Wiltonican
Jr Member
Going to go to the anime convention this weekend, and I'm not going alone! So, I need to bring my daughter. And of course, she won't be going without a costume to accompany daddy! So, I need another classic. Zaku II
This build will be have no compromise in safety as this is for a 4 year old. I need to expect the worst case scenario. Which is her visibility is so limited that she'll fall flat on her face. So, this mask needs to both protect her in a fall and NOT have any sharp objects that can cut her up. If she gets hurt, mommy won't like that.
My approach will be different than my Gundam build. It'll be made almost entirely of foam. Exercise mats (or mini cell foam) to be exact. They're the ones that can interlock with each other. Super dense, super safe, and super easy to work with.
The requirements:
- It needs to be super light
- Great visibility
- Biggest requirement: Be her favourite colour: shiny and purple
Let's begin!
As with the Gundam build, I'm going for the SD look. Chibi-style. Big head on little body. This works great as this give lots of headroom.
Shell Formation
This build will be fast. I won't be going through the CG and Pepakura process. I'm going to build it the old fashion way. By eye!
Here's the initial formation of the shell.
Cutting it into strips. Heat gun to warm up the foam so it's pliable. Shape it over the form. Holding it for a few seconds until it cools. Once the foam cools, it'll hold it's shape.
Using my daughter's bicycle helmet for the form.
repeat with all the shapes this way...
Then hot glue them all together:
Again... with the test fitting:
This build will be have no compromise in safety as this is for a 4 year old. I need to expect the worst case scenario. Which is her visibility is so limited that she'll fall flat on her face. So, this mask needs to both protect her in a fall and NOT have any sharp objects that can cut her up. If she gets hurt, mommy won't like that.
My approach will be different than my Gundam build. It'll be made almost entirely of foam. Exercise mats (or mini cell foam) to be exact. They're the ones that can interlock with each other. Super dense, super safe, and super easy to work with.
The requirements:
- It needs to be super light
- Great visibility
- Biggest requirement: Be her favourite colour: shiny and purple
Let's begin!
As with the Gundam build, I'm going for the SD look. Chibi-style. Big head on little body. This works great as this give lots of headroom.
Shell Formation
This build will be fast. I won't be going through the CG and Pepakura process. I'm going to build it the old fashion way. By eye!
Here's the initial formation of the shell.
Cutting it into strips. Heat gun to warm up the foam so it's pliable. Shape it over the form. Holding it for a few seconds until it cools. Once the foam cools, it'll hold it's shape.
Using my daughter's bicycle helmet for the form.
repeat with all the shapes this way...
Then hot glue them all together:
Again... with the test fitting:
