Stiilus' Armour & Weapon Builds (PIC HEAVY)

[Stiilus]

Halo REACH Combat Evolved MkV Variant Pg (01)
EVA MkVI PROTOTYPE Field Test Unit Pg (12)
GRD Reach BETA Bungie Employee Only Helmet Pg (20)
MkV REACH full suit project Pg (09)

**Halo REACH Combat Evolved MkV Variant**

Hi all once again... I know I promised to put up photo's of my EVA MkVI Prototype helmet at chrissy, but things kinda got busy... I did take the photo's and still plan to upload them, but more on that later...

If any of you have checked out the EVA in my sig, you'll know by now that I like to tinker with set/canon things within the Halo universe... The concept here this time round is to take the already epic helmet of Halo:Combat Evolved and add a twist of Reach to it... Basically I like the back of the helmet from Combat Evolved to much to not incorporate it into my MkV helmet.

And so I decided to use the awesome model made by Rundown and take it from there...
I started with just the regular pep file and rather than butchering it virtually, I built it and modified it once it was complete... I did however scale the model up to 31cm from the standard 30cm before printing to allow for what I planned...

I must apologize at this point to Rundown. If you are offended by what I am about to do to you model, please let me know and I'll take the post down...

Anyway, I lowered the sides down, tapering the height towards the back so the top sloped down more there, allowing for a more "pinched" down look... I also shortened the neck line on the back to further enhance this effect. Unfortunately it now means that the back that i was hoping to keep is already slightly modified, but I guess that is what I was setting out for anyway...

From there I modified the front so that there would be that small bridging piece between the visor shades... I didn't want to make it too big, I still wanted to retain the roughly classic nature of the helmet, but just give a hint of REACH... So anyway, I only ran it out halfway so as to create a happy medium...

From there, I cut into the top to create the indentation that runs from the top of the helmet, across the crown and down to the back of the helmet... To drop it in I cut a strip about 1cm wide and taped it around the cut out at a right angle, then taped the whole thing back to the helmet, like so...

 

[Stiilus]

I must note here in case you couldn't tell that all cutting and editing of the completed pep model was done after I had used resin on the outside... It just holds together better when you're trying to cut the paper without screwing with the model (and yes, I am aware of the irony as applied here from that last statement )...

Onwards...

I drew in some areas that I wanted to cut some detail into, to give it that Reach feel more so than just the visor bridge and the recess in the top...

I plan on cutting a small recess into the top like the Reach game model, maybe go even further and make it a breath/steam/fog vent. Not to sure at this point... In the words of O'Neall "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it..."

And then I got crazy with a sander and my Dremel...

Always lots of bubbles once you break through that layer of paper... And so it begins, Fill, sand, prime... Fill, sand, prime...

As you can tell, there is a lot of work to be done... Hopefully not too much that I loose heart halfway through, but still, I do enjoy a challenge...

It seems to have an Anniversary feel to it from the side now... Guess we'll have to see how it turns out...

 

[Stiilus]

I wasn't happy with my sloppy pep work on the front, so I cut some ply and used some epoxy to hold it in place. I cut 4 pieces in total to make up the new front, and then used a builders bog to fill any unsightly gaps I also added a layer to the top of the visor covers to fill the light scalloping that was happening there...

I added a layer along the sides too, for the same reason... I think I should buy shares in this company...

Anyway, let me know what you think so far. As always, any and all feedback is appreciated. Cheers

 

[DH27]

hey man its me denzil nice work man

 

[Stiilus]

hey man its me denzil nice work man

thanks mate... i figured i better put up a WIP this time round seeing as i didn't with my pistol, and couldn't with my EVA. i cut out the visor area this afternoon, still needs some shaping around it, so i'll get some more photo's up when that bits done... i'll add you to my contacts here too, if you don't mind that is ...

 

[thorn696]

Moving right along, and it's looking great so far.

 

[Stiilus]

Moving right along, and it's looking great so far.

thanks thorn... i'll admit i was hesitant to put it up because it was a heavily modified helmet from the original file... i figured it would be ok seeing as i wasn't modifying the pep file which i know is a no-no, but i'm yet to hear back from Rundown on weather what i'm doing is all cool or not... i hope it is, i really would like to finish this project just to see what it'll look like...

