The Ultimate Pepakura FAQ

[Sigma LS]

It's about as durable as the body panels on your car. Maybe a little less so (won't dent just crack).

But after you put all that effort into it, do you really want to destroy it like that? Now a molded set of armor cast in Flexifoamit 25 would probably work a lot better for what you describe.

 

[gumby101ca]

Hey guys
I have been working my through the pepakura designer 3 program.. It seems to be a pretty easy program to use. I am working on a sniper type rife, and its all unfolded. My problem is that I cant get the barrel cut down to fit on a sheet of cardstock. right now it spans 3 sheets of cardstock. Is there anyway that i can edit just the barrel so that it can be in smaller sections????

thanks

Craig

 

[ACDCrockr209]

I have been working my through the pepakura designer 3 program.. It seems to be a pretty easy program to use. I am working on a sniper type rife, and its all unfolded. My problem is that I cant get the barrel cut down to fit on a sheet of cardstock. right now it spans 3 sheets of cardstock. Is there anyway that i can edit just the barrel so that it can be in smaller sections????

Don't waste your time with the barrel peices. Just use PVC pipe for the barrel, it is sturdyer than a pep barrel and won't bend.

Good luck on the rifle build

-Pony

 

[Wasp2100]

There are many questions that n00bs and first time pepakura folks seem to ask over and over.

Almost all of these questions have been answered many times but sometimes it is difficult to find them in the sea of posts that make up the forum.

This is a concise list of the most common questions asked and the answers that go with them. It is important to remember that these are not absolute answers and that it is just the easiest and most common way.

As in most cases the alternate suggested ways might work but the best you are going to get is a lot more time spent to do something that might work and work less well than is what is specified here.
RULE #1 Read all the stickies before you begin! (I will also specify which ones answer what questions)

Pepakura files can be found in both of these stickies:

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Pepakura Download Database

Questions Section One Pepakura Basics (the art of the papercraft)

1. How do I get and put together pepakura?

Look at both of these stickies before you even think about beginning.

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Tutorial: How to make Good Folds for Pepakura Armor

2. What are mountain and valley folds? How do I fold them? How can I figure out which is which? etc.

If your helmet was a planet, the mountain folds would form mountains and the valley folds would form valleys. It is always inward or outward in relation to the surface of the model.

The symbols can be changed in the Line Properties option in the Pepakura Designer program.
3. Do I have to use cardstock?/Can't I use regular paper?/What pound cardstock do I use? etc.

Use 110 lb cardstock for pepakura. It holds up well to fiberglassing and is friendly to most printers. You can get a ream of 150 sheets at Walmart for $5.

Regular paper must be extremely reinforced and is not worth the time. (it will be very warped, hard to fix and you'll probable end up throwing it away.

60 lb cardstock must also be reinforced but is preferred for those who have printers with less muscle (can't handle 11o cardstock). It is more expensive and more of a pain than 110 lb.
4. What do I use to glue/hold together my pepakura? Can't I use something else to hold it together? etc

In order of preference:

1. Low Temperature Hot Glue (Will say on glue gun)

2. Superglue

3. Electrical Tape (Resin will not eat through much. Use in place of ductape.)

4. other non dissolvable glues (other glues may work when you put the paper together but the resin will dissolve it when you fiberglass it and your model will fall apart in front of your eyes)

DO NOT USE

1. clear tape

2. dissolvable glues

3. duct tape
5. How do I scale my pepakura?

Use Frizz's and mine scaling formula found in the Official pepakura scaling thread sticky

Keep in mind that the MC is not anatomically correct and most must alter the scale for your biceps and thighs.

NAS measurements for assembled height to use as a standard.

Bicep: 35 cm

Thigh: 38 cm
6. My helmet is too small. Why can't I get my head through the neck? etc

Cut off the MC's neck/ make it hinged or your perfectly scaled helm will not fit. Think about it, is your neck as big around as your head?
7. I have a Mac/antique computer/incompatible OS, PLEASE HELP!

