Design Tech units 3,4 mjolnir project

[rowan]

hi everyone, this is my first post, i would like to say this is a GREAT forum, ive been looking through it for 4 hours, havent left my chair its that good!

anyway, i want to build a mk VI helmet (or possibly an entire suit if i finish the helm quick enough) for my year 11/12 design tech 3,4 class (for those not from australia its the equilivent of last year high school project that makes up your entire grade for that subject...)

i have basically an unlimited budget for this as the school will pay for some of the mats.

origanly i though i would make it out fiberglass, but theres alot of discussion about using clay, can someone tell me abit more about it? how does it harden, how long does it take to harden, how strong is it? ect..
can someone link me a guide to making an undersuit, or were i could buy something to use as one.
whats a good template? i read people used manaquins, i though i could use a bike helmet (a rounded close fitting one).
which is better fiberglass or clay, which lasts longer?
i have some experience with modeling, im a pro warhammer painter, so painting and chooseing a scheme will be fun for me
and does anyone know someware that i can get faceplates that ships overseas or is in australia, same with the clay.

does anyone know if adam has a guide on how he created his armor? from sratch? the paint scheme ect.. i thought his was the BEST looking set ive ever seen. (he should be working for weta on the movie)

these kind of questions probally get asked all the time, so if u dont feel like typeing anything u dont have to, or just post a link if u think it will help me.

 

[Primal Weyland]

Hit me up on MSN some time. I have links to virtually anything you need regarding armor making filed away.

 

[silvercookie]

welcome to the forums.

just look at stickies and you will have a complete guide.

the hair cut is awesome btw.

@Primal- you seriously documented and saved everything? thats alot a crap to save.

 

[FinnishSpartan]

welcome to the forums.

just look at stickies and you will have a complete guide.

the hair cut is awesome btw.

@Primal- you seriously documented and saved everything? thats alot a crap to save.

Same as he said above...
Read the stickies (important topics) and do as they tell...
I would also recomended making a clay sculpt using oil based clay and making the helmet out of it. Then using it as a mold for the final product, you can find moldmaking products at: Smoothon.com

also if you make pep the result can be even as good as modling if you make it properly. (means that you need to use alot of time)

Welcome to the site!

-Finish

PS: I "Had" the same haircut!

 

[Primal Weyland]

@Primal- you seriously documented and saved everything? thats alot a crap to save.

In preparation for a MASSIVE reworking of the (incredibly poorly organised) sticky system in place so far, yes.

I am Borg. Time and effort are irrelevant. Only results matter. My new system will be far more efficient.

 

[AoBfrost]

You dont make the armor from clay, oil clay is used to sculpt the piece, then it is molded, You cant make clay armor thats wearable.

You might want to try pepakura if your sculpting skills arent that great, many people with near unlimited budgets used pepakura as a base for molding, they used bondo and glaze to smoothen and add detail, then they molded it. More steps, but it's easier for those who dont have a steady carving hand. Really both molded from clay/pep have the same outcome if you put your heart, blood, and sweat into it.

 

[Sigma LS]

Adam's got a muckle suit with a Bluerealm helm so his suit was molded from modified statue pieces. Bluerealm is the guy who has the best clay molded suit I've seen, and several good vids on how he did it. If you don't want to spend the cash on molding, you could always make a highly detailed pepakura suit that can look as good as a molded suit.

 

[rowan]

i would be absolutly fine with moulding and shaping clay, im a pro warhammer painter ( www.games-workshop.com) i do alot of shaping parts for conversions ect..
one question i have is how do u make the helmet? do u make the moulds in parts then assemble it?
also what is best material for the auctial armor? fiberglass, resin? should i do coats of different materials.
i think i would stuff up pepakura. from what ive read its lots of paper folding and it dosent give quite as good end result as clay moulding (is this correct?)
has anyone ever made some armor out of wood? u could layer it and sand it down to get curved surfaces ect.. and then use an engraver for some parts.

 

[FinnishSpartan]

i would be absolutly fine with moulding and shaping clay, im a pro warhammer painter ( www.games-workshop.com) i do alot of shaping parts for conversions ect..
one question i have is how do u make the helmet? do u make the moulds in parts then assemble it?
also what is best material for the auctial armor? fiberglass, resin? should i do coats of different materials.
i think i would stuff up pepakura. from what ive read its lots of paper folding and it dosent give quite as good end result as clay moulding (is this correct?)
has anyone ever made some armor out of wood? u could layer it and sand it down to get curved surfaces ect.. and then use an engraver for some parts.

