Foam Guide

[Dampfhulk]

Welche Möglichkeiten habe ich beim Kauf von EVA-Schaum? (Mit Sitz in den USA)

Bodenfliesen
Eine kostengünstige, leicht verfügbare Quelle für EVA-Schaum sind Fußmatten oder Bodenfliesen. Bodenfliesen finden Sie in den meisten Baumärkten oder Sportgeschäften. Die Fliesen können auf einer oder beiden Seiten eine Textur aufweisen, die möglicherweise abgeschliffen werden muss, wenn keine Textur gewünscht wird. Obwohl Bodenfliesen in verschiedenen Größen und Stärken erhältlich sind, sind die üblichen Abmessungen etwa 24 "x 24" mit einer Dicke von etwa ⅜ "-½"

Durchschnittliche Kosten: $ 0,56 - $ 1,56 pro Quadratfuß
In der Regel in 4er-Packs für etwa 9 bis 25 US-Dollar gekauft

Standorte: Hafenfracht, Home Depot, Lowe's, Target, Walmart, Amazon usw.

View attachment 286333

Rollen / Blätter
EVA-Schaumstoffrollen sind etwas teurer als die meisten Bodenfliesen und können sowohl bei Schaumlieferanten online als auch in Cosplay-Shops gekauft werden. Rollen und Bleche sind im Vergleich zu Bodenfliesen die teurere Option, bieten jedoch mehrere Vorteile. Rollen und Blätter sind normalerweise auf beiden Seiten glatt und tendieren dazu, innerhalb der Marke in Bezug auf Dichte und Dicke gleichmäßiger zu sein. Wenn Ihre Schablonen große Stücke zum Ausschneiden haben, ist die Verwendung großer Rollen großartig, da keine Oberflächennähte erforderlich sind.

Durchschnittliche Kosten: 0,80 USD - 2,50 USD pro Quadratfuß
Standorte: TNT Cosplay, Amazon, Schaumfabrik, SKS Requisiten, Joann Fabric usw.

View attachment 286337

ich use all of them.

 

[JBSkittles]

Tips/tools and misc. for working with foam

1. Wear a respirator with a particulate filter or a particulate mask when sanding foam. Even though EVA is generally considered safe, if you’re sanding the foam it can create a fine dust that is not good for your respiratory system.
2. Use Barge if you can. Hot glue is a common low cost, non-toxic choice of adhesive for bonding foam, however contact cement (e.g. Barge) is a stronger option that makes it easier to bond foam with minimal seams. Just note that contact cement needs good ventilation and/or an organic vapors respirator (~$30 USD).
3. Keep your blades sharp! The sharper your blade is, the cleaner the cut. The cleaner the cut, the better the seams. The better the seams, the better the armor! It is highly recommended to at least have a blade sharpener on hand to keep your blades keen (~$10 USD).
4. Use a metal straight edge/ruler. These can be useful for making angled/beveled cuts, making straight long cuts, or even simply marking cut lines on the foam. These are a good investment. We’d recommend getting one around 18in long.
5. Tracing templates. Templates can be traced onto foam using a ballpoint pen. However, if you find it hard to see the pen on your foam (e.g. black foam) you could switch to a white/silver permanent marker. Note however, that foam dries markers up fast. When using a pen, be careful not to tear into the foam.
6. Buy a heat gun. No, hair dryer DOESN’T COUNT. It simply does not reach a high enough temperature to heat the foam evenly. Heat guns are needed for shaping curves into the foam, sealing it for the painting step, and various other foam tricks like scoring.
7. Use something to keep templates down while tracing (e.g. push pins, something heavy). You don’t want them sliding around while you’re tracing them.
8. KwikSeal Adhesive Caulk. This is useful for filling gaps in seams as well as smoothing out cut/fuzzy edges. Other similar options include foam clay, or air drying clay.
9. Seal your foam. Use a heat gun to seal the outer foam layer, followed by applying a sealant coating (e.g. PlastiDip, LeakSeal, Mod Podge, Flexbond, etc.) before painting
10. Craft/exacto blades work great for cutting EVA along with snap off blades. We like to keep some of both on hand, and use what seems to work best for the type of cut we’re going for. RandomRanger got a bulk craft blade set for ~$10 USD and would replace the blade once he was able to hear it slicing through, and he still has half the blades from the kit. ZP180 bought quality utility knives and a handful of X-acto knives with various blades and uses a blade sharpener and honing steel throughout the build process in order to keep her blades sharp.
11. Dremel/rotary tools can be useful for smoothing out cut edges, making unique cuts, cutting out circles, or gouging out trenches. Some recommended bits are low and high grit sanding drums (e.g. 60 and 600 grit) for cutting out circles and smoothing edges, cutting wheels and stone grinding wheels (for trenches). Most accessory packs have plenty of pieces to get you started.
12. For a smooth finish, EVA can be sanded like wood. Note: the higher the foam’s density the better it will sand.
13. Shoe goo can be used behind seams to make armor super tough, just be aware that shoe goo needs a well ventilated environment and maybe an organic vapor respirator (24hr cure time).
14. Have fun, and don’t rush it!

