Airsoft-capable ODST armor suits (plural)

[Redtail]

Hey guys! We've been sorta trying to keep this on the low-down in the airsoft community because we want the sheer shock value to be through the roof when this is finally fielded.
Myself and a few others are planning to cobble together a field-worthy airsoft version of the ODST armor under what we're calling Project MOROS.
The suit will incorporate a few minor alterations to ensure that it is usable in actual combat, with the most important change thereof being the addition of a radio and a battery-powered cooling and ventilation pack to an impact-resistant helmet with a full neck seal (though other options are possible), armor that has been made from fiberglass or something similarly tough and capable of withstanding repeated impacts from small, high-velocity pellets as well as take the weight of a 240-pound wearer and his gun lying on top of it.

I've just finished making a completely field=-worthy airsoft version of the BR55-HB battle rifle, and tested it this last weekend. This was a tremendous success.

Also, I'd like to have this done, for four individuals, by this time next year.

My idea with the body armor is to use fiberglass and automotive resin, use Chicago screws to mount Nylon webbing that will allow the plates to attach to a MOLLE style modular vest, then fill each plate individually with expanding foam to give them structure and strength, but I'm sort of at a loss for the helmet.

Each of us four has very different body sizes and shapes, something I think I can remedy in the armored vest with the modular carrier idea. I plan to build a set of adjustable armor that I can fit into, then ship it to the smallest guy on the team with instructions on how to adjust it down, and see what needs to be changed.

Originally we'd planned to make everyone in the group build their own helmet, but this represents a considerable barrier to entry, given that while everyone is capable of being creative and awesome, not everyone is capable of engineering a solid protective system in the process.


Anyone here work with fiberglass? ANy ideas on how to better accomplish the helmet or even a variant thereof?Would it be smarter just to go back to an open-face version of the helmet?

 

[rav3n819]

I honestly would suggest foam, its a bit faster then doing resin and fiberglass, especially if your making multiple suits. EVA foam is lightweight and pretty sturdy as well.

 

[Revenant1988]

This really isn't a good idea.

Every so often these threads pop up and as any responsible 405th member will tell you, the armor designed can created on this site is for show only. I've worked with fiberglass on several occasions. While it does get stronger the more you layer it, it does get heavier. The amount of resin and glass needed to make a piece resistant to repeated impacts from a variety of distances would require a very heavy helmet- which makes it pointless to use in this sport. In addition you'd also have to secure the visor area to these impacts. One impact on the wrong material, at the right angle and velocity and someone could get seriously hurt, or worse.

Let costumes be costumes.

You have hardly any mobility in these suits anyway, which is a must in this sport.

I'll refer you to the ODST master, Sean Bradley and his opinion on this kind of project:

Military-Grade crazy: the frequent armor/costume question
October 23, 2012 at 12:12pm
Believe it or not, this isn't the first time I've had to turn down this proposal. I'm sure some of you can relate.

-------- Original Message --------

From: NAME WITHHELD
Date: Sun, October 21, 2012 10:32 pm

Hey so I have been looking over the armour and what not and I'm trying to get on a tour soon, and I'm thinking maybe we could work together, I want to tool your armour to military level functionality I.e Kevlar under coating and try and incorporate some form of bullet resistance as our current armour will "supposedly" stop an ak round at 100 yard if we could do that, me being the soldier I know how the whole thing has to work, and you being the god that can great such beautiful armour we could tool one up to work, I'm doing some research on titanium and hardens steels but the Kevlar underlayers would be a must but the challenge, we have to offer a full combat ready uniform for as cheap as possible, now it could let us charge a bit more if we include the ruck sack and if their is a way to make the suit ready to fight in a chemical/nuclear/biological warfare we would be set we would have to figure out a way to tool the helmet to accept water with out taking the helmet off, but if we managed to make it so while you breathed in the helmet it filters out the chemical agent you and I could be the leaders in the worlds body armour industry. Food for thought

Sincerely,
NAME WITHHELD
Sent from my iPhone

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear NAME WITHHELD,

I've just read this over and I'm just going to say this: I make costumes, they're for looks only. PERIOD.

I have no intention of making real body armor, I'm an artist, not an engineer, not a weapon designer. These are characters from a videogame, not military spec. It's a fantasy.. most of these things do not work like you would imagine them to in real life. The designs are impractical and unnecessarily complicated for real world use.

If you don't trust me on this matter, watch this:

http://youtu.be/JPS2l5fQ55A

That guy spent $15,000 on an armor that the military won't touch with a 10 foot pole because it is civilian developed and inspired by Halo. He's financially ruined after putting everything he has into that design and the military just laughs at him. Heck, I laugh at him. It's pretty funny.

Living your fantasies for a couple days a month at a convention with other costumers is a healthy level of obsession. Spending $15,000 making a set of homebrewed ballistic, chemical, nuclear resistant armor based on a fantasy videogame set from the future... that's section 8 material my friend.

Let a costume be a costume and leave the armor up to the military engineers.

-Sean

 

[Carpathia]

We do not discuss topics here relating to the creation of safety equipment for paintball or airsoft. We make costumes, not safety equipment.

Straight from the site admin. I already know what this is for, and I wish you luck, but it cannot be discussed here.