Belakor's Landfall ODST armor build

[Belakor]

I am somewhat interested in just how you use this expanding foam.

For the toe cap that I'm doing right now all I did was build the pep model, seal it up with a bunch of clear packing tape (so the foam is forced to take the shape of the pep model) and then fill it about half way with the foam. I've taped it down to a hard surface as well just to make sure it's square and left a hole in the end for the foam to escape out of, in case I put too much in (which I did).

Once it's cured I'll clean it up a little with sandpaper and a rasp and the seal it with regular polyester resin, then just fiberglass and bondo it.



I'll get more photos as I do more on it

I did quick search on Google and I noticed there are so many different kinds and the videos on youtube make expanding foam look fun.

I'm not sure you if you buy it locally or get it online but do you mind pointing me in the right direction?

This is pretty much the stuff I use, I just get it locally from one of the hardware stores.

Gorilla Nailpower DIY Foam 750ML

Though the stuff I normally get is a few dollars less, but it's the same stuff.



I think you'd probably be looking at something like the Great Stuff Big Gap Filler, since that fills gaps over 1 inch.









More progress for the night... as I said a little while ago on Twitter "It's a Friday night and I'm sitting on the floor cutting up cardboard for prototype armour pieces... it's pretty safe to say I'm a costumer."





Added a couple of support struts since then to pull the sides in a little and raise the top slightly, other than that it's good so far.

Thanks to Ruze for the model and Ral Partha for the unfold





Even more progress:





Looks lopsided but it's not, that's just the way it's standing. Will probably throw some resin on it tomorrow and see how it looks.

 

[rowan]

Very nice job so far mate! I have to start working on mine again soon!

I would suggest styrene for the shoulder build, the upper part anyway, i did 1/2 and 1/2 for the lower piece. It was so much easier in styrene than having to bother with fiberglassing, sanding, bondo etc..

 

[Ruze789]

Awesome work! Now that you're back to working on this you'll get it done in no time.

I like seeing the expanding foam use too, it's something I've thought about a bunch but never gotten around to trying.

 

[sirfroget]

w00t looking good its awesome bellpeper lol i mean Belakor cant wait to see more.......fome that is

 

[Belakor]

Very nice job so far mate! I have to start working on mine again soon!

I would suggest styrene for the shoulder build, the upper part anyway, i did 1/2 and 1/2 for the lower piece. It was so much easier in styrene than having to bother with fiberglassing, sanding, bondo etc..

Thanks p0rtal I actually just fond your ODST topic yesterday, still have to have a proper read but it looks pretty damn good so far!



I'll probably head out this week and pick up some styrene, it's such a simple piece that it would be overkill to do the upper shoulder in anything else really. I'm going to dig out some cardboard shortly and scratchbuild the lower half, I think I might be able to do that in styrene too though if not it's still an easy piece.

Awesome work! Now that you're back to working on this you'll get it done in no time.

I like seeing the expanding foam use too, it's something I've thought about a bunch but never gotten around to trying.

Thanks Ruze Hopefully I'll be able to knock it out pretty quick, though I'm not rushing this one. At this point I'll probably aim for a completion date of April 2010, try and debut it at Wellington Armageddon



Be careful using expanding foam, it is a little addictive. I'm almost always looking for more things to fill with the stuff :lol

Normally I wouldn't use it this much but I've got two cans sitting here that are going off, one has already lost almost all of it's propellant and the other ins't far behind.

w00t looking good its awesome bellpeper lol i mean Belakor cant wait to see more.......fome that is

It's funny, I just happened to be watching something on TV when I read this joking about why bell peppers were called bell peppers because if you shake them they don't sound like a bell :lol Thanks, more foam is pretty much guaranteed







Another day, another new part... or two



Pepped the groin plate and partially pepped the left gauntlet (that skull is going on everything now):





Of course there's some foam in the groin plate



Thanks to 1ManBattalion and SKG for the files





Did some rough shaping and resined the foam on the torso:







Cleaned up the foam and resined the toe cap once:



The toe is either going to be used as a buck for vac-forming (or just draping by hand) or I'll use it as a buck for "moulding" a couple of fiberglass copies. Moulding not being in the traditional sense, more laying fiberglass over the top and when it cures I'll just pull it off... not the greatest way to do it but I've done it before with decent results.



And finally, hardened the knee piece:





Have to stop in at one of the local plastic suppliers sometime soon to pick up some food for my prototyper so I'll pick up some sheets of styrene when I'm there. There's a allen head machine screw in the knee there, I think it's a little small though... opinions?





Edit: Another foam filled piece, the knee:



Also the groin plate and part of the front of the shin as a size tester, I don't think I'll build anymore of the front of the shin but I think I'll build part of the back to check that size too.



Still need to wait a little longer for the core of the knee foam to cure but I started working on an idea for how to fit the knee:

 

[Belakor]

Been making some progress.



Took a photo of all the pieces so far (from the other day):



The buttpack has since been hardened and I'm just waiting on supplies to finish that and the toe cap off.



Wasn't sure wether I wanted to use what I had already and convert it to the version seen in the We Are ODST short but in the end I decided to go with a hybrid version. Part Landfall, WAODST, and H3: ODST. Mostly it'll be the Landfall version with some accessories from the other two.



Last night I started work on the backpack. I'm not going for anything specific with this, it's more my take on it rather than an exact copy of the game or We Are ODST version.







