nerdman234
Member
For MomoCon this year I decided to do an NCR Ranger from Fallout New Vegas.
This breaks down into a couple parts:
- Mask/Helmet
- Chest Armor
- Duster
- Laser Rifle
- Details
Mask/Helmet:
I initially tried doing this in foam, but my skills are not quite there to do good domes. I learned a lot, but time constraints limited what I could do. I decided in the end to 3D print the mask.
Like the helmet, foam was not quite working out at my skill level. I ended up 3D printing the main parts and used foam for the wrap-around of the mask to the back of the helmet.
View media item 3162
All of the parts were printed on a Monoprice v2.
Fallout New Vegas Veteran Ranger Helmet and Mask by RebelRousingProps
View media item 3116
The pieces were glued together, sanded, and bondo-ed as needed. The models had some weird recesses that needed to be filled and I used more bondo than I should have, costing some additional headache. I would likely use a finishing bondo in the future to save sanding.
View media item 3117View media item 3118
After the models were finished, I painted them with a base of silver, then dusted the model with flat black and bronze until I got a color I was happy with.
View media item 3123View media item 3127
The helmet was bought off Amazon for about $10. I just painted it and stenciled on the armor number. It is maybe a half inch too small, and sits a little higher than it should.
View media item 3138
The lenses were made from some red lighting gels (or transparency sheets) and silver window tint. The result was fantastic, and when they weren't fogged up, the visibility was quite good. I will add some lexan in between the two in the future to add some structure to be more permanent.
View media item 3139
I added two small fans inside the gas canister and front speaker/filter thing. I mounted this both as exhaust, but their airflow really wasn't high enough to be helpful. I had added some basic disconnects for the wiring to the helmet, but these broke off during the con and I hardwired the helmet to keep the fans working. I broke the mask twice by walking off while I put it on a table.
View media item 3163
I talked to some of the 501st guys at the convention and they suggested using blower fans and USB connectors. I'm also tabling the idea of making a magnetic connector for power to make it easier to attach power behind my head.
Going forward, I'm going to reinforce the interior of the mask with some fiberglass to strengthen the joints. I'm also going to trim a bit of the plastic under the chin to make it clip less with the gorget.
Chest Armor:
This was made from a single back piece with a second layer of detail on top. The pieces were assembled with contact cement and beveled with a dremel.
<Pic of armor bits>
View media item 3161View media item 3134
I mistakenly used sharpie on some exposed parts, which meant I could not use the normal EVA grey color. I coated it in grey Flexi dip initially, but the color was too light and I ended up going with a metallic bronze, same as the helmet.
Duster:
I have learned my lesson in the past that sewing is not my forte. I bought this from Dark Matter Props on Etsy. It looks amazing and is much heavier than I expected. The stenciling was done with acrylics.
View media item 3165
Laser Rifle:
The rifle I was building for this was the third laser rifle I have attempted to build. All three were based on Volpin Prop's builds:
- Volpin Props: Fallout 3 AER9 Laser Rifle
- Volpin Props | AER9: Once more, with feeling
I had built a rough laser rifle to use with a Minuteman costume for Dragoncon this past year, and intended to make a new one. However, time constraints reared their ugly head and I just defaulted to my old one. (Don't mind the chest piece)
View media item 3157View media item 3156View media item 3159
The face I made when I didn't let my paint dry long enough:
View media item 3158
I made some progress on the new one, but did not want to rush it and waste the extra effort put into it. Here are some general progress pics on that. I will probably do the full build in a different thread.
The rifle is mostly MDF with styrene details. I used wood filler an bondo on some trouble spots.
Detail:
Backpack:
The ingame model shows some oxygen tanks on the backpack. I replicated this with two 1.5" PVC pipes and one 2" with a piece of MDF as a backer. Only real work I put into this was sanding the PVC to get a consistent finish. The duster has 5 premade holes for a backpack that the seller makes with triglides inside for 3/4" nylon webbing. I cut slots into the backpack with a dremel and ran straps through to hold it on. I stenciled a matching armor number on the flat top sheet.
View media item 3129
I will likely iterate back on this as the duster weighs about 7-8 pounds with everything attached (4 for the duster and 3 for the tanks). It does wear pretty well and I don't feel the weight, but I had to adjust constantly to keep it sitting on my shoulders in the right orientation.
Future Upgrades:
I need to actually weather the armor and duster. I skipped on it due to lack of time, but I will definitely circle back to that.
View media item 3141View media item 3160Overall, I was pretty happy with this costume and I'm looking forward to building this out further.
