"Help!" for: Foam

[Spartan 420]

Thanks Carpa, I'll just stick with the hairdryer then, I got plenty of patience for that kind of thing.

@Chaos, Unfortunately I'm from the UK and we don't have access to a Harbor Freight over here. My main source of tools/supplies is online, usually amazon or ebay, I'm still looking but the cheapest so far is £20 which isn't too bad, but not worth it at all if I can just use a £5 hairdryer.
(EDIT: Carpa beat me to it.)

Thanks for the quick reply and the help

1 more Q, would you guys highly recommend a hot-knife or can clean cuts be achieved with a sharpened Surgical/Xacto blade?

 

[Carpathia]

You can get clean cuts with a sharp (fresh) blade. Foam will dull the blade fast, however, and you will need to switch them out periodically. I've seen people have a lot of luck with a hot knife, but the foam will shrink slightly at the cut line due to the heat from the knife. The cleanest cuts come from a fresh blade.

 

[Spartan 420]

That's great thanks so much! I was hoping I wouldn't need one.
That's a load off my mind, I can get a ton of replacement blades for a few £'s so no problems there, thanks again Carpa, much appreciated.

The only other thing I saw online was a wire foam-cutter, I believe it's just a frame that heats up a tense piece of thin metal wire, which apparently is made especially for foam-cutting. Anyone every tried it?

 

[Carpathia]

I used one while I was in school for building study models out of foam. Straight cuts were pretty nice, but if you ever have to cut curves, you'd better have a steady hand. It would probably work with EVA foam, but you'd have the same problem you'd get with a heat knife. They can run a bit expensive too. One advantage would be the ability to angle the wire to get angled cuts in the foam, but that's easily done with a blade.

 

[cha0skn1ght]

Thanks Carpa, I'll just stick with the hairdryer then, I got plenty of patience for that kind of thing.

@Chaos, Unfortunately I'm from the UK and we don't have access to a Harbor Freight over here. My main source of tools/supplies is online, usually amazon or ebay, I'm still looking but the cheapest so far is £20 which isn't too bad, but not worth it at all if I can just use a £5 hairdryer.
(EDIT: Carpa beat me to it.)

Thanks for the quick reply and the help

1 more Q, would you guys highly recommend a hot-knife or can clean cuts be achieved with a sharpened Surgical/Xacto blade?

If you can get the Xacto Z-blade, I would highly recommend it. I no longer use my hot knife because the blade on the Z-blade is super sharp and lasts a long time

 

[Spartan 420]

I used one while I was in school for building study models out of foam. Straight cuts were pretty nice, but if you ever have to cut curves, you'd better have a steady hand. It would probably work with EVA foam, but you'd have the same problem you'd get with a heat knife. They can run a bit expensive too. One advantage would be the ability to angle the wire to get angled cuts in the foam, but that's easily done with a blade.

Nice one, thanks again Carpa for all the help, you've saved me lots of £££ already.
-S420

 

[tabris89]

Howdy lads, my question is in regards to the joining of parts.

Ive got nice clean cuts from my stanley knife, and i can get an ok join on the coming together of parts, but im getting some big gaps where i just cant seem to get the angles and such right. When i go to "fix" the piece, im just making it worse. Sorry for no pics atm, ill give an eg in my thread tomorrow, but what is the best way to get nice lovely angled joins with close to flawless seams with EVA foam?

Thanks, jimmay!

 

[Jason 078]

I got that, too. Make sure that your bends are good (if you have the threshold set too low, you could miss important folds). Also, try to like the edges up with your finger so that don't stick out too far or in to deep. Finally, remember that you will also be hardening it and can fix some of the fiddly bits then with some rondo (or whatever you plan to use) and sandpaper.

 

[Spartan 420]

I got that, too. Make sure that your bends are good (if you have the threshold set too low, you could miss important folds). Also, try to like the edges up with your finger so that don't stick out too far or in to deep. Finally, remember that you will also be hardening it and can fix some of the fiddly bits then with some rondo (or whatever you plan to use) and sandpaper.

You can SAND foam?!
What grit sandpaper do you use?

 

[Carpathia]

I'm not sure Jason is referring to foam builds, but I could be mistaken. Rondo is not a normal medium to use on foam.

Although, I have discovered a way to use bondo on foam...

