Halex's Reach Mk V B Build

[Halex]

Hey 405th!

So, now that the MkVI is (nearly) complete, I have a confession to make. Halo 3, I’ve been cheating on you! Reach is my one true love, and we have a connection you just could never understand!

As much as I love Halo 3 and always will, Reach became my favorite game from the very moment I loaded it up. Not just because the campaign began on my 566th birthday, but the game and gameplay overall. Combat felt more fluid, the world was beautiful, and I was really part of a team. Add to it the DMR (my new favorite weapon) and that all the combat felt much more tactical since it was entirely against Covenant and not flood, and it was everything I wanted in a Halo game.

Had I not been so far along in my H3 build already I would have dropped it and began on Reach immediately. However, in hindsight I’m glad I didn’t do that. Having a completed (or at least wearable) suit, I now have the opportunity to take all the time I want to work on a Reach build and get the most I can out of every step of the process. Studying construction methods and trying new ideas will be very important in this build too, as I want to try to improve on what I’ve done before and contribute some ideas to the community if possible.

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The Goal:

I’m not able to add it in Vanity but I’ll be using the UA attachment for the helmet as well. I tried to take a realistic approach to this and plan out the armor as it would be most functional. Since I’m right-handed, my left arm will be forward on any weapon I used, hence the buckler and larger/more protective shoulder on the left side. The right just got my favorite shoulder attachment.

A Spartan with a loadout such as this would most likely be on the front lines, as opposed to a sniper or designated marksman. I’ll be building an MA-37 to go along with this build, as it’s by far my favorite AR from the series. The M6G I have for the MkVI build will be used, and eventually I’ll construct an M-392 DMR as well.

This will be another pepakura build, and I’m using files from a variety of sources. Some are freely available from the 405th 4shared database, or from members via their own posting pages. However, I did make a donation to Dawn Under Heaven and will be using some of their pepakura files as well. As a note, if I say I’ve re-scaled the model, it in no way implies that it’s my model or that any of the geometry has been changed. I’ve merely imported it into Blender and changed the X/Y/Z values to make it a better fit for my body.

Each piece will receive one exterior and one interior coat of resin, then an interior slush coat of thin (50/50) rondo, then 2-3 layers of fiberglass cloth. As I’m using the HD pep files, the slush coat will be helpful for setting up a smooth surface over which to apply the cloth. I’ve had lots of issues in the past with air bubbles and lack of adhesion to the paper when trying to apply fiberglass over detailed pieces and don’t want to repeat that. I’ll be taking my time and working in small sections to be sure each one is free of rough edges that’ll catch clothing later on. I also add a small amount of food coloring to the second/third layers of fiberglass resin so I can tell it apart from the first coat and be sure to not miss any spots. The last layer on the inside is brush-on plasti-dip, which helps to tame any rough fiberglass edges as well as give it a nicely-textured matte finish.

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The Parts:

Helmet
Source: 4shared Reach Database
Filename: Mk.V (Reach Helm unfolded by BMcClain).pdo

I liked Rundown’s helmet because the model itself was very smooth, which should save a lot of time in the bondo steps. I wasn’t looking forward to pepping the domed sections over each ear, so having a nice flat surface here instead gives me the freedom to make them however I would like. Also, I pepped this helmet months ago, so being done with that stage weighs heavily in its favor.

The UA attachment is from the Dawn file, even though I find some details lacking from the reference shots. It’s fairly simple to build and as long as it scales correctly to the helmet I have now, will be easy to add said details.

Torso
Source: L3X’s file thread
Filename: Reach Male Torso V4 by L3X (Main Torso by L3X BLU3RIV3R - mkshane81 unfold)

I ended up choosing this one over the torso from Dawn Under Heaven, since it seemed to recreate almost exactly the proper proportion and shape of the Mk V B torso (as shown in the second picture). I will be pulling in the lower back piece of the Dawn file, though, as it has a section of the armor that I haven’t seen another pattern for yet.

Shoulders
Source: Dawn Under Heaven
Right Attachment: UA-MultiThreat
File: UA-Multi threat (Ruze789 FJPARA Shoulder).pdo
Left Attachment: Commando
File: Dawn Under Heaven

This is by far the most detailed and accurate shoulder I’ve been able to find. Despite the need to re-scale the model since it’s a bit awkward on someone my size (the right height and depth leave it about ⅔ the width it needs to be to be comfortable), I think the extra effort will be well worth it in the end.

The UA-MultiThreat permutation from Ruze789 was simple and fun to build without losing detail from the screenshots I have. The little bits that are missing will be simple enough to add.

