I am ODST

[Katsu]

Soooooo... Since going back to SJSU, I don't really have a place to sand until spring break (starts this friday!) so I repepped the ODST for my second take with my better knowledge of pepping and bondo. With the first one, I put WAY too many layers of bondo, partly because the pep had collapsed in a few places, and I wanted to try a new layering method for the inside with this second draft. I also did some other stuffs!

The new pep, I used a heavier cardstock!

Inside after resin

I had a problem with my resin can... The little divot is after twenty minutes of chipping at it with a screwdriver.

And the first layer of rondo inside, after that I will do two layers of fiberglass to back it. My thinking is, I use the rondo to smooth out the inside, and strengthen the little detailed parts glass can't quite reach. But since rondo is pretty brittle still, I'm going to cover the smoothed inside with two or three layers of fiberglass so it will be a bit stiffer. I learned from this go through that next time, I will do two layers of fiberglass over all of the broad surfaces inside FIRST, then I will rondo over that to fill details SECOND, and then I will do another two layers of fiberglass over the rondo to reinforce it THIRD.

Started the shoulder piece, Kirrou's hinged:

And reinforcing the support struts with popsicles:

Aaaand... thanks to Tactonyx... TONIGHT, I PAINT!

This thing is sick, I'm going to have fun getting it ready.

 

[Jimmy Da Moose]

The new helmet looks great man, same with the shoulders.The pep looks nice and clean.

Also, I am super jealous of that pistol. I would so much love to get one!

 

[Xarmymustang]

Aaaand... thanks to Tactonyx... TONIGHT, I PAINT!

This thing is sick, I'm going to have fun getting it ready.

I know, he does absolutely amazing work, i too bought one for my foam odst build that i am making and the M6 SOCOM is my favorite part of it!!!
Loving the rest of you build too man absolutely amazing work so far, got my subscription

 

[Katsu]

I am not sure if I should make a new thread for this, or just keep posting it here, soooo I'll keep posting it here!

I started on the paintjob for my tactonyx pistol. It's been a nightmare although that's all my fault. The primer and the paint don't seem to want to bind to the body, been a few hours and they're still tacky. I'm using Tamiya paints and... I'm going to let them sit overnight and see if that helps any.

Primer:

My spray booth:

An example of the tape job, and you can see the main body of the pistol in the background:

 

[Hyperballistik]

The pistol looks good so far, if your paint keeps coming off, its usually caused from the mold release thats on the parts, if you wipe all the cast parts down with acetone or wash it good with dish washing soap, this will usually fix the peeling off problem, please post more pics of the pistol once its finished, I have a copy of this pistol also, just havent had a chance to work on it

 

[Xarmymustang]

I too have a copy of this pistol and am very excited to see how it turns out to give me some painting ideas too. Keep it up friend everything is looking GREAT!!!

 

[LilTyrant]

Denatured alcohol also works well to rub down and clean parts prior to painting...and it air dries super fast, which is a plus. I hope the paint starts playing nice for you.

Those pep pieces are looking nice and clean!

 

[SeniorRawr]

Dude your pep work is great, uber jealous of how good your shoulder came out. I'm working on my shoulder right now and... it's not as good as yours is but i hope it works out better.

Looking forward to more progress pics

-Logan

 

[Katsu]

Spring break is a bust. It's started raining and the forecast shows it raining through Sunday, so no fiberglassing!

Additionally, I was sanding the helmet, and leaned on it slightly and the damn thing cracked! I'm not that strong or that heavy. Soooooo let this be a warning, those who do ONLY rondo are playing with fire, it is too brittle on its own, definitely not meant to be an "only" solution.

The first draft on the left, and the now broken second draft on the right:

The first crack, there is a second one going up the mouth:

I don't think I'll be trying to repair it. I am not confident in the strength of rondo as the outter layer, probably do partial fiberglass over the big areas, then rondo.

The pistol also isn't taking paint, I've sanded it and reapplied it three times with two different primers and the same spots keep being tacky.

