What does it take to be a Ranger of Gondor besides strength, courage, and marksmanship? A Ranger’s outfit, of course. This reporter spotted an awesome, authentic-looking Ranger at the “Hobbits Heroes and Villains” panel on Saturday afternoon at 1PM, Centennial II-III (Hy) and pulled him aside to get the scoop on the suit. The Ranger is Mickey Flint, a first-time Dragon Con attendee who happens to be the owner of Two Gentlemen of Fortune, a supplier of custom leather for pirates, adventurers, and reenactors. And for Rangers, of course.
Mickey’s Ranger duds are a work of art, from his boots to his quiver full of white-fletched arrows and his authentic English longbow with its 50-lb pull. He wears five layers of cloth and leather, including an under-vest, tabard, jerkin, mantle, and cloak. His armguards are positively swoon-worthy.
The hardest part to get right was the quiver, a meticulous reproduction of the one worn by Faramir in the LOTR movies. To make the quiver, Mickey needed its exact dimensions, which were not available. Mickey hit the jackpot when Faramir turned his back to the camera during the last LOTR movie. He was able to measure the onscreen height of the quiver and Faramir, look up the actor’s true height, and then use math—yes, my young padawans, math does have real world applications after all—to calculate the actual dimensions of the quiver.
According to Mickey, the arrows in that gorgeous quiver take the longest to make because each one is bound by hand with silver string. And don’t let Mickey’s hood and black-masked face frighten you off. Even though the ensemble took him about 80 hours to make, he has been known to sell the clothes off his back. For the right price. So if you want to be a Ranger of Gondor, keep an eye out for Ranger Mickey. He’s an inspiration.
Photos by Tito Hernandez
