Sort of back after my last hiatus

[Spartan_127]

Glad to see you're still at it and have all your parts pepped out.
Looks good.
Just remember that with bondo. . . Less is More.
Keep up the good work, Spartan.

 

[Mstruvmgc]

I agree with spartan_127, less is more in the case of bondo. Just remember to not rush anything
Everything is looking good so far.

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Thanks a tonne guyes ^___^ bondo (or in my case P38) is pretty damn expensive here :S I'm finishing the helmet with the bondo here (sparingly of course) and will be sanding it down soon. Once the helmets finished I'm heading to the DIY/Auto parts shop and seeing if theres a cheaper alternative I can use. At this point the suit /is/ getting too expensive and I do want to finish. I've bought a guitar to mod as well and I still need to buy the helmet visor and paints + parts to finish my guitar mods and the suit so its not a very cost-effective time right now.

I'll let you guys know what I come up with as soon as things are sorted ^___^ done a little more fiber today. Just the codpiece (I got a bit done) and the rest of the chest and then its bondo and paint left to do.

Wow its so amazing to be this far in the project, I still can't believe it!

Still redecorating of course. And heres proof incase ya'll don't believe me!!! xD I've made the wall stencils myself and tested the gold paint and it looks good, so thats one more project that should be finished shortly.

The walls have had a couple more coats of white to cover up the purple, today I'm putting on the first coat of ivory cream, should take two coats, so two days work, then the stenciling, which might be done within the second day or third morning. Then after that I just need to finish with the furniture and upholstery.

Its looking good so far. Should be able to start crossing things off the to-do list soon!!

LIST!!!

*(last) Hospital and (not last) Dentist (next week)
*Halo Suit
*Redecorating the house
*Hizaki Wig styling (once wig arrives)
*Custom guitar mod
*Me and Cory want to spend a day making plushies.
*Xbox and bass, coz a chick needs to relax!!! ^____^

 

[PolyEngineer]

Nice to meet you 117!

I've been a memb since Jan, but haven't put out any work until recently. My first post to the 405th was last night!

I just wanted to say i'm always thrilled to meet someone that always has such a positive attitude towards life, even when things get rough. That is, without a doubt, why you received such good news about your condition being less severe. But don't lose any of that positivity! "I don't expect to be miracle cured"... I'll have none of that!! I'll bet if you turned that little bit of doubt around and pictured yourself perfectly healthy, it'd happen! Seen it done before.

As for the suit, it's looking great! Much farther along than I am. I'm just now coming up on the end of the helmet. Haven't even started anything else. 127 is def. right, less bondo is more. I made the mistake of slathering the entire helmet with the stuff just to get it started, and ended up nearly sanding it all back off because it was so uneven! Keep looking towards reference photos too, it really helped me keep the final design goal on track. Best of luck and keep us all updated!

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Hey there ^___^ always great meeting another friendly face, and thanks I'm doing so much better this year, 2 years ago I never thought I'd be able to do all the things Im doing now. As for no miracle cure, you can't change your bone structure, so I've accepted that, my bones will always be a little bit funny its just part of my DNA, but, I've finally learned how to adapt my life to suit them and as I get stronger I have less to worry about, so I guess its no miracle, just hard work, but, as far as I can see, I'm cured, though it was no magic medicine or operation, just hard work and patience
Thanks again, I'll continue to be very positive ^___^!!!

Yeah I've a couple of coats of the bondo on, this brand over here is quite thick and a little tricky to work with at first but I've done a little more and worked on thinning it out, will need to sand down a lot off the top but I don't mind so much, it warped a little and dipped in a smudge so it needed a bit of filling out. I guess we'll see how it goes once I get my paws on some sanding paper

Best of luck with your build Poly!!! I'm sure you'll do a great job!!

 

[PolyEngineer]

Thanks! Btw, get a dremel! I got one for $30 at walmart, came with a great kit, it saved SOOOO much time with detailing. If you are interested, check Radio Shack out though, I saw one for $40, but it came with over 100 extra pieces!!

