Making my first build (MK VII)

[Dragonjay09]

I'v spent about 7 hours on two of the parts. but I'm having some troubles with it. I'm making mine out of foam i would do the whole costume on my 3d printer but is small
but I have hot glue and cement glue holding the whole thing to gather does any one know how to fix this because I do not want to re make these.

 

[Legend 113]

I'd conside heating the glue and smoothing it off, or heat it and peal it off and replace it with contact cement in that area.

 

[MrBones]

When I do hot glue from hot glue guns, I like to go back over the glue with the tip of the glue gun on its side and smooth it out with the heat. If there is extra messy glue I try this method and it generally works:

• When it hards, I take an exacto and cut along lightly where I don't need the glue.
• Then I grab my heat gun and heat it up slightly until it makes a distinction.
• Let it cool. Reslice, reheat, cool down and you can then just peel it off generally.

It is a bit of a process but it saves a lot of material being wasted or restarting.
N8 does a great job showing his build process. You can check him out: N8tebb Youtube - Spartan Build

 

[N8TEBB]

I try my best to not put hot glue on the outside of the armour, because it can be difficult to make look pretty. Typically, I use contact cement to do the major holding, then reinforce the seams on the back side with hot glue. If your contact cement is not holding too your liking, consider a few things:

• What brand of contact cement are you using? Some brands simply do not work as well. Whether it's because they're water based, or some other reason, not all brands of contact cement will have a good hold. I prefer to use the Barge brand.
• Make sure you let the contact cement dry before putting the pieces together. If the contact cement is still wet when you put the pieces together it will not hold securely.
• Make sure you have an even, thin, layer of contact cement

As for the state of your armour pieces right now, they are definitely still usable! To cover over those large hot glue seams, try using thin EVA foam, say 2mm and covering over all of the rough seams. This is a technique that Impact Props uses to build his armour. Brad (Impact Props) makes the armour from scratch, without a template, which leaves many rough seams from making adjustments. He then goes over all of the armour with thinner foam to add details, but also hide the gnarly seams.

You could also consider smoothing the hot glue seam with the nozzle of the not glue gun, although I don't know how well that will work. You're best best is covering the seam with thin foam.

7 hours for two pieces is not a-typical. Especially if you're new to foam crafting. Don't be discouraged that it is taking so much time. I spent roughly 60 hours doing the foam work for my most recent suit, which also happens to be a mkVII. I ended up making my thigh pieces twice actually, because I originally made them too small haha. It's all part of crafting. Best of luck continuing on your build! We're always happy to answer any further questions you man have!

Edit: Also, if you want to see my general foam crafting process, check out my tutorial on YT that MrBones linked above

 

[ItsRaven]

Good luck on it
(I’m gonna follow this because I really like MK VII suits)

 

[Dragonjay09]

so I spent some time today on this project

and I fixed a good chunk of the glue so it looks better I'm going to start the chest pics next ( I'm so nervous for this one )

 

[N8TEBB]

May I recommend making the chest piece after you've done the shins, boots, and fore arms. If you're especially new to crafting with foam, or even if you're returning to foam crafting from a bit of a hiatus, I find that making the easier pieces first helps refresh your skills and does a good job to prep you for the big undertaking that is making the torso piece. The torso piece was the trickiest part to make for me. It's by far the largest and most complicated, especially because you have to try to keep it symmetrical. Best of luck!