Greeny building...

[mux213]

Hey Everyone,

Things took a bit more time then I thought, mind you, most of it was a learning experience and to properly cure Aqua Resin you really need to wait 24 to 48 hours before sanding and applying the next layer. It also took awhile before I improved my technique so I think I've redone a few layers I had just sanding pretty much back again.

I've all ready glued together the first thigh and I place to build a few more things before I start resinning again so I can get a bit of momentum going.

That all said, I have two questions before continuing:
1) can anyone suggest a good pepakura file for a Reach boot, something I can build around a normal shoe.
2) At the end there is a picture of my daughter putting the pieces on just to check size and see if I'm on the right track. I plan to pad the inside with foam for softness but putting the shin on is already a tight fit. I've seen some people cut the back out but I'm a bit hesitant to do so. Does anyone have suggestions, what works best here?

So this is after one extra layer of Aqua Resin and sanding it, still a very rough result (most pictures were taken late at night so sorry for the bad lighting):


This is after putting on the second layer and sanding it back:

Note that I only just put the top thingy on (and yes I did the sides wrong, check your reference material!! I'll be making the same mistake on purpose once I do the other side) so that is very rough.

I also put a small video on youtube:

And here is where we got to this morning:


Ignore for a moment the pieces aren't positioned properly, I am a little worried the thigh is ending up too high, we'll see once we finish the COD (which I'm tempted to redo because it suffered a similar but less bad fate as my helmet).

The thigh piece I'm going to see if I can get perfect the techniques I'm using and am planning to describe the other side in a bit more detail. I might put some more vids online as I try out some things and maybe get some feedback on how I'm approaching a few things.

 

[Raquisite]

Hey mux213, or Bastiaan?

As I expected, your build is coming along great from what I can see here, and as usual I'm looking forward to the next updates (;
Personally, I think it looks as if the thigh piece is a little big, as it comes up too high. That was my first thought when viewing the photos. But as you said, perfect the cod piece then you'll know for sure. (;

Also, you may have these by now or even better ones, but I know of a boot which you should be able to fit over a shoe (hopefully) ; http://www.4shared.com/postDownload/rw8aqsSE/acenat_boot_toe.html

http://www.4shared.com/file/x4XoEZEY/Reach_Boot_by_Ruze.html

You'll need to download them both as each is half of the Boot. If I'm not mistaken, I think those two files make a complete Boot. You may have to rescale, though.

 

[mux213]

Raquisite, Bastiaan is my real name, Mux a long time nickname...

The thing with the thigh piece is that diameter wise its pretty good and it scaled the same as the shin piece which worked out well size wise. We'll have to see how it lines up with the cod piece. I don't mind if it is on the big side as my daughter is still growing (fast) but it if it looks out of whack I guess I'll have to redo it smaller.

 

[Raquisite]

Ah I see.
Out of interest, were those boot files okay?

 

[mux213]

Ah I see.
Out of interest, were those boot files okay?

Not sure yet, it looks like a nice design when you put them together but I'm still a little unsure on what I want here. I had the toe bit already but not the rear.

 

[mux213]

Ok, well I've tried a crappy hand at video-ing some progress My miniDV camera had been in the cupboard longer then it liked and it decided to crap out on me, also I upgraded my Macbook some years back and lack a firewire port anyways (yeah I get get the thunderbolt adapter.....). So we're using my trusty iPhone for this one until I get something better for the job.

Linsey is holding it the first part of the movie and I tried the anti-shake function in iMovie but didn't realize how it craps out the borders and after 2 or 3 failed attempts at uploading before I even found this out...
Not that my camera work later on is any better, I can't wait till I have something I can mount back onto my trippod.

Its more an experiment and something to put a smile on her face anyways, only the last 10 minutes or so of the video might be interesting to someone. Anyway, if you've got 30 minutes to waste have a look:

Important to note is that I do mention about Aqua-resins drying time. While dry to the touch after about 20 to 30 minutes it takes 24 to 48 hours to fully cure. What I missed out on was that you don't need to wait that long before you continue working. Doing a second coat or continuing with the fiberglass you can do pretty much after the 30 minutes. For us it was waaay past bedtime which suited us well so I finished off the work the next day (photos below).
With fiberglassing you may wish to wait until parts are properly dried just to ensure you don't run into issues with the project getting damaged as parts get heavier and there still is enough flex in the fiberglass.
When using the aqua-resin for the top (if you're sticking with aqua resin like me and not switching to Bondo) I do suggest giving it a tleast 24h to cure before you sand it down.

