LongShot-X's Mark VI HD MJOLNIR Armor - WIP

[LongShot X]

I was saving this for another time, but I felt that THIS video really catches the "SPIRIT" of Cosplay and had to share it with the 405th community. (Fun, non-judgmental, creative, motivational and inspirational)

Enjoy and be inspired!

From Anime Revolution 2013 at the Vancouver Convention Center, BC, Canada
Video by OTL Productions. (Thanks to Andy W. for having me on board.)

Cheers!

 

[TMC]

Great to see you're still active! You are an inspiration to me in the art of perfect pepakura. I am currently creating my own version of your build... hopefully it turns out as epic as yours.
Cheers

 

[LongShot X]

Yup... Im active but not as much as I would like to be. Life stuff and work... It always gets in the way of the FUN stuff.

Ahhh, the art of "Perfect Pepakura". I'll let you in on a secret. It took me quite awhile to discover this...

There is no perfect pepakura.
Only the illusion of perfect pepakura.

Meaning. There are a lot of flaws in my pepakura armor. I know what they are and where they are. The real challenge is in hiding those flaws through bondo (and lots of sanding) and with the painting/detailing.

Now of course there are lots of tricks/tips in trying to prevent them from ever happening. (Insert LONG list here) But alas, I am only a human and not a 'perfect' human either. So flaws will somehow find there way in.

In the end, the causal observer will never see those flaws. They will be filled with so much emotion over how fantastic your art/craft is, that they will always miss those flaws. Out of the thousands and thousands that have seen my suit in person, only 3 have mentioned anything about flaws. Then again, those 3 are living breathing Halo encyclopedia's to the extreme.

If those flaws still bother you, then do what I do... Leave your project as a "Work in progress" and work out those flaws bit by bit. eg. I did not like the crappy paper pattern under the brim of my helm or the sideburns. It looked unfinished. Simple yet effective solution was to cover it up with black foamie bits. I liked the texture and color and just left them as is. No Plasti-dip or painting. -AND- Yes... I can see that I have flaws in the placement and sizing in those too.

Otherwise... Keep the goal of perfection in mind and keep up your discipline of perfection (same mentality that I have) and your sure to have a fantastic perfect looking suit of armor.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Mstruvmgc]

Great video and great advice man

 

[Cereal Killl3r]

Yup... Im active but not as much as I would like to be. Life stuff and work... It always gets in the way of the FUN stuff.

Ahhh, the art of "Perfect Pepakura". I'll let you in on a secret. It took me quite awhile to discover this...

There is no perfect pepakura.
Only the illusion of perfect pepakura.

Meaning. There are a lot of flaws in my pepakura armor. I know what they are and where they are. The real challenge is in hiding those flaws through bondo (and lots of sanding) and with the painting/detailing.

Now of course there are lots of tricks/tips in trying to prevent them from ever happening. (Insert LONG list here) But alas, I am only a human and not a 'perfect' human either. So flaws will somehow find there way in.

In the end, the causal observer will never see those flaws. They will be filled with so much emotion over how fantastic your art/craft is, that they will always miss those flaws. Out of the thousands and thousands that have seen my suit in person, only 3 have mentioned anything about flaws. Then again, those 3 are living breathing Halo encyclopedia's to the extreme.

If those flaws still bother you, then do what I do... Leave your project as a "Work in progress" and work out those flaws bit by bit. eg. I did not like the crappy paper pattern under the brim of my helm or the sideburns. It looked unfinished. Simple yet effective solution was to cover it up with black foamie bits. I liked the texture and color and just left them as is. No Plasti-dip or painting. -AND- Yes... I can see that I have flaws in the placement and sizing in those too.

Otherwise... Keep the goal of perfection in mind and keep up your discipline of perfection (same mentality that I have) and your sure to have a fantastic perfect looking suit of armor.

Just my 2 cents.

Well put sir!
Dave/Cereal.

 

[vshore100]

Great video LS! I think my top 3 were you, and the two Mortal Kombat suits. Great advice as well! Hope to see you around more often in the near future.

 

[LongShot X]

Great video LS! I think my top 3 were you, and the two Mortal Kombat suits. Great advice as well! Hope to see you around more often in the near future.

I'm glad that you mentioned those 2 Mortal Kombat suits.
Interesting fact about them: The cosplayer in those two Mortal Kombat suits, as well as the Sam Gideon Vanquish Armor (the white suit) is the same guy. -AND- He just happens to be a 343i employee!

