First Build - Jorge Armor

[Carks]

Hi everyone.

I've done the occasional cosplay before, but never anything as big as this. I'm going to be working on Jorge's armor from Reach. So far I have the helmet printed from Galactic Armory. Didn't really change any of the settings when I opened the file, but didn't get the same results that some people had on theirs. My visor has very obvious layer lines that I'm going to have to work on severely.

Added some "Cosplay helpers" to hold 6mm magnets on the back plate, since I will have all pieces attached except the rear piece to slip my head in and then snap it shut:

The front piece with the lower "fins" glued on. Other detail pieces will be added when I decide I don't want to paint thing independently, and instead just put everything together and curse Past Me for the crappy decision.

Also used RefMaker - 3D Head Reference Model Generator in combination with cosplay calipers to size the helmet to juuuuust fit my head, but that brought the scale down to 95% overall. So I may be kicking myself later for the reduced size. Trying to see what I can do to get a super snug "only fits me" finish. Like it was made for me. (Right now, thinking about covering my head in saran wrap and then using expanding foam when I have the helmet on VERY sparingly and selectively to mold to my head shape).

I've lost a lot of weight over the past few years and have been feeling an urge to start building muscle, so that I can start to look more like the characters I enjoy. (This is entirely what I feel about myself, and don't extend these thoughts to anyone who isn't actually 8-9ft tall and a super soldier, etc).

Hoping that posting on here keeps me accountable. Now the big question...do I finish the helmet first or print all armor pieces?

 

[OpticChief]

Hi everyone.

I've done the occasional cosplay before, but never anything as big as this. I'm going to be working on Jorge's armor from Reach. So far I have the helmet printed from Galactic Armory. Didn't really change any of the settings when I opened the file, but didn't get the same results that some people had on theirs. My visor has very obvious layer lines that I'm going to have to work on severely.
View attachment 371718

Added some "Cosplay helpers" to hold 6mm magnets on the back plate, since I will have all pieces attached except the rear piece to slip my head in and then snap it shut:
View attachment 371719

The front piece with the lower "fins" glued on. Other detail pieces will be added when I decide I don't want to paint thing independently, and instead just put everything together and curse Past Me for the crappy decision.
View attachment 371720
Also used RefMaker - 3D Head Reference Model Generator in combination with cosplay calipers to size the helmet to juuuuust fit my head, but that brought the scale down to 95% overall. So I may be kicking myself later for the reduced size. Trying to see what I can do to get a super snug "only fits me" finish. Like it was made for me. (Right now, thinking about covering my head in saran wrap and then using expanding foam when I have the helmet on VERY sparingly and selectively to mold to my head shape).

I've lost a lot of weight over the past few years and have been feeling an urge to start building muscle, so that I can start to look more like the characters I enjoy. (This is entirely what I feel about myself, and don't extend these thoughts to anyone who isn't actually 8-9ft tall and a super soldier, etc).

Hoping that posting on here keeps me accountable. Now the big question...do I finish the helmet first or print all armor pieces?

Hey, welcome to the Reach pain club - for a first big build, you’re honestly doing a lot of things right already.


First off: don’t beat yourself up over the layer lines. What you’re seeing on the visor and curved areas is 100% normal for FDM prints, especially on organic shapes. The people getting those “perfect out of the printer” results are either hiding the work they did after, running super fine layer heights, or printing on very dialed-in machines.

Helmet sizing: bite the bullet now​

I strongly recommend upsizing the helmet now, even if it hurts a little to reprint. A helmet that’s even slightly too snug becomes a nightmare once you add:

• filler
• primer
• paint
• padding
• electronics/visor

Fixing size later usually means cutting, heat reshaping, or reprinting anyway, just with more time and frustration involved. A slightly bigger helmet can always be padded down cleanly. A too-small helmet almost never ends happily.

What to do right after a fresh print (my workflow)​

I laid this out in my Noble Six build thread, but I’ll summarize the “right after print” process here so it’s easy to follow:


1. Knock down the worst lines first

• Start with 120–150 grit just to flatten the high spots
• Don’t chase perfection here — you’re just leveling

2. Filler stage

• I use Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty (not full body filler unless absolutely needed)
• Thin layers, spread with a plastic card
• Let it fully cure before sanding

3. Sand again

• 220 grit → 320 grit
• You’re looking for smooth to the touch, not visually perfect yet

4. Filler primer

• Rust-Oleum Filler Primer or Seymour PBE Filler Primer (Recommended) is your best friend
• 2–3 light coats, let it sit
• This reveals what still needs work

5. Repeat (yes, really)

• Spot putty where needed
• Sand
• Filler primer again

This cycle is what actually kills layer lines, not one magic product.