Pepakura is exclusively a Windows based program and should work on most PCs. In the case that you have something else, try using Windows emulation software.

Mac users who only want the helm are in luck as there are JPEGs of it available in 25 scale here: http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2867
8. Could I get some help with a weapon as a first project? etc

Weapons are much more complicated than armor and should be considered as expert level projects. If you are not good at pepakura, they won't turn out well.

The best advice I can give is patience and try doing something a little easier first to get your feet wet.
9. Help me get each piece on a single page. How do I do multi page pepakura? etc

Simply overly the corner crosshairs of the pages after trimming away the margin of one. Then glue both together to make larger pepakura pieces.

Questions Section Two Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo (begin armorfication)
Before you even think about beginning Stage 2 read these stickies.

Resining Tutorial/How To
Pepakura Fiberglass and Smoothing Tutorial

*also take note of recommended safety equipment*

Mixing instructions will always be included on the resin package.
1. What's the difference between Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo?

Bondo is a company that manufactures many products, when used as slang around here it refers to Bond Brand Body Filler It is always recognizable as the can with the red Mustang on the front.

Resin is a liquid plastic that when mixed with a catalyst hardens to a tough but brittle substance.

Fiberglass is actual fibers of glass and comes in both cloth and mat variety.
The verb use "to Fiberglass" means that you use fiberglass to strengthen your resin coats on your papercraft
2. Where do I get materials/safety equipment for fiberglassing?

Most appliance stores and auto parts places will have them and so will Walmart.
3. What kind of fiberglass should I use?

It's really a matter of preference but I think fiberglass cloth is the easiest to work with.
4. Should fiberglass go on the outside?

No Never Ever Ever! However, you should resin the outside.

4.1 - Why above?

It is a pain to sand and makes it a much bigger pain in the ass to smooth properly. If you want more fiberglass reinforcement, just add more layers of fiberglass to the inside of the armor!
5. What about using expanding foam/Great Stuff as reinforcement? etc

Use the Red and Blue can of Great Stuff or the foam will shrink and warp your work.
6. What about using plaster/paper mache/duct tape instead? etc

I've only seen one example of this working out right and it was duct tape on scratch-built armor.

I strongly recommend that you not attempt this. Most people who try end up tossing their helmets afterward.

Questions Section Three Detailing and Completion(Pimp my Mjolnir)
1. What do I use for a visor? Can I use anything other than a motorcycle visor? etc

HJC gold motorcycle visors are the preferred visor (Search HJC visor on ebay for a good deal) though you can use other motorcycle visors.

You can also purchase motorcycle visors locally at at motorcycle or all-sports store.

The only good looking alternative I've seen is Spartan 419's CD carrousel cover from Walmart.
2. What do I use for the vents in the helm?

Use black corrugated PVC plumbing pipe from your local hardware place.
3. Do I cover the entire helm in Bondo Body Filler? How do I detail with Bondo? etc

I prefer to only add Bondo to the specific areas that I'll be sculpting with a dremel tool (use lots of reference pics). It's less work that way.
4. How do I add lights and a fan?

Link has a great tutorial in the stickies: Wiring LED TO helmet
The last thing I will leave you with is PLEASE spell pepakura correctly in help posts.

If you don't it seems as if you don't really care enough about any of this to see it through to the end.
If you guys think of other common questions that I've missed (I'm sure there are more than a few). Please post them here

Help, there is no corresponding numbers when i print!

 

[Wasp2100]

There are many questions that n00bs and first time pepakura folks seem to ask over and over.

Almost all of these questions have been answered many times but sometimes it is difficult to find them in the sea of posts that make up the forum.

This is a concise list of the most common questions asked and the answers that go with them. It is important to remember that these are not absolute answers and that it is just the easiest and most common way.

