My First Build, Let's Start Small... (Jorge DONE, Heavy Machine Gun WIP, Pic Heavy)

[pancake]

Since this is a weak update I'll throw in the bonus of listing all the movies/tv that I watched (that I can remember)

(Insert list of other films he watched...)
Firefly

I see your also a fan of the reynolds too. Good man

 

[Jonus]

I didn't take any pics, but I may tonight because I love it so.

Ok, now I'll post some pics. Here is my beloved shoulder:

It's not as curved as it should be because the foam padding I put on the inside kind out forces it outwards, but I still love the look of it.

I've noticed that the pep file isn't totally accurate, there should be more of a slant at the top back, not that I'm complaining since I didn't model it, and beggars can't be choosers.

I tested out spraying Plasti Dip on my biceps. It didn't really turn out how I was hoping. I thought it would go on thicker, fill in the gaps between pieces. Maybe I'm being too conservative when spraying it. This is with 3+ coats:

The flash makes it look shinier than it is. It actually looks like the texture of the bat-suit. I may try spray on more at a time now that I have a good base, but I don't seeing this being a good quick/cheap way of protecting my pieces. I saw an infomercial for this "miracle" sealant spray for roofing. It was pretty much spray on shingles, but not as rough. If I see it again I might look into it, but I think it might be a "only available on tv" type thing. I forget it's name so it might be tricky to track down. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

I also pepped my cod piece, or my "belt of truth" as I like to call it. It's a little big, but I meant to do that so I could trim it down to fit me perfectly. Better to have more to work with than less. Aside from the circumference I'd say it's a near perfect size.

Here I am with everything on up to date (except hand plates, neck shield, helmet UA, or forearm bracers)

Man, all this huge armour makes me look really skinny.

In this picture the shoulder piece is holding on to my bicep my friction alone, and it's sitting a little higher than it should be. At that height I can't really move my arm much. I'll secure it to the bicep a little lower, and sticking out from it a bit so I can more more freely. Also, I think once I make some faux "undersuit" for my neck area it'll prop the chest piece up higher where it should be. I should maybe put some weight on the back to counter the front falling too low.

I don't have much left to build, just the legs and the left shoulder (that I still haven't heard back about), so as long as I figure out a good, quick, cheap way to toughen the outside of everything, I think I can start painting soon. I haven't touched my helmet in a while. I'd like to get that finished some time soon too. Fan Expo is now only a month away!

I see your also a fan of the reynolds too. Good man

Every time I watch through the show it makes me angry that it's done. I do love Serenity (which we watched this weekend), but there is so much more they could do. It's so frustrating.

 

[Satchmo III]

Your build has an interesting combination of foam and pepakura. It looks like foam backing, with small bits of cardboard, is providing the majority of strength for your pieces. You mentioned you will be toughening up the outside...are you thinking about something like applying fiberglass resin to stiffen up the paper? Have you filled in the protrusions of the paper models with something (like the prongs on the shoulder)?

The belt looks a bit large but with however you do the foam backing/padding I'm sure it'll come out nice (might have to trim the lineal length somehow though). Engaging in a bit of banter (I mean no offense or ill-will): I couldn't help noticing...pink? I know you still have to paint so it'll probably go away (though if pink is selected that's fine too) but seeing it with the rest of the armor...it doesn't look very Jorge-like (winking smiley-face).

Good luck getting the leg pieces worked up and moving to paint. Keep it up!

 

[Jonus]

Your build has an interesting combination of foam and pepakura. It looks like foam backing, with small bits of cardboard, is providing the majority of strength for your pieces. You mentioned you will be toughening up the outside...are you thinking about something like applying fiberglass resin to stiffen up the paper?

Because of my living situation I can't use fiberglass/polyurethane, but I guess I could use something non-toxic like aqua resin or smoothcast. I've been trying to keep things as cheap as I can, which is why I was seeing if I could get by on just cardboard and foam backing with plasti dip on top, but it looks like the outside will need something stronger.

Have you filled in the protrusions of the paper models with something (like the prongs on the shoulder)?

Yeah, I've been filling in those areas with EVA foam as tight as I can. Nothing is left hollow, except for a few minor gaps where I may have mis-measured.

The belt looks a bit large but with however you do the foam backing/padding I'm sure it'll come out nice (might have to trim the lineal length somehow though). Engaging in a bit of banter (I mean no offense or ill-will): I couldn't help noticing...pink? I know you still have to paint so it'll probably go away (though if pink is selected that's fine too) but seeing it with the rest of the armor...it doesn't look very Jorge-like (winking smiley-face).