If you want a more detailed breakdown with product brands, grit progression, and photos, here’s my thread where I document everything step-by-step:
Noble Six Build Thread (My First Build)
1st Build - Noble Six Build Thread (My First Build)

Printing everything vs finishing the helmet​

My advice: finish the helmet first.
It’s the most visible part, it teaches you every skill you’ll need later, and it keeps motivation high. Printing everything before finishing anything is how a lot of builds quietly die on shelves.

Final note:​

You’re not behind, you didn’t mess anything up, and this is all part of the process. Reach armor isn’t forgiving, but it is worth it. The fact that you’re already thinking about fit, magnets, and finish quality tells me you’re going to end up with a solid build.

Keep posting updates; accountability really does help, and plenty of us have been exactly where you are now.

You’ve got this.
If you have any further questions, reach out here or join our Discord: Join the 405th Infantry Division Discord Server!
A lot of us are willing to help!

 

[billeybob250]

Your helmet is looking good.

Your always going to have layer lines or seams when printing. most of the work is in post processing. the Black parts look pretty smooth but yea the yellow is going to need some sanding and TLC but that's half the fun.

Optic gave some great advice above on the finishing process.

Your going to want yo fill in your seems now with something like wood putty or bondo red or 2 part filler. depending on what's available in your area.
then your going to want to do 80-120 grit to get everything all even and start the smoothing process.

after 120 you start getting into your personal preference of steps. you could do more thinned down Bondo, you could sand with 220, you could do filler primer automotive spray paint (my preference).

but you will repeat this filler and sanding process once or twice. upping you sanding grit till you feel its smooth enough, the higher your grit the more buttery smooth and even you final finish (depends on if you want something battle worn or like fresh out the factory that's how i look at it).

none of my armor goes over 400 grit but i know some people speak of going up to like 800 grit and even wet sanding (helps get it even more smooth).

Welcome to the gang and good luck out there spartan.

 

[Carks]

Hey, welcome to the Reach pain club - for a first big build, you’re honestly doing a lot of things right already.


First off: don’t beat yourself up over the layer lines. What you’re seeing on the visor and curved areas is 100% normal for FDM prints, especially on organic shapes. The people getting those “perfect out of the printer” results are either hiding the work they did after, running super fine layer heights, or printing on very dialed-in machines.

Helmet sizing: bite the bullet now​

I strongly recommend upsizing the helmet now, even if it hurts a little to reprint. A helmet that’s even slightly too snug becomes a nightmare once you add:

• filler
• primer
• paint
• padding
• electronics/visor

Fixing size later usually means cutting, heat reshaping, or reprinting anyway, just with more time and frustration involved. A slightly bigger helmet can always be padded down cleanly. A too-small helmet almost never ends happily.

What to do right after a fresh print (my workflow)​

I laid this out in my Noble Six build thread, but I’ll summarize the “right after print” process here so it’s easy to follow:


1. Knock down the worst lines first

• Start with 120–150 grit just to flatten the high spots
• Don’t chase perfection here — you’re just leveling

2. Filler stage

• I use Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty (not full body filler unless absolutely needed)
• Thin layers, spread with a plastic card
• Let it fully cure before sanding

3. Sand again

• 220 grit → 320 grit
• You’re looking for smooth to the touch, not visually perfect yet

4. Filler primer

• Rust-Oleum Filler Primer or Seymour PBE Filler Primer (Recommended) is your best friend
• 2–3 light coats, let it sit
• This reveals what still needs work

5. Repeat (yes, really)

• Spot putty where needed
• Sand
• Filler primer again

This cycle is what actually kills layer lines, not one magic product.


If you want a more detailed breakdown with product brands, grit progression, and photos, here’s my thread where I document everything step-by-step:
Noble Six Build Thread (My First Build)
1st Build - Noble Six Build Thread (My First Build)
View attachment 371728

Printing everything vs finishing the helmet​

My advice: finish the helmet first.
It’s the most visible part, it teaches you every skill you’ll need later, and it keeps motivation high. Printing everything before finishing anything is how a lot of builds quietly die on shelves.

Final note:​

You’re not behind, you didn’t mess anything up, and this is all part of the process. Reach armor isn’t forgiving, but it is worth it. The fact that you’re already thinking about fit, magnets, and finish quality tells me you’re going to end up with a solid build.

Keep posting updates; accountability really does help, and plenty of us have been exactly where you are now.

You’ve got this.
If you have any further questions, reach out here or join our Discord: Join the 405th Infantry Division Discord Server!
A lot of us are willing to help!

Thank you for the advice and extensive detail. I'm starting the reprint now at 100% scale and at a smaller layer height, with adaptive layer lines and smoothing on, so see how it turns out. Took a 9 hour print to now being around 20 hours, but let's see what happens.

I am also starting this with Polymaker CosPLA which is supposed to be resilient and easier to sand than standard PLA. I will still use the first helmet to try some crazy ideas on, haha. I really wanna see what happens if I put small amounts of expanding foam in the helmet while I have saran wrap on my head. I don't think I'll ever put fans/electronics in this helmet, so it would solely be for putting on if someone wants pictures.