For the commando, I had originally planned to use the BMcClain unfold file from the Reach Database also, but after getting about halfway through building it I found it to be a little complicated for my taste. After looking through a bunch more reference screenshots, I found that the Dawn file could be modified after building to have the required details, as well as being much simpler to put together. It also had the benefit of a piece built into the back that will cover what protrudes beyond the actual shoulder.

Forearms
Source: Dawn Under Heaven

The only piece I’ve found lacking on the Dawn forearms are the three faces that lay side-by-side in the indentation on the side. Other than that, the model looks great, apart from the scaling, where it suffers the same issues as seen with the shoulders. I’ve already imported them into Blender, tweaked the scale a bit and re-unfolded the pieces. Fit remains to be seen but judging by dimensions, they should be good.

Cod
Source: TBD

I need to do more research on the codpiece before making a final decision. The reference shots I have are showing several variations, so I’ll need to narrow down what variant I should have, then find the most suitable file for that.

Thighs
Source: ForgedReclaimer’s deviantArt page
Filename:

I was torn between the Dawn and ForgedReclaimer’s thighs, as the files are very similar. Both have strong points, but in the end I decided to use ForgedReclaimer’s thigh. It’s an extremely accurate file, and hopefully won’t have the scaling issues that I keep running into with the Dawn pieces.

Shins
Source: Dawn Under Heaven

I’m excited about the Dawn shins being a two-part build. My MkVI shins refuse to go on or off easily and have scraped my foot to the point of bleeding on several occasions. While I realize I could split any file into two pieces, this one is built to do so and already has a lip/edge in the correct place to fit the two pieces together. There’s only one detail bit I’ve found so far that’s missing, which I’ll easily add during the pep process.

Boots
Source: Dawn Under Heaven

These boots are very detailed, but also one solid piece. They’ll have to be broken down somehow to be flexible, as well as soled to accommodate movement. This will be one of the larger challenges I’ve identified so far, but I have a few ideas on how to get past it.

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I know that was a pretty long intro, but I've been doing my best to plan out most phases of this build before beginning so I can have the best result possible. The next couple posts will be reserved for progress and completed pieces, then the actual build log will start.

I hope you'll all enjoy this build as much as I will!

 

[Halex]

<< Status >>

Helm: Pepped, resined
UA Attachment: Not started

Torso: Pepped
HP/HALO: Not started
Ability Pack: Not started

Biceps: Resizing models, re-unfolding.
UA-MultiThreat: Pepped
Commando: Not started

Forearms: Resizing models, re-unfolding.
Buckler: Not started

Handplates: Not started

Cod: Not started

Thighs: Not started
Tactical/Hard Case: Not started

Shins: Not started

Boots: Not started

MA-37: Not started

 

[Halex]

(reserved for pics of finished pieces)

 

[Halex]

I have a couple older pictures of the helmet from before I put the resin on it, and it fit pretty well. Plenty of room for adding padding and whatnot, along with a thick enough coat of rondo that I can safely carve in some of the details. It also looks great sitting on top of the torso; the scale on them seems to match up very well with what the game shows.

The base torso file from L3X (his v4) turned out beautifully and was a pleasure to build. I did have to add some interior supports to eliminate a bit of warping during the paper phase, but once they were in place it shaped up nicely. The lower back and front of the collar were what needed the most help, and although I can still see a little bit of warping at the bottom of the back section, it's nothing compared to what was there before.

Besides the UA-MultiThreat shoulder permutation, those are the only completed pep pieces I have right now (apart from a couple size test bicep pieces). I'm going to resin and harden both of them, then swap between the two working on the bondo phase. I find it easier to go back and forth between two pieces so I spend less time waiting on things to cure.

This build will most likely progress very slowly. I'll be taking as much time as necessary to detail each piece, but also trying to document the process a little better. Looking forward to getting some more accomplished to share with you all!

 

[Leonidas1]

that chest looks perfect

 

[Halex]

that chest looks perfect

Thank you! It had a lot of small detail pieces but overall was a lot of fun to build.

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Spent awhile this weekend working on the detail planning and smaller parts associated with the torso. First up was the control panel, which wasn't too bad.

I opted to use 1/2" wooden dowel for the two knobs on the panel, since the below picture shows a small recessed ring on each one that'll be much easier to carve in than to try to pep or cut from mat board.

Unfortunately I didn't realize it needed 1/2" until after I'd bought the 5/8" dowel, so that'll be waiting a bit still. The other projects were the armor ability module and torso detail planning. My first attempt at the ability module was using the pep file from L3X's V4 torso package. I haven't seen many other Reach builds using one, so it was neat to try and see what results I could get. It came out okay, but the more I looked at the reference picture, the more differences I could see. Some would be easily added with mat board or bondo, but the basic shape seemed a little off.

