Help! What material should I use for my first armor?

[JustStok3d]

Total rookie question, I know, but what medium per se should I use for my first suit construction? I have most of the items needed for foam built, anybody can pep, and I do also have an enclosed 3d printer. I plan on just starting with the helmet or something and seeing if I want to commit to this. If I start with the helmet, is that something I 3D print? Or do it with foam? Also, how do you all make visors? I plan on making a pilot helmet, and that has a substantial one. I have a shop vac as well, throwing that in because I have seen some visor tutorials on here. Thanks so much for the help and sorry about the barrage of questions.

 

[billeybob250]

Hello and welcome to the journey.

it sounds like you have a great set of tools at your disposal and your asking the right starter questions. You can definitely do your helmet out of either Foam or 3d printing and there are many who do either. I think the helmets are starting to lean toward 3d printing now days due to the quick advancements in printing speed, quality and size. My ENTIRE armor set is 3d printed (including visor).

As i have not done foam smithing i cannot speak on how difficult it is but there are some amazing foam smiths in this community and foam armor can look spectacular.

i chose 3d printing because once i got the scaling figured out i can hit print and walk away. most of the work for 3d printing is in the sanding and painting while foam smithing a lot of time is dedicated to the cutting and joining.

Visors

There seem to be 3 main options out there, Vacuum forming (probably best for visibility), resin printing (very dependent on printer size and deals with toxic resin please wear PPE when handling), and then there are some who use sheets of window screen or tint to just make a visor (this is probably the cheapest and easiest to do).

for vacuum forming people build an entire apparatus for is (which is where you mentioned the shop vac) but doing this requires a dedicated heating machine (like a toaster oven for many people) just to do.


Please keep in mind when doing any of the crafting methods when you are dealing with chemicals or sanding this material is toxic and PPE is always heavily recommended.

Billeybob.

 

[ReclaimerODST]

My advice (as a novice myself) would be to 3D print the helmet, and if that’s a process you feel comfortable with, keep at it for the full suit! Helmets are usually much more dependent on symmetry, curves, and precise, small pieces, which is why many people who are talented foamsmiths still tend to print their helmets.

I don’t think I have the artistic skills or steady hand for foam, but speaking from my experience with 3D printing, you can get an extremely detailed and accurate suit with fairly minimal effort. Joining, sanding, and to a degree painting, are all fairly straightforward and accessible. The largest weaknesses IMO are comfort/mobility, with stiff plastic being much tougher to move/sit in, and ease of modification. Once something is printed, making a change or even relatively small repair may call for reprinting it entirely, where as someone talented with foam could just cut and paste new bits and be done.

These are of course my limited and personal thoughts, but I had a lot of fun and a fairly easy time putting together my first 3D printed suit, so that’s what I’d recommend.

 

[JustStok3d]

And as for filament choice, what did you use? I’ve seen some use ASA which I am comfortable with using (PPE included, duh) but what did you guys use?

 

[billeybob250]

And as for filament choice, what did you use? I’ve seen some use ASA which I am comfortable with using (PPE included, duh) but what did you guys use?

My 1st helmet is PLA, my goal with this suit was as cheap and fast as i can do it so i can prove to my self that I can do it.

My next helmet (im currently working on another suit) will be PETG.

there are several members who HATE PETG and they would recommend ASA or ABS. ASA or ABS you need an enclosure and ventilation to print. i am switching to PETG because it has a higher temperature resistance and its physically stronger. my PLA helmet has had 0 issues.

 

[ReclaimerODST]

And as for filament choice, what did you use? I’ve seen some use ASA which I am comfortable with using (PPE included, duh) but what did you guys use?

Exact same story as billeybob, my first helmet was PLA+ and my second was PETG. PETG is certainly more finicky than PLA, but still quite easy to print, and significantly tougher. I’ve committed to using it for all new props and armor.

You’re likely already aware, but there’s also the option of TPU, which is essentially rubber. Fully flexible armor that you can run and sit in to your heart’s content. I don’t have any experience with it, but more and more people have been doing full suits with the stuff, so there are good resources out there.

 

[Jocko03]

So, my advice is to try your hand at all of it. I make my suits out of foam. I enjoy the process and really appreciate the effort that goes into it. When done, it is extremely light weight(I think my Fred 104 comes in under 4lbs) and forgiving when it comes to being bumped or dropped.

I print my helmets. I like a solid helmet so that I can put things in it when I am walking around, and as above stated, it can be a bit easier to get the uniform details handled.

I use vacuum forming for my visors. I heat my petg sheets in my oven, and built my boxes from MDF or 3/4 ply wood I had lying around, some peg board, and angle aluminum for the frames. You already own the shop vac that will go along with this method. There are a ton of videos and tutorials out there about building cheap set ups.

Be prepared for a fair amount of trial and error across any of these methods. Remember that everything you make will be better than the last thing you made because you are learning the whole time. Don't be afraid to mess something up, anything you make will be better than what 80% of people out there do because that percentage will never actually make anything. Don't sweat the perfection, as a lot of small things that you will see and notice, others wont.

 

[ReclaimerODST]

I make my suits out of foam. ... When done, it is extremely light weight(I think my Fred 104 comes in under 4lbs) and forgiving when it comes to being bumped or dropped.

This is such a great quote sitting right beside your pfp of a literal handstand in full armor

 

[Ulfhedinn073]

My first was fully 3D-printed in PLA. It's a great way to get started: it's relatively cheap, sturdy with the right settings, and you'll learn very quickly how to do the bodywork necessary to finish the suit. It's a completely viable route, but you will need to think a lot about wearability. A few of my pieces on the first suit clashed and gave me very little mobility, until I cast and molded those in Rubber (also a viable route, along with silicone for undersuits, but way too expensive for the whole thing, do not recommend - I did it for the experience)

That said, my next suit will not be PLA. I've been saying I'd do a foam one next, but with the amount of projects I have coming up, I don't believe I'll have the time to devote. It will still be printed, but I'll be using Foaming TPU. It's expensive, and I do not recommend it as a first one. Foam will take more time, but will be light and wearable, as Jocko said. For hard parts, ABS might be fickle, but if you have an enclosed printer and access to an oven or another way to dry it, it sands like a dream, and your finishes will be EASY. (Thanks again, Jocko)

In all:
Foam for versatility, wearability, and cheap cost, at the expense of process time and the skill learning curve.
PLA prints for cheap cost, relative ease of process, and achievable detail, at the potential cost of wearability and comparative sturdiness.
ABS prints for extreme ease of process, the achievable detail, and durability, at the potential cost of wearability and the relative monetary cost.
TPU prints for the achievable detail, relative wearability, and durability, at the cost of potential processing issues and monetary cost.

A lot depends on your budget, time availability, and what you feel you're good at/have or want experience in!