Foam Armoring

[Ronster]

I have a quick question about cutting the foam...

When you cut it and align it with another piece to get a curved edge, like on the leg pieces, do you cut the edges at an angle so they fit more seamlessly?

I drafted this picture to further illustrate my question:

And if so, how exactly? Is there an easy way to do this?

Thanks!

 

[J326]

might use this method at a later time to redo my armor, especially when the modelers release the complete HD files of reach now that we can go into forge and start looking at all the detail of the character.

 

[Minkyboi]

I have a quick question about cutting the foam...

When you cut it and align it with another piece to get a curved edge, like on the leg pieces, do you cut the edges at an angle so they fit more seamlessly?

I drafted this picture to further illustrate my question:

And if so, how exactly? Is there an easy way to do this?

Thanks!

dremel + sanding drum is your best friend

 

[Zat German]

When you cut it and align it with another piece to get a curved edge, like on the leg pieces, do you cut the edges at an angle so they fit more seamlessly?

Yes, this is called a miter cut.

And if so, how exactly? Is there an easy way to do this?

If you are using 1/4" foam mat like the big rolls you can get at Big Lots, you can use a Foam Board Cutter to cut 45 degree angles easily enough. You could then use a blade or Dremel to cut the angle behind the face shallower so the two curved pieces fit nicely together. This tool does not work with the 1/2" foam mats from Harbor Freight because the blades are not long enough.

 

[bulldogresler]

could this foam technique be used to create a helmet?

 

[Tau ceti]

One of the things you can do with that is run a metal ruler along the cut you have made, ie. lay it parallel to the cut but about 3-5mm in from the cut, then run your stanley/exacto knife down the edge, so that you are cutting on an angle. This will work to a certain extent, ie. you won't likely get a perfect cut, but it's unlikely that you will need it perfect just to abut two surfaces for glueing. Foam is reasonably forgiving, from what I understand to have worked with.

 

[Tau ceti]

could this foam technique be used to create a helmet?

I suspect you might have difficulties getting from a angular shape to rounded one. your likely to have to use some sort of filler on top of the foam, (as well as sanding it witha dremel, for instance). in that case you'll like need some sort of hardener, then, to harden the foam so you can put the filler on top. Your'e almost back to the beginning in that case, with the same or similar amout of work as Pep and fibreglass. Unless someone can see something I'm missing here?

 

[Aultin]

Will this armor warp or give if stressed, such as when sitting in it? It seems it would bend and break as it isn't reinforced with anything.

 

[Minkyboi]

its definitely not something thats very durable...i mean, it IS foam.
and im not sure how well a helmet would work. maybe using a heatgun to bend pieces and stuff

 

[Zat German]

its definitely not something thats very durable...i mean, it IS foam.

Actually, the stuff from Harbor Freight and Big Lots is "anti-fatigue" meaning that it is actually quite durable. If you go with the open cell camp pad foam, you could have some issues. Also, this does not take into account what happens to your paint job if you were to say, sit on the back of the cod piece. The piece of foam I have painted in the picture a few posts back has a coat of plasti-dip and a coat of red pepper krylon fusion. You can bend it back and forth 90 degrees and the paint still looks okay. It also returns to its original shape real nice. However, I think if I had a smoother surface, it would definitely crack the paint layer more. I am still working on playing with getting a good prime coat that will yield a smooth surface for a nice glossy paint job.

and im not sure how well a helmet would work. maybe using a heatgun to bend pieces and stuff

You could probably do it but it would be a lot of stacking and shaping with a Dremel. There is a guy on the Replica Prop Forum who has made an Ironman mask out of it. Of course, the Ironman head is a lot smoother than most Halo helmets. I bet the GUNGNIR helmet would be one of the easiest to do out of this foam.

 

[Darth Veach]

Thanks for posting this, I love your videos! Do you use high temp or low temp glue or does it matter?

I second this question!!

And no Ben it is NOT boring, I am glad you took the time to show some of this. I am much more a visual learner and really want to try this!