As in most cases the alternate suggested ways might work but the best you are going to get is a lot more time spent to do something that might work and work less well than is what is specified here.
RULE #1 Read all the stickies before you begin! (I will also specify which ones answer what questions)

Pepakura files can be found in both of these stickies:

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Pepakura Download Database

Questions Section One Pepakura Basics (the art of the papercraft)

1. How do I get and put together pepakura?

Look at both of these stickies before you even think about beginning.

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Tutorial: How to make Good Folds for Pepakura Armor

2. What are mountain and valley folds? How do I fold them? How can I figure out which is which? etc.

If your helmet was a planet, the mountain folds would form mountains and the valley folds would form valleys. It is always inward or outward in relation to the surface of the model.

The symbols can be changed in the Line Properties option in the Pepakura Designer program.
3. Do I have to use cardstock?/Can't I use regular paper?/What pound cardstock do I use? etc.

Use 110 lb cardstock for pepakura. It holds up well to fiberglassing and is friendly to most printers. You can get a ream of 150 sheets at Walmart for $5.

Regular paper must be extremely reinforced and is not worth the time. (it will be very warped, hard to fix and you'll probable end up throwing it away.

60 lb cardstock must also be reinforced but is preferred for those who have printers with less muscle (can't handle 11o cardstock). It is more expensive and more of a pain than 110 lb.
4. What do I use to glue/hold together my pepakura? Can't I use something else to hold it together? etc

In order of preference:

1. Low Temperature Hot Glue (Will say on glue gun)

2. Superglue

3. Electrical Tape (Resin will not eat through much. Use in place of ductape.)

4. other non dissolvable glues (other glues may work when you put the paper together but the resin will dissolve it when you fiberglass it and your model will fall apart in front of your eyes)

DO NOT USE

1. clear tape

2. dissolvable glues

3. duct tape
5. How do I scale my pepakura?

Use Frizz's and mine scaling formula found in the Official pepakura scaling thread sticky

Keep in mind that the MC is not anatomically correct and most must alter the scale for your biceps and thighs.

NAS measurements for assembled height to use as a standard.

Bicep: 35 cm

Thigh: 38 cm
6. My helmet is too small. Why can't I get my head through the neck? etc

Cut off the MC's neck/ make it hinged or your perfectly scaled helm will not fit. Think about it, is your neck as big around as your head?
7. I have a Mac/antique computer/incompatible OS, PLEASE HELP!

Pepakura is exclusively a Windows based program and should work on most PCs. In the case that you have something else, try using Windows emulation software.

Mac users who only want the helm are in luck as there are JPEGs of it available in 25 scale here: http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2867
8. Could I get some help with a weapon as a first project? etc

Weapons are much more complicated than armor and should be considered as expert level projects. If you are not good at pepakura, they won't turn out well.

The best advice I can give is patience and try doing something a little easier first to get your feet wet.
9. Help me get each piece on a single page. How do I do multi page pepakura? etc

Simply overly the corner crosshairs of the pages after trimming away the margin of one. Then glue both together to make larger pepakura pieces.

Questions Section Two Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo (begin armorfication)
Before you even think about beginning Stage 2 read these stickies.

Resining Tutorial/How To
Pepakura Fiberglass and Smoothing Tutorial

*also take note of recommended safety equipment*

Mixing instructions will always be included on the resin package.
1. What's the difference between Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo?

Bondo is a company that manufactures many products, when used as slang around here it refers to Bond Brand Body Filler It is always recognizable as the can with the red Mustang on the front.

Resin is a liquid plastic that when mixed with a catalyst hardens to a tough but brittle substance.

Fiberglass is actual fibers of glass and comes in both cloth and mat variety.
The verb use "to Fiberglass" means that you use fiberglass to strengthen your resin coats on your papercraft
2. Where do I get materials/safety equipment for fiberglassing?

Most appliance stores and auto parts places will have them and so will Walmart.
3. What kind of fiberglass should I use?

It's really a matter of preference but I think fiberglass cloth is the easiest to work with.
4. Should fiberglass go on the outside?