 

[Stiilus]

Hello again all, been about a week since the last update, so I thought I should show whats been going on. It was a fairly slow week, not a lot went on, however, my towns show/fair was on, so I got friday off as a public holiday... Gotta love Australia, holidays for virtually nothing ...

Anyway, I did a bit of planning on friday, and got to sanding again on saturday afternoon. I reshaped the visor hole and got it reasonably close to the bubble visor, but had to come back on sunday, which is where i got 5hi7 loads done... And so, enjoy the pics...

You can kinda see some of the detail I cut into the shades. I plan on using Thorssoli's trick and widening them with an old jigsaw blade as found in this thread... http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/7138-Thorssoli's-MkVI-Costume-Buildup If you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you do, the guy is pretty much why I started making this stuff...

You can see them better here...

Onwards...

Lots of bubbles to fill, some of them I made a bit bigger with my dremel so I could pack a fair amount of bog in them... I'm really loving the sides on this, but I've still got to add in some extra details, like the little step up on the top side of the jaw. I cut those parts off so I could get in there easily to shape and fit the visor. I plan on making those bits with the ply and using the epoxy to fit them back in... Not sure if I want to give a hint of the vent/louver pattern that exits on the MKVI helmet though. The fiberglass is plenty thick to carve the detail in, but... I might leave that for you guys to decide...

I cleaned the top out a little bit, but it really needs some work... I'll have to get in there with a foam sanding block to really clear it out and smooth it off... I know that I can always hide any imperfections with paint if need be, but I really don't want to take the lazy way out...

This is why I wanted to keep the back of the neck... I just love the shapes going on here... It too still needs some work, some indicated by the pencil marks there... Can't wait to see this bit done with the weathering effects... I hope it looks awesome...

Here's a quick snapshot of how the visor is attached... I bore a small hole through the visor while clamped in place. If you can't clamp it, call a friend and remember to hold it tight, because you need to bore small holes in the fiberglass as well that line up to the visor holes. I make sure they are big enough to hold what I use, something called "insert nuts" in the fiberglass, not too loose, you'll need to epoxy them in, and make sure the holes are a little sloppy in the visor to allow for expansion... I also like to use some rubber washers to hold the visor in to lessen any impact if I drop it (touch wood) but also because they increase the pull area of the bolts that hold the visor into place...

 

[Stiilus]

So many pics... Gotta double post again...

So this is the area just behind the rebreathers, I cut a shallow indentation into it a-la the Reach helmet, but still have to leave enough room for the little knobby things from the CE helmet plus the extra profile bits in front of the lights from Reach... More on that though when I actually do it...

I might have to bevel the nose a bit more, kinda juts out a little too much on the top... Also, I think I might sharpen the bevels on the front of it too, right now it looks a little too curved like the H3 helmet remake... Not sure... I might leave it with the slight curve and call the whole piece an "essence" of MKV helmet... We'll see...

Oh snap...! That gap there is almost as big as the one between Madonna's front teeth... JK... I've got plenty of bog for that, so I'm not fretting... much...

These are the insert nuts I was telling you about... I'm using 1/4" ones because they aren't too big...

At this point I tape up the visor so as not to get bog all over it... Note also that I leave the protective film on the visor until I finally fit it in place... Scratches on that sucker can ruin a helmet, unless that's the look you're going for...

Once tapped up, I put it back in the helmet... Too much tape is a good thing here... If you feel the need, tape the whole thing... Also, I like to use the blue painters tape because it doesn't leave adhesive behind when you remove it...

Then I get crazy with the builders bog... Really jam it home, you want plenty of it in the gaps so it doesn't just fall back out...

I plan on adding a little bit of ply at the top of the visor here too, to make it more like the Reach helmet... Ironically it was the only area that didn't require bog ... Murphy's Law... Quantum Physics... Whatever...

Anyway, this is where progress sits now, so write me back, post or scream in my general direction with any ideas or thoughts as this little sucker sits alone today while I ponder what to do on it next... Cheers...

 

[Stiilus]

Been over a week since I last updated, but most of that is Photobucket's fault. It kept crashing on me. Anyway...

