Jkling's Noobtastic Fooray Into Mkiv Armor Pep*pic Heavy*

[104510]

Ok back in April I started making DF4L's smooth helm, and after about 30 hours of work I have a 90% finished model. I did get lazy on the sanding but my paintjob came out good. I am probablly gunna relayer more bondo on it after I am all done with the rest of the body then repaint the helm one last time. Scroll for some progress pics! If you want more just ask I have a ton lol!.

Here is what I wrote in my blog each day after I worked on it.

""""""""" 6/8/08: So After the first coat of resin I went back two days later and re-evaluated my helm. Because It was rainy I had resined the helmet in the garage, and let me tell you damn it made the whole house smell even with all 3 garage doors open. So today in new jersey it was sunny and 94 degrees out so I went in the shade of a tree, laid out some cardboard and mixed up some more resin. I applied a nice generous coat,then i let it dry nice and crispy in the sun. Two hours later I applied another nice thick coat and I am proud to say my helmet is doing great. Im working on buying some fiberglass this week, and hopefully next weekend I can fiberglass the interior of the helm! Thanks again guys for all your informative posts, blogs, and videos!

UPDATE:6/13/08!!!!

So I got some fiberglass and I mixed up 2 more batches of resin today, basically I add 16-18 drops of hardner to every capfull of resin(the cap that is on the top of the Resin Container). I fiberglassed about 2/3 of the interrior and added a crud load of resin to the inside of the helm because I want a lot of support, plus this was my first fiberglassing attempt so I wanted to make it good. I am going to fiberglass the interior of the chin and neck tommorw and I am debating about using the fiberglass on the OUTSIDE of the BRIM so I dont miss any spots, any advice would be helpful! See you around

6/15/08: So basically between friday and today (sunday) I did 3 batches of fiberglassing(most of it on the inside, some parts like the visor i did on the outside). I also fiberglassed and resined a plain piece of cardstock so I can later test its strength against my airsoft guns........................... I did alot of dremelling too so the helmet is easy to take on and off, and most of the sharp edges are gone, its really starting to all come togethor now. Maybe I can get some bondo tmmrw...... my goal is to have alot of the helmet done by the 4th of july, depends alot on my parents and what they let me buy for my helmet(paint, face shield, leds.. etc)
Yours Truly,
John

UPDATE 6/15/08
So I bought bondo today, so I went out dremeled my helmet 1 last time and my first coat of bondo is hardening now, Im gunna wait half an hour and do more, hopefully by 8 I will be done and I can start sanding tmmrw! I will update again tommorw to let you all know what happens! Btw the bondo cost 11$, the fiberglass 7$, the paper 10$, scissors 10$, glue 4$, gloves 5$, paintbrushes 8$..... its starting to add up a lil lol.

UPDATE:6/16/08 So I put on another 2 layers, but I got hindered by a nice NJ thunder/rain storm. It cleared up a lil but the humidty was still high so I put a little extra harnder into the mix, all in all its going well!

UPDATE: 6/17/08 Added another set of bondo, one more and Ill be done covering my helm. Some of you may ask? Why the hell did he bondo the whole thing? Was it that bad/bumpy? Truth to be told, it wasnt horrible but because I did 4 coats of resin there were alot of bumps around. Plus i really want to sand in detail, im good with sanding. Im worried that it mite chip or scratch easily but I have faith it will hold up..... One more batch of bondo to go, Im doing it in 10 mins too

UPDATE:6/17/08 So I finished bondoing( I mean there is a small part I didnt have enough bondo for but it should be hard to see so I really dont mind, plus im gunna battle scar my helm too! So I will start sanding around 8 tonite, because that will give it at least 3 hours in the sun to dry. I guess I should really wait a whole day, so I might just sand the spots that I bondoed yesterday...

UPDATE: 6/17/08 Sorry for the triple update but its been a very active day. Ok I was able to start dremelling and sanding(plus I snuck in a late night run to Home Depot for more sand paper, some spot putty, and some more gloves!!!) and I have about 1/4 of the helm sanded, and I aim to have another 1/4 in by tmmrw eve. Thing is finals start on thursday so I will be busy from thurs till tues. But I will try and get in as much as possible this weekend....


6/21/08: So ive fiberglassed, resined, bondoded, sanded, and finally today i bought some primer, I might bondo a little more but im like on the verge of getting ready to spray paint. Finals end on tuesday and I should have some big leaps in my progress. In other news I made a HD bicep, but it was too large so Im gunna remake it. I also made a left low d Forearm and it turned out perfect so Im gunna use that scale on the bicep! Heres to a great summer guys!
JKLING

UPDATE: 6/23/08 So I remade that bicep by scaling it down 10% two times. It turned out perfectly so I am going to use that scale for my other bicep and forearm later this week. I have sanded, primed, and bondo-ed a few more times and my helm is really starting to take shape! I really feel that by tommorw afternoon I might be ready for my final sanding- keep your fingers crossed!!!!
JKLING """"""""""""




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Right now I have completed the pep for my left forearm and bicep, and I am working on my right bicep it should be done within the hour!