Finally, I skim over it in the video but I'm not fiberglassing all the way to the edge. I have two reasons here:
1) I was taught when I first used fiberglassing years ago that you need to be careful with 90 degree corners. Fiberglass doesn't bend well and it is very likely you'll end up trapping air in the corners. I'm actually worried that may have happened with some of the places I glued the skewers in. In the end that will show itself if during sanding things start collapsing
2) I want to create a thicker edge around the project. More to follow about that

Anyway, here are some pictures of where we ended up at with our codpiece:

 

[Raquisite]

Hey Bastiaan.
Really great video, informative, too.
I was wondering though, have you ever considered Jesmonite for your resin? I hear it has low toxicity however I'm unsure if Its any better than aqua resin.
Perhaps you could look into it if you haven't already.

Also, I'm not sure if there's any dollar stores near you, or 99 (cent??) stores, but as I live in the UK, I can get a pack of 6 brushes for £1 from the pound store and they work perfectly fine.
Just a thought.

 

[mux213]

Raquisite,

Thanks for the complement, we completely winged it and seeing we skipped half the process I had a bit of catching up to do. I'm planning to build the arm pieces soon and thinking about filming the process of the forearm piece as its a relatively small piece, doing one side first to make sure there are no surprises and then filming the second. We'll see, its mostly just for myself, I've found even trying to explain the process in my head as if I'm explaining it to a third person helps me think through things, but more so its something to look back to in years to come. Especially since I'm doing this with my daughter its something for her as well to go back and go, that was cool!

Yes I did consider Jesmonite, there where a few non-toxic products that came up in a thread I started awhile back asking about alternatives. I didn't get a response back from the importer however when I tried to reach out to them while the guys that import Aqua Resin did. So for me it was a simple question of availability. I'd love to try out other products however so if I ever get my hands on Jesmonite I'll definitely try it to see how it stack up.

I got a lot of my supplies at 2 dollar shops and the like but the ones near me only stack very small brushes, not something I would like to use for this unfortunately.

 

[Raquisite]

I do enjoy the videos, personally.
You can fit much more information and show more within a video. Perhaps it isn't everyone's cup of tea (sitting down watching a 30 minute video) But I do personally enjoy it.

Quick question, though, and forgive me if you have answered this previously; Do you have an ETA for when the suit will be completed?

 

[mux213]

Quick question, though, and forgive me if you have answered this previously; Do you have an ETA for when the suit will be completed?

*cross my fingers*, I'm hoping to be ready for EBExpo in October...

 

[Raquisite]

*cross my fingers*, I'm hoping to be ready for EBExpo in October...

October? Wow, as far as I'm aware you're cutting it short big time.
However you're making great progress! I do hope you make your goal. Do you feel as if you can make it in time? Given your current amount of progress?

 

[mux213]

Do you feel as if you can make it in time? Given your current amount of progress?

Nope but the progress so far has been a learning school so I hope things will speed up as I get more confident in what I'm doing. Its a goal, if we don't meet it, we set our sites to the next event, but I'm going to try and make it

 

[RYNO 666]

Great job! I like the way you showed the true nature of Aqua Resin. I love the product it has many advantages.

Sent from my 0PJA2 using Tapatalk

 

[mux213]

Great job! I like the way you showed the true nature of Aqua Resin. I love the product it has many advantages.

No product is perfect but I'm enjoying working with it. I just found that good info on it is hard to find. I got the impression from the vids that I could find that people used it and gave up on it, possibly due to it warping the paper more easily. I don't know how your experience with that has been?

 

[RYNO 666]

No product is perfect but I'm enjoying working with it. I just found that good info on it is hard to find. I got the impression from the vids that I could find that people used it and gave up on it, possibly due to it warping the paper more easily. I don't know how your experience with that has been?

