Locked: Super Necro!

[InsolenceAndHeresy]

Hi, I know there's an LED connecting topic here, so that's not the questions, but for the LEDs, (on the helmet) would I make the holes before I do anything on it using a brush (i.e. fiberglass, resin, paint) when there's nothing but cardstock, or should I drill in a hole later - dremel?? Also, are there LEDs on the Mk6 at the articulation points like there are on the Mk5? If so, where exactly? Recommendations on LEDs? Maybe I should to a photoresistor so it automatically turns on in the dark?

For the speaker system, where should I cut out the 'gaps' for the speakers? I was thinking of cutting out small gaps in the shoulder blade are are where it kinda sticks out from the rest of the armor. And putting speakers on the inside, then pulling the wire down and out where I could connect it to my iPod and hook it onto the 'utility belt'. Any recommendations on speakers? I was thinking of the kind that are essentially bigass headphones that dont need external power to operate.

Vents... There's only one place where the 'vents' are visible on the Mjolnir - helmet, chin area - right? Would some ribbed plastic tubing do the job for this? I mean they wouldn't actually be vents, but just for the effect.

Can anybody tell me the order for fiberglass/resin/bondo/paint/etc and what comes before/after what in like list form?

In terms of damage, I was thinking that when I get to painting, I could first paint the whole suit of shiny silver/metallic grey and then with my color of choice. Then I would later sand off parts of the armor that i wanted 'worn' lightly to reveal the silver. And for burns, I could get some black spray paint.

Teflon... I was thinking about doing everything else, then painting over the whole thing with Teflon. According to the book - if i remember correctly - the shields made you slippery somewhat so I thought that maybe I could do that to give the slippery effect?

Engravings... how would I do engravings? It may not be authentic, but I want to add an engraving somewhere labeling my suit of armor, like "SPARTAN-117 JOHN" or something.

For the visor, what item/visor (recommended product links?) should I use to give it the right color and the reflective property from outside? and how would I make it dual layered like in game? And how would I put it in?
I'll add more questions as I go on. . .

 

[MaShEdPOTaToEs]

i think this might turn to a sticky if there is alot of answers(maybe)

 

[Pkmnjunky7]

for the LEDs, (on the helmet) would I make the holes before I do anything on it using a brush (i.e. fiberglass, resin, paint) when there's nothing but cardstock, or should I drill in a hole later - dremel??

Yeah its best to just wait till you have all the fiberglass and bondo-ing done. You can just use a drill to make the holes

Vents... There's only one place where the 'vents' are visible on the Mjolnir - helmet, chin area - right? Would some ribbed plastic tubing do the job for this? I mean they wouldn't actually be vents, but just for the effect.

Yeah ribbed plastic tubing is the commonly used method. Thats what im going with

Can anybody tell me the order for fiberglass/resin/bondo/paint/etc and what comes before/after what in like list form?

First you put the mesh on the inside. I personally used Fiberglass mesh tape, its basically a role of duct tape only its mesh. Second you mix the resin according to the instructions and then paint/brush it onto the mesh. Third would be bondo on the outside and sanding to add details. and then finally would come the painting.

In terms of damage, I was thinking that when I get to painting, I could first paint the whole suit of shiny silver/metallic grey and then with my color of choice. Then I would later sand off parts of the armor that i wanted 'worn' lightly to reveal the silver. And for burns, I could get some black spray paint.

For damage a lot of ppl also paint on a base coat of silver then use tooth paste to mask off where they want damage, paint on the main color and then wash off the tooth paste revealing the silver underneath


Hope that answered a few of your questions. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!

 

[InsolenceAndHeresy]

... mesh on the inside? fiberglass mesh tape? what's that? what's it do?

 

[ThoR]

well i've given some thought to some of your questions. for the speakers, i think it's not the best idea to turn yourself into a giant ipod (not very masster chiefish ) but instead u could add a small pair of speeakers inside the helmet, some baterys (need them for the leds anyway) and a mic, so it's more like the real master chief speaking hehe.
The helmet has alot of places suited to stash all this things, the part over the neck is just perfect to store bats and the front of the chin looks like a perfect place to hold speakers and a mic (yea, some voice disorting WOULD be great )

placing any electronics outside the helmet is not such a good idea since the wiring can get messy, and i bet noone want's to have 10 batts distributed along the armor.

fiberglass mesh is a cloth made of fiberglass compunds, u cut pieces of it, put resin in the inside of the armor and then more resin on the top, the resin crystalizes the cloth and it adds alot of stiffness and strenght to the piece. i can't really give you many details as i live in argentina and most components are called very diferently. as far as i've seen most ppl in the US get all this on either Wall-Mart of Suply Depot.

