SPARTAN405
Member
I decided that it would be helpful to make a complete FAQ of the questions asked. I have been here for less than a week and already over 20 people have asked the same things.
Before we start this is the most important thing you MUST have before you use resin ( A RESPIRATOR ) There are links posted through out the forums but ill post them here later. I dont want to see anybody suffer as I have seen these past two days (10/21/07-10/22/07). For those that do not know there was a wildfire and therefore I wore a respirator to school. Although people gave me wierd looks I didnt care because I was being safe.
Lets Start:
1) How do I make mjolnir armor?
Well start off by looking in the "Creation Discussion" forum ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25 )
Still stuck? Look in the 2 Sub-forums titled:
Pepakura and Cardboard Armor ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=12 )
Molded Armor Discussion ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=1 )
If you are still stuck as to how you make your armor then I am guessing you havent looked around much.
2) How much will my armor cost?
Depends on many things such as:
What material you use.
How much of that material you use.
How much of that material you buy.
What type of armor you are making.
The cheaper armor is pepakura which anyone can make. Believe me, pepakura can be a good substitute for molded armor if you take your time on it.
Pepakura armor might cost you somewhere from $20-$50 depending on what materials you already have.
The most expensive one by far are the custom made ones such as the ones molded from clay models. They usually require more man hours ( 100+ for the helmet for example ).
The fiberglass armor WILL cost you around $1,000. Lets do the calculations
Clay, 40 lbs = Around $120
Fiberglass mat = Very cheap. 5 yards by 38" of the stuff is around 2 bucks
Resin, 1 gallon = $60
Whats that? its not expensive so far... Well here is where it will kill you the most
Silicon, preferably 40 gallons (it becomes usefull to have that much for future armor) = Around $500
Ok so the total is $690 bucks. The total combined shipping for all of that would more than likely be $50-60 so lets say $750.
As you can see the fiberglass armor is more expensive but gives more accurate results because you can make really detailed armor out of it.
3) Where do I get fiberglass, silicon, resin, etc?
Try looking for local stores first because that would make your life much easier.
but in case you dont, here are some links that have been posted all over
Here is a great website with many helpful hints about mjolnir armor
www.mjolnirarmor.com
www.smoothon.com
www.tapplastics.com
I have found smoothon and tap plastics to be extremely pricey, so here is a link that herogear just posted about a cheaper source of silicone and resin
http://www.jgreer.com/index.htm
more to be added soon!
4) omg dewd liek this is so kewl... i started my armor its almost done and i cant wait cause its my first and its so kewl
Dude spell check! You arent texting us, And use proper grammar and spelling here because it counts the most. If we dont understand what in the hell you're talking about more than likely we dont have an answer for you.
By the way, this wasnt a question, more like a benefitial hint.
5) Can I use silicon for armor?
Yes and No
Yes, because of course you can use silicon, but it wont be too smart since you will be weighed down and burning up under there.
No, because I answered it above for "Yes"
6) How do I make an AR? SMG? Energy Sword? Plasma Grenade? etc.
These are all answered in the "Weapons and Props" subforum in "Creation Discussion"
http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=17
7) Can I make a topic with no pictures?
You could, but more than likely it will get locked.
8) Can I airsoft/paintball in my armor?
The simple answer is Yes
The Complicated answer is No, because of the visor issue. If the visors are rated ANSI Z87.1-2003 or higher, they are good to go. But if they are not and you are not sure please dont play and complain because your eyes were shot out. Also for the armor, if its reinforced with fiberglass, its alright, but if its just resin it wont be ok, unless you want dents all over the place.
9) Can I vacuum form my armor?
Yes you can, but you wont get the sharp edges and it will end up being not that great unless you're willing to sacrifice strength with a thinner sheet of plastic ( unless you like it like that )
Now on the other hand, Star Wars armor, such as stormtroopers and clonetroopers can be vacuum formed because they are more curvy.
10) Where do I get the visors for the helmet?
The visors are gold motorcycle helmets pretty much
Sean's amazing dual visor tutorial ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2021 )
His thread has the link for where you can get the visors.
11) Where do I buy armor?
405th.com does not sell armor, but eBay is a great place to look, as well as the classified forum here.
12) What kind of clay do I need? And how much of it?
