My pep armor, seeking advice

[Enrisan]

Hello everyone, since i can't post in the appropriate forum because i just signed up, i guess i have to post here and hopefully a fellow noob can help me. I just recently started researching about making pep armor and have started making one. So far i started and completed the left arm (took me about 5 hours) I have just put it together with 110 lb Cardstock and glued using low temp. glue gun. what do you think of it?

I think it came out pretty good for my first =P ok, moving on to the questions:
What are the next steps in completing my pep suit?
- Do i apply the resin stuff with hardener on the outside and inside? or only the outside? where do i go from there, i dont understand.

How much time do i have before i must complete each step?
- Do i have to apply resin, fiberglass, etc. within a certain amount of time of a step or whenever?

How strong will it be when its done?
- Does the helmet and armor have the strength as say, a bicycle helmet, a motorcycle helmet, Spartan Steel, etc.

If i wear it and lean against a wall or run in it, will it collapse or break?

How much will it cost me to complete a whole suit?
- So far i have spent about $8 on a pack of cardstock, glue gun and glue sticks. how much of a budget do i need to produce a good strong pepakura armor.

As far as safety equipment goes, what do i need for the resin and fiberglass stuff?
- I read somewhere that it has toxic chemicals and stuff that can get in your lungs and cause cancer. im a big health freak and i tend to get paranoid easily. what type of gloves, etc. is this respirator good enough or do i need a more advance one?
http://www.impexol.cn/Files/UpFiles/Health.../Respirator.jpg

i think thats all the questions for now- i think i had more. thanks for the help in advance.



*UPDATE* 10/13/07 -----------Need some advice?--------------------
okay, now i have finished the left bicep, but......i think its too big and it looks kind of lop-sided and weirdly shaped. i used the scaling formula on the scaling sticky but i added 2 inches to it like the thing said for all of my parts, maybe i should redo the formula with my normal height because the left bicep slides around and i dont see how its going to stay put. here are the pictures:

 

[colmon 9]

looking good, youll need to put the resin on all of it, but i dont know about the mat though.

the helmet WILL NOT have bycicle helmet strength when your done

id say 30 to 60 for resin and fibre glass and 50 for other stuff but thats just an estimate

and a paper mask and any gloves should do. just make sure your outside

 

[Gokussj5okazu]

How much time do i have before i must complete each step?
- Do i have to apply resin, fiberglass, etc. within a certain amount of time of a step or whenever?

How strong will it be when its done?
- Does the helmet and armor have the strength as say, a bicycle helmet, a motorcycle helmet, Spartan Steel, etc.

If i wear it and lean against a wall or run in it, will it collapse or break?

How much will it cost me to complete a whole suit?
- So far i have spent about $8 on a pack of cardstock, glue gun and glue sticks. how much of a budget do i need to produce a good strong pepakura armor.

As far as safety equipment goes, what do i need for the resin and fiberglass stuff?
- I read somewhere that it has toxic chemicals and stuff that can get in your lungs and cause cancer. im a big health freak and i tend to get paranoid easily. what type of gloves, etc. is this respirator good enough or do i need a more advance one?
http://www.impexol.cn/Files/UpFiles/Health.../Respirator.jpg

i think thats all the questions for now- i think i had more. thanks for the help in advance.
[/quote]


You resin the outside, but fiberglass the inside.

If you use two layers of fiberglass on the inside, the armor will easily take on paintballs, thrown rocks, ect. Very low speed projectiles.

It's highly unlikely that it will collapse or break if you use a good amount of fiberglassing.

A cheap cheap suit with improvising can be had for $50, but if you're buying everything, up to $200.

Use latex gloves and a dust mask outside atleast. Ideally you should use yellow rubber gloves and a respirator, but if you're outside it's not entirely necessisary.

 

[Spartan 161]

What are the next steps in completing my pep suit?

You apply a coat of resin with the mixed in hardner to the outside of the armor. After this dry's you apply resin and fiber glass cloth to the inside of the pep armor giving it strenght. Then body filler on the outside, sanding and paint.

How much time do I have before I must complete each step?

With the resin it depends on how much hardner you put in it. More Hardner the faster it will cure. Generally you have as much time to work with the resin until it starts to get chunky and harden up. Use a disposable brush.

How strong will it be when its done?

This depends on how many layers of fiberglass you use. But don't expect it to be super strong. Fiberglass can and will crack if you smack it right. I have seen more than one car with a fiberglass repair have a crack in them.

If I wear it and lean against a wall or run in it, will it collapse or break?

Leaning against a wall, no. Running into a wall??? Maybe I wouldn't advise it

How much will it cost me to complete a whole suit?