I do have various grits of standard and wet sandpaper and sanding tools at my disposal, and will mess around with both body filler, as well as the body filler/acetone trick, or even spackle/water mixture. I am very concerned with a full suit of armor made of plastic though....sh*t's gonna be heavy and cumbersome....Let alone walking around with Etilka.

I am a little annoyed that Bambu Labs changes all the print settings when you change the printer over. The files I have from Galactic Armory are all dialed in, but as soon as I select my A1 it defaults everything :/

If I don't mess around with the old helmet, know anyone who could use a 95% scale Jorge helmet? Haha.

 

[Carks]

Your helmet is looking good.

Your always going to have layer lines or seams when printing. most of the work is in post processing. the Black parts look pretty smooth but yea the yellow is going to need some sanding and TLC but that's half the fun.

Optic gave some great advice above on the finishing process.

Your going to want yo fill in your seems now with something like wood putty or bondo red or 2 part filler. depending on what's available in your area.
then your going to want to do 80-120 grit to get everything all even and start the smoothing process.

after 120 you start getting into your personal preference of steps. you could do more thinned down Bondo, you could sand with 220, you could do filler primer automotive spray paint (my preference).

but you will repeat this filler and sanding process once or twice. upping you sanding grit till you feel its smooth enough, the higher your grit the more buttery smooth and even you final finish (depends on if you want something battle worn or like fresh out the factory that's how i look at it).

none of my armor goes over 400 grit but i know some people speak of going up to like 800 grit and even wet sanding (helps get it even more smooth).

Welcome to the gang and good luck out there spartan.

Yeah, I'm following Optic's advice and reprinting at full scale in an easier to sand filament. Might as well also make the layer lines smaller and mess with smoothing/adaptive layer heights.

Whatever looks like crap after all that effort is just....plasma burn. Yeah, that's it.

 

[SgtSaint]

Didn't really change any of the settings when I opened the file, but didn't get the same results that some people had on theirs.

Honestly, this is why I routinely recommend the helmet to be last, not first, especially for people just starting out with 3d printing and/or armor cosplay.

SgtSaint's FAQ post

So I tend to post this response to the common or Frequently asked questions when people ask on the various social media channels. I copy/paste it to Facebook, or the Discord server and some folks urged me to post it here and just link it in the future. Ok, here goes. These are my tips and how...

www.405th.com

If you're experienced, then cool do it first. But you sound like you're feeling your way through an all new adventure. For that I recommend starting at the boots and working up so that your least experienced parts are something nobody looks at. And the beauty part that everyone sees first and is front and venter of every photo (helmet) is the last part you make after you've leveled up your maker skills from the previous 50 parts.

At this point you have that helmet, so cool. If you printed it as-is, is it even a good size for you? Most people need to scale for a better fit.

If it fits, great - run with it. If its too tight to be comfortable, allow for battery banks and fans and comfort foam - or the other side and so big you look like a bobble head - then use it for technique practice. Either way from here I'd personally suggest you work up from the ground and in from the hands making the chest and helmet last so they benefit from every minute of practice and skills learning.

 

[Carks]

Honestly, this is why I routinely recommend the helmet to be last, not first, especially for people just starting out with 3d printing and/or armor cosplay.

SgtSaint's FAQ post

So I tend to post this response to the common or Frequently asked questions when people ask on the various social media channels. I copy/paste it to Facebook, or the Discord server and some folks urged me to post it here and just link it in the future. Ok, here goes. These are my tips and how...

www.405th.com

If you're experienced, then cool do it first. But you sound like you're feeling your way through an all new adventure. For that I recommend starting at the boots and working up so that your least experienced parts are something nobody looks at. And the beauty part that everyone sees first and is front and venter of every photo (helmet) is the last part you make after you've leveled up your maker skills from the previous 50 parts.
View attachment 371744

That's a great point. Thanks for the advice!

 

[OpticChief]

Yeah, I'm following Optic's advice and reprinting at full scale in an easier to sand filament. Might as well also make the layer lines smaller and mess with smoothing/adaptive layer heights.

Whatever looks like crap after all that effort is just....plasma burn. Yeah, that's it.

I use PLA, when I return home Im more then happy to share my nozzle size and print specifications!

 

[tahu505]

Whatever looks like crap after all that effort is just....plasma burn. Yeah, that's it.

The classic hide it with battle damage lol. My grenadier helmet that I use for my MK V b suit was a failed print. I had to split the file, reprint the forehead and mouth area separately, and then attach them to where the print failed. I was able to get the seams smoothed on all sides of the forehead, but could only get the right side smooth on the mouth. I turned the gap on the left side into a scar, which I now compare to Gurney from Dune. I've never had anyone notice or say anything.

Also, I love seeing other grenadier/Jorge builds! Welcome to grenadier gang!