N00b MJOLNIR Mark VI Armor

[Larrikin]

I did some dovahkiin helmet for the Warrior Dash a while ago, http://fenades.deviantart.com/

Now I want to try my hand at a Pepakura MJOLNIR Mark VI Armor using LD version of Robogenesis .pdo files

I plan to start with the helmet and buy some materials today. Just wondering with robogenesis helmet .pdo, why the visor is included? Do I just print and join everything except the visor or do I need it for some reason?

*Edit*
WIP update

 

[c vega117]

its easier to reenforce with the paper visor then you can just cut it out later. For example if you plan to "Rondo" the inside you can just pour it in and cover the entire inside then afterwards when its all hardened you can just cut out the visor and use it to vacume form a plastic visor or put in a visor you already bought.

 

[Larrikin]

Cheers c.vega, I'll go ahead and add the visor.

Now I just went to shop for wausau index card stock 110lb and it seems to be a non-existent product in Australia. I thought I would shop online and OMG!! I'm looking at $70 minimum, thats insane. :eek

If anyone knows an alternative, please suggest

*edit*
I'll try rocking up to office works and buy some paper over there, as long as it's stronger than regular printing paper, it should be good to go I figure

*edit edit*
Bought some 190 g/m2 paper, probably not as strong as the card stock you guys use but definitely much better than regular printing paper. Looking forward to post pictures soon

 

[Unity]

Welcome to the 405th! I would be careful with using non-card stock though . It may be sturdier than card stock , but when you go to resin it , there may be some problems . that's just my 2 cents lol (from 3 years of costuming) Good luck man!

-Jacob

 

[Larrikin]

Cheers JBetts, I'll keep that in mind when I get to that stage, hope I can do it

I think I printed out incorrectly. Just looks like there are too many mountains and valleys on piece left of picture.

*edit* figured out what was wrong, had to cut along solid lines inside the pieces aswell, wasn't able to fold until I did that.

 

[thorn696]

You're off to a good start. As for the paper there really is no set standard. I use a true 80lb from a print shop that is thinker than the 110lb you can by in the store. So as long as it can hold it's own weight and doesn't wrinkle up real fast when wet you should be ok. You should test before you get too far. You can do that by simply brushing some water on a piece to see if it holds weight, or if it bends are wrinkles real bad how long dose it take? you can always mix you're resin hot so if the paper can hold up for at least 10min. then you in. Hope this helps.

 

[Larrikin]

Here's what I got so far; feels like one big jigsaw puzzle where I gotta first bend and glue the pieces in, very tedious

thorn696 - here's a test I did, 2 mins after brushed water, absorbed water quickly and started curving. 10 mins into it, same as pic above except its fully absorbed water and paper texture is back to normal, no wrinkles. Will the paper be ok for whats to come?

 

[thorn696]

Yes sir, that is what you want the paper to act like. I will soak up and infuse the resin just fine and at the same time hold it shape. You're going to have allot of fun with this, I can see it already in you're pep. And I mean that in a good way. so build on, and keep us posted.

 

[Larrikin]

thanks thorn696, now I can apply resin without worry (except to my own health).

~All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again. - Guess what, I did...well only 25 pieces left


Edit:

Ok, the pep is done, I'll hot glue inside to try and get the top of helm leveled properly

 

[Larrikin]

ok, i'm at the resin/fibreglassing stage, I've read alot of the stickies here and this is something I would like some confirmation on.
1. Buy all PPE + Fibreglass resin + Liquid Hardener
2. Resin Outside (2 layers) - let cure
3. Fiberglass cloth all over the inside then resin or bondo over
4. Cut out the paper visor, use for vacuum forming
5. Bondo outside for detailing and sanding
6. Primer and paint - I'll leave this till I finish pepping the rest of the armor

Not sure whether to resin over paper visor since I'm planning to cut it out, also whats better to use inside the helm I'm working on, resin or bondo?

 

[c vega117]

looking really good Larrikin makes me want to start on a mark 6 myself but i already have to much on my plate .Also you should at least resin the visor 1 once if you do plan on vacuum forming so that it keeps its shape,and personally recommend you "rondo" the inside instead of using fiberglass cloth. Rondo is easier to work with because you all you do is slosh it around the inside and is sets up pretty hard, the only downside is that its not as strong as fiberglass cloth but its still strong pretty strong. either way your helmet should end up solid.

here's a rondoing tutorial from Ben Streeper in case you do want to go with that method. He goes over all the steps and answers basic questions in the videos

 

[Larrikin]

looking really good Larrikin makes me want to start on a mark 6 myself but i already have to much on my plate .Also you should at least resin the visor 1 once if you do plan on vacuum forming so that it keeps its shape,and personally recommend you "rondo" the inside instead of using fiberglass cloth. Rondo is easier to work with because you all you do is slosh it around the inside and is sets up pretty hard, the only downside is that its not as strong as fiberglass cloth but its still strong pretty strong. either way your helmet should end up solid.

here's a rondoing tutorial from Ben Streeper in case you do want to go with that method. He goes over all the steps and answers basic questions in the videos

Nice c.vega , Ben Streeper vids explain the process excellently, kudos to that man. I'm definitely in favor of this slush casting method + love the plastic cups idea, very smart, can measure and clean up easier. In regard to vac forming, I watched bens vac form vid aswell, seems easy enough but when the plastic is heated will it give off fumes, I don't wanna stuff up my dads oven or my future dinners. Lastly what kind of plastic sheeting for vac forming do I need to get the Mark VI visor golden look?