So with that, I started fabricating. Using the pep model as a sizing template, I cut out some mat board to serve as a new base. The side pieces were taken directly from the pep model, but I did shorten the them and steepen the angle somewhat, along with flattening the side faces and extending the trapezoidal cutout. This gave the top "CAUTION" face a slight outward angle as in the screenshot.

After the majority of an afternoon spent at it, I was pretty satisfied with the progress. Nearly-scratch builds are always so time consuming, but that time definitely pays off. Viewed against the picture on the laptop, it's very similar in terms of the basic geometry. The center circle is, from what I can tell, about 2-3cm tall and will be cut from either dowel or PVC pipe, with the top and bottom "fins" built to support it once the material/size is set.

The rest of my ever-so-short weekend working time was spent on torso detailing. I really wish I could pull screenshots out of the game itself, but I've never been able to get that to work properly, so I'm left with taking photos of my N6 and working from those, or sitting in the living room on the couch drawing on the piece itself. Having done some of both, I was able to come up with a basic plan.

Here it is drawn out on the piece, along with the ability module in place to show the scale.

That's all I've got for now. I hardened the helmet with an initial slush coat of rondo, but haven't sat down to plot out the detail yet and do any additional pours into areas that I'll have to recess detail. I find that to be easier than back-filling with bondo once the fiberglass is already in place.

I'm still juggling this and the MkVI, for which I ran out of paint while trying to finish the boots yesterday... but within a week or two I should be all finished with the VI and able to focus exclusively on my Reach suit.

Questions/comments/critiques always appreciated! I enjoy feedback, so if you have any please drop it here; thanks for looking!

 

[Motion26]

Wow. Thats awesome, the pep work looks perfect 0.0.

 

[Halex]

Wow. Thats awesome, the pep work looks perfect 0.0.

Thanks Motion! It took me about 7-8 days of working on it a few hours each night, but I decided to take my time and make each fold as precise as possible.

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Not a ton to show, but I'm trying to keep with the goal of posting at least a small update each week, so here's what I've been working on for the Mk V B.

I slushed a coat of rondo into the entire helmet, with a second coat in some areas that needed a little added strength or that I knew I'd have to cut into to create recessed detail. I'll add fiberglass once I cut in the recessed parts and am sure that the inside dimensions won't change. I don't want to add in layers of cloth only to have to cut into them again and reduce the strength. The outside was marked with blue for raised and black for recessed lines/faces. It's a little odd to look at without reference pictures handy, but it'll be a rough guide once I start the bondo process on this piece.

I found one fairly major inaccuracy with the way the pep was put together, too. Along the bottom of the raised J-shaped pieces around the ears, the side of the helmet bulges out and almost meets the flat face on the side (as shown by the black "X"). According to what I can see in the game, that bulge shouldn't be present and the line should continue along the bottom of the raised piece. To correct this, I made some quick tape masks and poured rondo into the resulting cavity.

This will allow me to sand down the area below the "J" without ruining the integrity of the helmet.

Also made some more progress on the armor ability module. It's very close-ish to being finished with the paper stages.

The openings on the outer edges for the ridges/wings are a little too wide, and after looking at it even more I believe there's a small section on the very top that should be raised rather than recessed. I also need to add the rest of the edging around the sides to give the faces the recessed look they have in the game screenshots. Okay, so maybe not as close to done as I thought, but hey it's something!

The back will be left mostly open, both for ease of mounting and access to the LED's. I built in a small compartment to hold a battery box, and the rest of the wiring should be fairly simple. One LED for each of the sides and two in the middle should be all that's necessary. I'll be going with Armor Lock initially, since I feel it fits the "front-line" Spartan loadout and also because I think orange will look great with the rest of the suit.

Let me know what you all think, and I'll keep doing my best to update the thread regularly!

 

[ReaperZer07]

Hey, i cant help but ask if you already completed your reach armor, because i have a suggestion on the chest piece. i have a file in my archives thats actually the in game model for reach if you are interested. It may not have as much detail as the one you did but its definitely worth the build if you dont mind adding the details yourself which is what i did for mine. The file is made by bungie and its already been unfolded. Your build is looking pretty awesome so far.

 

[realmasterchief]

This is really nice work

can I ask, the file you used, I thought it was a foam file, but it looks like you have made it out of paper (and made an amazing job of it too) is that right?

 

[Gibbon]

Last post was over a year ago guys.