Yeah, I ran out of my cream coloured cardstock, so I asked my wife which of hers she had lots of to spare, and pink is what she gave me. I actually like the multi-colour look I've got going. It'll make it more of a surprise to see it all coloured properly.

 

[NZ Ethan]

dude this is coming along sweet , if you keep it up the whole suit should be epic

 

[nocturnal]

Your build is awesome man. I wish my first project would of come out this good. Just a quick Question. Where did you buy your Plaster Wrap and expanding foam? I may need to use these materials for my Starkiller Helmet cause it has A LOT of hollow areas. And for the helmet itself I think the plaster wrap will keep the majority of the shape once I apply to the ears of Starkiller.

 

[Serepheth]

This is a really good build, you are taking a completely different approach than most people, its nice to see people try something new. how durable is all the armor just filled with foam?

 

[Jonus]

Your build is awesome man. I wish my first project would of come out this good. Just a quick Question. Where did you buy your Plaster Wrap and expanding foam? I may need to use these materials for my Starkiller Helmet cause it has A LOT of hollow areas. And for the helmet itself I think the plaster wrap will keep the majority of the shape once I apply to the ears of Starkiller.

I got the plaster wrap from Michael's. They usually have coupon's on their website for 30, 40, or 50% off one regular priced item, and I had a 50, so it only cost around $15 I think. If you can get 2 layers on it's pretty sturdy, but can also get heavy. The expanding foam can be found at any home improvement store. I think I got this stuff at Canadian Tire (which you probably don't have) but could probably be found anywhere. I wasn't too happy with the stuff I got, and I've only used it a few times. It comes out too wet and takes a long time to dry, and when it does it's not as hard as I'd like. I know there's other better products out there.

This is a really good build, you are taking a completely different approach than most people, its nice to see people try something new. how durable is all the armor just filled with foam?

I've seen it said a bunch of times on this forum "costuming is expensive and time consuming." Time consuming, yes, but I believe you don't have to follow all the standard expensive routes to make a good suit. When it all comes down to it it's a little bit of "you get what you pay for" but also "you get what you put into it", and if you're putting your heart into it (not trying to sound cheesy, but I think you get my meaning) you'll come out with a good final product.

There's so much I have to do and only a month left. Things in life have been keeping me from dedicating too much time to my armour, but in the next few weeks I'm going to try to commit a few full days to completing as much as I can of this thing. I need to start multitasking.
The pep pieces that I've filling with pieces of EVA foam are pretty much like other suits made of just the foam, but with the added bonus of the details on the outside. The cardstock is still just carstock, so it still needs to be re-enforced so it won't rip, which is the reason for the Plasti Dip. Since I'm not quite happy with the Plasti Dip's thickness I picked up something different last night at Wal-Mart. It's this spray for a protective rubber layer on the front of your car. They also had a spray for the bed of a pickup, but this can had more and specifically said it was paint-able. I tried a first coat on my biceps last night and one coat of this stuff is better than 3 of Plasti Dip. I'll do another more thorough coat tonight to fill in some gaps.

 

[NovemberAdam]

This is coming along nicely dude. It's definetly good that you are adding some reinforcing to the exterior, that and it will help should a cloud open up on you. That would be very unfortunate.

 

[SPARTANGEO76SPAIN]

Muy buen trabajo amigo ya estoy hancioso de ver terminado tu trabajo me encanta el casco

ok, now i'll post some pics. Here is my beloved shoulder:

it's not as curved as it should be because the foam padding i put on the inside kind out forces it outwards, but i still love the look of it.

i've noticed that the pep file isn't totally accurate, there should be more of a slant at the top back, not that i'm complaining since i didn't model it, and beggars can't be choosers.

I tested out spraying plasti dip on my biceps. It didn't really turn out how i was hoping. I thought it would go on thicker, fill in the gaps between pieces. Maybe i'm being too conservative when spraying it. This is with 3+ coats:

the flash makes it look shinier than it is. It actually looks like the texture of the bat-suit. I may try spray on more at a time now that i have a good base, but i don't seeing this being a good quick/cheap way of protecting my pieces. I saw an infomercial for this "miracle" sealant spray for roofing. It was pretty much spray on shingles, but not as rough. If i see it again i might look into it, but i think it might be a "only available on tv" type thing. I forget it's name so it might be tricky to track down. Anyone know what i'm talking about?

I also pepped my cod piece, or my "belt of truth" as i like to call it. It's a little big, but i meant to do that so i could trim it down to fit me perfectly. Better to have more to work with than less. Aside from the circumference i'd say it's a near perfect size.

