First Pepakura Spartan Armor Project (WIP)

[boricuaspartan]

How's it going 405th? Well over the past year my wife and I have been working on a Spartan costume for both myself and her and we plan to wear our armor for the first time together at this year's San Diego Comic Con God willing. Now this is the first time either one of us has ever done anything like this before so I know it's not gonna be perfect, but we are both gonna do our best to make it look good and we would highly appreciate any kinda advice/recommendations you guys can offer based on how our armor looks to date. I've been looking up tutorials on how to make the armor on youtube and also peeking around the forums here for a good few years (and finally decided to register recently) to get a good idea on how to make the armor using Pepakura. And so far this is what we've got:

This last one here I just took yesterday. I finished putting together the Pep helmet for my wife and the Rouge helmet has already been resined, fiberglassed, bondoed, primed, and spot puttied.

Progress has been kinda slow due to the fact that I'm in the Army and work is really demanding. That and the fact that I got a wife, 2 kids, and 2 dogs keeping me busy all the time , lol. But like I said, I'm doing my best to have this stuff finished before the summer. So I'll keep putting up updates and in the meantime feel free to let me know what ya'll think and to offer any advice/suggestions ya'll may have.

 

[koonpoon]

This is awesome, I love the couple builds! Good luck and great job so far!

 

[boricuaspartan]

Hey thanks koonpoon. I appreciate it I resined the outside of my wife's helmet earlier today. Later on I'm gonna wetsand my Rouge helmet and then resin the inside of my wife's helmet. I'll put up pics later when they're done.

 

[Tigersgrace]

Progress has been kinda slow due to the fact that I'm in the Army and work is really demanding. That and the fact that I got a wife, 2 kids, and 2 dogs keeping me busy all the time , lol. But like I said, I'm doing my best to have this stuff finished before the summer. So I'll keep putting up updates and in the meantime feel free to let me know what ya'll think and to offer any advice/suggestions ya'll may have.

What's your MOS? I'm in Ft. Lewis with the army here 11B! Its nice to know now that i'm not the only "tough army guy" that likes to build costumes and things.

 

[boricuaspartan]

What's your MOS? I'm in Ft. Lewis with the army here 11B! Its nice to know now that i'm not the only "tough army guy" that likes to build costumes and things.

LOL! Yeah I kinda had a feeling there were some Soldiers/Military personnel here on the 405th forums that were Halo costume builders And yeah, we're soldiers but that don't mean we don't got hobbies know what I mean, lol. I'm an 89A (Ammunition Stock Control and Accounting Specialist) stationed here at Ft. Riley, KS. It's my first duty station but I hate it man, lol. There's like nutthin out here, lol. Hoping I get a chance to re-enlist and get stationed somewhere back on the East Coast where I'm from. How long ya been in the Army? And where's Ft. Lewis? I forget, lol.

 

[boricuaspartan]

Going back to my wife and I's armor, today I got the chance to resin the outside of my wife's helmet and I wetsanded my Rouge helmet. I gotta admit though, I'm honestly not to sure I bondoed this thing right. A lot of the spots where I put bondo on came out kinda clumpy and I was hoping the wetsanding would fix this for me. But it seems like it didn't really fix it all to much. I'll put up some pics of my rouge helmet tomorrow and then maybe ya'll can gimme some suggestions on how to fix this clumpy bondo issue. Cause as of now it doesn't really look right to me.

 

[hobbitdude13]

Going back to my wife and I's armor, today I got the chance to resin the outside of my wife's helmet and I wetsanded my Rouge helmet. I gotta admit though, I'm honestly not to sure I bondoed this thing right. A lot of the spots where I put bondo on came out kinda clumpy and I was hoping the wetsanding would fix this for me. But it seems like it didn't really fix it all to much. I'll put up some pics of my rouge helmet tomorrow and then maybe ya'll can gimme some suggestions on how to fix this clumpy bondo issue. Cause as of now it doesn't really look right to me.

I had the same problem when I first worked with bondo. Are you mixing it with a portion of resin first? it makes a smooth runny mixture that is hella easy to spread around with a paintbrush. "Rondo" is the accepted term for this mixture.

 

[boricuaspartan]

I had the same problem when I first worked with bondo. Are you mixing it with a portion of resin first? it makes a smooth runny mixture that is hella easy to spread around with a paintbrush. "Rondo" is the accepted term for this mixture.