This was so helpful now I know all the things I need to use with foam to make my favorite spartan cosplay.

 

[Matts Good Eye]

Floor Tiles vs Rolls Visual

This image is to show that you can get similar quality regardless of foam type used. The trade-off is increased effort.

View attachment 286336

I

Tips/tools and misc. for working with foam

1. Wear a respirator with a particulate filter or a particulate mask when sanding foam. Even though EVA is generally considered safe, if you’re sanding the foam it can create a fine dust that is not good for your respiratory system.
2. Use Barge if you can. Hot glue is a common low cost, non-toxic choice of adhesive for bonding foam, however contact cement (e.g. Barge) is a stronger option that makes it easier to bond foam with minimal seams. Just note that contact cement needs good ventilation and/or an organic vapors respirator (~$30 USD).
3. Keep your blades sharp! The sharper your blade is, the cleaner the cut. The cleaner the cut, the better the seams. The better the seams, the better the armor! It is highly recommended to at least have a blade sharpener on hand to keep your blades keen (~$10 USD).
4. Use a metal straight edge/ruler. These can be useful for making angled/beveled cuts, making straight long cuts, or even simply marking cut lines on the foam. These are a good investment. We’d recommend getting one around 18in long.
5. Tracing templates. Templates can be traced onto foam using a ballpoint pen. However, if you find it hard to see the pen on your foam (e.g. black foam) you could switch to a white/silver permanent marker. Note however, that foam dries markers up fast. When using a pen, be careful not to tear into the foam.
6. Buy a heat gun. No, hair dryer DOESN’T COUNT. It simply does not reach a high enough temperature to heat the foam evenly. Heat guns are needed for shaping curves into the foam, sealing it for the painting step, and various other foam tricks like scoring.
7. Use something to keep templates down while tracing (e.g. push pins, something heavy). You don’t want them sliding around while you’re tracing them.
8. KwikSeal Adhesive Caulk. This is useful for filling gaps in seams as well as smoothing out cut/fuzzy edges. Other similar options include foam clay, or air drying clay.
9. Seal your foam. Use a heat gun to seal the outer foam layer, followed by applying a sealant coating (e.g. PlastiDip, LeakSeal, Mod Podge, Flexbond, etc.) before painting
10. Craft/exacto blades work great for cutting EVA along with snap off blades. We like to keep some of both on hand, and use what seems to work best for the type of cut we’re going for. RandomRanger got a bulk craft blade set for ~$10 USD and would replace the blade once he was able to hear it slicing through, and he still has half the blades from the kit. Fallen bought quality utility knives and a handful of X-acto knives with various blades and uses a blade sharpener and honing steel throughout the build process in order to keep her blades sharp.
11. Dremel/rotary tools can be useful for smoothing out cut edges, making unique cuts, cutting out circles, or gouging out trenches. Some recommended bits are low and high grit sanding drums (e.g. 60 and 600 grit) for cutting out circles and smoothing edges, cutting wheels and stone grinding wheels (for trenches). Most accessory packs have plenty of pieces to get you started.
12. For a smooth finish, EVA can be sanded like wood. Note: the higher the foam’s density the better it will sand.
13. Shoe goo can be used behind seams to make armor super tough, just be aware that shoe goo needs a well ventilated environment and maybe an organic vapor respirator (24hr cure time).
14. Have fun, and don’t rush it!

Does anyhow have rough estimates of use for making weapons? Or would molds and fillers be better for this?

 

[RandomRanger]

I

Does anyhow have rough estimates of use for making weapons? Or would molds and fillers be better for this?

