My First Armor Build; Halo Infinite Master Chief

[ForwardUntoDusk]

I haven't seen the files by InfiniteCreative3D. Do you have a link for where I can find them? The only other files I really looked at were the one by moesizzlac, but they didn't seem to have the same level of finer details as GalacticArmory's files.

The only really funky fit with the GalacticArmory files was with the chest and back pieces. The alignment/connector tabs don't really line up, so I had to independently scale them to different sizes in Mesh Mixer until they fit together (for example: the chest z-axis would be 102%, while the back z-axis is 100% scale).

I've had that thought with the rubber under suit parts as well; whether it would be too hot wearing for a long time. I'm hoping that by only casting the joints in rubber, and installing some fans in the armor, I can mitigate that problem a bit. I won't know for sure until I get everything completed and put the entire suit on. If it is too hot, then I'm screwed and all that work will be for naught. Lol. It may not be great for conventions, but still be serviceable for any quick photo shoots.

If it turns out to be too hot, then I'll have to look at some kind of fabric/foam under suit. My goal is to shoot for as game-accurate as I can, so I'm going all in on the rubber under suit. I've also been looking for some kind of portable water-cooling suit to wear underneath the armor (one with a small enough water/power pack that I can nestle inside the chest or back).

 

[marinesniper]

i can tell you from wearing my master chief yes it is a little warm but as long as you drink water you will be fine, i was in my suit for almost 6hrs at a con and yes a little sweaty but not as bad as i thought.

 

[Nimitz]

I haven't seen the files by InfiniteCreative3D. Do you have a link for where I can find them? The only other files I really looked at were the one by moesizzlac, but they didn't seem to have the same level of finer details as GalacticArmory's files.

The only really funky fit with the GalacticArmory files was with the chest and back pieces. The alignment/connector tabs don't really line up, so I had to independently scale them to different sizes in Mesh Mixer until they fit together (for example: the chest z-axis would be 102%, while the back z-axis is 100% scale).

I've had that thought with the rubber under suit parts as well; whether it would be too hot wearing for a long time. I'm hoping that by only casting the joints in rubber, and installing some fans in the armor, I can mitigate that problem a bit. I won't know for sure until I get everything completed and put the entire suit on. If it is too hot, then I'm screwed and all that work will be for naught. Lol. It may not be great for conventions, but still be serviceable for any quick photo shoots.

If it turns out to be too hot, then I'll have to look at some kind of fabric/foam under suit. My goal is to shoot for as game-accurate as I can, so I'm going all in on the rubber under suit. I've also been looking for some kind of portable water-cooling suit to wear underneath the armor (one with a small enough water/power pack that I can nestle inside the chest or back).

Here’s the link. I’ve spoken with him and he’s also going to make molds for this undersuit so you can cast it but he didn’t know when that would be done. His other suit at the “tier 3’ level already has 3D files for the molds of the undersuit. Halo Infinite Master Chief Armor 3D File Kit - Etsy. I suspect you’ll be fine with your approach given the amount of thought you are putting into everything. Also, I suspect I’m considerably older than you so I need to put a premium on max comfort. Even my full Mando outfit is a little taxing to wear for 5-6 hrs at a time. BTW did you ever talk with Galactic Aremory about the mismatch of their chest piece? I would think that feedback would be valuable to them and easy to correct?

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

Here’s the link. I’ve spoken with him and he’s also going to make molds for this undersuit so you can cast it but he didn’t know when that would be done. His other suit at the “tier 3’ level already has 3D files for the molds of the undersuit. Halo Infinite Master Chief Armor 3D File Kit - Etsy. I suspect you’ll be fine with your approach given the amount of thought you are putting into everything. Also, I suspect I’m considerably older than you so I need to put a premium on max comfort. Even my full Mando outfit is a little taxing to wear for 5-6 hrs at a time. BTW did you ever talk with Galactic Aremory about the mismatch of their chest piece? I would think that feedback would be valuable to them and easy to correct?

That's the same person I got my under suit files from. Not sure how I missed the full armor set on there. Lol. I'm in my 40s, so max comfort is definitely a consideration of mine as well.

I didn't send a message to Galactic Armory. I probably should have though...

 

[Nimitz]

That's the same person I got my under suit files from. Not sure how I missed the full armor set on there. Lol. I'm in my 40s, so max comfort is definitely a consideration of mine as well.

I didn't send a message to Galactic Armory. I probably should have though...

