Step 1:Getting the right tools
The first thing you need to do before you start maillesmithing is to get all the right tools. You'll need at least two pairs of pliers, which is what you'll be using to do the majority of your work. Any normal pliers will work, with the standard jaw, not needle-nose. You may want to pad the handles and make them comfortable since you'll be using them a lot. The next thing you'll need is some sort of jig to wind coils and make links (unless you want to buy your links pre-made). This can be fairly simple, and easily made. All you need to do is glue/screw some pieces of wood together to obtain a somewhat 'U' shaped thing. Then drill holes for your rod (size will be discussed later), put the rod through the two holes, and attach some sort of a handle on the end as in the picture below. A drill may be attached to the end, but this kind of work wears out most electric drills pretty fast. Besides that, you'll also need something to cut wire with. This can be aircraft snips, wire cutters, fence cutters, or anything else that will cut the wire. If you want to be historically accurate, you can use a chisel.

Step 2:Winding coils
	Now that you have your newly made winding jig, it's time to wind coils to make links. You now have several choices to make. The first is what type of wire to use. Different metals are available, and these include iron, galvanized steel, brass, copper, stainless steel, titanium, aluminum, and others. Galvanized steel is a good place to start. The next decision is wire gauge. 14 or 16 gauge is common, but it is up to you. 14 gauge is recommended for most armor work. Now you have to choose link size. For 14 or 16 gauge wire, you can go anywhere from 1/4" to 5/8". For 14 or 16 gauge 5/16" is a good size to start out with, but that's up to you. Once you've decided what size you want, get a steel rod with the same diameter and build it into the winding jig described above. Also, drill a hole in the rod to hold the wire while winding. Now it's time to wind coils. Put a short piece of wire through the hole, and then start winding! The device is pretty self-explanatory; just keep turning the handle. Once you reach the end of the rod, pull off the resulting coil and you should end up with something like the picture on the left.
Now stretch that out so you get something like this:

Step 3:Cutting links
Time to put those snips to use! Take whatever you decided to cut wire with and cut links out of the coils you have just wound. Cut a lot! An average shirt will be anywhere from 5,000 to 30,000 links! Links will look something like this:

Step 4:Knitting- 4 in 1 pattern
Now it's time to start the real work. This guide will discuss the use of the 4 in 1 European style chainmaille, which is the most common style and easiest to begin with. There are many other styles, such as the 6 in 1, 8 in 1, Japanese weaves, and Persian weaves, but those won't be discussed right now. Click here to go on to the 4 in 1 knitting page.