Ma5C Sliced- First Attempt

Greetings fellow 504'ers!

I know that everyone is busy with Halo Reach and of course the holidays coming up... First off, A big Happy Holidays to everyone as we proceed thru December.

Now on to the project....

I have been reading a LOT of stuff on the forums here... there are so MANY freaking talented people in this group... it is enough to make ANYONE's head spin.... I know mine does at time It took me a while to really figure out WHAT I wanted to make for first projects. Where does one begin? We were all noobs at one point... and probably all asked the same question.

I started with Pep which made a lot of sense to me since I have used Blender for a long time now... and I found Kirrou's HD ODST helmet to be a perfect first project as it is cool looking and a very well made file... I am nearly 90% complete with the pepping of that... and have also started a Jun helmet from Jico. Those projects are being covered in my other thread....

As a break from the pepping to give my eyes a break :cool I decided to try out some of
L3X BLU3R1V3R's sliced weapons...Namely the Ma5C. Now I get that L3X BLU3R1V3R works with his models as 1/4" slices and he uses cardboard... I however wanted to see if I could achieve the same thing using foam... thinking this would be a good way to get my feet wet with foam if I decide to do foam armor...

(I know it's wordy....bear with me....)

I went on a search for foam last night and found the Harbor Freight EVA foam easily and also found some 1/4" craft foam at a local hobby shop... these sheets are about 8x10 in size but should let me make a few things....

I DL'ed L3X BLU3R1V3R's Ma5c file and printed them out on cardstock and worked the pieces together on the dining table... looking in Pep Viewer I can see that there are 2 of every piece in the set... one on each side...

So... layer #1 at the center has to be doubled... so 1/4" x 2 = 1/2" So I decided rather then layer two pieces to just cut the center section from the EVA foam.... Lay pattern on foam pad, trace, and off to the bandsaw to cut... A real snap other than the thumbguard hole... I take my newly cut center and lay pattern layer #2 on it....Exactly the same as #1 EXCEPT the trigger hole is now covered... Lay pattern layer #3 on... same as #2... So again 1/4" x 2 = 1/2"... so back to the EVA and cut two more patterns out for the left and the right that will take care of layer #2 and #3... Hit it with the hot glue and some minor trim work on the band saw and BANG... we have a decent start



I also attempted to cut out the magazine clip and put it together... I put the non-smooth side out... in hindsight, I am not too pleased with that... so I will more then likely rework that tomorrow.... Anyway it was dinner time and called it a night....

What you think so far? Any suggestions? A big thank you to L3X BLU3R1V3R for making his files available... I will keep everyone posted as I progress....

Cujo3131

this is very interesting, ive thought of making weapons out of foam but ive never gotten around to it. im going to keep an eye on this build

Party on SIR! Looks like a great start on a soon be very nice build. Tagging along to see what you can come up with in later steps!

nice start man hope it finishes as nice as it started btw 504?

haha im gona watch this. keep it up

ha yeah i thot we were the 405th?

I saw the Harbor Freight EVA foam and thought of buying it. I didn't because I wasn't sure why I would need it. Seeing what you have done, now I have the reason to buy it. I will probably do the same by making a gun out of foam. My pepped and resined assault rifle didn't turn out that great. Hopefully I have better luck this time with foam.

This is a very smart build! I do not believe I have ever seen someone use EVA foam for weapons before, but it is a great material and I'm glad to see it being used once more! I would like to know if you can paint it or not successfully.

God... Now I am embarassed....LOL... I guess after working in the wood lab at school
til late on the rifle that my Dyslexia must have kicked in... LOL

anyhow... 405th LOL...yes after a long day teaching and then building the mind
plays very funny tricks on you

I do have some progress pics of what I got done today and I'll post those up in a bit when I
get them off of my phone

Stay tuned... more to come tonight I promise...

Cujo3131

Ok... I promised updates....

So I had the basic core finished using L3X BLU3R1V3R's sliced weapons design... and I liked what I had so far... so I decided I needed to start working on the details...

I downloaded Roadwarrior's HD model as a reference to help me along and set about matching up things and working out some details. Decided to start with the business end of the rifle...



Using 1/4 foam and a couple templates I drew up, I laid out a some of the basics for the frontal area and the top segmented ridge. I actually tilted the bandsaw table... cut 45 degree wedges off of the top corners of the foam core to give me a better shape to wrap the foam around.... Overall pretty pleased with that area.

I also cut out a insert to go into the front area where the flash guard is... barrel is just simple copper tubing and so is the "flashlight" These are just "placemarkers" till I get a setup I like....



The handgrip on the bottom of the rifle was created with the 1/2" EVA foam... cut into strips with a 45 degree beveled edge all the way around the pieces... butted them together, rounded a couple corners and hit it with the hot glue....

That crap is HOT too... LOL Also used a heating gun at times to soften the foam to allow it to bend a lil better with the wrapping....

Overall... not a bad evening... it was fun problem solving and working on it tonight... Heck it is not as cool as some of the HD CNC milled rifles.. but I can say I am figuring it out for myself

I appreciate you comments, recommendations, and insight.... and honestly... just happy you stopped in to see a noobs work

Thanks brothers in arms....

Cujo3131

Woah, thats really good man! Cant wait for updates

Nice, the flexibility makes it a comfortable and durable prop.

will this be as detailed as an original pepped model?

following this now, I think I will make a dmr out of foam now

gaj2714 said:

will this be as detailed as an original pepped model?

Click to expand...

Good question... the original sliced file was kinda toned down and wasn't super high detailed.... thus the reason for
downloading Roadwarrior's HD model... I hope to have a lot of detail... but it will depend on what I can pull off with the foam....

Cujo

Excellent work! Also, good initiative to dive in and try to do something a bit different.

You've also solved a problem for me. I am working on a weapon I will have to carry in my hands while in costume. I would like to have an AR slung on my back to complete the look. This looks like a great way to create a "good one side" AR suitable for mouting on the back-pack that won't be very heavy or rigid (I'd hate to poke someone with a wooden or plastic one).

Again, keep us up to date, this is very interesting.

I love the way this foam project is turning out! Keep up the good work, I would like to try this on a Halo Reach AR someday.

Looking good! Keep up the good work. My one question is: Is it super light weight? It looks like it is and with all the detail you packed in so far that seems like an awesome combo! Can't wait to see more.

looks really great! whhy didnt i think of this? lol

Grave_Hawk said:

Looking good! Keep up the good work. My one question is: Is it super light weight? It looks like it is and with all the detail you packed in so far that seems like an awesome combo! Can't wait to see more.

Click to expand...

Hey Grave...

Yes, it is VERY light... maybe less then a pound at this point... I don't have any scales but it is super light... and suprisingly... decently rigid... it has some flex... but I have noticed as I add more detail and hot glue that it is firming up....

More pics tonight if I actually get anything finished today

Cujo3131