Curiosity killed the Kat (a noob build)

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Asuka

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Well, I guess it's high time that I began my own build thread. Once I stopped hesitating over actually starting a build or not, I finally kicked myself off the couch (read: one of my cats REALLY wanted to lie down where I was sitting) and decided to build Kat's armor. Why? Three reasons:

1) I always end up crossplaying at conventions (this year, I'm going to the various cons as the blade-arm form of Prototype's Alex Mercer, who is very much not female) - I would like to change that
2) Blue is my favorite color, and ZOMG KAT HAZ BLU ARMORS *cough*
3) I've always made simple costumes...I want to be challenged

So, off I went to set up a good chunk of workspace in our frontroom (much to the chagrin of my boyfriend...he'll get over it :p), printed out some files, and started pepping. And do mind the upcoming photos...I refuse to buy a stupid smartphone and/or andriod, so what you'll be getting are sub-par, slightly-blurry basic phone shots. We'll survive somehow. *crosses her fingers*

There's one problem I've "forgotten" to mention as of yet - although I've built model cars and figurines via pepakura...I'd never come close to building a whole suit of armor before. Oh well - back to work! :D

The first thing I "warmed up" on were the handplates...they seemed simple enough:

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The one on on the right side of the picture has already been curved to better fit snugly to the gloves I'll be wearing. The other one, faintly marked "2", was just finished. Clearly you can tell by the hand that I was happy.

So like many a noob out there, I rationalized that since I've made handplates, I can make EVERYTHING...so I moved onto the chestpiece and helmet. :eek Here's a pic showing everything I had finished at the time...the helmet is currently in four pieces framing this picture of my ugly carpet:

KatWIP.jpg


Already I'm noticing something bad: the chestpiece fits me fairly well...those helmet pieces are pretty big. Uh oh. Fast forward to me finishing my helmet - hooray! I was able to fit my head in without any trouble - another uh oh - and took some pics wearing both the helmet and the chestpiece (forgive the "winter weight" I'm packing...I need to start to playing roller hockey again >_<):

Side View (the Good), and Front View (the Bad and Ugly) (not to mention the over-the-top team spirit I've got going on here...*le sigh*)

P1000365.jpg
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My first and only thought was....HOLY BIG HEAD MODE, BATMAN!! And that's where I stand now - me and my imaginary uber-sized head. I've resined the outside of the chestpiece, and I'm debating on if I should rondo/fiberglass or just resin/fiberglass the inside. I also need to figure out how to add the black side parts to the piece...any help on figuring that out would be insanely appreciated.

Oh yeah...and I need to scale my helmet a little bit smaller for the second helmet attempt. Surprising, I know. After that...I think I'll work on the codpiece next. Until then!
 
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Looks really good so far! Pepping looks really clean. The helmet does look a tad big but for some reason (in my opinion) it works...
 
Nice work so far on your build. I would say resin/glass the inside of the chest piece. It will be alot lighter than rondo. And a sfar as the gap on the side, I have seen a couple of people fill that area with foam. Hope this helps, and good luck with your build!
 
Great job on the pep's not bad for a noob, as for the chest, there are a few builds on the forum that use the eva floor mat foam to make those side parts for the chest, but like vshore said, its probably the easiest way to do that part, keep up the great work, and keep us posted of your progress
 
Three reasons:

1) I always end up crossplaying at conventions (this year, I'm going to the various cons as the blade-arm form of Prototype's Alex Mercer, who is very much not female) - I would like to change that
2) Blue is my favorite color, and ZOMG KAT HAZ BLU ARMORS *cough*
3) I've always made simple costumes...I want to be challenged
4) ?????
5) PROFIT

Thats five reasons not three. If by profit you mean sell the armor, a good rule of thumb is you are not allowed to make profit from it due to copy right issues with Microsoft and Bungie. Same goes with events, they have to be charity.