You can see more of his cosplays here: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDanquish

He is a REALLY NICE guy and I had to give him my Kudos on all his cosplays.

 

[U513]

I was saving this for another time, but I felt that THIS video really catches the "SPIRIT" of Cosplay and had to share it with the 405th community. (Fun, non-judgmental, creative, motivational and inspirational)

Enjoy and be inspired!

From Anime Revolution 2013 at the Vancouver Convention Center, BC, Canada
Video by OTL Productions. (Thanks to Andy W. for having me on board.)

Cheers!

I need to move to Canada! Nottigham UK sucks for this kind of thing! Awesome suit by the way!

 

[RobotChicken]

Great video and nice looking costume. A plunger gun would be funny with those bunny ears (Raving Rabbids). Been subscribed since joining 405th.

 

[harican89]

hmm the second video is blocked because of music DRM :-/ are you willing to set an other title?

and btw: how did you managed the voice amplifier? where is the mic, where is the speaker and what does the iPhone/ipod do?
and i have the same problems in my helmet with the voice amp and the fan you are talking about (with the gopro).

my voice amp is confused by the fan and i dont really know how to fix it. i love the fan and i dont want to turn it off :-D
do you have any circuit diagram for this ? or are you willing to puplish them?

 

[LongShot X]

I need to move to Canada! Nottigham UK sucks for this kind of thing! Awesome suit by the way!

Canada has lots of space for ya. Thanks for the compliment.
I have to add... Your foam build is looking great. (yes I just HAD to have a look)

Great video and nice looking costume. A plunger gun would be funny with those bunny ears (Raving Rabbids). Been subscribed since joining 405th.

Hmmmm... That would look very entertaining. I'll have to remember that the next time that I don the suit for some shenanigans. Reading your compliment put a smile on my face. Your build is absolutely amazing. Between you and Dave/Cereal, I feel that the two of you are raising the bar much MUCH higher. KUDOS!
As a side note: I have been a subscriber of both you and Cereals builds since the beginning of both threads. Gotta keep learning (lurking) new things.

hmm the second video is blocked because of music DRM :-/ are you willing to set an other title?

and btw: how did you managed the voice amplifier? where is the mic, where is the speaker and what does the iPhone/ipod do?
and i have the same problems in my helmet with the voice amp and the fan you are talking about (with the gopro).

my voice amp is confused by the fan and i dont really know how to fix it. i love the fan and i dont want to turn it off :-D
do you have any circuit diagram for this ? or are you willing to puplish them?

Unfortunately I do not own the video, so I am unable able to assist you in viewing it. I have heard that there may be workarounds to it, but I don't' want to break any government or copyright laws. You'll have to do some research on that.

The voice amplifier is really just a pair of computer multimedia speakers that I removed from their housing and installed it into the back of the torso. They are powered by a rechargeable Lithium Ion battery pack. The Mic is connected to the smart phone, the smartphone is also connected to the line in on the speakers. Its all wired. (Sorry I do not have a circuit diagram.) The smart phone runs an app called "Megaphone". That's how my voice amp works. This configuration also enables me to play music and answer the phone. The mic is part of half face mask that I wear under the helm. That way I can remove the helm and still have the voice amp active. The helm fans don't really interfere with the voice amp that much, it does pick up the noise a little, but in the convention environment, it is not noticeable at all.

The smartphone ALSO controls the GoPro via WIFI. With that, I can control all the settings, turn it off, turn it on and even preview what it is seeing and hearing.
I also carry a Blackberry Playbook in the back pouch, that can do the same thing. It offers a bigger screen and can be handled by my handler/photographer or to show others just how interactive the armor really is. (video on this in the near future)

As for the GoPro mic and fan issue: I just picked up the external mic adapter. With that, I will be able to use an external mic that I can place on the outside of the helm, away from the fans. A test to see how it sounds and works, is planned in the near future.

Cheers!

 

[harican89]

thanks for the great overview. a few month earlier i found this video:

i implemented most of the hardware he used and its great, but the microphone has some interferences. its kinda creepy :-/ but the video helped me alot. maybe it will help you too. iam looking forward for my new h4 armor and i will implement so many tools and toys inside the armor! xD i will take my time for that.

i have a last question. on my reach foam armor i had some problems with the cables for the leds. i connected all the leds to a single and heavy lithium ion battery pack placed in the chest. the cables were visible and i dont have the time to hide them. do you have any advise for that? how did you "feed" your leds in all the armor parts?
maybe some pics will help out ^^

 

[RobotChicken]

...Your build is absolutely amazing. Between you and Dave/Cereal, I feel that the two of you are raising the bar much MUCH higher. KUDOS!
As a side note: I have been a subscriber of both you and Cereals builds since the beginning of both threads. Gotta keep learning (lurking) new things.