As for damage, i also paint warhammer miniatures, damage is generally made afterwards the piece is painted, some silver paint applyed to sharp edges looks cool (don't overdo) as for burns, if you think about it, if armor was real and u got a burn on it, the material would warp/deform afound it, i wouldn't go for it. if u still feel like it you could try to paint a spot silver, then dirty it up with some black watered paint (preferably at an edge) and then paint some black around it. also don't overdo ^^

 

[InsolenceAndHeresy]

Well what I was planning to do (I guess I could have the speakers in the helmet =D) is to connect my iPod to the speakers and pump out the halo theme while I walk, and get some audio clip (Sir, finishing this fight, etc.) and play them a bit.

Any thoughts on teflon?

Also, any recommended 'good' colors? I was thinking of desert green - like the color in the H3 trailer.

 

[Pkmnjunky7]

Also, any recommended 'good' colors? I was thinking of desert green - like the color in the H3 trailer.

I just tested a can of olive drab spray paint the other day and I think its a pretty darn good match. Also go to Krylon.com and Rustoleum.com and check out their colors.

 

[joshua61991]

you could just brush on with a toothbrush some damage. make sure it is at the most raised areas, they would get damaged first in real life.

Also darthcalibar is that quote of yours from a book? I think I might have read it.

 

[InsolenceAndHeresy]

see new Engraving question. . .

no more answers?

 

[Pkmnjunky7]

Engravings... how would I do engravings? It may not be authentic, but I want to add an engraving somewhere labeling my suit of armor, like "SPARTAN-117 JOHN" or something.

You could try a soldering iron depending on the material, or you could just use a dremel.

 

[InsolenceAndHeresy]

arr half the questions like still havent been answered. . .

new visor question, i think I also saw a thread on how to do the visor, but dont remember where. . .

 

[Hollis DZC]

Teflon...not sure you want to go this direction. Whether it's Teflon or something else, having your armor "slippery" is going to fast turn into a PIA. Brushing up against people and having something rub off on them isn't going to win many points. Especially at an event as crowded as DCon.

Or, do you just want it to "look" slippery? There's several wet look products out there that could do this.

Remember, the general public might not know all the ins and outs of Halo, and might just think it looks "wet".

Weathering-

1) I too paint Warhammer mins, as well as larger pieces of armor, from 1/6th to 1/1. You can drybrush metal color on the edges of the armor, basically think what areas are going to get more wear. Edges, elbows, backs of hands, sides of shoulders, etc. Games Workshop makes an excellent metal color "Boltgun Metal". To drybrush, you literally take a dry brush, dip it in the paint, rub most of it off on a paper towel, then lightly run it on the edgesm where you want "blaster marks" etc. Experiment at first on something else. It's a time honored technique.

2) Another good technique is to first paint the armor silver,(after you've primed it) whatever choice of color, brand, etc. I prefer Krylon paints. Give it two coats, then hit with a sealer- again, I use Krylon Matte or Satin Sealer. Now paint your armor. Once good and dry, you can sandpaper it with 180-220 grit along the edges, blast marks, etc. The sealer prevents you going through to the primer coat. I used this technique on my Aliens Colonial Marines armor. I was very happy with it! Plus, just the normal wear and tear of a Con, transporting the armor in a container, etc. will cause wear on the armor as well.

Also, "dirt" or "grime" in the crevices add depth to the armor. There are many methods to this effect, from powered chalks- don't like it or too much? Wipe it off! Downside? You'll have to seal it or it will rub off. "Washes" with watered down brown paint work excellent for this. You can use acrylic paint from Walmart, but you'll have to water it down extensively...

There's lots more weathering tips. Darkest in the deepest part of the "crevice, crack, etc" and slightly lighter working your way up...

Hope this helps!

 

[Ronin]

OK I just started puttung together my Pep armor this week!! My daughter already wants some.....in pink! As far as led and fans have anyone seen this web site? www.skullworx.com I think the 501st use this some. Also I have a friend who wants to know are there any other kind of Pep armor besides Halo?

 

[flying squirl]

once you have a 3d model of it you can make anything in pep.

 

[Doom]

Answers for your questions in no particular order .

For your vents, I would suggest this:

Its known as Wire Tubing/Loom. Google it, and buy some, works great for vents.

As for Visors, Sean has made an excellent tutorial on getting that "Dual Layer" effect.

Click the picture to go to his tutorial. Tutorial also shows where he buy's his visors, sometimes you can get the HJC visors off ebay for cheaper, so check there too.



For lights, here is a post of mine from the "Off the Shelves secrets" topic. Fixed the link in it also... I suggest you not use the "Turn on in the Dark" leds either, you don't want them to always come on automatically, a switch would be better.

I have a little of my own magic to add,

Clip On Led's

These are excelent items for helmet lights. You may be like, "No. those are lame". Its better then just having a single led sticking out of your helmet looking all stupid. These are really nice because they contain 1 white bright led in a lightbulb like casing (what I mean by that is there is reflective stuff around it inside. When I used 4 of these for my helmet, I took the black clip off and I dremeld the pole that comes off the lamp to attach to the clip part. I was able to fit it into the sideboxes of my helmet where it fit so snug into the hole I made.

I unfournatly do not have this helmet any longer =[. But I still have these led lamps sitting next to me on the desk

Thats all.

