3D printed mkVI build (Citruspers)

[DeltaAlphaZulu]

I just tried it, and I think you're right. I think having two different lenses makes more sense in a practical manner (as you'd get a wide and narrow beam), but using identical lenses looks better.

It also adds some additional detailing, and I presume it will also help hide the LEDs mounted behind it (which I've yet to do).

How's your build going?

 

[Citruspers]

How's your build going?

Hey, sorry for the lack of updates. Some significant things happened and I also focused on other projects for a bit. I did however pick things up again, here's a short summary:

I printed a visor buck, in blue glow-in-the-dark filament because that was the only ABS I had lying around at the time. Doesn't make a damn difference for forming, but at least it looks cool

I bought some Worbla transpa-art for the visor, but I wasn't able to get it right. Between warping, mushing it and reducing the transparency, I don't think Worbla is how I'll end up making the visor. Best I got was this (it looks worse in person):

So I'm back to square one for the visor. Either I start up my resin setup again (hesitant to do so), or I buy a couple of motorcycle visors off Aliexpress and hope I can find one that fits...ish. That would also solve my reflective coating issue in one go.

The good news is that I have found an interesting option for making the belt/codpiece. I wanted to look into something flexible (because I want to sit down without worrying about cracking rigid plastic armor pieces. EVA foam was an option, but I think I've found something better.

This is a small test I did with TPU, Rosco Flexbond and HexFlex paint. Flexbond acts as a primer and also hides the layer lines somewhat, and with only one coat of paint I think the result is quite good. I'll have to look into getting the right shade of green (I only had gold to test), but this looks like a promising solution for making a flexible but detailed armor piece. Maybe I'll use the same technique for the boots!

And last-but-not-least, the printers are going again, working on armor pieces. Can you tell I ran out of filament at some point and had to use up some smaller spools?

 

[Citruspers]

Quick update.

I messed up the leg scaling a bit, so I had to do some reprints. Initially I thought my calf muscles (being Dutch I bike a lot) would interfere with the leg pieces at 107pct, so I reprinted a bigger set. Then after assembly it turned out that they'll sit lower than I initially thought, and the print at 107pct should fit okay. Oops.

Speaking of "oops", trying to print the codpiece sides upright....not the best idea. Not only did the print fail, it was actually ejected out of my printer!

I also did a quick visor test with a spare airsoft helmet visor.

Obviously the shape isn't ideal (I don't recall Chief's nose sticking out lol), but I think this shows using an existing visor is viable. So I ordered a small motorbike visor to test.

I also came across N8TEBB's (I know you're reading this ) excellent video that gave me a better idea on how to rig the armor eventually:

Buckles are on the way so I hope to have some progress on that soon.

Lastly I'm thinking about weapons a bit. I've already found a great SPNKR model that's very tempting, but I'd also like to try and build my own Plasma Rifle, along with some servo mechanisms and maybe even a little smoke generator (repurposed vape?) to make the thing open up and vent on overheat. That last one might be a bit too ambitious though

 

[Citruspers]

Gloves!

I bought some hardware store gloves that looked vaguely "tactical" and coated the red bits in Flexbond, given how well it worked with 3D-printed TPU. If it doesn't work out, I'll give in and buy some Madgrip Thunderdomes.

(not to worry, the primer becomes transparent when it's fully dried)

Black flexible paint's on the way

 

[N8TEBB]

I also came across N8TEBB's (I know you're reading this ) excellent video that gave me a better idea on how to rig the armor eventually:

Always happy when people find my vid useful!

 

[Citruspers]

Definitely, thanks mate!

Meanwhile I'm working on (over)engineering the light source in my helmet.

I've glued in the printed lenses, deciding on a wide lower lens and clear upper lens:

As a light source I'm going to go with some 14mm CREE XM-L's that I had lying around, along with some TIR optics to increase efficiency (less light loss to the sides). A small heatsink to the back will hopefully be sufficient, though I haven't decided on a final driver amperage yet.

Now for mounting the whole setup, I might have gone a bit overboard. I've modeled the components and imported the helmet model scaled to my head, and then designed a custom bracket that should (hopefully) ensure everything is centered and secure. I think I'll print this one in ABS, or possibly even PACF to make sure it won't deform at higher temperatures

Up next might be active cooling (both for the heatsinks and for myself), but let's see how this goes first

 

[Citruspers]

The brackets fit perfectly, and my wiring prototype works

I tried a couple different approaches but ended up using a small PWM motor controller I had lying around. Powered by 3 rechargeable AAA cells, this allows me to dim the 4 LEDs from .01A up to ~1.2A by using the dial.