Here i am with everything on up to date (except hand plates, neck shield, helmet ua, or forearm bracers)

man, all this huge armour makes me look really skinny.

in this picture the shoulder piece is holding on to my bicep my friction alone, and it's sitting a little higher than it should be. At that height i can't really move my arm much. I'll secure it to the bicep a little lower, and sticking out from it a bit so i can more more freely. Also, i think once i make some faux "undersuit" for my neck area it'll prop the chest piece up higher where it should be. I should maybe put some weight on the back to counter the front falling too low.

I don't have much left to build, just the legs and the left shoulder (that i still haven't heard back about), so as long as i figure out a good, quick, cheap way to toughen the outside of everything, i think i can start painting soon. I haven't touched my helmet in a while. I'd like to get that finished some time soon too. Fan expo is now only a month away!


Every time i watch through the show it makes me angry that it's done. I do love serenity (which we watched this weekend), but there is so much more they could do. It's so frustrating.

 

[Jonus]

This is coming along nicely dude. It's definetly good that you are adding some reinforcing to the exterior, that and it will help should a cloud open up on you. That would be very unfortunate.

As always thanks for the support. This new spray is definitely going to be waterproof, but I'm not so sure about the paint going over it.

Muy buen trabajo amigo ya estoy hancioso de ver terminado tu trabajo me encanta el casco

Very good work friend and I am anxious to see your finished work I love the helmet

I will accept compliments in any language. Thanks again, amigo.

Monday is a holiday, so I'm going to try my hardest to get the most out of my long weekend. Here's my weekend task list, not so you know what I'm up to, but so I can keep myself on track.

Spay with sealant: (I've discovered the heat is melting the hot glue, so I can only do this in the evening)
-biceps (second coat)
-forearms (I fixed where the straps will attach) DONE
-bracers DONE AND STRAPS ARE ALSO PAINTED
-right shoulder DONE
-hand plates DONE

Bondo/Sanding:
-helmet Bondo'd, not sanded
-chest(?) (Apparently spot potty is like acid on the insulation foam. I've had to re-plate that part with cardboard. Pics to come.)

Pep:
-left shoulder DONE

Re-enforce/Pad:
-belt Half Done
-left shoulder (once pepped) DONE

That all seems achievable. I may even get some paint for the pieces that are getting sealed. Do you think I'd need primer? I was going to use it, but I think with this spray it kind of is a primer. I'll have to look into it. As for paints I'll be getting an aluminum and keeping an eye out for the right green. I watched a video today about weathering and I'm really excited to try it. I can't wait to start my weekend!

 

[Jonus]

Long Weekend Update

Since I have no allusions that anyone was following the updates I was making to my previous post during the weekend I figure I should do a new post with pictures to bring everyone up to speed.

Here is the state of my build:

As you can see the entire upper body is now constructed. The only finished pieces are the helmet UA and the bracer straps, but at least everything is put together.

I did a lot of rubber spraying. Before I did so to my right shoulder I trimmed those high corners. If you're not sure what I mean, look back at how they looked before.

I also pepped, padded, and sprayed my left shoulder. I really like this shoulder. Don't mind that white spot, it's just some newspaper that stuck to it when I carelessly sprayed a bit where I was about to put it down.

I rubber sprayed all the pieces of both forearms, so I decided I'd also like to start painting them. After watching this tutorial I was eager to try my hand at dry brush weathering. I've only done it to the straps in these pics, the rest of the pieces are just the black rubber, and a base coat of green on the bottom of the forearms.

I really like them.

I also did it to the UA (though to a lesser extent, because I want it to still look black)

So after all that I feel like I'm on a roll with painting, so why stop there? Collar!

Unfortunately because this piece in the file is fairly low def it was hard to paint game-accurate, but I think it's a pretty good "close enough"

I cut a few sections out of the belt so it fits me better, and then I padded the front half. It feels very solid, but I'm trying to figure out if I can pad the back in a way that allows me to sit down with it on.

I put a couple coats of green on the handplates but they look really rough. I'm debating on whether I should sand them down more, or just leave them and black-wash as is so they look really weathered.

Now as for my chest, if you read the updates above you would see that I ran into some complications. I wanted to smooth over some of the creases where the cardstock met the insulation foam using some spot putty. I found it was very tricky to get it level, but then I realized that the putty was sinking. Apparently this putty actually eats away at the foam like acid:

Here's a view from the inside:

Yes, that is light you can see coming through. It dissolved right to the bottom. When I figured out that this is what was happening I knew I had to work fast to re-enforce it or that whole pink piece would fall right out. Luckily I had only done the left side, that wouldn't have actually happened, but the structural integrity would have been severely compromised. I quickly covered all the areas that were melting with cardboard. Now that it's done it's actually much stronger, and it'll probably make it easier to put the finishing touches on. Here is how it stands:

I still need to do the sides, over the cardstock, just to level everything out. I figure everywhere the cardboard is is like a separate plate on the grenadier chest anyway, so it fits the look.

