First post, first build: Halo 3 Mark VI Pep

MelPool · Jun 16, 2015

Hey everyone. I'm a cosplayer from Maryland who has been lurking on the forums for a little while but I've been dreaming of building my own suit since I was in college. Two months ago I decided to pursue making my dream a reality. I've been following the All-In-One Noob Guide extensively and have also been talking back and forth between fellow 405th member "transmut1" who has been a huge help. With that being said, the attached pics show my progress so far.

I'm using the Robogenesis low def files from here, except for the boots: http://www.405th.com/downloads/219-low-detail-mkvi-armor-files/

The boots are high def, and I'm probably re-doing the chest and the helmet as high def as per the recommendation of transmut1. I'm trying to get this done before Otakon which is in 5.5 weeks and I'm also attending Dragon Con. It's going to be tough to get this done before then but I hope I can get it done. Ideally I'd redo all of the files hi-def but I don't think that's feasible given the time constraint. Also complicating things is that I don't have a garage to apply fiberglass and bondo, so I have to coordinate with friends and sometimes they aren't available.

LMK what you all think, and thanks to the forum for being such an awesome resource!

Benton188 · Jun 16, 2015

Looks good so far! I'd like to say thank you for taking the time to learn everything from the guides and seeking help before your first post lol. 5.5 weeks to finish is feasible, but you might have to skip the bondo process as that is the most time consuming part of the build. My first suit was all the Robogenesis files and I think I had it completed in about 4 weeks without bondo. The only downside to not applying the bondo is that the pieces are going to look more polygonal than normal, but for some that's a good look especially if like the nostalgia of the older games where everything looked less rendered. Anyways, best of luck on the build!

MelPool · Jun 16, 2015

the shiznite88 said:
Looks good so far! I'd like to say thank you for taking the time to learn everything from the guides and seeking help before your first post lol. 5.5 weeks to finish is feasible, but you might have to skip the bondo process as that is the most time consuming part of the build. My first suit was all the Robogenesis files and I think I had it completed in about 4 weeks without bondo. The only downside to not applying the bondo is that the pieces are going to look more polygonal than normal, but for some that's a good look especially if like the nostalgia of the older games where everything looked less rendered. Anyways, best of luck on the build!

Yea I didn't want to be like herp derp how do I size? I moderate a forum on Reddit and we get those dumb questions all the time and we're all like READ THE FAQ! IT'S RIGHT THERE! And it was luck that I met transmut1 at a convention back in April. I mentioned to him that I was starting a Master Chief build and we ended up walking around the con talking for a few hours while getting stopped for pictures. We exchanged contact info and I have been talking to him constantly throughout the process. He's been a great help and I can't thank him enough.

As for the time crunch, yea it's going to be tough, and even worse I can't do any work this weekend. But after this weekend it's full speed ahead and I hope to get at least 2 hours of work in every night and more on the weekends. My job just got transferred (literally today) much closer to my home (15 min vs 1 hr) so that should help as well. We'll see if I can get any bondo work done. Ideally I'd like to but if it doesn't work it doesn't work.

A possibility is pepping files without bondo for Otakon and then gradually make hi-def bondoed files and slowly upgrade the suit until completion.

MelPool · Jun 24, 2015

Alright tonight I started applying resin to the boots and the hand guards. Safety first, of course.

MelPool · Aug 18, 2015

So it's been a while since I updated this build thread. It isn't because I gave up, I've been working all this time. At some point I decided to re-do all of the pep work high def, including the helmet and it looks so much better. This is an old picture of some of my high def pep work drying after applying resin to the outside. Sorry I haven't been as diligent in taking pictures. I'm trying to get this all done by Dragon Con. I won't be able to bondo everything by then but I at least want to bondo the helmet to make it nice and smooth.

I'll take some more pictures tonight.

tac2002 · Aug 18, 2015

looking good..:thumbsup

Chernobyl · Aug 18, 2015

That's not looking bad at all, Spartan. Keep up the good work.

Regarding the bondo: if you're somehow unable to manage to get the entire set smoothed over before your convention, it's worth noting that you'll be able to get back to it later on, assuming you strip back the paint coat. It would be a shame for you to leave such a promising build at 'just good enough to deploy in' without taking it to the next level by refining your work later on.

MelPool · Aug 18, 2015

Chernobyl said:
That's not looking bad at all, Spartan. Keep up the good work.

Regarding the bondo: if you're somehow unable to manage to get the entire set smoothed over before your convention, it's worth noting that you'll be able to get back to it later on, assuming you strip back the paint coat. It would be a shame for you to leave such a promising build at 'just good enough to deploy in' without taking it to the next level by refining your work later on.

Yes, that is absolutely the plan, Chernobyl. And considering the convention is in 2.5 weeks, that certainly isn't going to be enough time to smoothen everything. I have both a mouse sander and palm sander at my disposal which certainly helps.

