A few questions from a noob + Pepakura Vs Foam ODST armour.

[BurnItWithFire7]

Hi, I'm new to costuming, and I have been planning to build a set of ODST armour. I have considered several options, and wanted to ask what you think is best for what I am trying to accomplish.
For the armour what would you recommend using pepakura, or go for the foam route? (any other ideas would be welcome)
One idea of mine would be to add aluminium to certain foam parts (such as the chest, legs pouldrons etc) to give it some rigidity and authentic look. Has anyone had any experience with this?
And are there any general tips on costuming and ODST armour in general?
As I said, I am new to this and I am open to any suggestions.
Thanks.

 

[Spartan1313]

I would suggest doing foam ODST armor for a couple of reasons. Foam is faster, more comfortable, and less expensive than pepakura. Also, if you look up DaFrontlineTrooper, you can see probably the easiest to make templates and tutorials for any armor set. The only draw back is that it is slightly less accurate, but it is a small fraction of the population who would actually be able notice the differences.

 

[Jen A266]

It really depends on your choice. I'll list the pros and cons for you

Pepakura
Pros: -Looks detailed and authentic
-Gives it rigidity which has the "Armour" feel
-Tough and lasts long
-Fibreglass makes it hard, strong

Cons: -Heavy and troublesome (if you're using rondo as a method of hardening)
-less mobility
-Expensive and time consuming


Foam
Pros: -Soft and lightweight
-Cheap and readily available
-Takes less time to complete your suit
-Great mobility
-saves you the hassle of Bondo which i dislike using

Cons: -Less detail compared to pepakura
-your suit might be deformed when left in the car under the hot sun or when stuffed inside a box
-The quality of your suit might degrade over time


If you choose to go with foam, i suggest you checking out DaFrontlineTrooper's tutorials on youtube as they're VERY helpful

 

[NoMaybeYes]

Personally I like pepakura. It gets me a lot more detail than I could do with foam that and I dont have to worry about the paper and printing thanks to a trade school I went to. Not that I wont be using foam for the floating faces and such. Although like Jen pointed out its very time consuming. My first suit took around a year, but I didnt work too fast on it. Unlike Foam which can be done in a few weeks.

 

[Demogorgon]

Personally I would go with foam armor and pep the helmet. The ODST armor is fairly simple and I don't think contains extremely detailed pieces so it should go relatively easy for you using foam. Once you get the hang of it, you can be very detailed with foam, it just takes time learning the trade. If you plan on wearing the armor for long periods of time, foam is very light so it won't fatigue you nearly as much as the pep armor would. It's also a bit flexible and has better mobility. The paint can make foam, and pep for that matter, look like metal by using weathering techniques. Adding aluminum I don't think is a good idea, it will weigh down the pieces and the foam itself is rigid enough as it is. If you want metallic parts, you can use metallic paint to achieve that effect while keeping the armor light (although I think it would be cool to have aluminum pieces if you don't mind the added weight).

I think the only thing that really needs to be pepped is the helmet. While foam helmets are very light, most of the time they don't quite achieve the proper shapes and lack detail. This is just my opinion though haha. Try making an armor piece using both methods and stick with whichever one you feel the most comfortable with.

Some tips for a newcomer:
1) This may sound silly but always remember to scale your pieces. HaloGoddess has an amazing scaling tutorial.
2) Making armor can take a really long time, but the end result is worth it, so stick to it!
3) If ever you need help with anything, feel free to ask. The 405th is here to help people out.

Lastly, as everyone has said, DaFrontlineTrooper is the way to go on youtube for tips on ODST armor.

 

[BurnItWithFire7]

Thank you, this is very helpful. I think I will go for foam armour and pepped helmet. I have already watched many of DaFrontlineTrooper's videos, and that was what inspired me to actually build an ODST suit.
Oh, and a friend who is into costuming recommended a pyrography/wood burning kit to cut the foam. Is this really necessary?
Again thanks.

 

[Flynney]

a friend who is into costuming recommended a pyrography/wood burning kit to cut the foam. Is this really necessary?

I wouldn't say it's necessary. I used to use a hot knife, but quickly switched to scalpel blades. The main reason for this is I kept burning myself and the foam. EVAkura has some good videoes for detail lines in work using a dremel which I would recommend over the wood burning kit.

good luck

 

[BurnItWithFire7]

Thank you I will be sure to check those videos out.