No Never Ever Ever! However, you should resin the outside.

4.1 - Why above?

It is a pain to sand and makes it a much bigger pain in the ass to smooth properly. If you want more fiberglass reinforcement, just add more layers of fiberglass to the inside of the armor!
5. What about using expanding foam/Great Stuff as reinforcement? etc

Use the Red and Blue can of Great Stuff or the foam will shrink and warp your work.
6. What about using plaster/paper mache/duct tape instead? etc

I've only seen one example of this working out right and it was duct tape on scratch-built armor.

I strongly recommend that you not attempt this. Most people who try end up tossing their helmets afterward.

Questions Section Three Detailing and Completion(Pimp my Mjolnir)
1. What do I use for a visor? Can I use anything other than a motorcycle visor? etc

HJC gold motorcycle visors are the preferred visor (Search HJC visor on ebay for a good deal) though you can use other motorcycle visors.

You can also purchase motorcycle visors locally at at motorcycle or all-sports store.

The only good looking alternative I've seen is Spartan 419's CD carrousel cover from Walmart.
2. What do I use for the vents in the helm?

Use black corrugated PVC plumbing pipe from your local hardware place.
3. Do I cover the entire helm in Bondo Body Filler? How do I detail with Bondo? etc

I prefer to only add Bondo to the specific areas that I'll be sculpting with a dremel tool (use lots of reference pics). It's less work that way.
4. How do I add lights and a fan?

Link has a great tutorial in the stickies: Wiring LED TO helmet
The last thing I will leave you with is PLEASE spell pepakura correctly in help posts.

If you don't it seems as if you don't really care enough about any of this to see it through to the end.
If you guys think of other common questions that I've missed (I'm sure there are more than a few). Please post them here

Help, there is no corresponding numbers when i print!

 

[Wasp2100]

There are many questions that n00bs and first time pepakura folks seem to ask over and over.

Almost all of these questions have been answered many times but sometimes it is difficult to find them in the sea of posts that make up the forum.

This is a concise list of the most common questions asked and the answers that go with them. It is important to remember that these are not absolute answers and that it is just the easiest and most common way.

As in most cases the alternate suggested ways might work but the best you are going to get is a lot more time spent to do something that might work and work less well than is what is specified here.
RULE #1 Read all the stickies before you begin! (I will also specify which ones answer what questions)

Pepakura files can be found in both of these stickies:

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Pepakura Download Database

Questions Section One Pepakura Basics (the art of the papercraft)

1. How do I get and put together pepakura?

Look at both of these stickies before you even think about beginning.

Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor
Tutorial: How to make Good Folds for Pepakura Armor

2. What are mountain and valley folds? How do I fold them? How can I figure out which is which? etc.

If your helmet was a planet, the mountain folds would form mountains and the valley folds would form valleys. It is always inward or outward in relation to the surface of the model.

The symbols can be changed in the Line Properties option in the Pepakura Designer program.
3. Do I have to use cardstock?/Can't I use regular paper?/What pound cardstock do I use? etc.

Use 110 lb cardstock for pepakura. It holds up well to fiberglassing and is friendly to most printers. You can get a ream of 150 sheets at Walmart for $5.

Regular paper must be extremely reinforced and is not worth the time. (it will be very warped, hard to fix and you'll probable end up throwing it away.

60 lb cardstock must also be reinforced but is preferred for those who have printers with less muscle (can't handle 11o cardstock). It is more expensive and more of a pain than 110 lb.
4. What do I use to glue/hold together my pepakura? Can't I use something else to hold it together? etc

In order of preference:

1. Low Temperature Hot Glue (Will say on glue gun)

2. Superglue

3. Electrical Tape (Resin will not eat through much. Use in place of ductape.)

4. other non dissolvable glues (other glues may work when you put the paper together but the resin will dissolve it when you fiberglass it and your model will fall apart in front of your eyes)

DO NOT USE

1. clear tape

2. dissolvable glues

3. duct tape
5. How do I scale my pepakura?