At full blast things do get a little bit toasty at 70c (158f) after a couple of minutes, but I'm hopeful the heatsinks will help (enough) with that. Good thing I printed my brackets in ASA!

Now I just need to wait for the thermal glue to arrive, and design a mounting bracket for the PWM driver board.

 

[Citruspers]

Progress!

The assembled LED+lens+bracket+cooling sandwich:

Mounted inside the helmet:

And of course, the view from the front with the LEDs turned on

So happy with the progress!

As an added bonus the test visor I ordered arrived today. I'm reasonably confident I can fill most gaps with TPU or foam, and maybe paint the nose-bit gold to blend in with the visor, or I'll keep on looking for an off-the-shelf visor that doesn't have the nose cutout.

Next up: creating a bracket for the PWM controller and for the battery bay, and adding a small fan.

 

[Citruspers]

Progress update

It's too cold for epoxy, primer and paint so I have to focus on other stuff.
First-off, the custom controller bracket:

Designed:

Printed:

Can't glue it into place yet because the helmet needs a bit more reinforcement, but it fits great.

I also received another helmet visor, an LS2 type. Unfortunately the "revo red" coating it came with is not reflective enough, but I figured I'd try forming it anyway using a heatgun and my printed buck.

No luck, I couldn't get the visor to a proper temperature to stretch it over the buck, and in the process I marred the surface, making it a bit cloudy in places.

At this point I think I'll have to suck it up, build my own vacuum forming frame and order some PET(g?) sheets so I can make a proper visor...

In the mean time I've discovered OddWorks (Patron Models | Collection from OddWorks | 81 posts | Patreon) who has designed a ton of Halo models, many of which have fun details like mechanical actuation or even electronics. So I've started work on a Battle Rifle and will probably print a couple of Plasma Grenades and a Cortana chip as accessories:

 

[DeltaAlphaZulu]

Progress update

It's too cold for epoxy, primer and paint so I have to focus on other stuff.
First-off, the custom controller bracket:

Designed:
View attachment 340251

Printed:
View attachment 340250

Can't glue it into place yet because the helmet needs a bit more reinforcement, but it fits great.

I also received another helmet visor, an LS2 type. Unfortunately the "revo red" coating it came with is not reflective enough, but I figured I'd try forming it anyway using a heatgun and my printed buck.

No luck, I couldn't get the visor to a proper temperature to stretch it over the buck, and in the process I marred the surface, making it a bit cloudy in places.

At this point I think I'll have to suck it up, build my own vacuum forming frame and order some PET(g?) sheets so I can make a proper visor...

In the mean time I've discovered OddWorks (Patron Models | Collection from OddWorks | 81 posts | Patreon) who has designed a ton of Halo models, many of which have fun details like mechanical actuation or even electronics. So I've started work on a Battle Rifle and will probably print a couple of Plasma Grenades and a Cortana chip as accessories:
View attachment 340252

All your builds are looking great so far! I wish I had the patience to go in and model custom components for my helmets more than just pull a box into blender and cut the helmet from it. Keep up the awesome work and documentation!

 

[Citruspers]

All your builds are looking great so far! I wish I had the patience to go in and model custom components for my helmets more than just pull a box into blender and cut the helmet from it. Keep up the awesome work and documentation!

Thanks for your kind words! However, I am actually cutting the helmet from my electronics housing. So I think we're mostly doing the same thing lol. And speaking of electronics, I love the little electronics quick-connects you did!

Quick update on the BR and 3D printing in general while I'm at it:

Right now I have two printers running, one with a .4mm nozzle for parts that need slightly more detail, and one with a .8mm nozzle for larger parts.
Particularly the .8mm is going through filament at an alarming rate

The speed though....this plate has been going for two hours and should be done in another hour or so

(If anyone's wondering, I'm using FR4 for my build plates. It's better than PEI in my experience, and cheaper too)

 

[Citruspers]

I may have underestimated the size, and the amount of prints for the BR75. But only a couple of prints to go, and parts like springs and screws are underway, so I hope I can do a test-assembly soon

Here's just the magazine for scale:

I've also gap-filled and sanded the shins, since I can't paint outside now:

And I've printed a buttpad for the BR75 in TPU using Prusaslicer's Fuzzy Skin setting (settings at 0.1 and 0.4) to make the TPU look less printed and more....rubbery. I then coated the thing with some Flexbond and Hexflex black paint to get rid of most of the shinyness.