 

[JonnyMars]

P38 is incredibly expensive for how little you get! i ditched it after the first tin. If you have a "The Range" near you, they sell a p38 equivelent for about £3 a tin and you get the same if not abit more than the p38. Check some supermarkets too, any that have a car section isle occasionally have random stuff like filler. oh and Ive even used a wood filler before, so long as its a putty and paste mix, its works just like the p38! hope this helps

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Tell me about it Mars!!!! Halfords are usually good to me, I buy fiberglass and stuff from them, Ill have a look around, 3 pounds is about ... a little short of 4 euro I'd say, but over here they'd probably charge 7 (country is damn expensive) but thats still a lot better, I am certainly ditching the p38 once I use it up.
I was considering wood filler or something similar to the wall filler I used upstairs repairing my walls (Im redecorating remember x3) it dried to a similar texture as the p38, its sand-paper-able and its cheaper so Im considering that!! Ill let you all know anyway Im wall stenciling today so Im almost finished the DIY part of redecorating, next comes upholstry but that will be fine (hopefully!)

Thanks again Mars, Ill look into wood fillers and the similar version of p38, sadly we have no Range stores here, maybe they do in northern ireland than would deliver? It sounds like a lot of bother though when wood filler or wall filler may do the job just as well. We'll see soon my friends.

 

[Ghost Bear 027]

DOING IT ON THE CHEAP. There is a generic version of Bondo out there that you can find at discount and clearance stores. You'd be surprised. Same stuff essentially, half the price. Wall filler is typically SIGNIFICANTLY more brittle than bondo, I don't recommend at all.

Also, be wary of anything with actual wood or pulp in it. You don't want to encase a piece of wood in bondo or resin, only to have the wood swell in high humidity and crack the covering layer.

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Thanks Ghost, I'll keep my eyes peeled for alternative brands of bondo once Im out again!!!

At present, I'm working on a surprise costume piece (surprise because I didn't expect to be making this cosplay until after I finished my armour but theres been a change of circumstances which means I've pressed forward with this costume).

Seen here.

I just got this guitar and it was entirely defunct. The electronics inside were fried, the pick ups were rusted solid and useless and the body is riddled with dents and deep scratches. So, I've sanded down the paintjob, and filled in the cracks and dents so shes smooth as marble now but still needs more work before I repaint. The body will be slightly modified (but hopefully I won't affect the balance) and repainted, new pickups installed and all the hardware (machine heads, knobs and the bridge) have been painted gold.

Heres a picture of the guitar (the back was sanded down at this stage but not the front so you can see the massive scratches and there are more chips aswell) with the new bridge placed on (not fixed into place though)

And heres what it was like before I took it apart

Big dents, awful scratches, a pretty shoddy paint job and upon further inspection, the electronics were useless. I also dont like the bridge (no whammy and its a pretty tiny thing, I like a bit of oompf in the bridge) so that and the pickups will be replaced.

As far as bondo replacement goes, I've used a hole filler on the guitar and it sands down superbly and blends smoothly into the wood, I've tested it on other surfaces and it seems very versatile and pocket friendly too so I may go ahead with that. Im not sure what the brand is (my mom gave me the tube, Ill check later) but I may use that to replace the Bondo as its premixed, cheap and sands nicely as well.

Until next time!!! Ill be back to halo-ing as soon as this emergency prop is finished (I call it a prop, but really its a beautiful 24 fret guitar that desperatly needs a little TLC)

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Im just gon' leave this right here x3 hehe

 

[JonnyMars]

damn you've been busy! all hand sanded?? looking good though

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Haha tell me about it!!! Yes, the whole thing has been hand sanded, Im using a dremel to modify the shape of the body, I want to sand in more curves and slightly change the slope on the points. Of course thats virtually impossible to hand sand so Im using the dremel. I sanded off the paint by hand because the paintjob was riddled with scratches and chips and I needed to fill them in as I went ... My friend and I are currently making a "mockumentary" of the whole process ... haha

Thanks!!!

 

[Spartan 117 JMW]

Guys I hate to be a downer but I'm quitting cosplay/costume making.

Its been a devastating week full of extreme disappointment and I've had over 300 dollars STOLEN from my paypal. I really don't think emotionally I can go through anymore of this absolute **** anymore so I'm putting down the dremel, the sewing machine etc and cutting my losses. A hobby should be fun and rewarding, but this is incredibly painful, not just because I'm already crippled with debt, but because theres no more joy in it and I can't do this anymore.

Thanks for all your support and kindness, I've gone through a lot with my health and I am very glad to be well for the first time in two years and will continue to do well, this is just a part of my life I'm not going to take part in anymore.

 

[AugmentedHuman013]

I'm sorry to hear that your work was really great.

 

[JonnyMars]

very sorry to hear that 117, great shame theres some real scum out there. have you taken it up with paypal?? MIGHT be able to get it back.

You will be missed, hope everything goes well for you in the future.

 

[Agonize]

Mh just read the whole threat... just to read that you want to quit.

Im sorry to hear that too, your work was great