You need a plasteline clay such as the chavant brand. But any plasteline clay is good for modeling. Van Aken is also a good clay brand to buy. How much of it you need depends on what you are building. If you are building the chest armor, you would need at least 40 lbs of clay. I would stay away from self hardening clays, and natural clay. Self hardening is obvious why it really shouldnt be used. The natural clay however dries up and starts cracking up if you dont wet it very often.
13) Ok so now I have the clay. What kind of tools do I need?
For clay anything will really work, even a screwdriver, but if you want proffesional clay tools go into a local art store and look for clay tools. You could get any of the tools whether they look proffesional, are wooden, or plastic, because they all perform the same tasks.
14) What are my other options for armor?
Well there's cardboard, and styrofoam. From what I have seen, you can make really amazing armor from cardboard and styrofoam. Its quick, easy and cheap for those that do not wish to spend hundreds of dollars on silicon and resin.
15) Can my pepakura helmet look as good as the molded helmets?
Yes, they can. Just look at what Spase and MLC have done, their work is just brilliant and I take my hat off to them! TAKE YOUR TIME and your end product will look nicer than you expected.
16) What is bondo body filler? How does it detail my helmet?
Well it doesnt just "Magically detail your helmet". You have to have some skill with using it first before you even think about using it. The way you get experience is, well using it. So What I suggest is to get reference pictures of master chief and work small from a bicep or hand plate, detail that and then move on to bigger things such as the fore arms, then the thighs, to the helmet. Bondo is very sticky and thick, but runny at the same time. It also dries fast depending on the weather you are in (Hot weather = Fast dry times, Cold weather = Slow dry times). One thing I have learned is to not apply bondo body filler with a brush. It really leaves more work for you (Sanding). Apply it with anything hard and flat, like a butter knife, or even better the bondo brand spatulas.
How do I make cardboard armor?
Here is your answer. Be creative!
Is a dust mask sufficient enough for working with chemicals such as resin, body filler, fiberglass jelly, fiberglass cloth/mat, fiberglass putty, spray paint, etc?
HELL NO! Dust masks only block out what their name suggests...Dust! And nothing else. Get a respirator with organic filters. Go to walmart, or home depot, or any hardware store and dish out the 30 bucks for the respirator.
That is it for now, if anyone wants me to add anything please tell me.
Before we start this is the most important thing you MUST have before you use resin ( A RESPIRATOR ) There are links posted through out the forums but ill post them here later. I dont want to see anybody suffer as I have seen these past two days (10/21/07-10/22/07). For those that do not know there was a wildfire and therefore I wore a respirator to school. Although people gave me wierd looks I didnt care because I was being safe.
Lets Start:
1) How do I make mjolnir armor?
Well start off by looking in the "Creation Discussion" forum ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25 )
Still stuck? Look in the 2 Sub-forums titled:
Pepakura and Cardboard Armor ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=12 )
Molded Armor Discussion ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=1 )
If you are still stuck as to how you make your armor then I am guessing you havent looked around much.
2) How much will my armor cost?
Depends on many things such as:
What material you use.
How much of that material you use.
How much of that material you buy.
What type of armor you are making.
The cheaper armor is pepakura which anyone can make. Believe me, pepakura can be a good substitute for molded armor if you take your time on it.
Pepakura armor might cost you somewhere from $20-$50 depending on what materials you already have.
The most expensive one by far are the custom made ones such as the ones molded from clay models. They usually require more man hours ( 100+ for the helmet for example ).
The fiberglass armor WILL cost you around $1,000. Lets do the calculations
Clay, 40 lbs = Around $120
Fiberglass mat = Very cheap. 5 yards by 38" of the stuff is around 2 bucks
Resin, 1 gallon = $60
Whats that? its not expensive so far... Well here is where it will kill you the most
Silicon, preferably 40 gallons (it becomes usefull to have that much for future armor) = Around $500
Ok so the total is $690 bucks. The total combined shipping for all of that would more than likely be $50-60 so lets say $750.
As you can see the fiberglass armor is more expensive but gives more accurate results because you can make really detailed armor out of it.
3) Where do I get fiberglass, silicon, resin, etc?
Try looking for local stores first because that would make your life much easier.
but in case you dont, here are some links that have been posted all over
Here is a great website with many helpful hints about mjolnir armor
www.mjolnirarmor.com
www.smoothon.com
www.tapplastics.com
I have found smoothon and tap plastics to be extremely pricey, so here is a link that herogear just posted about a cheaper source of silicone and resin
http://www.jgreer.com/index.htm
more to be added soon!