40s? I’ll be 64 in July … lol. His was the first files I found and I liked that his undersuit & base armor worked together but the more I thought about it the more i convinced myself that even just using the visible parts of the undersuit in silicon was going to be too much for me. Of course i currently don’t have a workable solution for my cunning plan yet either so I’m not sure how smart it is …

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

UPDATE:

Trying a new way of securing my shoes inside the boots. I cut a piece of nylon strap, glued it down and secured it with some screws for added strength. Using my foam cutting tools, I slotted a gap into the heel of my shoes, just above the sole and through the harder plastic heel inside (I bought these specifically for the suit, so I didn't mind messing them up a bit). Having the hot tool to essentially melt my way through, should help "fuse" the edges of the material, so I won't have to worry so much about fraying... That's the thought anyway.

I fed the nylon straps through those slots, and glued some high-strength velcro onto them. I pulled out the sole insert, so that I could have the straps underneath. With the foam sole insert, and the location of the nylon straps, I can't even really feel them when I'm wearing the boots.

The ankle guard does clank around a lot as it moves; understandable, given that its plastic on plastic. I have some thin felt, and was thinking I will line both the boot and the ankle guard with a thin strip of felt where they touch. I'll likely paint over them with the green, to try and hide it a little bit. Hopefully that will cut down on some of the obvious plastic noises.

 

[marinesniper]

UPDATE:

Trying a new way of securing my shoes inside the boots. I cut a piece of nylon strap, glued it down and secured it with some screws for added strength. Using my foam cutting tools, I slotted a gap into the heel of my shoes, just above the sole and through the harder plastic heel inside (I bought these specifically for the suit, so I didn't mind messing them up a bit). Having the hot tool to essentially melt my way through, should help "fuse" the edges of the material, so I won't have to worry so much about fraying... That's the thought anyway.

I fed the nylon straps through those slots, and glued some high-strength velcro onto them. I pulled out the sole insert, so that I could have the straps underneath. With the foam sole insert, and the location of the nylon straps, I can't even really feel them when I'm wearing the boots.

The ankle guard does clank around a lot as it moves; understandable, given that its plastic on plastic. I have some thin felt, and was thinking I will line both the boot and the ankle guard with a thin strip of felt where they touch. I'll likely paint over them with the green, to try and hide it a little bit. Hopefully that will cut down on some of the obvious plastic noises.

You are doing an awesome job on this armor you station to detail is great when you get the shoes where you want them make sure you put a rubber sole on them or you will slips on some surfaces

 

[Nimitz]

Some well thought out engineering there! Should really enable you to walk “normally “ without appearing like you are straight legged mechanical robot … !!

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

Some well thought out engineering there! Should really enable you to walk “normally “ without appearing like you are straight legged mechanical robot … !!

That's the plan. Still not as flexible as regular boots, but all my practice walks have been fairly natural.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

You are doing an awesome job on this armor you station to detail is great when you get the shoes where you want them make sure you put a rubber sole on them or you will slips on some surfaces

The bottom 1/2" of the boots have been cast in a flexible rubber and attached to the rest of the 3D printed boot piece. Right now they're covered with filler primer, but that should wear down to show the black rubber underneath.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

I took a couple slow-mo videos of me walking past my phone camera, and now I'm totally nerding out. Lol. The boots work exactly like I had hoped they would.

 

[Nimitz]

Looks good! Did you give any thought to casting the entire boots out of something like one of Smooth Ons stiffer but flexible polyurethane rubbers so everything could flex along with you inside tennis shoe or even a flexible 3D filament and just 3D print the boot?

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

Looks good! Did you give any thought to casting the entire boots out of something like one of Smooth Ons stiffer but flexible polyurethane rubbers so everything could flex along with you inside tennis shoe or even a flexible 3D filament and just 3D print the boot?

I hadn't really thought of that. I do like the rigidity of the 3D prints, so that it moves and looks more like solid armor. As opposed to something a little more flexible like foam or rubber.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

UPDATE:

I was a little worried about the durability of the chest and back pieces, give their size and relative thickness. Working on sanding and smoothing, the seams where I joined the pieces together were still a little wobbly.

I used some fiberglass resin and cloth, laid down in layers. It definitely added some weight to the pieces, but they are much stronger now. Still need to sand down the fiberglass to remove any sharp edges from the cloth.

 

[jworley503]

This build is looking awesome! Great job. Extremely inpressed with whay you are doing with the undersuit pieces.

