually get 3 X 29" shields and 1 X 30" shield out of a sheet!
In that case, the cost per shield is £39 for marine ply, and £31.25 for structural ply.
Any thoughts?
Komentar