4) omg dewd liek this is so kewl... i started my armor its almost done and i cant wait cause its my first and its so kewl
Dude spell check! You arent texting us, And use proper grammar and spelling here because it counts the most. If we dont understand what in the hell you're talking about more than likely we dont have an answer for you.
By the way, this wasnt a question, more like a benefitial hint.
5) Can I use silicon for armor?
Yes and No
Yes, because of course you can use silicon, but it wont be too smart since you will be weighed down and burning up under there.
No, because I answered it above for "Yes"
6) How do I make an AR? SMG? Energy Sword? Plasma Grenade? etc.
These are all answered in the "Weapons and Props" subforum in "Creation Discussion"
http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showforum=17
7) Can I make a topic with no pictures?
You could, but more than likely it will get locked.
8) Can I airsoft/paintball in my armor?
The simple answer is Yes
The Complicated answer is No, because of the visor issue. If the visors are rated ANSI Z87.1-2003 or higher, they are good to go. But if they are not and you are not sure please dont play and complain because your eyes were shot out. Also for the armor, if its reinforced with fiberglass, its alright, but if its just resin it wont be ok, unless you want dents all over the place.
9) Can I vacuum form my armor?
Yes you can, but you wont get the sharp edges and it will end up being not that great unless you're willing to sacrifice strength with a thinner sheet of plastic ( unless you like it like that )
Now on the other hand, Star Wars armor, such as stormtroopers and clonetroopers can be vacuum formed because they are more curvy.
10) Where do I get the visors for the helmet?
The visors are gold motorcycle helmets pretty much
Sean's amazing dual visor tutorial ( http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2021 )
His thread has the link for where you can get the visors.
11) Where do I buy armor?
405th.com does not sell armor, but eBay is a great place to look, as well as the classified forum here.
12) What kind of clay do I need? And how much of it?
You need a plasteline clay such as the chavant brand. But any plasteline clay is good for modeling. Van Aken is also a good clay brand to buy. How much of it you need depends on what you are building. If you are building the chest armor, you would need at least 40 lbs of clay. I would stay away from self hardening clays, and natural clay. Self hardening is obvious why it really shouldnt be used. The natural clay however dries up and starts cracking up if you dont wet it very often.
13) Ok so now I have the clay. What kind of tools do I need?
For clay anything will really work, even a screwdriver, but if you want proffesional clay tools go into a local art store and look for clay tools. You could get any of the tools whether they look proffesional, are wooden, or plastic, because they all perform the same tasks.
14) What are my other options for armor?
Well there's cardboard, and styrofoam. From what I have seen, you can make really amazing armor from cardboard and styrofoam. Its quick, easy and cheap for those that do not wish to spend hundreds of dollars on silicon and resin.
15) Can my pepakura helmet look as good as the molded helmets?
Yes, they can. Just look at what Spase and MLC have done, their work is just brilliant and I take my hat off to them! TAKE YOUR TIME and your end product will look nicer than you expected.
16) What is bondo body filler? How does it detail my helmet?
Well it doesnt just "Magically detail your helmet". You have to have some skill with using it first before you even think about using it. The way you get experience is, well using it. So What I suggest is to get reference pictures of master chief and work small from a bicep or hand plate, detail that and then move on to bigger things such as the fore arms, then the thighs, to the helmet. Bondo is very sticky and thick, but runny at the same time. It also dries fast depending on the weather you are in (Hot weather = Fast dry times, Cold weather = Slow dry times). One thing I have learned is to not apply bondo body filler with a brush. It really leaves more work for you (Sanding). Apply it with anything hard and flat, like a butter knife, or even better the bondo brand spatulas.
How do I make cardboard armor?
Here is your answer. Be creative!
Is a dust mask sufficient enough for working with chemicals such as resin, body filler, fiberglass jelly, fiberglass cloth/mat, fiberglass putty, spray paint, etc?
HELL NO! Dust masks only block out what their name suggests...Dust! And nothing else. Get a respirator with organic filters. Go to walmart, or home depot, or any hardware store and dish out the 30 bucks for the respirator.
That is it for now, if anyone wants me to add anything please tell me.
