Guide to making shields

[Stranger Than Paradise]

http://www.devo.com/sarin/shieldbook.pdf

There needs to be more scenes like these at protests:
http://media.cnbc.com/i/CNBC/Sections/News_And_Analysis/_News/_SLIDESHOWS/EuropeanBudgetProtests/SS_europe_austerity_1110_italy2.jpg

https://london.indymedia.org/system/photo/2010/12/09/5361/470190.jpg

[Sasha]

shitty thing with shields is that you are such an obvious target and its pretty clear what you are planning to do.
so often they already engage you earlier than you would want, often you wont even be able to leave or even arive at the assembely point for your demo.
over here we wear shinpads on our lower arms (under your jacket), its as effective against truncheon blows, will catch the cops by suprise and they cant be wrestled out of your arms.
admititly it doenst look as badass as these shielded falanx

[Stranger Than Paradise]

shitty thing with shields is that you are such an obvious target and its pretty clear what you are planning to do.
so often they already engage you earlier than you would want, often you wont even be able to leave or even arive at the assembely point for your demo.
over here we wear shinpads on our lower arms (under your jacket), its as effective against truncheon blows, will catch the cops by suprise and they cant be wrestled out of your arms.
admititly it doenst look as badass as these shielded falanx

Do you just use football shinpads or something else?

[Sasha]

yeah the footbal (soccer for americans) ones (they are relativly thin so they are comfertable to wear/dont obstruct your movement and easy to hide under your jacket) i prever the modern whole hard shell ones but the old classical ones work as well

[ellipsis]

ive also heard Karate pads but i can't verify this.

[Widerstand]

If they catch you with any sort of protective gear here you face serious charges for illegally wearing "passive weapons." :/ Some people use skating protectors or shin pads under clothes, but if you get arrested you're fucked anyhow.

At the CASTOR protests they used all sorts of shit to protect from beating, including sleeping pads and masses of straw tied to their bodies under trousers and jackets.

[Sasha]

yeah, in germany "passive weaponry" is banned, in most other countries not yet though, never heard of anyone getting serious charges in germany for it though. pepper spray or telescope battons yes, passive weoponry means in my experience that you miss the demo and sometimes get an small aministrative fine.

[Sean]

This is more like interview with a casual.

Psycho so do you generally just look for fights?

[Fawkes]

Try going to a demo on crutches. Easy way to get a potential weapon in and it's pretty bad PR for the cops to wreck someone that's on crutches, but don't expect them not to do it. Anyway, as far as shields go, you can use trash bins cut in half, which I've used before and they work pretty well. Depending on the action, things like a chain link fence can be pretty awesome, though they ain't to great in the mobility department. In many cases, the lighter method of using shin guards will work better because of the mobility it gives you. Isn't good for blocking tear gas canisters though, so it really just depends on the situation.

[Kuppo Shakur]

Quick question, kind of off topic, but not totally:
Could a fishing pole with a powerful magnet tied on the line be considered a weapon?

[ellipsis]

Quick question, kind of off topic, but not totally:
Could a fishing pole with a powerful magnet tied on the line be considered a weapon?

yes. everything is a weapon, including a closed fist.

[Sasha]

This is more like interview with a casual.

Psycho so do you generally just look for fights?

Nope, and it depends on what kind of demo I go too but if there is any chance it will end in confrontations and charges (either from the cops on us or us trying to breach cop lines) better to be safe than sorry and bring your armpads and balaclava.


yes. everything is a weapon, including a closed fist.

Your so unimaginative, I know ppl who got prosecuted for assault on an cop fist with their head.

[Widerstand]

yes. everything is a weapon, including a closed fist.

When they arrest you and you "tense your muscles" that counts as resisting arrest in Germany.

[Ninel]

I saw footage of the demo in london and there were some with shields, but the police turned them round :s. A friend of mine told me that in Ardoyne in Belfast the rioters put up fences and the cops then can charge at them or shoot rubber bullets, so the rioters just throw their petol bombs and bricks over and they are protected by the fence, lol.

[Bitter Ashes]

What you need for any kind of armour designed to fend off blunt attacks is something large and hard, but not brittle to disipate the force of the blow over as wide an area as possible and some cushioning to gradualy bring down the speed that the shield is coming back at you. This last bit is important if you do not want to have a lifetime partytrick of the funny things you can do with your arm now.

In practice this could easily be a few bits of wooden pallette nailed together (make sure the nails face the right way btw lol), or a bin lid, etc, with some bubble wrap, polystyrene, or even rags protecting your arms.

Shields should be designed to go on your left arm and even southpaws have to get used to that really. Your right arm should be free to roam and do whatever you're doing. You could put the shield on your right arm I suppose, but it'd reduce the effectiveness of not only your shield but everyone elses' around you too.

I also fully support the notion that this may all be getting a wee bit ahead of yourselves though. At the end of the day, the coppers are just human beings, albeit well armed ones. They are not invincible and they have been defeated countless times without the need for shields.

[Irish Left]

Good link. Sheilds should be used more often.

[TC]

I sort of feel like given how the police responded during the student protests in London, everyone is already a defacto target, whether they're carrying a shield or not - and if you're going to be attacked regardless its better to reduce the chances of suffering serious injury.

I wonder if there isn't a good way to build decent light shields into placard signs that can be carried as placards if the police are peaceful - and should the police become violate one could remove and discard the supporting poll and use the "sign" as a shield.

[FreeFocus]

Wow, pigs are a trip. "Passive weapons?" What the hell kind of a concept is that?