EDIT: Sorry for being rude i'm having a bad day.

I would not go around that i'm a pro in warhammer painting since it is completely irrelevant to this armor making, and it makes you look like you want to show off...
Also when you create the mold you just create the helmet using oil based clay, then you use brush-on silicone rubber to brush on it (so you dont have to make a multi part mold)
and as i said... Smoothon.com

And yes clay molding is alot more accurate then pepakura but there are many really good pep helmets wich look just like if they have been molded.
PLEASE READ WHAT WE HAVE POSTED!!!!! It's very annoying to answer your stupid questions! we have even answered stuff in this post and you still bother to ask again!

STOP!

and painting warhammers has nothing to do with shaping clay! When you shape the clay you actually need to have some skill... if you dont it will look worse then pepakura!

-Finish

PS. PLEASE READ WHAT I AND THE OTHERS SAID!

 

[alexleo]

p0rtalman, advice for newbie:
i was once a newbie, then i posted at all of these places that ive(sp?) been looking at for a while before i became a member and i am already a member rank!
so, to conclude, do good spelling on your posts, boost your posts whenever you see something that interests you.

 

[rowan]

to finnish:
I have looked at all the stickies, but i still cant quite piece together exactly how its all done, you don't have to answer my 'annoying' Q's if you don't want to. sorry about the spelling, i don't have word or anything on this PC, its my gaming one. but ill try to be more careful in the future.



there's a few things i cant figure out from the forums, ill try to sum it up in a few questions:
how should i cast the models? eg: should i cast one giant chest piece, or do it in parts, and if parts, how big?


Finnish, you said something about using brush-on silicone rubber, what exactly does it do? how does it help you make just the one piece model?


in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpO-f6kdokQ the chest piece is one giant single piece, it looks solid all the way through, when would you carve it out?
again, sorry if these are 'annoying' questions but i havent been able to fin any other threads answering them. if there are other threads that answer these, a link would be great

 

[Sean Bradley]

Portalman: Welcome to the site.

Sorry if these guys were being rude, this behavior is NOT represenative of the 405th. Sorry if they made a bad first impression. They have been warned.

This website is here for the purpose of answering questions about making Halo armor, so don't feel you need to appologise for doing so.

origanly i though i would make it out fiberglass, but theres alot of discussion about using clay, can someone tell me abit more about it? how does it harden, how long does it take to harden, how strong is it? ect..

Sculpted suits are first sculpted in clay, then a rubber mold is made from the sculpt. Plastic resin or Fiberglass resin is poured or brused into the molds to make durable armor.

can someone link me a guide to making an undersuit, or were i could buy something to use as one.

This is a frequent'y asked question. I don't believe anyone has made a tutorial on how to make undersuits yet, but theres has been plenty of work done explaining different methods. I would recommend reading up on the subject as much as possible, and it should be clear on how to make one or find one for purchase.

whats a good template? i read people used manaquins, i though i could use a bike helmet (a rounded close fitting one).

Mannequins are good, but a body mold is better. See this tutorial for more info: http://www.studiocreations.com/howto/bodycast/index.html

which is better fiberglass or clay, which lasts longer?

I suspect that you mean fiberglass (and resin) or urethane resin. They both have their advantages. Fiberglass and resing is very hard when done properly, but tends to be brittle. Urethane resin is somewhat flexible and impact resistant.

i have some experience with modeling, im a pro warhammer painter, so painting and chooseing a scheme will be fun for me
and does anyone know someware that i can get faceplates that ships overseas or is in australia, same with the clay.

Good to hear you've got some experience with painting and modeling. I think that you're asking for faceshields, right? The gold visors for you helmet?They can be found here: http://www.helmetsetc.com/detail.asp?product_id=rst-19

 

[Twitchfmx8811]

Hey welcome to the forums. Molding would give the best results no doubt but just in defence of the pepakura armor makers Pep has come a long way. There are very high detailed pieces and with alittle bondo work you can make an awesome set of armor if you go about it the right way. Heres a link to some of the best pep models on the 405th

 

[rowan]

some of the pepakura armor does look great, but i would prefer to use clay.
i still cant quite figure out how should i cast the models, eg: should i cast one giant chest piece, or do it in parts, and if parts, how big?
in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpO-f6kdokQ the chest piece is one giant single piece, it looks solid all the way through, when would you carve it out?
i know i posted this just previous, but its the only thing i cant figure out.
also does anyone have a link to a video of someone making a 3D clay mould?