Lastly, right now Harbor Freight has these mats on sale for $8.99 in store and if you use a 20% off coupon it comes to $7.19 plus tax. I know because I bought 3 packs the other day!!

 

[Minkyboi]

Actually, the stuff from Harbor Freight and Big Lots is "anti-fatigue" meaning that it is actually quite durable. If you go with the open cell camp pad foam, you could have some issues. Also, this does not take into account what happens to your paint job if you were to say, sit on the back of the cod piece. The piece of foam I have painted in the picture a few posts back has a coat of plasti-dip and a coat of red pepper krylon fusion. You can bend it back and forth 90 degrees and the paint still looks okay. It also returns to its original shape real nice. However, I think if I had a smoother surface, it would definitely crack the paint layer more. I am still working on playing with getting a good prime coat that will yield a smooth surface for a nice glossy paint job.

You could probably do it but it would be a lot of stacking and shaping with a Dremel. There is a guy on the Replica Prop Forum who has made an Ironman mask out of it. Of course, the Ironman head is a lot smoother than most Halo helmets. I bet the GUNGNIR helmet would be one of the easiest to do out of this foam.

well i know its durable since im actually using it right now but i would probably be more careful with it than say, a fiberglassed piece.

 

[jks soccer]

well i know its durable since im actually using it right now but i would probably be more careful with it than say, a fiberglassed piece.

I don't think you have to be all that careful with it. A fiberglass piece may give a little, but it doesn't take much to crack a piece, whereas a foam piece will bend. A foam piece may deform at more extreme angles, however, it's 100x times more forgiving than fiberglass.

 

[Rosh]

this stuff is much much more durable than any of my pepped and glassed pieces. The nice thing is that you can dropthis stuff and sit comfortably without worrying about it coming apart. I need to get my hands on a thinner set of these mats as I only have the 1 cm thickness ones and foamies for details.

 

[Ronster]

I was at Hobby Lobby today and saw that they had foam cutters on sale for about thirty bucks...
(much like this one: http://www.marvy.com/product_details.aspx?ProductID=102)

Would this work for the thicker EVA foam? If so, it's could be an easier way to get nice smooth cuts...

 

[Zat German]

Would this work for the thicker EVA foam? If so, it's could be an easier way to get nice smooth cuts...

I hope they do. I am planning on making one to see.

 

[SteelSpartan]

this stuff is much much more durable than any of my pepped and glassed pieces. The nice thing is that you can dropthis stuff and sit comfortably without worrying about it coming apart. I need to get my hands on a thinner set of these mats as I only have the 1 cm thickness ones and foamies for details.

you can get some 2mm thick sheet of foam from scrap booking store or hobby store... even got some form dollar store in the art section...

 

[HaloGoddess]

Wow! :O I am impressed with how nice the foam can create armor! I really like that, and if painted just the right way, you can't tell it's foam!

My FAVORITE part about it...........NO SUPPLIES NEEDED for hardening!!!! That is always a plus! hehe After seeing this, I immediately told my husband about it and he agrees that we should try it out. Using the foam option does seem better than the painstaking pepakura process and may even make it easier for me to complete 2 suits since I want my husband to dress up! XD lol

I am looking forward to see some more tips and how to seal up those unslightly lines from the seperate foam pieces. I am also VERY interested in seeing just how well a dremel can be used for creating more detail.

 

[Zat German]

I am looking forward to see some more tips and how to seal up those unslightly lines from the seperate foam pieces. I am also VERY interested in seeing just how well a dremel can be used for creating more detail.

The foam mats from Harbor Freight detail very well with just a sanding drum for a Dremel which I have tried out for myself. A tapered one works better for large areas because the edge of a cylindrical one will leave a mark. Check out some of the detail that this guy has carved into his Iron Man chest with a Dremel.

It does produce a very fine dust, so wear a particulate mask when doing this. Gloves are nice too, just to keep clean up simple.

 

[Aultin]

How many packs do some of you foamies think it will take to make a complete ODST armor set? I'm using mainly Kirrou's HD files based off the WETA ODST I believe, and a few other files I found lying around. Also while I am on the subject of ODST, are there any ODST Visor tutorials?