Shields seem like a cool idea though - definitely more useful than the signs you normally see at rallies/demos.

[Amphictyonis]

shitty thing with shields is that you are such an obvious target and its pretty clear what you are planning to do.


Ya , protect yourself from being shot in the face with a "less than lethal" projectile. Now if we were wielding swords it would be a different story ;) We should all dress like Vikings during protests. Get good and drunk beforehand. I guess that would make us NAZI's though. LOL

[El Rojo]

I wonder if there isn't a good way to build decent light shields into placard signs that can be carried as placards if the police are peaceful - and should the police become violate one could remove and discard the supporting poll and use the "sign" as a shield.

a pole of the right size and thickness combined with a placard of the correct dimensions is a weapon and a shield at the same time. me and some friends are working on this, but we still have not perfected it

[Sasha]

a pole of the right size and thickness combined with a placard of the correct dimensions is a weapon and a shield at the same time. me and some friends are working on this, but we still have not perfected it


sadly, in most cases of demonstrations etc in the netherlands the mayor puts an emergency order in place that bans all "poles of the right size and thickness" or material.

[Ninel]

sadly, in most cases of demonstrations etc in the netherlands the mayor puts an emergency order in place that bans all "poles of the right size and thickness" or material.

Then you could make it so that it can extend or be pushed into itself and thus the pole is not of this size at least, the thickness is another story.

[Sasha]

Then you could make it so that it can extend or be pushed into itself and thus the pole is not of this size at least, the thickness is another story.

well, thats certainly banned...
then you are better of with the crutches sugestion earlyer in the thread.
i know they once pulled that at an antifa demo somewhere in scandinavia (sweden i believe), a whole block of a 100+ people all with one crutch claiming to have sprained their leg sudenly got healed when they came close to an nazi march. i'm sure its no suprise they managed to pull that one off only once.

[psgchisolm]

well, thats certainly banned...
then you are better of with the crutches sugestion earlyer in the thread.
i know they once pulled that at an antifa demo somewhere in scandinavia (sweden i believe), a whole block of a 100+ people all with one crutch claiming to have sprained their leg sudenly got healed when they came close to an nazi march. i'm sure its no suprise they managed to pull that one off only once.
:laugh: That's the best antifa trick ever.

[Sir Comradical]

I could probably wear my cricket helmet as well. lol.

http://www.playgroundonline.com/productImages/lrg/Elite_Helmet_ALB00001.jpg

[Sasha]

and your bat

"well no officer, demonstration? i'm just on my way too practice.."

an squatter mate of mine was quite notorious in the 80 because in contrast to all the prole punks he was from an very posh background and so didnt bring an bat or pipe to riots but an field hockey stick and was quite lethal with it :lol:

[El Rojo]

sadly, in most cases of demonstrations etc in the netherlands the mayor puts an emergency order in place that bans all "poles of the right size and thickness" or material.

In the UK we have a similar thing, either section 40 or 60, i cannot remember. however, in the recent student protests, the turnout has been so large that it has been impossible for the police to control who takes what to the demonstrations.
i saw some anarchists with a large wedge, a "kettle breaker" made from two metal plates, each about 1.5 m high and 3m wide, hindged in the middle and made into a right angle. others were using axe handles for banner poles!

[Stranger Than Paradise]

Yeah they give police these 'emergency powers' for the day which allow for blanket stop and searchs.

[Bitter Ashes]

I got my placard nicked by the coppers at the Leeds UAF demo even though it was a rotton old plank of wood.

[Martin Blank]

The link is good for light defense. We usually use shields made from road construction barrels for heavy defense. They can repel most non-lethal rounds, too.

[Ele'ill]

I could probably wear my cricket helmet as well. lol.

I basically have this but all black.

http://vanishingpointbikes.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/img_0168-jpg1.jpeg

[Widerstand]

I basically have this but all black.

http://vanishingpointbikes.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/img_0168-jpg1.jpeg

But where's the visor? The most important part is missing!

[Ele'ill]

But where's the visor? The most important part is missing!

Impact goggles separate.

http://www.northerntool.com/images/product/images/174781_lg.jpg

[Bitter Ashes]

Sale on in Sports Direct. Only thing in my price range was a bike helmet though. I never realised how flimsey they actualy are. One good whack on the noggin and it'd turn to confetti I'm betting. Might try make one myself out of wood and foam.

[Ele'ill]

Go into any 2nd hand stores- you can find motocycle helmets like the one pictured above for under ten dollars. (they're super common)

[Sasha]

Snowboard helmets, they are relatively cheap, comfortable to wear all day, etc etc and if you take your camera every cop will assume your press.
If you wear a motorcycle one, take one with out the chunky chin brace (the full/racing ones) they obstruct your vision too much and the cops (at least the dutch ones) have a habit of pulling you across the street on them.

[Renno]

This is more like interview with a casual.

Psycho so do you generally just look for fights?

Reminds me of an old hooligan trick; http://dvice.com/archives/2008/06/unbreakable-umb.php

But then DIY of course,

[griffjam]

Moto-x pads for the individual. Reinforced banners for the bloc.

[PhoenixAsh]

Most weapons are banned and, yes, there are premptive searches and detentions.

So weaponry needs to be stashed beforehand. But that is only assuming there is a safe location and that you know where what will take place before hand.

Also...theoretically speaking: if there ever is a moment you are in a situation planning a realistic revolution its a good thing to assemble weapon + medicine cashes at certain points.

[Ele'ill]

First-aid here!