Going a bit back to a previous post of yours, how far did the PT Flex go? I am looking at casting the joint and ab pieces for my H3 MK VI build and I'm trying to get a rough idea of how much to order.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

This build is looking awesome! Great job. Extremely inpressed with whay you are doing with the undersuit pieces.

Going a bit back to a previous post of yours, how far did the PT Flex go? I am looking at casting the joint and ab pieces for my H3 MK VI build and I'm trying to get a rough idea of how much to order.

Thanks!

I did have a few mistakes along the way... My 3rd attempt at a slush mold was when I got the hang of things. The first failed attempt, I used too much rubber, and the second fail, I used the right amount, but didn't get even coverage. I ordered the 4lb kit (2lb of part A, 2lb of part B), and after the two mistakes, I got both elbows and 1 ankle from those original bottles.

I'd say the 4lb kit would get you both ankles and elbows, or both knees. I'm thinking the ab piece will take me about 8lbs, or so, of rubber...

I did find out from BrickInTheYard that they will no longer be carrying the PT Flex line of products. They replaced it with the FP series, which I have not used.

 

[jworley503]

Thanks!

I did have a few mistakes along the way... My 3rd attempt at a slush mold was when I got the hang of things. The first failed attempt, I used too much rubber, and the second fail, I used the right amount, but didn't get even coverage. I ordered the 4lb kit (2lb of part A, 2lb of part B), and after the two mistakes, I got both elbows and 1 ankle from those original bottles.

I'd say the 4lb kit would get you both ankles and elbows, or both knees. I'm thinking the ab piece will take me about 8lbs, or so, of rubber...

I did find out from BrickInTheYard that they will no longer be carrying the PT Flex line of products. They replaced it with the FP series, which I have not used.

Thanks for the info! Hate to hear they are doing away with it. Maybe I'll give the FP a shot and see how it turns out.

This will be my first attempt at a slush molding as well...so finger crossed.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

Thanks for the info! Hate to hear they are doing away with it. Maybe I'll give the FP a shot and see how it turns out.

This will be my first attempt at a slush molding as well...so finger crossed.

I had the best results by doing 3-4 thin coats, even if I don't get full coverage with the first coat. Just keep building up with thin layers.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

UPDATE:

I've been tinkering with the shoulder armor. I didn't really like the flat back on the Galactic Armory files, as it meant that the shoulder armor pieces would be standing way off the undersuit. Almost looking like they were velcro'd onto MC armor, and having too much potential to wobble around as I move. Every pic from the game, shows the shoulder pieces set into the undersuit shoulder joint a little bit.

First, I downloaded the MoSizzlac files for the shoulder, as they had a cut-out section. However, the cutout was almost the entire back of the shoulder armor, and I wanted something that would kinda form-fit to my undersuit shoulder joint (that part I will be attempting to mold, and cast in flexible rubber; like my ankle and elbow joints from earlier in this post).

Next, I went into MeshMixer and carved out a half-sphere shape from the GA files that I had. Took a little bit of tinkering to get the measurements (width and depth) correct so that it would sit where I wanted it to. Think the results came out pretty close to perfectly how I wanted it. Now I just gotta finish sanding and smoothing.

I also have to figure out how (or even if I want) to attach the shoulder armor to the bicep armor pieces. On one hand, this would provide more stability when I move my arms, but I also kinda like the idea of the two pieces being able to shift independently as I raise or lower my arm... I don't really want to glue the shoulder armor onto the undersuit... Probably end up mounting some purse-clasp type magnets onto both, so that it clicks into place, but is also still removable for repair/maintenance.

 

[ForwardUntoDusk]

UPDATE:

Finally started painting & weathering some of the pieces. Both boots and ankles are done! First, I laid down a coat of silver, then coated with Rustoleum Earthy Green. After the green was dry, I used a small piece of 80-grit sandpaper to scuff it up, revealing the silver underneath (I may have gone a little heavy on the damage, but I will adjust when I do the rest of the pieces. If anything is gonna be more beat up, it would likely be the boots anyway). Used black and brown oil paints, thinned with paint thinner, for the wash. This was the first time I've used oil-based paints, instead of acrylic. I like the results a little better. The oil paints seem to "gunk up" a little better than the acrylic.

I have the shins painted, but haven't done any weathering on them yet. You can see the difference. I knew the weathering would darken it up a bit, so I went with a slightly lighter green. It's not an exact match (still more grayish-green, instead of the slightly yellowish-green from the games). Still, I'm really happy with the final shade I was able to get.