Anyway, everything looks really good. The helmet does look a little big. A good way to get a proper size is to measure from the bottom of your chin to the top of your head and add about an inch or two. If it does not fit, fear not. The last ring is mainly for support when you resin it. Just use a rotary tool to make it fit after you harden it. Good luck and welcome to the 405th.
 
Thats five reasons not three. If by profit you mean sell the armor, a good rule of thumb is you are not allowed to make profit from it due to copy right issues with Microsoft and Bungie. Same goes with events, they have to be charity.
Oh no! The ????? and PROFIT lines are an internet meme - I don't intend to sell my armor at all. I get waaaaay too attached to all of my costumes!

My apologies to you and anyone else that didn't catch the meme; to prevent any confusion, I'll get rid of that part. ^_^
 
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This looks awesome so far! Keep up the good work and lots of pictures! I love seeing girls making armor. It's inspiring me to give it a try someday!

P.S.
Phase 1: Collect Underpants
Phase 2: ???
Phase 3: Profit!!!
 
Oh no! The ????? and PROFIT lines are an internet meme - I don't intend to sell my armor at all. I get waaaaay too attached to all of my costumes!

My apologies to you and anyone else that didn't catch the meme; to prevent any confusion, I'll get rid of that part. ^_^

Oh no, your fine. I should be apologizes to you. I was just letting you know. I cant keep track of memes as there are so many of them.
 
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HOLY BIG HEAD MODE, BATMAN!!

yes, that generaly happens to most people. spartans are stupidly huge, yet still have tiny heads, its a rule, like 6 head heights make a normal peron, 7 make a super hero / spartan, though once you have the shoulders on, then it wont look so big.
 
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Update!

Well, I decided to make Jorge's helmet (minus the attachment) for my friend's birthday later in the year. The nice thing is that he has a smaller head than I do...and therefore needed a smaller scale. Two inches in height, to be exact. So instead of going right into the second attempt at my helmet, I pepped his helmet first and saw how I fit in it. This way I can adjust the scale of Kat's helmet accordingly. Here's what I ended up with:

0417111456.jpg


It fits my head perfectly, but too perfectly such that I wouldn't have room for padding once I glassed the inside. So, my next step will be to shrink the current scale of Kat's helmet by an inch and pep it again. I'll tell you how that goes once it's done. ^_^
 
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You're build is looking good so far. As for the gaps on the side of you're chest piece, yes Foam works great. You're helmet should fit comfortably for you, if it off a hair on scale to the rest of the armor then so be it. Remember you're the one wearing it. Added note most people leave room for fan's and lights on the inside of there helmet also. All that said, by the way you're going about this build it should be one of the top armor sets to watch for this year. Keep us posted.
 
Hey! Yet another Kat build! XD haha I'm working on one myself, but I am making it out of foam. It's coming along pretty good for the most part, considering I am rushing this build. XD There is a link to my thread in my signature if ya wanna take a look. There is also a link to a scaling tutorial I made to help with measuring so that you get your armor to fit you just right. :)

Anyhoo.........welcome to the 405th! :D
 
Update!

I fell in love with AceNat's robo arm and decided to build it before I moved onto the helmet. However, the only file I could find of her robo arm not only didn't have the bicep piece, but it wasn't unfolded. So a bumbling hour of unfolding later, I'd realized that I suck at unfolding. Still, I made it work and pepped what I could.

Now, lengthwise it looks perfect. The main issue is that her arms are slimmer than mine; as such, the first pieces I pepped were a little bit too tight. I'll pep another elbow joint tonight, and maybe the forearm if I get around to it (it all depends on how tired I am tonight XD). I'll post pictures of the current elbow joint, along with the new one later (read: when I get off of work).
 
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Update!

I fell in love with AceNat's robo arm and decided to build it before I moved onto the helmet. However, the only file I could find of her robo arm not only didn't have the bicep piece, but it wasn't unfolded. So a bumbling hour of unfolding later, I'd realized that I suck at unfolding. Still, I made it work and pepped what I could.
Check my post here for the unfold.
 
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