Spartan Ii's Armour Progress...

[SPARTAN II]

So, the end of May has come and gone, and... I haven't done anything more with my helmet, lol.

Who would've thought that work, rehearsals and helping a friend work on the house they just bought would keep a person so busy throughout every day?

I've seriously got to find some personal time to do all that I'd described in my recent posts here.

I'd very much like to be able to show you folks something more worthwhile to post about. I've got the weekend off (for a change), so if all goes well I'll get some time in on it then...

 

[SPARTAN II]

Okay... so, no new progress as such to report (sorry folks *frown*), buuut with two months left to go until Hallowe'en I am planning on getting more of the armour done very soon. I clearly wasn't able to get the armour done in time for DC this weekend, but am going to do my best to have it ready for Hallowe'en, at least.

So, I'm going to Business Depot this weekend and picking up some 110-lb. cardstock to print out some of the HD Pep files -- Mk VI chest, for one -- and put them together. Also going to pick up some other much-needed supplies to finish/detail the other pieces (at the same time, I'll be finishing up my Mk VI helmet that everyone's been waiting on to see completed).

And, well... that's where you guys come in. See, I've never before done anything with resining/fiberglassing (which is the point I hope to be at within the next two weeks), and so admittedly am at a bit of a loss as to where to actually pick up those materials. What brand does most everyone favour? And, where can I get it? Is it something I can easily pick up at an automotive store -- in other words, do I just pick up a car body repair kit to do this -- or do I need to go elsewhere to get it?

As always, any and all help you can provide would be greatly appreciated, guys 'n gals

P.S., With my projected timeframe of two weeks to get all of the remaining Pep pieces put together and ready for resining/fiberglassing, I expect to have tons of pics to show everyone by the end of September, at the latest...

 

[rvb4life]

Don't be afraid of the fiberglass, Eric, its not too bad. It's fairly easy to work with, you just need to work quickly.

Use fiberglass cloth, i use mat, and its a pain in the ass to keep on there.

first, go with a tack layer on the inside, then lay your cloth inside, then coat it. you will be able to tell when its saturated.


other than that, make sure you work from the top down, keep warping areas stable, and you should be fine. keep it out in the sun for a few hours, and put it on a blacktop if you can. remember, its photoreactive, and get a can of lacquer thinner because that works great.

also, get a crap-load of brushes, you are gonna use one up every day, don't reuse them.

uh, work outdoors, resin smells very bad, dont be afraid if it gets on your hands, just wash it off immediatley, and refer to the the Crackhead tutorial.


the only real concern to your health is if you use a dremel, because sanding by hand is fairly easy to avoid the dust, but not with a rotary tool.

 

[SPARTAN II]

Kewl. Thanks for the tips, buddy. Much appreciated

It's not that I'm afraid of the fiberglass or anything, I've just never used this method for any prop-building before, lol. So, it's entirely new territory for me

Where do you procure your resin and fiberglass for your projects, though? I'd like to know just where I can look to find what I need for this

 

[LastSpartan]

Canadian Tire

 

[rvb4life]

lol i dont live in canada, i go to pep boys, though walmart sells resin for 5 bucks cheaper.



any auto body store should have it, it should be in the repair isle.

 

[SPARTAN II]

Awesome! Thanks for the info, fellas!

I kinda figured automotive shops would allow the easiest access to this stuff, but I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing any other reliable sources others here may have found.

This weekend I plan on getting both the cardstock I need for printing out the HD files and the resin/fiberglass so I'll have that on hand as I finish putting each piece together. Then I'll actually be able to make some real progress with my build. HOO-RAH!

I'm confident I'll then have plenty of new progress pics (including a finally-finished helmet I seem to have been working on for ages, lol) to show everyone in no more than two week's time. It's going to be good to be able to get back to this after so long

 

[SPARTAN II]

Not to excite anyone here or anything (I'm sure some who have been following this thread might be thinking: Oh, he posted! There must be an update!), but as I haven't had internet access at home for over two months, I felt I should post something on my impending progress on this project.

Here's the gist of it: sadly, my Mk VI armour construction has been put on hold. For how long, I don't know. First off, I haven't gotten anything more done with the helmet (had too many other real-life matters -- ie. job search, apartment hunt, etc. -- to deal with since my last post here), and with the new place I've moved to it doesn't allow me the space to set up a work area for my prop projects.

Not only that, but since my last move I have yet to procure myself a printer for my laptop in order to actually print off all the other Pep pieces I'd need for the rest of the armour, so that too has contributed to the stalling of this build.

Obviously, I missed my intended deadline for this Hallowe'en (that now makes two years in a row where I haven't had the costume I wanted to wear) and given current circumstances I can't say when I'll be able to get back to this. I know there were some here who were interested in seeing this project happen given my alternative construction methods (styrene instead of resin/fiberglass), and I admit I feel like I've kinda let those people down. For that, I apologize guys and gals.

I don't know if anyone was actually still following along with this project (it's been more than a few months since there's been any activity with it), or was really interested in seeing it done anytime soon, but for the above-stated reasons unfortunately this has to be put on the back-burner for the time being.

Thanks to everyone who gave thier input on this project, I've appreciated all of your comments and feedback. Once I've got internet again (which will be this coming weekend), even if I'm not able to do anything with my armour for now I should at least be able to participate here more regularly.

SPARTAN II, signing off...

 

[LastSpartan]

Glad to see you back, I was wondering this morning where you were gone.


Hopefully, you'll find a way to continue working!

 

[rvb4life]

Hey eric, good to see you back online! sorry to hear about the helmet coming along slow, its the same here.

hey, i'll be getting a 360 soon, if you still have live. (HAHA OFF TOPIC MUCH?)

