Uh, im new here.

[KingCooper07558]

For such a long long time, ive had the dream of building my armor, and now i've decided to take the first step to do so. My first project will be my reach armor (image attached), its also the armor of my OC, but thats a whole other topic. I would like to know where to get started, what i need, tips, tricks, materials i will need, the works. Please, and thank you.

 

[Unit287]

Well first of all, welcome to the community! You can find a whole bunch of tutorials and members here who are definitely willing to help you out. Right off the bat though, you'll have to decide what material to make your armor out of, foam or 3d printing, those are the two main materials that people use. You can totally do both and a lot of people do, but picking one to focus on might be a good idea.

 

[rickrtickr]

Welcome to the 405th!

There are a lot of resources and tutorials that can help in getting started.

You can check them out here:

Tutorial Index

Tutorial Index This index is a gateway to a wealth of knowledge shared by community members here at the 405th. Each of the tutorials below was created by a community member who wanted to share their own expert tips, strategies, and creative solutions with all of you! This index is updated...

www.405th.com

And most members are more than happy to explain some advantages and pitfalls of any given construction method. What tools and techniques work best, and the different practices of finishing and painting.

You can also check out the armory and find files and content for the various reach armor parts.

To start with there are a few things to consider:

1. Material
   1. EVA Foams - soft, flexible, and most readily available resource collection. But the least long-term durability.
   2. hardened Pepakura - hard, inflexible, varied levels of fragility. High durability if fully completed.
   3. 3d printing - High cost of start-up and completion. medium durability.
2. tools
   1. Most of the construction methods use a variety of tools: knives, cutting boards, sandpaper, paints, etc...
   2. it is the particulars that make up differences.
      1. hotglue is more used for eva foam
      2. fiberglass mesh and resin for hardened pepakura
      3. plastic welders for 3d printing

This is obviously a very trimmed-down explanation. But take some time to go through some tutorials and watch some videos. they will have more information than I have been able to lay out here.

and at the end of the day remember that this is a hobby like most others. We do this for fun. For the love of the game. And while the skill level may vary from person to person, as long as you are having fun and enjoying yourself. That is all that matters!

I am looking forward to what you create!