Deep in the secret base our hero, in his best impression of Tony Stark, was working on women's armor. Not being female, he decides it's best to talk to a couple of female fighter for their opinions. The question(s) were posed to several fighters, and the one's who responded are listed forthwith.
Gunnvor's thoughts on armoring women's lower torsos...
She says, "For the lower abdomen, it's all about a women's shape. Many women (who can comfortably wear a C harness around their hips) say very good things about a C-belt. It covers the abdomen and holds the legs well. I cannot comfortably wear a belt around my hips. For me, the best thing to do is hang something off of my body armor. I have lamellar hip flaps and plan to make a abdomen flap, but you could easily hang something off other types of period armor.
Shiro wrote this:
"I use a modern female groin protector - http://www.hockeygiant.com/rwompelprot.html - and inside my underwear I wear an "overnight" maxi pad, the thickest I can find. The technology of today makes padding ultra thin pads very popular, and to find think ones that actually have padding to them, I sometimes have to look for generic or store brand "cheap" stuff. Although I do wear a wide C-belt, I find it protects the hips a bit, but not so much the belly. Lower abdomen protection is done with plates hanging from the torso armor. You have to remember to armor a woman with a flex point at HER waist. It you try to run a sold plate over her belly, she can't move. I have been hit at that hinge with a spear thrust pretty hard, and it is not any fun. But you have to choose your weak points, and adjust the armor as you need to. I will try to get some pictures of my armor to you."
Sheleigh McLanagan:
"For the majority of my time in armor, I wore a coat of plates which extended just equal with my grown protection. Later I switched to a breastplate and went without hip and abdomen armor. Kinda foolish. Having heat issues I made a short gambeson that ended under my bosom, but was longer in back to pad the kidneys. I took a number of shots in the belly during that time, but being "plumptious" in the extreme in that one area it did no more than bruise me. The shot to my hip with no armor and no padding: cotton, or adipose, hut oodles more. I'm reviewing my armor in the hopes of getting back into it soonish. I'll be making a proper gambeson of linen that will extend to the top of my thighs.
For groin protection I hadn't been able to find a girls hockey cup, so I made one of rigid plastic, boiled and curved to fit, and backed it with closed cell foam. I made an additional pocket in a couple of pairs of bikini undies to tuck it into. Worked okay."
Hildemar the Alchemist:
"I use a military web belt (often referred to as a pistol belt) beneath my armor. This nylon belt has padding attached to it (and these web best pads, were once easily found in surplus stores). The belt is worn low on the hips and protects the kidneys, hip points, and abdomen, as well as providing support for leg armor. The belt is always covered by plate (and due to location, articulated plate to permit free movement so I can crouch when needed).
I have found most commercial women's groin protection to be too soft and yielding (as well as too flat) to provide the kind of protection we need against low blows, so I built my own. The current piece I use is made of 0.25" HDPE plastic and was carefully shaped over a gas jet. A rigid plate like this, backed with suitable padding, provides the best protection, in my opinion"
Me: Can I quote you?
"Sure! Just advise those seeking advice that "their mileage may vary" and that they should *test* all armor they make before permitting their opponents to try it out.
Astrid's take on the subject goes as follows:
"I am a crazy Northern Army girl. I got a women's jill and stuff the plastic insert into men's compression shorts that have a cup slot built in...It works great for me. I got cupped numerous times at Gulf Wars this year and I made it out with no real injury.
My Lower abdomen is kept in check with my "war skirt" which is a modified C-belt with leather "skirting strips" spaced about 1/4 to 1/2 inches apart..."
Sandy wrote to me with this:
"I made a padded arming coat that goes to my hips and purchased female groin protection from a sports store that specifically handles women's needs. The heavy plastic molded plate fits relatively well and has a soft pliable but solid foam edging to it for comfort. I am not fond of the underwear that pockets it and holds it in place, but it does the job well. I have not had issues with low abdomen shots....YET! But the pair of legs I created did not protect my hips and thighs the way I needed. They are a pair of belted leggings that has slots sewn in which hold waxed leather strips. Although it worked fairly well it was not enough to prevent serious bruising on my thighs and hips so I added a layer of camping roll foam to inside. That solved the problem. Next pair I make will have a sleeve for the foam. I wear a solid breast plate which has an attached back of full pocketed metal plates which act as rib and kidney protection. I recently separated part of the leg so that the weight of the knee and shin protection did not pull on my waist and back. I accomplished this by attaching knee braces to the inside of the knees. This has worked great, less back aggravation and more mobility."
Sir Sichel's comments on the topic go like this:
"I just wear the foamy part of the chick pubic protector inside my underwear, it stays in place and can take a spear thrust. I have never had anything on my abdomen. The only thing on my hips are bruises from (Sir) Douglas Henry.
I am waiting on the Zoombang shorts to get here. I'll let you know how that works"
There doesn't seem to be one "ANSWER" to the question, there does seem to be solutions that work for those involved. Try a few, and find the one that you're most comfortable with considering the full contact martial art that you're getting into.
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