eli5 How were such intricate items like suits or armour and castle decorations made in the medieval era when they lacked advanced metal processing and precision tools we have today

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eli5 How were such intricate items like suits or armour and castle decorations made in the medieval era when they lacked advanced metal processing and precision tools we have today

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The thing is. Technologically a suit of armor isn’t that much.

Metallurgy? You need steel that’s sufficiently pure that it can be stretched and work hardened (ie, you hammer it to compress the steel to make it tougher). That was solved with the blast furnace (which was able to take iron up to its melting point and get rid of most of the slag/impurities). Compared to making cannon barrels or battleship plating that’s child’s play.

Tolerances? If it’s within a millimeter or so it’s enough. In fact you want some slack and loose joints so that armor pieces can slide against each other (that means the guy inside the suit is far more mobile than if you had sub-millimeter tolerances everywhere).

Mass production challenges? Each suit is individually made and tailored, so no interchangeable parts or anything like that.

Overall it all boils down to craftsmanship and design, long apprenticeships and several decades of trial and error solved those issues. Beyond the need for blast furnaces most of the gear necessary are a bunch of hammers and tongs of different sizes and shapes.

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