Estimates of what? How much foam you need?

 

[Dreamster]

I think what he meant was for what foam thickness is needed for making weapons?

 

[Fallen]

Generally speaking having mostly 10mm foam with a couple sheets of 6, 4, and 2mm covers most applications. Anything above 10mm you can sandwich the others together to create the final thickness for the base and use thinner foam to add details for most "standard sized" weapons (thinking AR, DMR, plasma rifle, etc.).

 

[FalseShepherd]

I got myself a sheet of EVA foam to use for cushioning mostly inside my pep pieces. My understanding is that sealing the foam is for painting. Since, I am not going to paint the foam, do I still have to seal it or anything? My plan is just to line the inside of some of the pieces so they are more comfortable for wearing.

 

[Fallen]

For cushioning foam that's not going to be painted at all, no, I wouldn't say you have to seal it. To be honest you don't HAVE to seal your foam regardless, but it gives it a cleaner look and less like foam when complete. For that reason, even if you were planning to paint the interior foam just so it's not as noticeable (if you have a non-dark/black color foam) I wouldn't say that you have to seal it. Cushioning foam isn't really meant to be seen anyways.

 

[FalseShepherd]

For cushioning foam that's not going to be painted at all, no, I wouldn't say you have to seal it. To be honest you don't HAVE to seal your foam regardless, but it gives it a cleaner look and less like foam when complete. For that reason, even if you were planning to paint the interior foam just so it's not as noticeable (if you have a non-dark/black color foam) I wouldn't say that you have to seal it. Cushioning foam isn't really meant to be seen anyways.

Gotcha. That's what I was thinking but I have never used foam and figured it was worth asking just in case. The foam is black so I'm not gonna worry about painting it.

 

[Dreamster]

I have to say, this thread's write-ups were very informative. Thanks for the tips guys.

 

[RandomRanger]

I have to say, this thread's write-ups were very informative. Thanks for the tips guys.

Glad it helped!

 

[Omega Weapon 7]

They sell Foam Tiles at 5 Below, as well. Dunno if peeps have that store in their area(s) but that helped me out a bunch.

 

[Spiderboy196]

They sell Foam Tiles at 5 Below, as well. Dunno if peeps have that store in their area(s) but that helped me out a bunch.

Is it by 4 or 6 packs?

 

[Omega Weapon 7]

Is it by 4 or 6 packs?

It's a single piece for $3.25 and it's 24x24, not sure if that's much better of a deal than other sources, but if you can't find any elsewhere by chance then that'd be a good option.

 

[TylerBH2014]

It's a single piece for $3.25 and it's 24x24, not sure if that's much better of a deal than other sources, but if you can't find any elsewhere by chance then that'd be a good option.

I heartily agree. Sellers get greedy online.

 

[ODST Ike]

Tips/tools and misc. for working with foam

1. Wear a respirator with a particulate filter or a particulate mask when sanding foam. Even though EVA is generally considered safe, if you’re sanding the foam it can create a fine dust that is not good for your respiratory system.
2. Use Barge if you can. Hot glue is a common low cost, non-toxic choice of adhesive for bonding foam, however contact cement (e.g. Barge) is a stronger option that makes it easier to bond foam with minimal seams. Just note that contact cement needs good ventilation and/or an organic vapors respirator (~$30 USD).
3. Keep your blades sharp! The sharper your blade is, the cleaner the cut. The cleaner the cut, the better the seams. The better the seams, the better the armor! It is highly recommended to at least have a blade sharpener on hand to keep your blades keen (~$10 USD).
4. Use a metal straight edge/ruler. These can be useful for making angled/beveled cuts, making straight long cuts, or even simply marking cut lines on the foam. These are a good investment. We’d recommend getting one around 18in long.
5. Tracing templates. Templates can be traced onto foam using a ballpoint pen. However, if you find it hard to see the pen on your foam (e.g. black foam) you could switch to a white/silver permanent marker. Note however, that foam dries markers up fast. When using a pen, be careful not to tear into the foam.
6. Buy a heat gun. No, hair dryer DOESN’T COUNT. It simply does not reach a high enough temperature to heat the foam evenly. Heat guns are needed for shaping curves into the foam, sealing it for the painting step, and various other foam tricks like scoring.
7. Use something to keep templates down while tracing (e.g. push pins, something heavy). You don’t want them sliding around while you’re tracing them.
8. KwikSeal Adhesive Caulk. This is useful for filling gaps in seams as well as smoothing out cut/fuzzy edges. Other similar options include foam clay, or air drying clay.
9. Seal your foam. Use a heat gun to seal the outer foam layer, followed by applying a sealant coating (e.g. PlastiDip, LeakSeal, Mod Podge, Flexbond, etc.) before painting
10. Craft/exacto blades work great for cutting EVA along with snap off blades. We like to keep some of both on hand, and use what seems to work best for the type of cut we’re going for. RandomRanger got a bulk craft blade set for ~$10 USD and would replace the blade once he was able to hear it slicing through, and he still has half the blades from the kit. Fallen bought quality utility knives and a handful of X-acto knives with various blades and uses a blade sharpener and honing steel throughout the build process in order to keep her blades sharp.
11. Dremel/rotary tools can be useful for smoothing out cut edges, making unique cuts, cutting out circles, or gouging out trenches. Some recommended bits are low and high grit sanding drums (e.g. 60 and 600 grit) for cutting out circles and smoothing edges, cutting wheels and stone grinding wheels (for trenches). Most accessory packs have plenty of pieces to get you started.
12. For a smooth finish, EVA can be sanded like wood. Note: the higher the foam’s density the better it will sand.
13. Shoe goo can be used behind seams to make armor super tough, just be aware that shoe goo needs a well ventilated environment and maybe an organic vapor respirator (24hr cure time).
14. Have fun, and don’t rush it!