I glued the side bits in that sit along the top of the jawline... I think they look pretty good, but self appraisal is no recommendation, so I'll leave that to you guys to decide... I cut some ply to make the little "pegs"that sit in there first, and then glued some MDF to some more scrap ply to create some more depth for the chunkier cheeks, then shaped them with a bench sander... I glue the whole set up in place with epoxy glue and got to work on the pit that sits above the visor...

I probably should have cleaned the area out a little bit more first before glue it in, you wouldn't believe the trouble I had trying to get that sucker to fit in... Anyway, I curved the edges slightly to follow the curve of the visor and had the round the corners off to sit over the superfluous resin and crap I hadn't cleaned out of the way... (que Matt and Kim - Lessons Learned) I digress...

Because I wasn't 100% happy with how the visor was going to seal at he front I chucked this little sucker on... I don't plan on doing the little cut out at the bottom of the visor, it's just not worth the cost and work installing a second layer of bubble visor to create that effect, so this little dude will have to do... Same deal as before, I made it out of MDF and shaped it with the sander before glueing in place with epoxy...

Almost forgot to mention that I glued some ply onto the back of the light housing earlier this week to give them some more length like the Reach MkV... I kinda mis-judged the drop , so I'll have to fill underneath the ply with builders bog...

I also shaved alot off the sides of the light houses to make them a bit more narrower like the Reach MkV... Good thing I made the sides extra thick ...

While we're talking about stuff ups, I cut the detail in the wrong place (too much back slope) in the top of the side... I filled the gap and re-cut it in the right place, then cleaned up the detailing a little bit more, but it still needs some work... I dropped the details that ran along the side/top down a little bit more as you can see the difference from earlier posts... I think this is going to give it a much more cleaner aspect with no weird shapes and wobbly bits as it tappers off towards the back... All this extra shaping exposed another hole to fill... No surprise there...

I cleaned up the detail on the front top, and cut it in just a little bit deeper... I was thinking of making this a fog vent, but the visor covers the area inside the helmet too much, almost curves up to touch the roof of the helmet... There's a thought, I might still do the fancy cut out of the visor and use a bit of this excess to fill in behind it... I'll have a think on it today... I also cut some details into the top sides. They're a bit more square on the Reach model, so I may still do more with these as well...

I also dremel'd the detail on the top in a bit wider and deeper, more as a place marker for now, 'cause I need to sand the top out heaps more... I may have to prime in there first to see everything in one colour... Sometimes it just helps so much, you can be fussing over the smallest thing and when you coat it in primer, you can't even see it ... More on that later though...

And so that's all folks... It's not looking too bad in my opinion, but I leave that up to you guys to decide...

Let me know what you think, any changes I should make, any suggestions, whatever... Thanks for viewing...

 

[Warpath5150]

Very nice stuff man very smooth

 

[Stiilus]

Very nice stuff man very smooth

thanks warpath... hopefully i get some more done tonight so i can post another update, the last photo's on here are 2 days old now, and i've done a little bit more since then...

 

[Stiilus]

The laziness is strong in this one... Difficult to see his progress is...

Actually, I have been busy, just not with the uploads... Wow! It's been 3 weeks since my last update, but don't fret, I took plenty of photo's...

As I stated to Warpath5150 in my last post, I'd done a little bit more since the last upload... Basically I did a whole heap more sanding and glued some extra details in over the light housing... And as an added bonus, I cut the details into the rebreather vents on the front...

I used thin strips of MDF (craftboard) to make the houses look more like the Reach model. I think it's also kinda similar to the MkVI houses, but I digress. I also cut some holes into the cheeks for the little knobby thingies. More on them soon...

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and assume that the block of MDF that I glued in place here (with matching twin on the other side) is where the main mechanics of the helmets would be (if they were really designed for 7" tall genetically enhanced cyborgs) minus of course the rebreathers... Hmmm... Here I go off in fantasy land again...

So this is what the front looked like about 2 1/2 weeks back after I had sanded and smoothed a little bit more...

I tried using the epoxy glue as a filler in some spots just to try it out... I remember somebody recommending it on a garage model kit site I checked out a while back... It was a bit hit and miss, some area's I just dug it back out and filled with my conventional builders bog... At least I know it works... The bog that is...