The trick to cancel warp is sealing cardstock first. Try light brushing of pva glue or MOD podge to outer surface before you Resin. Or alternatively apply acrylic spray paint but be careful with it. Less is more and it's counter intuitive but makes whole process faster.

Sent from my 0PJA2 using Tapatalk

 

[mux213]

The trick to cancel warp is sealing cardstock first. Try light brushing of pva glue or MOD podge to outer surface before you Resin. Or alternatively apply acrylic spray paint but be careful with it. Less is more and it's counter intuitive but makes whole process faster.

That explains why the shin worked out better so far, I kinda drew the same conclusion and after hearing about a tip on tested.com (for an unrelated situation) sprayed a layer of clearcoat over the project first. It definitely slowed down and/or prevented the paper getting soggy and warping. As I changed a lot in the technique I wasn't sure however if the clearcoat was the winning factor or the fact I made everything more rigid by adding some wood here and there.

The distributor here in OZ suggested to use AquaCote instead and send me a sample bottle (its in the vid somewhere). I used it on some of the smaller parts I've build successfully and plan to use it on the next big part I'm building. So far I've been impressed by it as it doesn't just seal the cardstock but it being a polyurathane product makes it strong enough to do the fiberglassing on the inside without needing to resin the outside. I won't know for sure if it is the best way to go however as I have no idea if it is prone to warping when doing larger pieces.

 

[RYNO 666]

This is interesting. I wasn't aware of Aqua coat. The majority of builder's here prefer using Automotive resin for many reasons. Cost is probably the main reason. However I've used all the popular media and discovered that when running numbers on Materials, tools, safety gear, disposable items, and consumables I've discovered that Aqua resin is the same cost. Greatest thing is, I can do it anywhere, reuse tools, and without all the Hazop gear. (Pun intended)

I find the best way to apply the first layer of Aqua resin is in very light coats. First reason is it keeps it from warping second reason is it makes whole process much faster. Cure time's for it to be rock hard varies however of you can mix it right it hardens fast. I break up the pieces into quarters and go in a star pattern when applying with slight overlap. This insures a nice coverage. Once it is hard and still able to be manipulated I stiffen up and massage area's that need it. I don't apply any fiber until at least one complete coat is on outer and inner surface. After its hard the whole thing becomes a cake walk.

Sent from my 0PJA2 using Tapatalk

 

[mux213]

RYNO, yeah thats pretty much my beginners experience as well. The start is a bit tricky if you don't put it on in light enough coats, but that is my only reason for trying out aqua cote, just to make that first step easy. Once the project is hard, aqua resin is a dream to work with for all the reasons you stated. And it is just so nice after a busy day, when its nearly freezing outside, to pull all the tools out of the cupboard and just work on it for an hour or two.

Not that I've had much time to do anything this week

 

[mux213]

Hi all,

Well its been a busy week but not much happening on the project. I did manage to print out and start cutting out the chest piece and arm pieces for one arm but not much to show there.

As for the codpiece, I finally had some time last night to finish up the edges, I was waiting for a little bracket to come in to mount my iphone on my tripod but its still in transit, I tried to make some vids but I'm arms short. I'll put some of it online later on once i figure out how much is usable.

Anyway this is where I'm at now:

 

[mux213]

*edit, added pictures in*

I'll post/add some pictures later today when my son gives me back my Macbook but this weekend I've made a lot of progress.

First off, I build one forearm piece and used Aqua cote to seal it and the thigh piece. I am absolutely impressed with Aqua cote. Seeing I was doing both pieces I made 20ml (sound like nothing right) and coated both pieces with resin to spare. It also has very little warping (though both pieces have a lot of support added to them but still).




Here is what it looks like with the Aqua cote applied:


The cod piece is now completely covered in aqua resin on the outside and I'm waiting for the last bit to dry properly before I sand it, probably won't get to that that soon.


Finally I've finished sanding and sprayed the shin piece with primer and I'm pretty happy with the result. a few small pieces that need a bit more filler but after that its ready. I'm planning to spray everything in a silver first and only once I've build all pieces of the armor start spraying the final colors.