First build of any kind, first cosplay, first everything

[adognamedRunt]

Hi All,

So im Runt. Long ago i was given an Xbox by a family friend and it came with this weird first person shooter called Halo. Since then ive been a big fan but drift in and out of the community at large. However recently I was reminded that I am an adult and can basically do what i want, so im going to attempt doing something ive wanted to do since 2001: Make some spartan armor. Do I have any idea what I am doing? No. Do I have a ton of audacity and am willing to give it a shot? Absolutely.

So current plan is to make something similar to the base reach armor, as that game ended up my favorite. I got some files from Galactic Armory and played in Armorsmith to try and scale the files correctly for my body. Did i do it correctly? No idea. Am i willing to burn half a roll of PETG and 2 days of printing to see? Yes.

This is my set up in Armorsmith:

https://imgur.com/a/n9DNoSA

This is what im going for:

https://imgur.com/a/B26cgr5

And this is my progress on the first print so far, lots of supports:

https://imgur.com/a/5BfaPCo

 

[PlanetAlexander]

Ambition is the most important thing, and it seems you're not short on that! With the Armorsmith model, it does look like some parts may be too big though, such as the chest but moreso the legs - and I don't mean any disrespect to what your body type may be, but with the legs especially, they look pretty close together, which you would likely struggle to walk in.
If you want to test sizes before printing a whole piece of armour, you can print off just a small cross section of it (like a loop), and see how well that slides over your limbs. If it's too big/small, you can adjust without wasting too much time or material.

 

[adognamedRunt]

Ambition is the most important thing, and it seems you're not short on that! With the Armorsmith model, it does look like some parts may be too big though, such as the chest but moreso the legs - and I don't mean any disrespect to what your body type may be, but with the legs especially, they look pretty close together, which you would likely struggle to walk in.
If you want to test sizes before printing a whole piece of armour, you can print off just a small cross section of it (like a loop), and see how well that slides over your limbs. If it's too big/small, you can adjust without wasting too much time or material.

Thats what i am going to try now since a little power dip caused my print to crash. I have big thighs but i didnt think they were THAT big. Armorsmith is a pretty powerful program and im just now starting to figure out how to actually use it right.

 

[adognamedRunt]

First part printed, several hundred to go plus fill sand prime and paint.

The grey filament was on sale, will be going to black once my current 2.5 rolls are out. Hopefully it’s enough to get my feet done and my anycubic max ordered

 

[adognamedRunt]

Its been a week and the good news is I have learned how to better use the tools I have. The bad news is I learned how to use those tools after printing my entire left boot and realizing its the wrong scale. So 4 days of printing wasted, however I did manage to dial in my printer for the .6 nozzle, a faster print speed, and better temperature for the new print speeds.

I can't be too mad about the print failing, as you can see how bad it lifted off the bed while printing as well as how badly I was getting stringers.

Now we are properly on the bed, hopefully without the warping issue this time.

Ive also re-measured my thighs, calfs, biceps, and forearms with calipers from work to get the diameters properly scaled. Will re-print test rings and then see if all this overtime worked me so I can drop some cash on a larger format printer than my ender. If not, ill be looking to split and print some files to continue the legs.

 

[CasuallyFlacid]

Its been a week and the good news is I have learned how to better use the tools I have. The bad news is I learned how to use those tools after printing my entire left boot and realizing its the wrong scale. So 4 days of printing wasted, however I did manage to dial in my printer for the .6 nozzle, a faster print speed, and better temperature for the new print speeds.

View attachment 324518
I can't be too mad about the print failing, as you can see how bad it lifted off the bed while printing as well as how badly I was getting stringers.
View attachment 324519

Now we are properly on the bed, hopefully without the warping issue this time.

Ive also re-measured my thighs, calfs, biceps, and forearms with calipers from work to get the diameters properly scaled. Will re-print test rings and then see if all this overtime worked me so I can drop some cash on a larger format printer than my ender. If not, ill be looking to split and print some files to continue the legs.

It happens to all of us, man. I did the same thing printing a few helmets at the wrong scale. Luckily I have friends with different sized heads that were hyped about free helmets lol. My only suggestion here is that you pad the hell out of those foot armor parts of the "clickity clack" as you walk will be a problem. With mine, I actually have the parts strapped to the tops and sides of my boots so they don't get damaged or make too much noise.

 

[Exia]

Good luck with your project! I still debating if I should buy a 3d printer to build armor like that or continue to learn to use foam. So far that heel piece looks amazing.

 

[CasuallyFlacid]

Good luck with your project! I still debating if I should buy a 3d printer to build armor like that or continue to learn to use foam. So far that heel piece looks amazing.

It's definitely worth it just for props and detailed armor pieces alone. My entire suit is 3D printed. Machines are becoming cheaper and easier to acquire every year, but I'm not gunna lie.... It's a rabbit hole. It will frustrate you like crazy just to get em to print right, but there are a ton of very nice people that are always willing to help you work through it.

 

[DeltaAlphaZulu]

Good luck with your project! I still debating if I should buy a 3d printer to build armor like that or continue to learn to use foam. So far that heel piece looks amazing.

I'd recommend continuing to learn foamsmithing first. It's substantially cheaper and it teaches you designing and finishing basics, like hiding seams and joints, that'll make your 3D prints turn out much better. I look at 3D prints like a skeleton or a base for a project. Whereas with foamsmithing you do a chunk of your finishing work during your initial construction.

 

[DeltaAlphaZulu]

Its been a week and the good news is I have learned how to better use the tools I have. The bad news is I learned how to use those tools after printing my entire left boot and realizing its the wrong scale. So 4 days of printing wasted, however I did manage to dial in my printer for the .6 nozzle, a faster print speed, and better temperature for the new print speeds.

View attachment 324518
I can't be too mad about the print failing, as you can see how bad it lifted off the bed while printing as well as how badly I was getting stringers.
View attachment 324519

Now we are properly on the bed, hopefully without the warping issue this time.

Ive also re-measured my thighs, calfs, biceps, and forearms with calipers from work to get the diameters properly scaled. Will re-print test rings and then see if all this overtime worked me so I can drop some cash on a larger format printer than my ender. If not, ill be looking to split and print some files to continue the legs.

If you're still getting bad stringing, I'd recommend increasing your retraction distance and enabling combing to stop the printer from moving off the print unless absolutely necessary. All in all your finished parts are turning out great!

 

[he4thbar]

looking great! forearms might be a little big but not bad, but i also use foam so I don't have to worry about wiggle room for getting my hands through tight spots.
If you don't mind my advice I would highly suggest setting the opacity of your armor to .7 and change your avatar color to see how close to your body each piece is. And lastly what I do before starting each piece is using the "M" measuring tool and measuring the piece in armorsmith and seeing how that scales up in real life to your body.
heel is looking awesome, and look forward to seeing the rest of this thread