Use Frizz's and mine scaling formula found in the Official pepakura scaling thread sticky

Keep in mind that the MC is not anatomically correct and most must alter the scale for your biceps and thighs.

NAS measurements for assembled height to use as a standard.

Bicep: 35 cm

Thigh: 38 cm
6. My helmet is too small. Why can't I get my head through the neck? etc

Cut off the MC's neck/ make it hinged or your perfectly scaled helm will not fit. Think about it, is your neck as big around as your head?
7. I have a Mac/antique computer/incompatible OS, PLEASE HELP!

Pepakura is exclusively a Windows based program and should work on most PCs. In the case that you have something else, try using Windows emulation software.

Mac users who only want the helm are in luck as there are JPEGs of it available in 25 scale here: http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2867
8. Could I get some help with a weapon as a first project? etc

Weapons are much more complicated than armor and should be considered as expert level projects. If you are not good at pepakura, they won't turn out well.

The best advice I can give is patience and try doing something a little easier first to get your feet wet.
9. Help me get each piece on a single page. How do I do multi page pepakura? etc

Simply overly the corner crosshairs of the pages after trimming away the margin of one. Then glue both together to make larger pepakura pieces.

Questions Section Two Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo (begin armorfication)
Before you even think about beginning Stage 2 read these stickies.

Resining Tutorial/How To
Pepakura Fiberglass and Smoothing Tutorial

*also take note of recommended safety equipment*

Mixing instructions will always be included on the resin package.
1. What's the difference between Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo?

Bondo is a company that manufactures many products, when used as slang around here it refers to Bond Brand Body Filler It is always recognizable as the can with the red Mustang on the front.

Resin is a liquid plastic that when mixed with a catalyst hardens to a tough but brittle substance.

Fiberglass is actual fibers of glass and comes in both cloth and mat variety.
The verb use "to Fiberglass" means that you use fiberglass to strengthen your resin coats on your papercraft
2. Where do I get materials/safety equipment for fiberglassing?

Most appliance stores and auto parts places will have them and so will Walmart.
3. What kind of fiberglass should I use?

It's really a matter of preference but I think fiberglass cloth is the easiest to work with.
4. Should fiberglass go on the outside?

No Never Ever Ever! However, you should resin the outside.

4.1 - Why above?

It is a pain to sand and makes it a much bigger pain in the ass to smooth properly. If you want more fiberglass reinforcement, just add more layers of fiberglass to the inside of the armor!
5. What about using expanding foam/Great Stuff as reinforcement? etc

Use the Red and Blue can of Great Stuff or the foam will shrink and warp your work.
6. What about using plaster/paper mache/duct tape instead? etc

I've only seen one example of this working out right and it was duct tape on scratch-built armor.

I strongly recommend that you not attempt this. Most people who try end up tossing their helmets afterward.

Questions Section Three Detailing and Completion(Pimp my Mjolnir)
1. What do I use for a visor? Can I use anything other than a motorcycle visor? etc

HJC gold motorcycle visors are the preferred visor (Search HJC visor on ebay for a good deal) though you can use other motorcycle visors.

You can also purchase motorcycle visors locally at at motorcycle or all-sports store.

The only good looking alternative I've seen is Spartan 419's CD carrousel cover from Walmart.
2. What do I use for the vents in the helm?

Use black corrugated PVC plumbing pipe from your local hardware place.
3. Do I cover the entire helm in Bondo Body Filler? How do I detail with Bondo? etc

I prefer to only add Bondo to the specific areas that I'll be sculpting with a dremel tool (use lots of reference pics). It's less work that way.
4. How do I add lights and a fan?

Link has a great tutorial in the stickies: Wiring LED TO helmet
The last thing I will leave you with is PLEASE spell pepakura correctly in help posts.

If you don't it seems as if you don't really care enough about any of this to see it through to the end.
If you guys think of other common questions that I've missed (I'm sure there are more than a few). Please post them here

Help, there is no corresponding numbers when i print!