 

[Spartan 420]

Although, I have discovered a way to use bondo on foam...

Could you elaborate? Is there some special method involved or do you literally just put the bondo on the foam as you would anything else.

Edit: Envirotex Lite, I had a read-up on your thread and found out myself. Has anyone tried applying bondo strait to foam with no middle layer? And if so, how did it go?

-S420

 

[tabris89]

I got that, too. Make sure that your bends are good (if you have the threshold set too low, you could miss important folds). Also, try to like the edges up with your finger so that don't stick out too far or in to deep. Finally, remember that you will also be hardening it and can fix some of the fiddly bits then with some rondo (or whatever you plan to use) and sandpaper.

I'm not sure Jason is referring to foam builds, but I could be mistaken. Rondo is not a normal medium to use on foam.

Although, I have discovered a way to use bondo on foam...

thanks for the advice gents, should help me out good and proper!

 

[Spartan 420]

Need help again guys. Today I went out and purchased some Decorators Caulk.

Now it meets the necessary requirements. (Flexible, Paintable) but I just don't know what to do with it. I have alot of gaps from where my foam pieces have been glued together, and I'm attempting to fill the gaps and smooth it over with a wet finger or a damp cloth, I'm slowly getting results but it seems to be adding more mess to my piece than it is fixing it. The stuff dries quite quickly and sometimes leaves alot more residue than I'd like.

Another BIG question regarding this stuff, can it be sanded? If not, is there anyway to easily get rid of it? And will caulk-marks show up through the paint?

 

[dark hellwolf117]

hello every one i really need help i have tryed to do it and i have not lucky i really need the help make my suit plz help me

 

[Carpathia]

hello every one i really need help i have tryed to do it and i have not lucky i really need the help make my suit plz help me

That is one of the most vague requests you can make. There's no way any of us can help you out when you ask like that. You give us no clue as to what you're having problems with. This thread is more of a one-question-one-answer thread. If you need long-term assistance, take a look at the Mentor Program. Also, please try a little harder with your grammar. It doesn't take that much longer to capitalize a letter and add in a period where they're needed. You can do better than this.

 

[TwistedKiwi]

I just have a quick question regarding the amount of foam needed. If I was to build a full Spartan-IV suit out of EVA foam (helmet would be pepped), how many EVA foam mats should I purchase if they come in bundles of 4?

 

[Ravarkian]

I just have a quick question regarding the amount of foam needed. If I was to build a full Spartan-IV suit out of EVA foam (helmet would be pepped), how many EVA foam mats should I purchase if they come in bundles of 4?

For a new build, it's hard to guess exactly how much you'll need. I would start off with 3 or so packs and start with that. That way you have plenty to get started and you can just go back for more if need be.

 

[TwistedKiwi]

For a new build, it's hard to guess exactly how much you'll need. I would start off with 3 or so packs and start with that. That way you have plenty to get started and you can just go back for more if need be.

Alright, I'll do that. Thanks!

 

[tabris89]

For a new build, it's hard to guess exactly how much you'll need. I would start off with 3 or so packs and start with that. That way you have plenty to get started and you can just go back for more if need be.

Ravarkin is right, theres no way to know until you start cutting out the pieces. i got 1 4pack of foam and it took 3sheets just to cover my chest to save on waste foam, if your using templates or the like, put the edges nice and flush with each other. also for smaller pieces, get right into the joining pieces on the outsides of the foam, you will get awesome coverage and maybe not go through as much as you might think

 

[TwistedKiwi]

Ravarkin is right, theres no way to know until you start cutting out the pieces. i got 1 4pack of foam and it took 3sheets just to cover my chest to save on waste foam, if your using templates or the like, put the edges nice and flush with each other. also for smaller pieces, get right into the joining pieces on the outsides of the foam, you will get awesome coverage and maybe not go through as much as you might think

Oh wow that's a lot xD. I'm glad I set my budget at around $500, that way I can get all the stuff I need. I've never built armor before so the only "good" tool I have is a hot-glue gun. But yeah, I build gun props out of foamcore, so I've had to learn how to cut pieces in order to save the most space. I guess I'm glad I know now though, that way when I do this (horribly) expensive project I won't burn through too much material. Thanks for the help tabris! It'll definitely come in handy