HELLO 405th, Sorry its taken me a few days to get this info up, shift work is a bit@#. Anywho as promised Ill show you the tools and materials I use.
Foam:
I use 3 layers/thicknesses of foam.
1) Standard EVA foam mats for the base.
2) I'm not sure if you can get these in the US of A but here in AUS, I get them from Kmart. They are food and water mats for pets, they are still EVA foam so they bond well with other materials and hold there shape when heated and cooled.
They are approximately 5mm thick ( 0.19685 of an inch, I pre googled this for my US friends in here
).
3) Now this is just standard craft foam in multiple colors, they come in a pack of about 200 or so here. I get them from Spotlight Australia. they are about 2/3mm thick. (0.0787402 of an Inch).
Tools:
I'm just going to list these with a photo next to them.
1) Hot glue gun ( I use a smaller type, as its easier to get into smaller tighter spots if needed.)
2) Cheep Heat gun ( I say cheep, just to show that this can be done on a low budget ) I believe I paid $15 Aus for mine.)
3) Hot Knife ( once again cheep, however I do step it up on the blades, otherwise in the long run it would end up costing me more in replacing them anyway.)
I also use whatever I can get my hands on for shaping, making particular details or just nuts and bolts type things to add more layers and details to the build. Anything lying around the house that suits my needs.
Finishing and Painting:
ok so to start this process I begin my filling in any visible holes and gaps with a drywall filler (brands and type is exactly the ones I use in pictures below.)
I then spray a coat of primer paint to highlight any further imperfections and fill accordingly, then a second coat of primer is applied.
3rd is 2 coats or more if warranted, of the GREEN CAMO plasti dip rubber coating.
then 1 light coat of your choice of paint. Mine is called pale eucalypt, I think I said it was something different in an earlier post but this one is the right one.
Then I heavily water down some black and brown acrylic paint, separately. Applying it with any old brush, this part doest have to be particularly neat, but I make sure im putting it only in the gaps and corners where dirt and grime would normally collect, I do a little bit at a time, them wipe it away with a common dish sponge, when I do this it wipes out onto the rest of the suit and creates that weathered and used look.
Then with any old brush again, the crapy-er the better, spray it with some chrome paint and dry brush in some scratching and bit were the paint would wear away.
Now this is the part where I get a little antsy about but I really go over in my head for a while, thinking and pondering placement of damage and gashes. Then with my hot knife tool i start to make cuts and marks in the suit. Once Happy with the battle damage I give them a really quick spray with black paint, making sure not to get to much over spray on the surrounding areas, a little is ok because it gives it that tarnished burnt look. Then once that has dried I take some more black acrylic and fill in any spots I missed with the spray and then apply some more dry brushed chrome over the top again.
to finish I give it a coat of a clear matte sealer.
THEN TAAA DAAAAH !! it's done.
If you guys have any specific questions on how I do something exactly just ask and I post up more.