Hello I am new and was wondering where a good place to find templates to trace on foam would be I’m trying an Odst build

 

[Fallen]

Hello I am new and was wondering where a good place to find templates to trace on foam would be I’m trying an Odst build

Check out the Armory for foam and pepakura templates. For the H3 ODST you can find that here. In the H3 ODST many of the parts already have foam-optimized files, but you can also adjust pepakura templates for foam if there isn't one for a particular part already.

 

[dark omega]

What are my options when buying EVA foam? (US-based)

Floor Tiles
A low cost, readily available source of EVA foam is floor mats or floor tiles. Floor tiles can be found at most hardware or sporting goods stores. The tiles may have a texture on one or both sides that may need to be sanded off if no texture is desired. Although floor tiles can be purchased in varying sizes and thicknesses, common dimensions are about 24” x 24” with a thickness around ⅜”-½”

Average Cost: $0.56 - $1.56 per sqft
Typically purchased in packs of 4 for about $9-$25

Locations: Harbor Freight, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target, Walmart, Amazon, etc.

View attachment 286333

Rolls/Sheets
A little pricier than most floor tiles, EVA foam rolls can be purchased from foam suppliers online as well as cosplay shops. Rolls and sheets are the pricier option compared to floor tiles, but come with several benefits. Rolls and sheets are usually smooth on both sides and tend to be more consistent within brand in terms of density and thickness. If your templates have large pieces to cut out, using large rolls is great because it avoids the need for surface seams.

Average Cost: $0.80 - $2.50 per sqft
Locations: TNT Cosplay, Amazon, Foam Factory, SKS Props, Joann Fabric, etc.

View attachment 286337

im new here, i want to try make an armor, and this looks amazing, thx

 

[Rman240]

Contributors: RandomRanger , Fallen

Introduction
This is a tutorial targeted at beginners to help understand what EVA foam is, the different types of EVA foam available, how and where to buy EVA foam, and some basic tips/tricks/and tools for working with EVA foam.

Index
What is EVA foam?
What are my options when buying EVA foam?
The Grand Chart
Extra thick foam
Which foam should I buy?
Floor tiles vs Rolls visual
How much foam will I need?
Health and Safety
Tools and Materials
Tips/tools and misc. for working with foam

So my first ODST build was with the cheapest stuff of foam. Plus I was nervous as well on doing the project on my own. What would you say to probably up my armor making game? Recently its just been work, home and back again. No room where I live with others to store materials or even build.

 

[RandomRanger]

So my first ODST build was with the cheapest stuff of foam. Plus I was nervous as well on doing the project on my own. What would you say to probably up my armor making game? Recently its just been work, home and back again. No room where I live with others to store materials or even build.

There's a lot of ways to answer the question, but I'll opt for directing you here:

https://youtube.com/c/RandomRangerCosplay

I started making tutorials on YouTube specifically to help people like you get started , maybe it'll help