 

[c vega117]

I personally havent tried vacuum forming but from all the builds ive seen people make their visors from regular transparent plastic sheets and after they form them, they tint them with spraypaint-like automotive window tint. i cant find any great links that go into detail but Heres an ODST visor its not vacuum formed but he uses the same type of spray that ive seen on vacuum formed visor builds.

http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/26508-Halo-3-ODST-Visors?highlight=Niteshade

and this is just a post that kind of talks about it. hope this helps
http://www.vhtpaint.com/products/niteshades/

 

[Larrikin]

I personally havent tried vacuum forming but from all the builds ive seen people make their visors from regular transparent plastic sheets and after they form them, they tint them with spraypaint-like automotive window tint. i cant find any great links that go into detail but Heres an ODST visor its not vacuum formed but he uses the same type of spray that ive seen on vacuum formed visor builds.

http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/26508-Halo-3-ODST-Visors?highlight=Niteshade

and this is just a post that kind of talks about it. hope this helps
http://www.vhtpaint.com/products/niteshades/

thanks for the tip and resources, very helpful.

So today I took a sicky from work so I could buy the above and work on the helmet. yay

Now the not so funny news which I will rant about. I spent about AUS$140 on the above. I will say now the Australia has ridiculously high prices e.g. 6 pack of beer = $17, stuff from IKEA costs twice or 3x as much as the US market and there's also Australia's rising cost of living. Something for you to think about if you plan a trip to Australia.

Back on topic - Now I couldn't find Bondo but I found Kahfil 2 part body filler, comes with a reddish hardener. So I assume is basically the same as Bondo. Is Kahfil a good alternative to Bondo? or do I need to return it and search again for bondo. Anyways I'm gonna go ahead and resin this bad boy today

 

[thorn696]

"Kahfil 2 part body filler" Sound like it the same thing. Bondo is just a Name brand for body filler. I would say buy the large box of gloves and throw away paint brushes. And try to go for the bigger can's of resin and filler if you can find them it will take about a gallon filler for a suit if you mixing it up as Rondo.

I can't wait to see how you're Helmet comes out of the resin stage.

 

[Larrikin]

"Kahfil 2 part body filler" Sound like it the same thing. Bondo is just a Name brand for body filler. I would say buy the large box of gloves and throw away paint brushes. And try to go for the bigger can's of resin and filler if you can find them it will take about a gallon filler for a suit if you mixing it up as Rondo.

I can't wait to see how you're Helmet comes out of the resin stage.

The only brushes I can get for cheap are 12mm trim brushes for a $1 each and 10 latex gloves for $3. Best I can find, wish we had a Walmart down here. I've got 900g of body filler on me, I'll just buy more as I go - Aren't I the thrifty consumer.

Here is the helmet out from resin stage, funny background story with it - It was raining last night so my work area today was wet, and its also very windy (13 storeys high), so this helmet flew away from me a couple of times, thankfully not over the balcony. I'll do the body filler stage somewhere else tomorrow.

*edit*
I want to know if the helmet so far looks as it should, I might need more resin but I did 2 layers, so...let me know, cheers guys.

*edit edit* was just checking out Xarmymustang Eva foam WIP, makes me think going EVA foam for the rest of the suit maybe the way to go to get a better looking armor, since I did my dovahkin helm out of craft foam, I'm guessing same method - knife and hot glue. Is that a better way to go?<< I would definitely like some feedback on that question

 

[Larrikin]

Here's an update. It ain't perfect, I never expected my first WIP to be, but I'm happy with it Thinking about what I should do next.

 

[thorn696]

Looking good. Next stage is to slowly mellow out the sharp edges. Depending on how thick you're Rondo is, you can sand down most of them. From there it's Filler time. Go with the smallest amount possible in small sections. Use a card to spread it out, this will cut down on the waves and fill things in evenly.
Side note: If for some reason you sand threw a section don't panic. Just put a piece of tape on the outside. Mix a small shot of rondo and pour it on the inside. Hole solved.

You're helmet looks great right now. So just take you're time and you will have awesome prop.
As for the EVA foam everyone tells me it's the way to go. I've never done it myself so have hunt down a good build to go off of. I'd say check out HaloGoddess. link--> http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/31534-Halo-Reach-Kat-Foam-Armor-*FINISHED*-10-31-11

Good luck, let me know if you need anymore help.