You flatter me - Your build is among those which inspires me. Your bondo and sanding is excellent. (It's not my intent to raise any bars - everybody has their own personal preferences while building their armor and I simply handle the more-outlandish pep errors differently than somebody else would.) Thanks!

 

[LongShot X]

thanks for the great overview. a few month earlier i found this video:

i implemented most of the hardware he used and its great, but the microphone has some interferences. its kinda creepy :-/ but the video helped me alot. maybe it will help you too. iam looking forward for my new h4 armor and i will implement so many tools and toys inside the armor! xD i will take my time for that.

i have a last question. on my reach foam armor i had some problems with the cables for the leds. i connected all the leds to a single and heavy lithium ion battery pack placed in the chest. the cables were visible and i dont have the time to hide them. do you have any advise for that? how did you "feed" your leds in all the armor parts?
maybe some pics will help out ^^

Watched the vid and found his solutions very creative and effective. I might use some of those ideas in the foam version of the armor that I have.
My armor does not run any cables from one piece to the next. I had 2 problems when I did experimented with them. 1) To difficult to hide them. 2) They break when bent to many times. (eg. walking, etc..) My solution was to have a battery pack and switch in each and every piece. I do believe that a few of those pics are posted somewhere in this massive thread. (one is here: http://www.405th.com/showthread.php...k-VI-HD-MJOLNIR-Armor-WIP?p=444033#post444033)

You flatter me - Your build is among those which inspires me. Your bondo and sanding is excellent. (It's not my intent to raise any bars - everybody has their own personal preferences while building their armor and I simply handle the more-outlandish pep errors differently than somebody else would.) Thanks!

Sounds like our feelings are mutual on this. I had no intents to raise any bars either and that was just an unknown side effect. But I do like your attention to detail and documentation of your build. Very well done and easy to understand.


While at PAX Prime 2012, SneakyZebra happened to show up to our 405th photo shoot gathering. Then this happened:

Enjoy!

 

[LongShot X]

As a follow up to that vid...

Shortly after it was posted, another group called "Opticalfilm" got a hold of the vid and made this happen:

 

[RobotChicken]

I do like your attention to detail and documentation of your build. Very well done and easy to understand.

Thanks again. I don't try to present tutorials - just the steps I took to reach a desired result, in case anybody else out there is as ambitious. My goal is to see if "gee, what would happen if somebody decided to get really crazy and put in all the little details present in the game renderings". CerealKill3r happens to be one of those crazy types, and sadly so am I. It must be somewhat nostalgic for you to see us newcomers coming in here doing the initial pep work. Bet you miss those pepping days, eh! (What? Did I hear a "not really..."?) lol

 

[U513]

Canada has lots of space for ya. Thanks for the compliment.
I have to add... Your foam build is looking great. (yes I just HAD to have a look)

lol that's nice to know! Believe it or not I have been giving it some serious thought recently. Im British, Civil Engineer, with over 2 years of experience and no convictions. That's pretty much all that's required for residence and a spare £800

I am seriously thinking of just applying for giggles! if it works out then i'd love to move to Vancouver, BC provided I could get a decent job lol

Thanks, im glad you like it just one or two more tweaks now before I finish it in the next couple of weeks. Love how you are installing all that tech in the suit! Brilliant!

 

[Achilla137]

Been browsing through this RIDICULOUSLY awesome thread and your build is amazing! I'm also building the same hd armor for my bf, but I noticed the shins I made are huge! I looked at your completed armor as reference for optimal sizing, and the height of it is fine, it's the back that covers the calf that's gigantic! I'm just curious about whether or not you had to adjust yours to make it smaller or did it just fit right?

Awesome work and I'm happy to have found this thread. I have done a few of my newer pieces without numbers and it does make a difference

 

[LongShot X]

Glad you like it and are having success with the "No Edge ID's"
I scaled down the shins for FIT to my body (ie. NOT proportion to the rest of the armor). So, yes, they are smaller than what you would see when proportioned on John 117. Other than that, I had no other modifications to make.

 

[LongShot X]

While at Emerald City Comic Con... This happened on the last day, Sunday!

Enjoy!