 

[rowan]

Thats pretty good! But i would suggest for the rest of your stuff, only apply a small amount of bondo to a smaller area, work on that, then move onto a different area. it will save you a lot of bondo, and the end result will look better.

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Thats a great start you have there Buddy! Just a little more sanding and detailing and your set! Chea

 

[104510]

Thats pretty good! But i would suggest for the rest of your stuff, only apply a small amount of bondo to a smaller area, work on that, then move onto a different area. it will save you a lot of bondo, and the end result will look better.

Haha, ya I know I deffinately am not going to over bondo again, it was an interesting expierence that I learned from, but in the end the negatives were alot more numerous then the positives. But this whole process has truly been a trial an error sort of thing. I really want to thank crackhead09 for his amazing vid tutorials I wouldnt be anywhere without those!

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Well, you gotta start somewhere. And for a first try you did a great job IMO.

 

[104510]

The mask looks like a good fit

Ya the sizing turned out great, I ended up trimming abunch around the bottom so my head could get in easier, then on the inside of the helm I used slices of car washing spounges, they were cheap and very comfortable!

Hey blacrose? what is IMO? lol

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

IMO- In My Opinion. lol.

 

[104510]

IMO- In My Opinion. lol.

Oh lol then thank you! BTW I am a huge fan of your sniper

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Why thank you very much

Do you have plans on making the rest of your armour? Or are you gonna just keep on working on your helmet?

 

[FinnishSpartan]

BONDO OVERKILL!!
at first i thought you totally ruined the helmet, there was way too much bondo.. you usually apply it in small batches and sand.. bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand, bondo, sand...

Anyways, your helmet looks good now, you could use a bit more sanding though.
you got the basic shape of the helmet done great, though.

-Finish

 

[104510]

Ya I have already made my left forearm, 2 left biceps(the first one was too big, I resized it and its perfect now!) and at the moment I am about 10 mins away from finishing the pep for my right bicep. My goal is to have the right forearm done by monday, because my mom's bday is sunday, and I have football this summer too!

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Sounds great, are you goin to post pictures of the completed pep or wait till you have them glassed?

 

[104510]

Once I finish my bicep ill take a few pictures of what I have pepped, then Ill post each new piece as I make it too(chest, crotch, thighs, calves, maybe boots too). Im gunna glass forearms, biceps, and chest together, then Ill glass the whole bottom together

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Sweet!....And, just because I ask everyone, what are you planning for your Booties? Like, what kind of shoe are you thinking of using and how are you goin to have the armor pieces attach?

 

[104510]

Sweet!....And, just because I ask everyone, what are you planning for your Booties? Like, what kind of shoe are you thinking of using and how are you goin to have the armor pieces attach?

I have an old pair of Hiking boots that are quite comfortable so I am gunna use them. I am going to use a foam layer on all the pieces of my armor, then either mount it on football or paintball pads. My mom is very handy with sowing so she is gunna help me attacth some of the pieces together, I also plan on using velcro and snap strips( polyester mateiral with buckles on them?) to mount some of the armor together. How does that sound to you?

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

Sounds like you have a pretty stable and well thought out plan......You actually just gave me a great idea just now lol. *Runs off to the drawing board*

 

[104510]

Sounds like you have a pretty stable and well thought out plan......You actually just gave me a great idea just now lol. *Runs off to the drawing board*

Oh really? Thats what I love about this communtiy everyone is so open and supportive and the creative sharing of ideas really helps out everyone. Now I am curious about what you are doing? FYI I am eventually going to make an AR and make it so I can clip it onto my back with finese and style. Do you think a few well placed nidinium magnets would work well? I have read a few threads about people's ideas and I truly think mine will work.

 

[Macattack64]

I'd probably depend on how strong they end up being when there are some layers of fiberglass between them...

you wouldn't want to put so many that you get stuck to a refrigerator

 

[BlacRoseImmortal]

I'm actually goin to incorporate magnets into my SR. Once I have everything on the body complete I'll be replacing the internal mag holder part with aluminum (or somethign else that is light and strudy) and not-so-strong magnets to hold the clip in place so it doesnt fall out but I can easily grab hold of it and yank it out. I was also thinking about adding magnets to the inside on one side to clip it to the back of my armor but I think I have to dispose of that idea since if I clip it to my back it will be scraping on the ground

And the idea you gave me for the boot wont be released until I get a beta completed

 

[104510]

The ones I have are pretty strong, they will support about 15 pounds when seperated by say a human hand, so they work well. But if anyone wanted a quick tip- If you are gunna throw out an old electric toothbrush take it apart and near the rotating/reciprocating head you will find 1-4 mini niodinium magnets. These are pretty strong, and would be good for lightweight attatchments, so maybe things pertaining to your helmets? Its just an idea but check it out