 

[Yttrium]

Hey guys
I have been working my through the pepakura designer 3 program.. It seems to be a pretty easy program to use. I am working on a sniper type rife, and its all unfolded. My problem is that I cant get the barrel cut down to fit on a sheet of cardstock. right now it spans 3 sheets of cardstock. Is there anyway that i can edit just the barrel so that it can be in smaller sections????

thanks

Craig

If you want to make it so that the barrel can be broken up into smaller pieces, you will probably need to use a 3D modeling program like blender to make it so the barrel is made from multiple cylinder segments instead of one long cylinder. If you are really lucky, the model maker would have done that when they made the model and all you have to do is use the join/disjoin faces feature of the pepakura designer program.

 

[tjdwowh]

If you want to make it so that the barrel can be broken up into smaller pieces, you will probably need to use a 3D modeling program like blender to make it so the barrel is made from multiple cylinder segments instead of one long cylinder. If you are really lucky, the model maker would have done that when they made the model and all you have to do is use the join/disjoin faces feature of the pepakura designer program.

Sorry if this is random, but what happens if you use normal scotch tape and resin it? does it fall apart?

 

[micahmills]

ohh dont worry im noob and im reading

 

[palegrub]

There are many questions that n00bs and first time pepakura folks seem to ask over and over.



Almost all of these questions have been answered many times but sometimes it is difficult to find them in the sea of posts that make up the forum.



This is a concise list of the most common questions asked and the answers that go with them. It is important to remember that these are not absolute answers and that it is just the easiest and most common way.



As in most cases the alternate suggested ways might work but the best you are going to get is a lot more time spent to do something that might work and work less well than is what is specified here.





RULE #1 Read all the stickies before you begin! (I will also specify which ones answer what questions)



Pepakura files can be found in both of these stickies:



Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor

Pepakura Download Database









Questions Section One Pepakura Basics (the art of the papercraft)



1. How do I get and put together pepakura?



Look at both of these stickies before you even think about beginning.



Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor

Tutorial: How to make Good Folds for Pepakura Armor



2. What are mountain and valley folds? How do I fold them? How can I figure out which is which? etc.



If your helmet was a planet, the mountain folds would form mountains and the valley folds would form valleys. It is always inward or outward in relation to the surface of the model.



The symbols can be changed in the Line Properties option in the Pepakura Designer program.





3. Do I have to use cardstock?/Can't I use regular paper?/What pound cardstock do I use? etc.



Use 110 lb cardstock for pepakura. It holds up well to fiberglassing and is friendly to most printers. You can get a ream of 150 sheets at Walmart for $5.



Regular paper must be extremely reinforced and is not worth the time. (it will be very warped, hard to fix and you'll probable end up throwing it away.



60 lb cardstock must also be reinforced but is preferred for those who have printers with less muscle (can't handle 11o cardstock). It is more expensive and more of a pain than 110 lb.





4. What do I use to glue/hold together my pepakura? Can't I use something else to hold it together? etc



In order of preference:



1. Low Temperature Hot Glue (Will say on glue gun)



2. Superglue



3. Electrical Tape (Resin will not eat through much. Use in place of ductape.)



4. other non dissolvable glues (other glues may work when you put the paper together but the resin will dissolve it when you fiberglass it and your model will fall apart in front of your eyes)



DO NOT USE



1. clear tape



2. dissolvable glues



3. duct tape





5. How do I scale my pepakura?



Use Frizz's and mine scaling formula found in the Official pepakura scaling thread sticky



Keep in mind that the MC is not anatomically correct and most must alter the scale for your biceps and thighs.



NAS measurements for assembled height to use as a standard.



Bicep: 35 cm



Thigh: 38 cm





6. My helmet is too small. Why can't I get my head through the neck? etc



Cut off the MC's neck/ make it hinged or your perfectly scaled helm will not fit. Think about it, is your neck as big around as your head?