 

[SPARTAN II]

@ LastSpartan: Hello, my fellow Canadian SPARTAN! You know, it's kinda funny... on every one of the online forums I usually frequent, it always seems to be that when I finally post something again that's just when this member or that member was recently wondering about where I've been. Go figure, lol.

@ rvb4life: Actually, I never had XBL to begin with, lol. Buuut, I do hope to get that sometime soon -- once I get internet set up here -- so maybe we could do some team killing together, heh (don't worry about the off-topic subject; it's my thread, and I don't mind).

Thanks for the welcome back, fellas. I have to admit I'm kinda bummed out about the lack of progress on my build, and the resulting postponement of said build. But with circumstances being what they are at the moment, regrettably I'm simply unable to do anything with it at this point.

It's not that it's never going to come to fruition, just for now (which annoys me to no end; I've been so psyched about getting this done). Hopefully I can get back into it soon enough though and wow you guys with my work, lol.

 

[Ruze789]

Nice to see you back, bud!
Life does have a nasty habit of getting in the way of some hobbies, doesn't it.
There's plenty of ways to participate without having a build going though, and you've always been good for loads of kind words and encouragement.

 

[SPARTAN II]

Thanks, Ruze!

Yeah, life does tend to throw a few curveballs our way sometimes, which of course TOTALLY throws everything out of whack. I've had more than a couple come my way in the last three months thereabouts, if not longer.

Clearly, I've managed to come through each one relatively unscatched (Phew! *wipes forehead*), but that doesn't mean I didn't end up knee-deep in it before I could pull myself out. Strength of will and perseverence works wonders.

Aside from not being able to do any work on my HALO armour and props, I haven't been able to do anything with my Star Trek props either (which is how I first got into this hobby, btw), so I've been coping with a complete withdrawal from my fave past time *sigh*.

For someone like myself, who's been into all this stuff as long I have been, it's a little much to handle

But, in the meantime I'll (as you said) continue to offer "loads of kind words and encouragement" to others here. I'm finally getting internet installed at the place I moved to a couple months ago, so you can expect to feel my presence here more.

Gawd, I'm nervous about checking my e-mail account (I'll have a little over two months' worth of received messages to sort through, ugh)

Anyway, getting back on topic (I'm horrible, lol)... fingers crossed that I'll be able to get my Mk VI armour done in time for next Hallowe'en. It would be nice to finally have it ready for that occasion, as I'm confident any costume contest I'd go to would get me first place, heh

 

[SPARTAN II]

Well, believe it or not, I actually made some PROGRESS with this project, lol

That's right! Back in January I decided to pick up some 110-lb cardstock while I was at the mall on lunch break one day, took it home, printed out all the pieces for the HD chest armour and have been slowly working on putting it together when I've been able to find time.

So... all I need to do is find my digital camera (which maybe found its way into storage by mistake; can't seem to find it around here anywhere, lol) and then I'll actually have some new progress pics to show everyone heh

It's my hope I'll be able to put in enough time on this so that I'll have all of the different pieces assembled and ready for resining/fiberglassing once warmer weather comes around again, and will use thin styrene to detail each piece. That's the plan at the moment anyway, lol.

Look for some updated pics shortly...

 

[scandomfo]

Well it took me a while to read this whole thread but I'll definitely be looking forward to some progress pics!

 

[SPARTAN II]

I'm not surprised it took you a while to read through everything, lol. I've written a lot here.

I've been told by some that I write/say too much (some would prefer to go straight to pics, lol), but I write as much as I have to benefit anyone who might want to know how any and all of this was done.

Of course, I do make sure to throw in a few pics amongst all my words heh

Still looking for my digital camera -- I think I did end up putting it in storage by mistake, lol -- but once I find it I will be posting some much-anticipated UPDATED progress pics

 

[SPARTAN II]

OMG! I've got some new pics :eek lol



And here they are:



Mk VI Armour - Pic 01



Mk VI Armour - Pic 02



Mk VI Armour - Pic 03



Mk VI Armour - Pic 04



Now before anyone asks, no... I didn't make this myself. I obtained this from another Canadian 405th-er, and for a very reasonable price. There are a few spots that are a little "off", but for what it is he did a helluva job on the build, and will more than suit my purposes.



I also received a a resined calf and two forearms, but they turned out to be too big for me. Which is fine, as my main concern was whether or not this piece would fit, and I'm sure it will (looks like my helmet and the chestpiece are pretty well proportionate to one another).



At least now I can say I've actually made a little more progress with this project, lol.



Just have to finish up fiberglassing the inside (the previous owner already resined the entire piece) and add some of the remaining details on the back, then I can use my layered styrene approach to complete it. And as I now have a source for the other armour pieces, I might finally get this done.



Here's a pic of all I now have for my own set of Mk VI armour:



Mk VI Armour - Pic 05



Yes, I know... it's been about two years since I started this project, but slowly and surely, it's getting there

 

[LastSpartan]

Looking great so far Elvis!

 

[SPARTAN II]

Well thanks, my fellow Canadian SPARTAN!



But like I said above, I didn't actually put this together. I just managed to get my hands on it from another 405th-er who had no need of it, and luckily for me it turned out to be just the right size for my build.



I don't know how soon I'll be able to get around to it (still living in a matchbox-sized apartment, which doesn't allow the space required to do any real prop work), but I hope to finish fiberglassing the inside of it soon :cool

 

[LastSpartan]

Well thanks, my fellow Canadian SPARTAN!



But like I said above, I didn't actually put this together. I just managed to get my hands on it from another 405th-er who had no need of it, and luckily for me it turned out to be just the right size for my build.



I don't know how soon I'll be able to get around to it (still living in a matchbox-sized apartment, which doesn't allow the space required to do any real prop work), but I hope to finish fiberglassing the inside of it soon :cool

You know you can come here



I have all huge garage