Best material choice?

[deg3nerate]

I'm so new it's almost painful so please bear with me if my questions come off as dumb.

So my plan was to make a Mark V Air Assault helmet (and later armor, hopefully) because I'm the jetpack guy in every Halo: Reach match. I would do this by testing my ability to scale/fold PePaKuRa models with some Air Assault models on normal letter paper, then putting the helmet together by either the EVA foam method or the cardstock/rondo method and following normal sealing/painting procedures. I managed to get the hang of scaling and folding PePaKuRa thanks to about eighteen cents of paper and six dollars of ink (I used Jico's game rip, so it still had color), and now I'm stuck because I don't know what method I should use to actually put together the thing.

So, which would you guys recommend I do? Should I follow Spacemeat's guide and trace the templates onto building foam? Or should I follow the literal book on costume armor and paint a model with Bondo?

 

[BlazedStarbon]

What you seek may fall to a little trial and error to see what works best for you based on resources available. If you already started the models using pepakura, perhaps the bondo method would be your best option as you already put in that work with a cardstock model?

If you haven't begun working on the helmet, then try to narrow down the method that would make most sense to start with. It's a tough decision as both methods are time-consuming and have its respective challenges.

 

[FlyinPhil]

As someone who used rondo inside of my helmet, I would never go that route again (just slushing a mixture of bondo and resin in the resin-coated model). If you are going to use pepakura to build your armor parts, do it the proper way and fiberglass the insides of your parts. It may seem a bit daunting, but it's easy enough to practice fiberglassing and resin-ing a few pieces of bent cardstock to get the feel for it.

Aside from that, I am a large fan of using Eva foam for the body parts of an armor suit. With a little patience you can achieve a very high level of detail, for a relatively low cost. Keep in mind, the suit will only look as good as the time you put into it. A high quality foam suit can take close to the time of a quality pep suit.

 

[Crimmson]

I'm so new it's almost painful so please bear with me if my questions come off as dumb.

So my plan was to make a Mark V Air Assault helmet (and later armor, hopefully) because I'm the jetpack guy in every Halo: Reach match. I would do this by testing my ability to scale/fold PePaKuRa models with some Air Assault models on normal letter paper, then putting the helmet together by either the EVA foam method or the cardstock/rondo method and following normal sealing/painting procedures. I managed to get the hang of scaling and folding PePaKuRa thanks to about eighteen cents of paper and six dollars of ink (I used Jico's game rip, so it still had color), and now I'm stuck because I don't know what method I should use to actually put together the thing.

So, which would you guys recommend I do? Should I follow Spacemeat's guide and trace the templates onto building foam? Or should I follow the literal book on costume armor and paint a model with Bondo?

deg3nerate
It really boils down to what you are comfortable with, level of creativity, money of course, trial and error, time and how meticulous you are. If you have never done this before try out the jfo helmet from reach. Probably not your favorite but it is easy, not that many hard to reach places when you rondo the inside, smooth surfaces on the out side.
I have seen a combination of both, a pepped helmet and foam body armor. I have pepped helmets with pep and foam and even some wood veneer strips for reinforcement and details.
It mostly comes down to trial and error and time, though. Good luck and dont give up. My first attempt at pep was a halo 3 hayabusa helmet, let just say it wasnt a falling falcon more like falling falcon droppings. Lol

Back when i first came here they would encourage new peppers (lol) to start from the bottom up, boots then shins, then thigh armor, mid section, arms and shoulders the helmet the chest. Reason being the pieces were generally easier giving you practice before getting to the chest and helmet which are harder and are a much bigger focal point.

When you do find a scale that works in pepakura, write it down for each piece. It will help you tremendously in future builds. Keep a build journal of each piece and what scale height and width worked for you including the name of the file and what pepakura version you used.


Look up cereal killers ( i believe) videos on bondo techniques. I think it was him i dont fully remember sorry.

 

[Yeexsters]

As someone who used rondo inside of my helmet, I would never go that route again (just slushing a mixture of bondo and resin in the resin-coated model). If you are going to use pepakura to build your armor parts, do it the proper way and fiberglass the insides of your parts. It may seem a bit daunting, but it's easy enough to practice fiberglassing and resin-ing a few pieces of bent cardstock to get the feel for it.

Aside from that, I am a large fan of using Eva foam for the body parts of an armor suit. With a little patience you can achieve a very high level of detail, for a relatively low cost. Keep in mind, the suit will only look as good as the time you put into it. A high quality foam suit can take close to the time of a quality pep suit.

Yeah, I'd say the same thing. EVA foam is easy to learn and you could end up with a good result even the first time.
Pepakura is great for helmets, if you can access the right materials and such. My first experience made me really frustrated but I was in a rush so I'm sure you could make it better. I also had to spend a lot of time looking for the right chemicals and bondos considering I live in Sweden, so everything has a different name and you can't buy from the same brands. But for the first time? I'll have to say EVA foam.

 

[deg3nerate]

Okay, so what I'm getting is that:

A) When it comes to the body, the best choice is EVA foam.

B) However, it's better to work with fiberglass for the helmet. Judging by majority rule.

C) The Reach edition of the JFO helmet is a better starting point than the AA helmet (I can see why)

D) Cereal Killer's guide to bondo is invaluable.

E) Don't rush it lest you get:

falling falcon droppings. Lol

not going to lie, you made me laugh there

Does this sound about right, or no?

 

[PerniciousDuke]

Sounds about right to me. You can make a helmet out of foam, but it is a challenge and needs practice to prepare yourself for it. Pepakura (bondo/resin) is difficult as well, but as long as your paper model is the correct size and shape then a lot of the learning curves can be covered up and fixed as you go.

As long as you feel comfortable folding the paper pieces and gluing together then I think you will be fine doing the AA helmet. But, I would recommend doing something else, smaller, just to get the hang of the rest of the steps (resin, fiberglass, bondo) Something like a handplate or boot top, just to give you something to practice the new materials with.

CerealKiller does have great videos, all of them are worth watching, his thread is located here.

I have adapted his process, built upon them and documented my steps in written form, including a materials list that you can find here.

 

[StayFrosty]

Yeah, for only a helmet you definitely want to use pepakura.

 

[mblackwell1002]

it's a little more user-friendly to start out with foam armor. my avatar armor is foam, is my first build, and after a little practice, you can achieve spectacular results. just a tip.