No actually. It never occurred to me to try Rondo. But I'll definitely give it a shot. I've never tried rondo before though so how do you mix it? Do you put resin in a container and then the bondo and then use the liquid hardener or is there another way of mixing it? Also with the rondo should I go over the bad spots that are already clumpy or just avoid them?

 

[hobbitdude13]

No actually. It never occurred to me to try Rondo. But I'll definitely give it a shot. I've never tried rondo before though so how do you mix it? Do you put resin in a container and then the bondo and then use the liquid hardener or is there another way of mixing it? Also with the rondo should I go over the bad spots that are already clumpy or just avoid them?

Start with a good amount of bondo.

It depends on how runny you want it, but I usually do 1 part resin for 2 parts bondo.
Mix well.
Then add both types of hardener to the mixture, mix well.

Whatever paint brush you use to coat the outside of your armor section will be destroyed so be aware.

You can try different proportions for different thicknesses. Also, the curing time is dependent on how much hardener you use.

You can try to knock the clumpy bits down with some 40 grit sandpaper, but it is entirely up to you.

 

[zombieprops]

Start with a good amount of bondo.

It depends on how runny you want it, but I usually do 1 part resin for 2 parts bondo.
Mix well.
Then add both types of hardener to the mixture, mix well.

Whatever paint brush you use to coat the outside of your armor section will be destroyed so be aware.

You can try different proportions for different thicknesses. Also, the curing time is dependent on how much hardener you use.

You can try to knock the clumpy bits down with some 40 grit sandpaper, but it is entirely up to you.

Actually if you soak your brush in acetone before the fiberglass, or bondo kicks, your brush will be re usable. A bottle of pure acetone is like 3 bucks, saves money on brushes in the long run. I use the same one like 5-6 times.

 

[hobbitdude13]

Actually if you soak your brush in acetone before the fiberglass, or bondo kicks, your brush will be re usable. A bottle of pure acetone is like 3 bucks, saves money on brushes in the long run. I use the same one like 5-6 times.

Thanks zombie. That's what I love about the 405th. Everyone has something to teach everyone else.

 

[boricuaspartan]

Start with a good amount of bondo.

It depends on how runny you want it, but I usually do 1 part resin for 2 parts bondo.
Mix well.
Then add both types of hardener to the mixture, mix well.

Whatever paint brush you use to coat the outside of your armor section will be destroyed so be aware.

You can try different proportions for different thicknesses. Also, the curing time is dependent on how much hardener you use.

You can try to knock the clumpy bits down with some 40 grit sandpaper, but it is entirely up to you.

Ok so about how many ounces of Resin would you say you use when you mix it with the bondo? And when you say parts bondo, you mean like 2 dollups of Bondo? Also, what do you mix it in? Do you put the rondo like in a container or a bucket? Sorry I'm asking so many questions and being so specific, lol. I just really wanna get a good idea on how to do this so I don't mess it up anymore, lol.

Actually if you soak your brush in acetone before the fiberglass, or bondo kicks, your brush will be re usable. A bottle of pure acetone is like 3 bucks, saves money on brushes in the long run. I use the same one like 5-6 times.

I'm glad you actually mentioned this because I can't count how many brushes I've gone through to date, lol. I mean granted, I've just been buying them at the dollar tree. But still, if I can save even $5 I'd gladly do it. So, duely noted

 

[Halex]

I'm glad you actually mentioned this because I can't count how many brushes I've gone through to date, lol. I mean granted, I've just been buying them at the dollar tree. But still, if I can save even $5 I'd gladly do it. So, duely noted

If you can... get them @ Harbor Freight. I paid $8 for a box of 36 1" brushes.

 

[hobbitdude13]

Ok so about how many ounces of Resin would you say you use when you mix it with the bondo? And when you say parts bondo, you mean like 2 dollups of Bondo? Also, what do you mix it in? Do you put the rondo like in a container or a bucket? Sorry I'm asking so many questions and being so specific, lol. I just really wanna get a good idea on how to do this so I don't mess it up anymore, lol.

Hey no worries. Only way to find out is to ask. The question threads are great resources as well.