Also earned some caps!
View media item 3142
This breaks down into a couple parts:
- Mask/Helmet
- Chest Armor
- Duster
- Laser Rifle
- Details
Mask/Helmet:
I initially tried doing this in foam, but my skills are not quite there to do good domes. I learned a lot, but time constraints limited what I could do. I decided in the end to 3D print the mask.
Like the helmet, foam was not quite working out at my skill level. I ended up 3D printing the main parts and used foam for the wrap-around of the mask to the back of the helmet.
View media item 3162
All of the parts were printed on a Monoprice v2.
Fallout New Vegas Veteran Ranger Helmet and Mask by RebelRousingProps
View media item 3116
The pieces were glued together, sanded, and bondo-ed as needed. The models had some weird recesses that needed to be filled and I used more bondo than I should have, costing some additional headache. I would likely use a finishing bondo in the future to save sanding.
View media item 3117View media item 3118
After the models were finished, I painted them with a base of silver, then dusted the model with flat black and bronze until I got a color I was happy with.
View media item 3123View media item 3127
The helmet was bought off Amazon for about $10. I just painted it and stenciled on the armor number. It is maybe a half inch too small, and sits a little higher than it should.
View media item 3138
The lenses were made from some red lighting gels (or transparency sheets) and silver window tint. The result was fantastic, and when they weren't fogged up, the visibility was quite good. I will add some lexan in between the two in the future to add some structure to be more permanent.
View media item 3139
I added two small fans inside the gas canister and front speaker/filter thing. I mounted this both as exhaust, but their airflow really wasn't high enough to be helpful. I had added some basic disconnects for the wiring to the helmet, but these broke off during the con and I hardwired the helmet to keep the fans working. I broke the mask twice by walking off while I put it on a table.
View media item 3163
I talked to some of the 501st guys at the convention and they suggested using blower fans and USB connectors. I'm also tabling the idea of making a magnetic connector for power to make it easier to attach power behind my head.
Going forward, I'm going to reinforce the interior of the mask with some fiberglass to strengthen the joints. I'm also going to trim a bit of the plastic under the chin to make it clip less with the gorget.
Chest Armor:
This was made from a single back piece with a second layer of detail on top. The pieces were assembled with contact cement and beveled with a dremel.
<Pic of armor bits>
View media item 3161View media item 3134
I mistakenly used sharpie on some exposed parts, which meant I could not use the normal EVA grey color. I coated it in grey Flexi dip initially, but the color was too light and I ended up going with a metallic bronze, same as the helmet.
Duster:
I have learned my lesson in the past that sewing is not my forte. I bought this from Dark Matter Props on Etsy. It looks amazing and is much heavier than I expected. The stenciling was done with acrylics.
View media item 3165
Laser Rifle:
The rifle I was building for this was the third laser rifle I have attempted to build. All three were based on Volpin Prop's builds:
- Volpin Props: Fallout 3 AER9 Laser Rifle
- Volpin Props | AER9: Once more, with feeling
I had built a rough laser rifle to use with a Minuteman costume for Dragoncon this past year, and intended to make a new one. However, time constraints reared their ugly head and I just defaulted to my old one. (Don't mind the chest piece)
View media item 3157View media item 3156View media item 3159
The face I made when I didn't let my paint dry long enough:
View media item 3158
I made some progress on the new one, but did not want to rush it and waste the extra effort put into it. Here are some general progress pics on that. I will probably do the full build in a different thread.
The rifle is mostly MDF with styrene details. I used wood filler an bondo on some trouble spots.
Detail:
Backpack:
The ingame model shows some oxygen tanks on the backpack. I replicated this with two 1.5" PVC pipes and one 2" with a piece of MDF as a backer. Only real work I put into this was sanding the PVC to get a consistent finish. The duster has 5 premade holes for a backpack that the seller makes with triglides inside for 3/4" nylon webbing. I cut slots into the backpack with a dremel and ran straps through to hold it on. I stenciled a matching armor number on the flat top sheet.
View media item 3129
I will likely iterate back on this as the duster weighs about 7-8 pounds with everything attached (4 for the duster and 3 for the tanks). It does wear pretty well and I don't feel the weight, but I had to adjust constantly to keep it sitting on my shoulders in the right orientation.
Future Upgrades:
I need to actually weather the armor and duster. I skipped on it due to lack of time, but I will definitely circle back to that.
View media item 3141View media item 3160Overall, I was pretty happy with this costume and I'm looking forward to building this out further.
Also earned some caps!
View media item 3142