The afore mentioned twin piece from the other side... I really do like the texture of the MDF while shaping it... Whilst this isn't very detailed here just yet, I'm just thinking back on my M6b and I really enjoyed using it as a medium...

I also like the way the "cheek guards" turned out. I had to scallop out the back of them to get them to fit around the visor, and then bog in any gaps that were left around the sides... I'm very happy with them...

And so here they are... The little knobby thingies... What are they for? Not even Bungie knows.... Anyway, I used the shortest furniture lug available in my shop... I know it kinda looks tacky in the chrome gold finish, but it's all we had, and besides, the colour scheme I've got planned should cancel out some of that cheap look... Of note, that's an allen key (wrench) socket (also known as a hex socket or hexagonal socket) in the center of the lugs which kinda gives the little blighters some sort of purpose... Kinda... I don't know... It makes them look adjustable.... No they won't be doing anything, and no they won't be adjustable... Lets move on shall we?

TA DAAA! Primed....
At this stage the primer is more just to show where I need to sand and shape this little sucker some more... There are some holes to fill, and the neck/base of the skull needs to be cleaned out a whole lot more...

I thought we were moving on from these things... I guess it's a slightly clearer shot, so I will allow it this time... (who am I talking to?)

A few bubbles to fill in along the front sides... Bit now I can see them alot clearer than in the pre-prime stage...

I've got some plans for the back here, so I don't have to worry too much about getting the insides smoothed to perfection, just the edges. But still, there is a bit of work to be done in these photo's... I'm glad that was back a few weeks... I enjoyed trimming them out back then, but I'm a bit tired now (see my earlier conversation with myself) so I don't think I would be in the mood for it now...

Anyway, I'll be putting some more photo's up during the course of the day, so stay tuned people...
Any thoughts you'd love to share throw 'em up here... See you soon...

 

[Stiilus]

So anyway; sand, prime, fill, sand, prime, fill...

Gets tedious, but it gets the job done... After extensive bouts of above said activities, I started to add in some extra details using some thin sheet metal I took from the back of an old twin tub washing machine left at my local refuse site... I'm always on the look out for stuff like that, and seeing as it's just a sheet of metal, it can be cleaned down and sanitized of any germs that it's previous owners or rubbish dumpers may have left upon it's surface...

These extra details are glued in place with a product called Fullaprene... It's basically just a fancy type of rubber glue or contact adhesive, except it doesn't seem to take as long to dry and it's grey in colour, not your standard mustard brown/yellow... Actually, it probably has a lot in common with windscreen sealant or some other type of mastic... I highly recommend it though, whatever similarities you choose to draw with it...

See, that is why I like to use MDF... It's just so damn versatile... The deeper channel there I plan on running a fine threaded screw along to give the impression of what looks to be a worm gear or a spring on the Reach MkV... Seeing as I have already done it and I'm talking in the past tense here, I guess you'll see it when I post the images up later today...

Boo Yah! I'm taking a fair bit of artistic license here on the neck seeing as I'm making a combo of both helmets... The Reach model seems to have some small plates wrapping around the neck, whereas the CE model has the same basic shape (sort of) that I've been rolling along with so far... I think this is a fairly happy medium... Once it's got all the weathering and grime on it, it should look aces...

I cleaned the details out on the visor with a jigsaw blade, and...
Actually, you know what, there can't be 2 "visors" on this helmet, it just gets too damn confusing... Seeing as the most manly of hats need to have a brim, henceforth I too shall call the above shown part of my helmet the "brim"...

So anyway, I cleaned the details on the brim with a jigsaw blade and rounded the corners off with my trusty Dremel... On my original MkVI I glued the details in from the same sheet of metal I cut the details for this helmet... The problem with that is trying to keep them all straight while drying. Using this method however, I can cut the details in as deep as I want, so long as it doesn't penetrate into the helmet itself, cutting the shapes free, I could put as much detail under the brim as I would see fit and I needn't worry about shapes shifting while glue dries... The downside to this is that you need to be pretty sure that the brim is plenty thick enough to take the deep cuts... Something for you all to think about...

It's not new, just improved... I cut the details in deeper on the top too, and refined some of the cuts down the sides...