I usually use the red solo cups for mixing rondo. Fill that about two thirds full, then add and mix resin to taste. By "to taste" I mean to whatever viscosity is comfortable for you. If I am rondoing the inside of a piece, I add more resin. That makes a runnier, thinner, mixture which is better for "slushing" around the inside of a piece. If you are rondoing the outside of a piece, (which most people do), then add less resin. The thicker mixture, while still able to be spread around, won't drip and run off the edges of the piece. It really depends on your personal preference. I don't mix more than I absolutely need for what I'm doing at the moment. Try a few sample mixtures to see what works for you.

 

[zombieprops]

Those solo cups are really good for mixing stuff because of the lines on the sides. But if you choose to use the acetone for cleaning your brushes, acetone will eat those cups in a heartbeat. so get a small mixing container from wal mart, or home depot. Sometimes marine industrial supply stores has the cheapest prices for things like that. Especially fiberglass if you can buy it by the foot.

 

[boricuaspartan]

If you can... get them @ Harbor Freight. I paid $8 for a box of 36 1" brushes.

Can't say I've ever heard of Harbor Freights, but I'll look into it cause that's a great deal right there. But I honestly don't know if we even have any Harbor Freights around here. I live in Kansas and all they really have out here are just the "Big Name" stores. IE, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, etc. And even then, all these stores are like a half an hour drive away from where I live, lol. There's like nothing out here. But like I said, I'll look it up online and see if we have any around here.

Hey no worries. Only way to find out is to ask. The question threads are great resources as well.

I usually use the red solo cups for mixing rondo. Fill that about two thirds full, then add and mix resin to taste. By "to taste" I mean to whatever viscosity is comfortable for you. If I am rondoing the inside of a piece, I add more resin. That makes a runnier, thinner, mixture which is better for "slushing" around the inside of a piece. If you are rondoing the outside of a piece, (which most people do), then add less resin. The thicker mixture, while still able to be spread around, won't drip and run off the edges of the piece. It really depends on your personal preference. I don't mix more than I absolutely need for what I'm doing at the moment. Try a few sample mixtures to see what works for you.

Hey, thank you so much. I really appreciate the advice and the details. I'll definetly give it a try today cause I'm off for the day and see how it turns out. I'll put up some pics later as well. Only reason I didn't put up any yesterday was cause I had a 24 hour detail. But yeah, I'll definetly put some up today.

Those solo cups are really good for mixing stuff because of the lines on the sides. But if you choose to use the acetone for cleaning your brushes, acetone will eat those cups in a heartbeat. so get a small mixing container from wal mart, or home depot. Sometimes marine industrial supply stores has the cheapest prices for things like that. Especially fiberglass if you can buy it by the foot.

Duely noted. I'll look into buying some Acetone really soon and try it out.

 

[Alfrey515]

helmets are looking great! keep up the good work man!!

 

[Tigersgrace]

Pep work is really clean, great job (+1 sub)

 

[boricuaspartan]

Alright guys, so I finally got around to putting up some updated pics of our armor. It took a little longer then I wanted it to, but I've just been really busy at work recently. That being said here are the first pics of my wife's helmet after I resined the outside of it:

You can't really tell much of a difference because of how bright the pics came out to be. But in person it looks a lot different and it's definetly sturdier. Here are some pics of my Rouge Helmet after it was Wetsanded with 220 and then 400 grit sandpaper:

Now here are some close up pics that I took of the areas I bondoed and spot puttied on my helmet. Just wanted to give ya'll a better idea of what I meant by "Clumpy Bondo":

So yeah, these are the pics I took so far. Since then I resined the inside of my wife's helmet and primed my Rouge Helmet again. I'll put some pics up of that later. And btw, thanks for everyone who commented on my thread since my last post. Appreciate it guys

 

[boricuaspartan]

Just another update. This is where I'm currently at right now. Here are some pics of my wife's helmet after I resined the inside of the helmet:

I'm just gonna add one more coat of resin to the outside and then start fiberglassing the inside of it. Don't have any gloves as of the moment so I gotta wait for a bit. Now, here are some pics of my helmet after I primed it:

So the bondo still stands out a lot even though it's been primed. I'm plannin on trying to sand down the clumpy pieces of bondo with a Random Sanding Orbiter. What do ya'll think? Think it'll work?