7. I have a Mac/antique computer/incompatible OS, PLEASE HELP!



Pepakura is exclusively a Windows based program and should work on most PCs. In the case that you have something else, try using Windows emulation software.



Mac users who only want the helm are in luck as there are JPEGs of it available in 25 scale here: http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2867





8. Could I get some help with a weapon as a first project? etc



Weapons are much more complicated than armor and should be considered as expert level projects. If you are not good at pepakura, they won't turn out well.



The best advice I can give is patience and try doing something a little easier first to get your feet wet.





9. Help me get each piece on a single page. How do I do multi page pepakura? etc



Simply overly the corner crosshairs of the pages after trimming away the margin of one. Then glue both together to make larger pepakura pieces.







Questions Section Two Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo (begin armorfication)





Before you even think about beginning Stage 2 read these stickies.



Resining Tutorial/How To

Pepakura Fiberglass and Smoothing Tutorial



*also take note of recommended safety equipment*



Mixing instructions will always be included on the resin package.





1. What's the difference between Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo?



Bondo is a company that manufactures many products, when used as slang around here it refers to Bond Brand Body Filler It is always recognizable as the can with the red Mustang on the front.



Resin is a liquid plastic that when mixed with a catalyst hardens to a tough but brittle substance.



Fiberglass is actual fibers of glass and comes in both cloth and mat variety.





The verb use "to Fiberglass" means that you use fiberglass to strengthen your resin coats on your papercraft





2. Where do I get materials/safety equipment for fiberglassing?



Most appliance stores and auto parts places will have them and so will Walmart.





3. What kind of fiberglass should I use?



It's really a matter of preference but I think fiberglass cloth is the easiest to work with.





4. Should fiberglass go on the outside?



No Never Ever Ever! However, you should resin the outside.



4.1 - Why above?



It is a pain to sand and makes it a much bigger pain in the ass to smooth properly. If you want more fiberglass reinforcement, just add more layers of fiberglass to the inside of the armor!





5. What about using expanding foam/Great Stuff as reinforcement? etc



Use the Red and Blue can of Great Stuff or the foam will shrink and warp your work.





6. What about using plaster/paper mache/duct tape instead? etc



I've only seen one example of this working out right and it was duct tape on scratch-built armor.



I strongly recommend that you not attempt this. Most people who try end up tossing their helmets afterward.









Questions Section Three Detailing and Completion(Pimp my Mjolnir)





1. What do I use for a visor? Can I use anything other than a motorcycle visor? etc



HJC gold motorcycle visors are the preferred visor (Search HJC visor on ebay for a good deal) though you can use other motorcycle visors.



You can also purchase motorcycle visors locally at at motorcycle or all-sports store.



The only good looking alternative I've seen is Spartan 419's CD carrousel cover from Walmart.





2. What do I use for the vents in the helm?



Use black corrugated PVC plumbing pipe from your local hardware place.





3. Do I cover the entire helm in Bondo Body Filler? How do I detail with Bondo? etc



I prefer to only add Bondo to the specific areas that I'll be sculpting with a dremel tool (use lots of reference pics). It's less work that way.





4. How do I add lights and a fan?



Link has a great tutorial in the stickies: Wiring LED TO helmet















The last thing I will leave you with is PLEASE spell pepakura correctly in help posts.



If you don't it seems as if you don't really care enough about any of this to see it through to the end.





If you guys think of other common questions that I've missed (I'm sure there are more than a few). Please post them here

Great tutorial. I recently discovered PEP and I was shocked at how great this software is. I know the basics and a little more about paper modeling so I think I'll do just fine. Eh...with the help of this tut.

 

[NextMasterChief]

I'm having a problem with Pepakura Designer 3. I've tried getting the files for the Spartan Helmet and full body templates, but the only problem is that when I try to print it, the EDGE IDs print, but the detailed lines such as the folding ones don't show up.