I also cleaned up the rebates above the brim just a little bit more... This should allow for a much easier paint job...

Onwards...

 

[Stiilus]

So at this point I'm pretty chuffed at the look and feel of the helmet, and so next up it the paint job...

I hate waste and planned on using a leftover can of spray paint from the last helmet I made... Check my sig for the link to the EVA prototype, read about my M6b to find out why I never put any developmental pics of it up...

So anyway, the colour is PPG's WhiteKnight Squirts Mandarin... It's a nice golden yellow sort of colour and would be ideal to paint a Sanghelli General suit with... Something else for you all to think about ...

Unfortunately, because it's just so damn bright/translucent, I highly recommend using a white primer or even just a regular white spray pack underneath it to really bring out the full intensity of the colour, otherwise you'll need about 10 layers just to get it anywhere near what it should be... with the white, about 3 coats really did the job...

So I left the white to dry for a few hours, just a single coat of it is sufficient to act as a precoat/primer for the yellow...

And then I got funky...

I also used a clear coat gloss made by the same people as the yellow in tandem with the colour coats... i.e. I would spray a quick coat of the yellow on and while it was still wet I would give the helmet a quick coat of the clear so as to let the two coats become a single thicker, glossier coat... Once they had dried, I would give the whole thing a very light sand and repeat the process again, building up layers until I had the full 3 twin coats where I wanted them... It's a bit like how the Japanese used to do their wooden boxes i guess, multiple coats of laquer until they achieved a full rich depth of black...

Also, there are eight coats in that last paragraph ...

I hung it up to dry for a few days, even being a quick dry enamel, you just don't want to rush the paint job, and besides, the difference between a good job and a bad job is only five minutes... Or something like that...

The lugs still stand out a bit against the yellow, but they don't look quite as cheap now... Kinda...

After a few days of drying, it's starting to look pretty good now... There's still a fair way to go yet, but at least I can see roughly where it's headed...

So far, the hardest part of the painting was trying to not get too much paint onto the details on the side, I need them to still be crisp and clean for their own coat of colour...

So that's it for this hourly update, more to come later today... I've been busy putting the "blackwash" onto it... Seeing as these photo's are about a week old now, I should be able to catch up to where I am now by later on this evening... Uh... Well I know what I mean... Stay tuned...

 

[p bro]

Pretty damn awesome, the Anniversary/Reach style mouth vents are spectacular in particular. Your painting is pretty awesome as well, I'm loving the super gloss finish, definitely brings back some Halo 1.

 

[R8b]

I am insanely jealous of this helmet. I love the detail you put into this, also the color lol. Great job, looking forward to more.

 

[Stiilus]

Pretty damn awesome, the Anniversary/Reach style mouth vents are spectacular in particular. Your painting is pretty awesome as well, I'm loving the super gloss finish, definitely brings back some Halo 1.

Thanks man... i love getting the super glossy finish, the only problem with it is that it shows up all the faults. it just makes me have to sand it smooth which is always a good thing... i chucked the helmet on earlier, and although i haven't installed the grills behind the vents yet it looks like they'll be plenty big enough that i may not need to install a fan at all. there was no fogging to speak of what so ever... that might change however once the padding is in so i might run the wires just in case...

I am insanely jealous of this helmet. I love the detail you put into this, also the color lol. Great job, looking forward to more.

More?! More you say?! as it just so happens i finished all the painting on it today. the only part that will need touching up will be around the lights when i put them in, i didn't want to risk splashing paint on the LED's at this stage, so hopefully i get time to install them later this week... i'm glad somebody else likes the colour, i had almost a full can left after the last helmet i made, this colour was just the small details on it, so i thought why not? you don't see many mandarin coloured spartans getting around...

 

[thorn696]

Wow.....You come along ways since I was last here. You're Helmet is looking AWESOME. I love how much detail you were able to put into it.

 

[Stiilus]

Wow.....You come along ways since I was last here. You're Helmet is looking AWESOME. I love how much detail you were able to put into it.

thanks thorn... i always like the idea of a repeat customer...

i've done a heap more since these photo's were taken, i just gotta wait for photobucket to stop swallowing my bandwidth and actually let me do something productive so i can get some more shots on here...