I think it may be slightly bigger than the game ones but I want it to be functional and somewhat practical so it'll need to fit some gear in it. Already have the opening and latching system planned out for the opening of the pack, probably going to have a sound system in it much like some Sandtroopers do in theirs.



Still need to get plastic, once I've got that I'll be able to start and finish quite a few pieces in a fairly short amount of time.

 

[HaloFreakX]

Looks like your on your way!



Awesim.

 

[Iffy Matt]

Goddammm man it looks awesome good luck with it

 

[Belakor]

Looks like your on your way!



Awesim.

Goddammm man it looks awesome good luck with it

Thanks people



Uploaded some more progress pics.



Jumping feet first into hell... with a backpack full of sammiches.









Probably going to reduce the size of the pack slightly, it actually looks bigger than it really is and will be smaller once I build the plastic version

 

[JSwift]

I like that back pack so far. I think I might try a scratch build of that too. Can't wait to see more!

 

[Ruze789]

Lovin your sammich holder!

Very nice work on all your stuff. I've got tons of cans of expanding foam at my work, I'm very tempted to give it a shot after seeing all your pieces. And glad to see you back on the ODST armor.

 

[Belakor]

I like that back pack so far. I think I might try a scratch build of that too. Can't wait to see more!

Thanks It's a pretty simple build really, only took a few hours to do most of it and it should look decent once it's done in styrene

Lovin your sammich holder!

Very nice work on all your stuff. I've got tons of cans of expanding foam at my work, I'm very tempted to give it a shot after seeing all your pieces. And glad to see you back on the ODST armor.

Thanks Ruze

Cool, if you've got the stuff at work it might be worth playing around with it Just on something like one of the chest plates maybe… I actually built the main butt pack out of the stuff, makes it way easier to get the shapes all right when you can just hit it with a rasp or file





New photos of what I'm now referring to as the UNSC standard issue Mk VIII Sammich Carrier:











Also yesterday I started on scratchbuilding the shoulder:



Tomorrow I'll see if I can get the lower piece done and the raised details on the upper piece.



Everything else is moving at a reasonable pace. Already have the helmet sorted, just need to get it and most of the hard armour should only take two or three days once I've got plastic. Going to try and source some accurate gloves and see if I can find some pouches that will work well... need to make a neckseal too.





If I got my act together I could probably have the suit done for Armageddon next month, I don't think I will though...







Edit: Preview of my hybrid ODST setup:

 

[Belakor]

Another small update with new pieces.



These are a few days old, just some photos of the shoulder armour templates:







Todays progress:



I've now got most of the centre chest templates done and pieced together (for testing) also been working on the smaller, lower butt pack (which is in the lower left corner).



Picking up some foam and fabric soon so I can make a start on the soft padding pieces, will also pick up neoprene for the vest and other similar pieces.

I've now decided, after seeing Ruze's ODST helmet paintjob, to go for 100% accuracy, by the time I'm done it should hopefully look like S Hartley's armour (the guy that gets a spiker spike in the gut). I'll still be using the Recon helmet and backpack to start with (painting both to match the Landfall weathering) but will upgrade to the ODST helmet later... that is when I can be bothered making one

Must finish up the BR model too so I can get one of them made



Will update again once I have some foam pieces done

 

[Achille]

How'd you get the cardboard in the first picture to hold those curves? I'm guessing you scored along the lines you drew, but are they glued in the back, or held with supports? Or do they just naturally hold the curves?

 

[Belakor]

How'd you get the cardboard in the first picture to hold those curves? I'm guessing you scored along the lines you drew, but are they glued in the back, or held with supports? Or do they just naturally hold the curves?

To get the curves like that I've actually been working the cardboard like you would metal with an english wheel, there's a video of someone using an english wheel here for anyone that isn't familiar.

Usually I just use a curved object (like a roll of packing tape) and work the cardboard over it, back and forth, until it curves. I sometimes use one of the wheels on the bottom of my office chair and the carpet floor to do the same thing, just roll it around and it builds up the curve.



Corrugated card doesn't work as well as a solid card like mat board because it tends to collapse on itself if you try to go in more than one direction.

If I can find the firewire cable for my old DV cam I can do a quick video but any videos about using an english wheel should give you the idea

 

[Achille]

Very interesting technique, nice and simple! Don't worry about getting a video up; I can see how it's done from that English wheel vid. Thanks for the info.

 

[mkshane81]

Top notch belakor, top notch!!

 

[Achille]

Corrugated card doesn't work as well as a solid card like mat board because it tends to collapse on itself if you try to go in more than one direction.

Hey, I tried this out on a shoulder piece, and wanted to note; if you use a perfectly round object (I used a contact juggling ball, perfectly round and smooth), and roll in a circular motion, it bends corrugated cardboard in more than one direction quite well. The cardboard does collapse in on itself, but does so evenly, with no visible bend lines. Using a ball also eliminates the risk that the edge of the object (if you were using a tape roll, for example) will crease the CB.



This "Cardboard English Wheel" is a great technique for getting nice, smoooooooth curves. Highly recommended!

 

[SprayNoob]

AWesome, cardboard odst backpack? Good start of it.



SprayNoob



PS.(Can i use your odst backpack as a reference?)

 

[Skullcandy Girl]

This is looking so BAD ASS Belakor, you're nothing short of Amazing