A Few Questions

[ponchato]

Hey everyone, I have just a few questions.



First. I've read all the tutorials I could find on resin and fiberglass. Here's the amount I understand.

1) Finish gluing paper model.

2) Put one coat of resin on the inside and outside.

3) Let that coat dry for an hour or so.

4) Put small sheets of fiberglass inside the model, covering the inside completely. Coat the sheets individually with a heavy coat of resin as you put them in.

5) Let the new fiberglass/resin dry for 2 or so hours.

After that, I'm lost.

I have no idea where Bondo fits into all of this.

What about sanding? I know sanding goes here somewhere.

Do you just paint directly onto the outside layer of resin? Wouldn't that look blocky?

How do you give the armor piece 'volume' (ie more than just a few mm thick)?



Second. Can someone take a picture of the inside of their helmet please? Most of these questions are due to a video I just saw on Youtube of a guy showing his helmet. Looking straight at the bottom edge, it couldn't be more than 1 cm thick. That can't be right, can it?

 

[Dizzerak]

ok



Might want to consider putting 2-3 coats of resin on the outside before doing the inside, this reduces the chance of warping from the weight of the fiberglass and resin on the inside.



The bondo goes on the outside, to reduce the blocky look and to smooth out the warping effect that occours during the resining and fiberglassing. I've seen a couple of my pieces that do not need the bondo just a bit of sanding, due to resin dripping. Bondo goes on the outside only, and after the fiberglassing.



The "volume" look that you refer to is simply an illusion, created by the addition of padding on the inside of the piece and the folds from the pepped piece.



pepped piece, resin the outside (2-3 layers), fiberglass and resin the inside, sand the outside, (some people primer the outside here to locate rough spots, bondo the rough spots, repeat sanding and bondoing until satisfied, then prime and paint.

Anything else...?



Lastly, sorry, I have no helmet as of yet to show a picture. I hope this has helped in some way.

 

[ponchato]

Thank you very much!

The "volume" look that you refer to is simply an illusion, created by the addition of padding on the inside of the piece and the folds from the pepped piece.

So the armor itself is only a cm or two thick? How strong is the final armor relative to, say, cardboard of the same thickness? It seems like something that thin would be really easy to break.

 

[Nightmare451]

It's surprisingly strong. I think it takes only 3 or 4 layers of fibreglass to make it strong enough to be paintball safe.

 

[Dizzerak]

you can see here, actual thinkness (1) and "illusion of thickness" (2). niether of which are actually even 1 cm thick, more like 4mm or so.

 

[ponchato]

Dizzerak, thanks. You're very helpful

It's surprisingly strong. I think it takes only 3 or 4 layers of fibreglass to make it strong enough to be paintball safe.

You're supposed to put in more than one layer?



Another question: let's say your piece is completely finished. Is the paper still in there, between the inner and outer layers?

 

[Dizzerak]

Your very welcome!



As far as the fiberglass layers go, for a halloween costume type, one layer is good. But for the higher wear areas (feet, cod piece, and the like) more layers would be used. For something that will stand up against paintball...hmmm.....if it hurts..add more layers, lol. Personally, I like the feeling of the hit, but thats me.

 

[Nightmare451]

It's personal preference, but 3 or 4 layers will make it strong enough that it won't crack or shatter when hit by a paintball

 

[alsmail]

Your very welcome!



As far as the fiberglass layers go, for a halloween costume type, one layer is good. But for the higher wear areas (feet, cod piece, and the like) more layers would be used. For something that will stand up against paintball...hmmm.....if it hurts..add more layers, lol. Personally, I like the feeling of the hit, but thats me.

No Pain=No fear! Why even bother? I like it too....