I did do some bondoing on my helmet, but nothing spectacular, just going over some weak areas, or places I had gotten to yet. Haven't had a chance to sand it, but once I do I think I'll prime it to see if it's ready to paint. There probably are a few areas that need some touching up first, but I'm just really excited to paint it.

 

[Sepheus 13]

First of all let me say that your build is going great!

I cut a few sections out of the belt so it fits me better, and then I padded the front half. It feels very solid, but I'm trying to figure out if I can pad the back in a way that allows me to sit down with it on.

well from what I see is the back of the COD plate is resting on the lower spine. so it isn't actually on our bottoms which allows us to sit down but just keep in mind not to lean back, or it may get smashed.
Reference (bungie.net)

 

[Jonus]

First of all let me say that your build is going great!

well from what I see is the back of the COD plate is resting on the lower spine. so it isn't actually on our bottoms which allows us to sit down but just keep in mind not to lean back, or it may get smashed.
Reference (bungie.net)

Thanks. The way mine is right now it sits much lower. Maybe I just need to hike it up more, but I also know the file isn't totally accurate either. I may just have to trim it down so it doesn't stick out so much, and be sure it's resting above my butt, not cupping it. (Which is does atm)

 

[ArktosPendragon]

Looking good Jonus, I'm excited to see it all finished . Also, what is the name of the rubber spray you picked up at Walmart? It looks like it turned out pretty well, do you think it would work for a straight up foam build?

 

[Jonus]

Looking good Jonus, I'm excited to see it all finished . Also, what is the name of the rubber spray you picked up at Walmart? It looks like it turned out pretty well, do you think it would work for a straight up foam build?

Yes, it definitely would, and it would be stronger than Plasti Dip. It's called Rust Check Rocker Guard. I keep meaning to take a picture of the can so others can look into it if they're interested. Since you've asked I'll try harder to remember.

 

[Jonus]

Sorry, I was wrong. It's called Rock Shield, but it does have a subtitle "Premium Rubberized Rocker Guard"

It doesn't go on quite as smooth as Plasti Dip, but that may just be me putting it on too heavy. If you do it with quick strokes I'm sure it would be fine.

And looky what I got in the mail yesterday. Gloves! I took 'em home, did some painting, and assembled each piece with 5 min epoxy and I now have finished forearms:

Two of them! (but only took pictures of one)

I did do some black washing on the forearm and bracer, but I think it could stand to get a bit dirtier. I'll leave it for now, but if I find I have time I may come back to these to rough them up some more. If I do I'll also add some dry-brush silver "scratching" to the edges.

I also sprayed my EVA shoulder with the red, so all I need to do is add the silver and it's good to go. I won't post pics til it's finished so it's a nice surprise for you all.

 

[Infernal Blaze]

Hey, fyi, Jonus, The Disembodied Soul is playing havoc with your screenshots.
P

 

[Jonus]

Hey, fyi, Jonus, The Disembodied Soul is playing havoc with your screenshots.
P

Not sure what you mean. I can see everything fine.

Anyone else seeing this?

--

Also, last night I finished painting my EVA shoulder, both biceps, and then black washed them. So aside from attaching the shoulder to the bicep I have a complete right arm!

--

Aug 5 Update:
Last night I painted and silver dry-brushed the left shoulder. I still need to black-wash it, and I think it could stand to be scratched up a bit more. I'll probably have that finished tonight.

This weekend I'm going to try to bondo my chest. I think I'm only going to do it on the cardboard parts and just rubberize the cardstock. You'd think it would be the other way around because of strengths, but I need the bondo to smooth over some of the gaps between cardboard pieces, and it'll also smooth out the cardboard's waving corrugation.

I'm also going to go out and get some Krylon matte finish spray. I don't feel comfortable leaving my paint exposed the way it is, so I'm going to try this stuff out. Hopefully it is a good looking matte. I really don't want any gloss. The satin finish of the paint is already bad enough (though fixed by the acrylic black-wash).

While I'm in the spray paint aisle I'll also be looking for a good yellow for the chest. Anyone have any recommendations? I'm thinking I'm probably going to have to get something lighter than it actually is and rely heavily on the black-wash to bring it down.