Also note I do not have a garage at home as I live in an apartment, I have to travel to my friend's house which is 30 minutes away from me to do resin work. I will be there tonight, and I'll have a bigger post late tonight or tomorrow morning.

grifandsargert · Aug 19, 2015

looks good so far

shwarzwald · Aug 19, 2015

Wow looking good so far. I hope you make it in time. Otherwise I agree with chernobyl. Take your time and after the con bondo it up and make it smooth.

death1ink · Aug 26, 2015

looking awesome so far! keep up the great work!

ColdAdamantium · Aug 26, 2015

Wow that looks great man!
I'm currently working on my first build as well. Hoping mine turns out half as awesome as yours and some of the other suits I've seen posted.

MelPool · Aug 31, 2015

So umm... we're done. Sort of.

It certainly isn't the best project out here on the 405th and there's a lot I'd like to improve on this in the future but I'm happy to have something to wear for Dragon Con this weekend. I'm putting on the armor tonight to make some final adjustments, do a paint touch up and to reinforce some of the strapping and I'll take some more pictures.

Sorry I've been so poor in updating this thread. I update my Instagram a lot faster. (@melpoolcosplay)

Also I have had a friend help me enormously with this project, but on Friday she cut herself with my hot knife and I had to rush her to the hospital. Six hours and three stitches later, she is okay. I can't thank her enough because without her (and her garage!) I wouldn't have gotten this done in time.

Also I won't have a weapon done in time. Maybe I can commandeer something...

Visor is Stony Props.

Burt · Aug 31, 2015

Nice job on your first full suit, and just in time for your con. Make sure you wear it a bit and get some practice in it before you go!

MelPool · Aug 31, 2015

Burt said:
Nice job on your first full suit, and just in time for your con. Make sure you wear it a bit and get some practice in it before you go!

That is what tonight is for. Work out the kinks and make sure the armor is tight to me and my mobility is somewhat good. When I tried it on on Saturday it was somewhat good, had somewhat decent dorsalflexion in my ankles and could bend down a bit. But don't expect any big jumps or sprinting lol.

Burt · Aug 31, 2015

MelPool said:
That is what tonight is for. Work out the kinks and make sure the armor is tight to me and my mobility is somewhat good. When I tried it on on Saturday it was somewhat good, had somewhat decent dorsalflexion in my ankles and could bend down a bit. But don't expect any big jumps or sprinting lol.

Another tip for when you go to DragonCon... bring a hot glue gun and some sticks of glue. When I went to my first con, I had a bunch of practice in on my suit, but I didn't anticipate going up or down stairs... and that ended up messing up one of my boots (one of my screws came out.. even though it had a nut on the otherside, and nothing ripped! weird!)... and one of the straps on my belt came undone. Even though I had worn it for a while, you just never know whats going to come loose after several hours of wear. Bring a hand towel too (this is gross, but it helped me a ton.. use it to wipe off sweat, or wipe the inside of your helmet when it gets foggy) I used one of these and clipped it to my belt, it has snap on buttons so it was perfect size and doesn't look bad on your suit. I kept a few 9V in there, just in case, and my sweat towel haha. (If you have a phone that isn't the iphone 6+, it'll fit in there too! my phone is huge and the top stuck out

)

I would also suggest trying to get one of those freezer packs folks use for lunch boxes and trying to find a place on your suit to put it (somewhere in the chest, either back or front). I wish I would have done that for my first con, I was so damn hot.. if I had one of those I think it would have helped a lot. Granted, I haven't tried this, so I'm not sure how drippy it would get. Might be something to look into!

Just trying to help out! Hope you have a ton of fun at Dragon Con, I wish I could go!

MelPool · Aug 31, 2015

Burt said:
Another tip for when you go to DragonCon... bring a hot glue gun and some sticks of glue. When I went to my first con, I had a bunch of practice in on my suit, but I didn't anticipate going up or down stairs... and that ended up messing up one of my boots (one of my screws came out.. even though it had a nut on the otherside, and nothing ripped! weird!)... and one of the straps on my belt came undone. Even though I had worn it for a while, you just never know whats going to come loose after several hours of wear. Bring a hand towel too (this is gross, but it helped me a ton.. use it to wipe off sweat, or wipe the inside of your helmet when it gets foggy)

I would also suggest trying to get one of those freezer packs folks use for lunch boxes and trying to find a place on your suit to put it (somewhere in the chest, either back or front). I wish I would have done that for my first con, I was so damn hot.. if I had one of those I think it would have helped a lot. Granted, I haven't tried this, so I'm not sure how drippy it would get. Might be something to look into!

I always carry an emergency repair kit when I go to a convention and I have hot glue, E6000, rubber cement, etc... in there. I also do have a few ice packs, I will probably put a few of them underneath my suit for the parade and photoshoots on Saturday. Good tips.

MelPool · Sep 1, 2015

Small update: put the suit on last night and did a mobility test. Definitely not the most mobile but I can manage stairs and somewhat brisk walking. My feet are making a bit of a crunching sound with the pep on the bottom, so I'm not going to be too stealthy, unfortunately.

Also I took a Spartan Selfie.

Tonight will be final preparations and packing for Dragon Con. Pretty stoked to debut this with the massive hordes of people in Atlanta.

First post, first build: Halo 3 Mark VI Pep

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