So far just on Resin I have spent $11.69 and $4.99 for 8 square feet of fiberglass cloth. This will probably just manage to finish one helmet so do the math and figure out what it will cost to do an entire suit of armor not counting paint, lights ect.

As far as safety equipment goes, what do I need for the resin and fiberglass stuff?

When you go to buy the resin and fiberglass cloth, ask them for the appropriate safety equipment. Go to an auto parts store and just ask them for the right stuff.

Also read the forums, they are a great source of information.

 

[Enrisan]

thank you all for the help. im looking to make a cheap, but good suit, i just want something to be proud of and have a good time working on it, and of course showing it off to my friends because none of them have any idea im making on and i want them to go "holy shhhhhhh...."

just to clarify, exactly HOW strong will my armor be?
if i try and run in it, will it fall apart if done right with proper resin and fiberglass?

oh one more thing, how does it go from weak paper to hard armor? the resin just adds a thick plastic like layers and the fiberglass is like cloth so it doesnt rip apart?

thanks again.

 

[Spartan 161]

just to clarify, exactly HOW strong will my armor be?
if I try and run in it, will it fall apart if done right with proper resin and fiberglass?

No it shouldn't fall apart if done right

oh one more thing, how does it go from weak paper to hard armor? the resin just adds a thick plastic like layers and the fiberglass is like cloth so it doesn't rip apart?

The resin and fiberglass adds a lot of strength to the pep. The resin soaks into the paper and hardens it like a plastic. The resin and cloth works like this. The cloth soaks up a lot of resin and when it hardens gets very strong. the cloth helps hold it all together. I suggest you make a small piece of armor first to get the hang of it, like one of the hand pieces.

 

[Enrisan]

just to clarify, exactly HOW strong will my armor be?
if I try and run in it, will it fall apart if done right with proper resin and fiberglass?

No it shouldn't fall apart if done right

oh one more thing, how does it go from weak paper to hard armor? the resin just adds a thick plastic like layers and the fiberglass is like cloth so it doesn't rip apart?

The resin and fiberglass adds a lot of strength to the pep. The resin soaks into the paper and hardens it like a plastic. The resin and cloth works like this. The cloth soaks up a lot of resin and when it hardens gets very strong. the cloth helps hold it all together. I suggest you make a small piece of armor first to get the hang of it, like one of the hand pieces.

thanks, i was thinking about starting small too with the resin.
so lets see if i got it: i put the Pep together, i add resin to the OUTSIDE all over the Pep armor, let dry for hours or next day, then another layer of resin, sand it? then fiberglass the inside, then a resin coat OVER the fiberglass once it dries correct?

oh another question, you see in one of the picture i didn't cut out the hole for my hand to go through, mostly so that it would have more structural stability. is that part necessary to keep until i resin, so like i should i resin then cut it out or will it be too hard to cut out when it has dried resin coat? same goes for the helmet visor part and any other piece that has the closing for the body part to go through.

 

[next stage]

thanks, i was thinking about starting small too with the resin.
so lets see if i got it: i put the Pep together, i add resin to the OUTSIDE all over the Pep armor, let dry for hours or next day, then another layer of resin, sand it? then fiberglass the inside, then a resin coat OVER the fiberglass once it dries correct?

oh another question, you see in one of the picture i didn't cut out the hole for my hand to go through, mostly so that it would have more structural stability. is that part necessary to keep until i resin, so like i should i resin then cut it out or will it be too hard to cut out when it has dried resin coat? same goes for the helmet visor part and any other piece that has the closing for the body part to go through.

you should leave it in there so the forearm keeps its shape but dont fiberglass that part or it will be a pain to cut out

 

[LastSpartan]

Okay.

You MUST add a coat of resin inside before putting Fiberglass.

Resin outside (by part, so no wrap)
Resin Inside
Fiberglass inside
Resin inside
Resin outside.

Add details with bondo, clay or Apoxie sculpt, depending if you want to make a mold.

If you have a dremel, let this piece on, then cut it after with the dremel.

If not, reinforce inside and cut this part.

 

[grid 187]

Very nice keep it up!!! Hope to see the finished product!!

 

[Enrisan]

thank you all for the help, i really appreciate it =]

im going to update my first post with my new work.

 

[next stage]

keep your armor in a safe place until u fiberglass or resin it so they dont get stepped on or anything

 

[Enrisan]

keep your armor in a safe place until u fiberglass or resin it so they dont get stepped on or anything

yeah i plan too, hopefully it doesnt sit around too long and ends up getting deformed.