--

Aug 8 Update:

Both arms are fully finished. I attached the shoulders to the biceps with 5 min epoxy, but I think I want to add a bit of re-enforcement to them. I glued squares of foam together to mount the pieces on, so I think I might take some cardboard, or maybe my yoga foam, and make strips into right angles that I super glue on the sides and the face they're mounted on. I'm worried about getting them getting bumped at the expo, so hopefully this makes them extra strong.

I bondo'd and sanded the main part of the chest piece, and rubber sprayed the paper parts. It feels like I should do some bondoing on more of the front part, but there are a lot of tricky crevasses that I think would be to time consuming. I only have two full weeks to finish this, and I don't get much chance to work on things. If it looks like I'm too far behind I might take next friday off work.

I'll try to take a new pic of me suited up, since things have changed a lot since I last did that. Then I can make a new post and people may actually see it.

--

Aug 11 Update:

My wife did take a new pic of me suited up, but I'm not going to post it because things have changed since then. I've pepped my right thigh, and I have a good start on the left.

I think I'm going to do a silver coat on my chest, even though it's not perfectly flat yet. I'm actually going to use that to my advantage. Jorge's chest has seen a lot of wear and tear, so I'm going to just leave those spots as is, paint them silver, fill with vaseline, and then when I paint the yellow I can wipe the vaseline away and it looks like an actual scratch. I'll also be doing the vaseline trick along the edges to look like chipping.

I still need to sand my helmet, and once I've done that I'll be priming and painting it. It also still needs to be padded (I hate taking pictures with it on right now because it's hard to sit it level on my head) and I need to figure out how I'll be attaching the visor.

Other jobs to be done: pep shins and boots, paint all leg pieces, fix/figure out butt piece, paint chest, attaching straps to pieces that need support, and epoxy gluing any separate pieces to finished pieces (helmet and chest UAs). It doesn't sound like a lot to write out, but it's going to a a lot of hours to get it all done. The first day of Fan Expo is two weeks from today!

--

Aug 12 Update

I finished the left thigh last night. I think I'll be rubber spraying them both tonight. I need to start on the shins, but they look like they're going to be a real pain. They're almost twice the number of pages the thighs were. I think this weekend I'm going to try to get my helmet finished, or at least finish sanding it and have it ready to paint. It would be nice to be able to stat painting too though. I think I should be able to paint the chest. Let's make another list of feasible goals:

Pep:
Have at least one shin cut out

Sanding:
Helmet
Chest

Rubberizing
Right thigh
Left thigh
Touch-up Chest (it actually didn't need it)

Primer:
Helmet
Chest

Paint:
Right thigh
Left thigh
Helmet
Chest

Weathering:
Right thigh
Left thigh
Chest

Sounds like a lot, but there isn't much sanding to be done, and anything involving spraying is something you just do and then move on to the next piece while the other is drying. I don't expect to get every far with my pepping of the shins, but I think the chest might get finished save for a few details.

 

[Jonus]

Pic Heavy Update

So I've been a good little forum user and have been using my previous post to add more updates instead of double, triple, quadruple posting... but since I doubt anyone has seen that, here's a real update with some pics. You can read through my other progress, I didn't take pictures of much, but I think you'll get the gist of what I've done.

So I mentioned I painted and mounted my shoulders:

I finished up my bondo and sanding work on my helmet and chest. I didn't smooth them out perfectly because a) I'm rushing to finish in time, and b) it actually adds to the look since Jorge's armour is pretty beat up. So I primed them and sprayed on some aluminum:

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I love the way pieces look like this!

I applied some petroleum jelly to the edges and sprayed the colour coats:

I used Krylon Bauhaus Gold (thanks NovemberAdam), taped off the cylinder to keep the aluminum, and the black is Plasti Dip.

Detail:

Detail:

Same deal, black is Plasti Dip. I wanted it to look like a different material from the rest of the helmet. I think to get the look just right I might need to rub it down with some sort of powder to reduce the shine and make it look more dusty.

So here I am all suited up.

I've still got the pink crotch, but I do have green thighs. I did make undersuit pieces for the inner thighs out of a light grey yoga foam mat, so I sprayed it with the black rubber spray, but when I curled it around my leg it started to crack. I'll probably just spray over it with Plasti Dip since it's more elastic, and I'll do it while it is in the curved shape.

My helmet and chest UAs are only held on my painters tape here, so they kind of moved around. I'll be securing them with 5 min epoxy glue soon. The gun I'm holding is just a painted up BuzzBee "Plasma Blaster" I bought last year for Halloween. I don't know if I'll use it at the expo or not. It would be nice to have a prop, but it's pretty small, and with the bulky armour it's hard to hold properly.