Not entirely sure if I like the end-result, though of course I haven't seen it mounted to the rifle yet. Might look quite good with a weathered black or gunmetal grey rifle with some worn-away paint that exposes the base metal

 

[Citruspers]

I think the sanding and paint backlog just got a little bit bigger...

(Sidecutters for scale and yes, the handguard is loose because it requires a bit more sanding to fit)

This thing is an absolute unit, massive props to OddWorks for making such a detailed model. Documentation is a bit sparse, I prefer melt-in nuts over square nuts and some pieces have overhangs that require sanding but holding a BR makes it all worth it.

I also made some mockups for painting:

Battleship grey with silver accents:

Breacher variant with yellow accents:

 

[Citruspers]

It's still freezing outside, so no painting, not even primer :/

Would a plasma grenade help heat things up?

(file by OddWorks, printed at .15mm, no finishing done yet)

------

Another thing, I could use some suggestions!

I'd like to carry some essentials with me (water bottle, phone, wallet etc.) and am toying with the idea of making my own in-universe attribute to do so. Any ideas?

What I've come up with so far:

* Hide a water bottle inside a bubble shield generator (really starting to like this idea)
* Carry around a small 343 Guilty spark/monitor as a pouch?
* Fusion coil?

 

[N8TEBB]

Now I’m not the best one to talk about carrying a water bottle because I’ve been known to go wayyy to long in my suit without eating or drinking, but I can give you a few thoughts.

First, convention halls usually have lots of drinking fountains all over the place. It’s very possible to get all the H2O you need throughout the day by using only water fountains. That being said, if the 405th is lucky enough to have a booth, that is usually a good home base for my stuff. If there’s no booth, the car will do. I’ll just make sure to stop by my “home base” every hour or so to check up on my suit and have a swig of water.

Next, I only carry the bare necessities with me in my suit. I have a small pocket inside each of my thigh armour pieces. On my left I keep my credit card and keys, in the right I keep my phone. That’s all I take with me for a day at a con. I’ll usually tuck my badge in the left pocket once I get in to the con as well. But it’s a real life saver to have repair materials with you throughout the day, and thanks to some ingenious storage ideas from other members, they’ve saved me a trip back to my car a few times.

I’ve seen members have actual functional ODST back packs to keep all sorts of goodies in. Many members also use canon pouches on their armour to keep their stuff in and have easy access to. I’ve seen storage compartments in assault rifles to keep business cards, I’ve also seen folks use the old stuff-it-down-your-shirt method as your torso armour hides whatever your keeping there.

I think your idea of hiding water bottles and other items in props will work wonderfully! If I could just give one tip: you’ll want to be able to carry it without holding it in your hand all day. Having a way to attach the prop to your armour will really save you a headache when you’re at a con and constantly grabbing different weapons for photos.

 

[Citruspers]

Thanks for your thoughts N8TEBB
I'll probably be wearing the suit on an (outdoor) festival where I've been before. There are water points scattered around the terrain, but I like to carry ~half a liter anyway.

Good call about hiding things inside or on the armor (with in-universe pouches and what not), also about some repair stuff. What's your go-to? Some CA glue, some flexible quick-set glue and maybe some tape?

>If I could just give one tip: you’ll want to be able to carry it without holding it in your hand all day.

Oh yeah, I have some ideas for that. I ordered some magnets that I can hopefully integrate into my armor and sidearm so it'll clip to the side of my leg, and I figure I can use the belt for the codpiece to carry around the bubble shield and plasma grenade.

>I think your idea of hiding water bottles and other items I’m props will work wonderfully!

Thanks for the encouragement, I guess I'll start designing one.

 

[N8TEBB]

What's your go-to? Some CA glue, some flexible quick-set glue and maybe some tape?

Gorilla tape and CA glue will cover 90% of your repair needs. At least they will hold until the end of the day and I then can properly make repairs

 

[3MIL3R34CH]

Que tips me compartirías para que el post se procese más rápido, quedó increíble

 

[Citruspers]

Que tips me compartirías para que el post se procese más rápido, quedó increíble

Translated: What tips would you share with me to postprocess faster, it was incredible

Thanks! PLA is very difficult to sand, though it can be done, especially if you apply a some 'filler primer'.

 

[Citruspers]

Getting somewhere with the bubble shield