Thanks

-Doom

Sometimes there is a limit, I wouldn't suggest spraying on Teflon, its possible it could screw up all your hard work. It would be best if you just leave it as it is.

Looks like Weathering your armor has been mostly covered in this topic. But you could try steps 1-6 on this page.

As for Engravings, I have no clue, you will have to come up with that by yourself I think. I will be intrested to see results!

Hope this all Helps!

-Doom

 

[Pkmnjunky7]

I have a little of my own magic to add,

Clip On Led's

These are excelent items for helmet lights. You may be like, "No. those are lame". Its better then just having a single led sticking out of your helmet looking all stupid. These are really nice because they contain 1 white bright led in a lightbulb like casing (what I mean by that is there is reflective stuff around it inside. When I used 4 of these for my helmet, I took the black clip off and I dremeld the pole that comes off the lamp to attach to the clip part. I was able to fit it into the sideboxes of my helmet where it fit so snug into the hole I made.

I unfournatly do not have this helmet any longer =[. But I still have these led lamps sitting next to me on the desk

Thats all.

Thanks

-Doom

Doom-

The links not working for me. :-(

 

[kevin3eleven]

ok for my suit and why it is going to take a while to finish(besides the: im a busy man thing) is im a perfectionist and creative.
So, the speakers i would put on top of the shoulders that looks like where they belong and i would have a rechargeable power supply inside the back peice with a retractable cord inside a "compartment" of the back piece, to charge once in a while. i know it sounds like im crazy but i aint done yet!!
those speakers arent for music i plan on installing a mike inside the helmet by the mouth of course(voice activated)...
follow me here cuz im confusing myself or im tired OK
i also plan on attaching the neck cover to the inner rim of the helmet so my head will be like sealed in there minus the"vents" and the wire for my mic and leds will go down inside the neck liner and link up to a direct "plug in" to the back piece with my power supply resistors, amplifiers, and capacitors or whatever its been a while since ive done electrical audio
oh and the buttons for my LED's on one side will be right outside on the side by the lights for my red and green indicator lights
the other side will be more powerfull LED's and serve as a "flashlight"
well there it is and OH YES IT WILL BE DONE (but will take some long bit of time)

also im new to this forum thing so sorry if i put this in the wrong place but i must share my ideas because you all sound as serious about this as i am

note i am no oober-nerd i just frikin love HALO

 

[Pkmnjunky7]

Nevermind. I read the url and did some searching on ebay and found what you were trying to link to


Edit: I put a link to it and for some reason the link still isnt working. For those of you who want to see it search for "5 SETS 3 LED CLIP ON Headlamp CAP Light Torch/Reading" on ebay and youll find it.

 

[Hollis DZC]

OK I just started puttung together my Pep armor this week!! My daughter already wants some.....in pink! As far as led and fans have anyone seen this web site? www.skullworx.com I think the 501st use this some. Also I have a friend who wants to know are there any other kind of Pep armor besides Halo?

I have a Skullworx set up, it's awesome! Completely self contained with everything, mic, speakers, two fans, it's sweeettt!

"also plan on attaching the neck cover to the inner rim of the helmet so my head will be like sealed in there minus the"vents" and the wire for my mic and leds will go down inside the neck liner and link up to a direct "plug in" to the back piece with my power supply resistors, amplifiers, and capacitors or whatever its been a while since ive done electrical audio"

Even if you're not going to have your helmet sealed w/ a neck cover, it gets hot inside them. Especially with the route you're planning on, it is an absolute must to have fans inside your helmet. Vents, actual vents to draw in outside air would be a nice benefit, but at least two fans. With your helmet sealed, not only will you sweat majorly, fog up your lenses, but you still need to draw in oxygen. An open vent w/ black mesh inside your helmet makes for a good look. I have a Fett helmet that I have a helmet seal with. It's cool, no one can look up there, gives a nice effect, etc. But I have the slot in the back opened, and regular window screen mesh covering up the slot from the inside. It looks good, I get in outside air. What makes it wearable is the fan inside it. Keeps your face cool, lens doesn't fog up, etc.

Remember, the weather can make a tremendous difference in how comfortable you are in your armor. Outside, Fall and Winter, hey it's great! Inside, with alot of people, there is not just a little bit of a difference in comfort, but a tremendous amount. The more crowded it gets, if you're in an area with a lot of humidity, it doesn't take long to get heatstroke. And it sucks!!! It's no fun at all having a trick costume and being miserable in it.

I would reccomend an UnderArmor cap. It'll help you inside your helmet.

The speakers,etc. sound cool. My roomie for DCon7 was Hellboy. He built an incredible outfit, and had speakers in the coat pockets, hooked up to an Ipod. It was cool as he walked around with his "theme song" playing!

Look into the Skullworx setup. About $100- on ebay. Two fans, mic, two speakers. You'll be able to sound like Master Chief, rather than just playing a recording with his voice.

 

[s meisters]

What is it about fiberglass strips? I have this mesh tape that people use for taping drywall. Could I use that?