 

[Stiilus]

bummer. that makes me really sad for you. it was looking really good too. don't loose heart though, think of it more as a learning experience. i had a similar thing happen to me while experimenting with fiberglass and filler powder. i took it in my stride and re-did the work. as for the paint on the pistol, i would try doing an ultra fine wet sand to give the paint some key to bite into after wiping it down with the acetone or giving it a gentile wash with soapy water ...

 

[LilTyrant]

Sad face on the helmet crack

That also is a bummer about the pistol paint issue. Do the problem areas seem tacky at all before they are painted?

You could try using an undercoat (before the primer) of Bulldog Adhesion promoter (link). I paint a lot of plastic pieces and cast samples at work, and this stuff usually works like a charm. Dries quick, too

Whatever you do, I hope it works out!

 

[Katsu]

Bummed about breaking it the helmet, I don't think I'll try repairing it, since that crack could just get bigger.

For now, I guess I'll work on my mk5b helmet while I do a new pep on the odst. Despite the weatherman's assertions of rain rain rain, the sun was out, so I tried my new layering method on that one for more strength. Hopefully this time I'll get good strength and fillage, and I'm also trying out methods for internal support structures to keep the shape.

Tactonyx has been super helpful in support on the gun, he got in contact with the plastic manufacturer, who thinks some oils may have seeped into the plastic during casting, so tonight I'm going to try a technique they've suggested, in which I bake the pieces and then coat them in corn starch to suck the oils out of it. It's apparently an issue that occurs with the plastic from time to time so... gotta go bake my gun?

 

[SeniorRawr]

Bummed about breaking it the helmet, I don't think I'll try repairing it, since that crack could just get bigger.

For now, I guess I'll work on my mk5b helmet while I do a new pep on the odst. Despite the weatherman's assertions of rain rain rain, the sun was out, so I tried my new layering method on that one for more strength. Hopefully this time I'll get good strength and fillage, and I'm also trying out methods for internal support structures to keep the shape.

Tactonyx has been super helpful in support on the gun, he got in contact with the plastic manufacturer, who thinks some oils may have seeped into the plastic during casting, so tonight I'm going to try a technique they've suggested, in which I bake the pieces and then coat them in corn starch to suck the oils out of it. It's apparently an issue that occurs with the plastic from time to time so... gotta go bake my gun?

Were it a normal gun I'd say NOOOO but if they say so... however corn starch is uber awesome at sucking out oil among other things when baking, just dont over cook it or at too high of a temp or you could burn and distort it.

 

[DeRanKeR]

I wish I possessed your skills sir. lol, I had the same exact thing happen when I made my first attempt at an ODST helmet build. My fat head could hardly fit... One day I made it fit, and made about a half inch fracture in almost the same place you had you mishap. I had to chip away at the base of it just to get my head through... Oddly enough though, the inside was a perfect fit... too bad the helmet got smashed when my nephew got ahold of it... little devil

 

[Katsu]

I find that a lot of helmets have unrealistic lips that need to just not be pepped. I link this image often but it's a good example:

 

[AI Blue Fox]

Looking good man.

 

[Scar 405]

i hate cracks bro they can totally throw me off my builds

 

[TheCorporal101]

It really is a shame about the cracks and the paint, but you seem to be putting out some high quality stuff, so take solace in the fact that when you're done, it's going to be amazing!

 

[Tenebrus]

Katsu that ring on the inside is to add rigidity to the helmet so it doesn't warp while you roll rondo in it, my most recent pilot helmet had the neck hole completely covered for that reason. Anyways that crack is huge, did it just do that while hardening? crazy i have rondoed 4 helmets so far and not one of them has had that happened, a bad stroke of luck maybe?

 

[Psquiddy]

I find that a lot of helmets have unrealistic lips that need to just not be pepped. I link this image often but it's a good example:

Noting on your big lip problem, I think that the piece you are referring to is an environmental seal, basically a neck seal that goes on-top of the full neck seal. I think that if we had amazing physics we would be able to leave that out of the pep, but in real life I think that piece is there for support and is just a stand-in for the real thing.