I can't figure out what's wrong and I've even tried getting help from hp technical support about the printing problem, but they can't figure it out either.



Anyone have ideas of why it isn't printing right?

 

[Cladspartanex]

Hi guys, im totally new here, but i finished resining a E.O.D helm like an hour ago and my main question is:



Do i really need to resin the inside? or fibre glass mat it? cuz i dont see a point in it, the helmet is very sturdy and i want to know if it is absolutely necessary to do this, i thought maybe taping it and strengethening it that way would be cheaper and far easier, Pleaase respond, thanks :lol

 

[LastSpartan]

Can you sit on it? No?



It's not sturdy enough.





If you find fiberglass expensive, this hobby may disapoint you.

 

[Cladspartanex]

Scratch that comment before dude, i "re-evaluated" the helmet's integrity and i found that yeah i need to glass it. SO i did, now that thing can take a serious beating. Ive started sanding, and its a real hard thing to do, but im working it in there. I had an old hard hat at work i took the skeleton off of, im thinking of mounting it in the helm, so that its a nice fit



Cheerios



Clad

 

[h3thetruth]

There are many questions that n00bs and first time pepakura folks seem to ask over and over.



Almost all of these questions have been answered many times but sometimes it is difficult to find them in the sea of posts that make up the forum.



This is a concise list of the most common questions asked and the answers that go with them. It is important to remember that these are not absolute answers and that it is just the easiest and most common way.



As in most cases the alternate suggested ways might work but the best you are going to get is a lot more time spent to do something that might work and work less well than is what is specified here.





RULE #1 Read all the stickies before you begin! (I will also specify which ones answer what questions)



Pepakura files can be found in both of these stickies:



Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor

Pepakura Download Database









Questions Section One Pepakura Basics (the art of the papercraft)



1. How do I get and put together pepakura?



Look at both of these stickies before you even think about beginning.



Tutorial: How to use Pepakura to make your Mjolnir Armor

Tutorial: How to make Good Folds for Pepakura Armor



2. What are mountain and valley folds? How do I fold them? How can I figure out which is which? etc.



If your helmet was a planet, the mountain folds would form mountains and the valley folds would form valleys. It is always inward or outward in relation to the surface of the model.



The symbols can be changed in the Line Properties option in the Pepakura Designer program.





3. Do I have to use cardstock?/Can't I use regular paper?/What pound cardstock do I use? etc.



Use 110 lb cardstock for pepakura. It holds up well to fiberglassing and is friendly to most printers. You can get a ream of 150 sheets at Walmart for $5.



Regular paper must be extremely reinforced and is not worth the time. (it will be very warped, hard to fix and you'll probable end up throwing it away.



60 lb cardstock must also be reinforced but is preferred for those who have printers with less muscle (can't handle 11o cardstock). It is more expensive and more of a pain than 110 lb.





4. What do I use to glue/hold together my pepakura? Can't I use something else to hold it together? etc



In order of preference:



1. Low Temperature Hot Glue (Will say on glue gun)



2. Superglue



3. Electrical Tape (Resin will not eat through much. Use in place of ductape.)



4. other non dissolvable glues (other glues may work when you put the paper together but the resin will dissolve it when you fiberglass it and your model will fall apart in front of your eyes)



DO NOT USE



1. clear tape



2. dissolvable glues



3. duct tape





5. How do I scale my pepakura?



Use Frizz's and mine scaling formula found in the Official pepakura scaling thread sticky



Keep in mind that the MC is not anatomically correct and most must alter the scale for your biceps and thighs.



NAS measurements for assembled height to use as a standard.



Bicep: 35 cm



Thigh: 38 cm





6. My helmet is too small. Why can't I get my head through the neck? etc



Cut off the MC's neck/ make it hinged or your perfectly scaled helm will not fit. Think about it, is your neck as big around as your head?





7. I have a Mac/antique computer/incompatible OS, PLEASE HELP!



Pepakura is exclusively a Windows based program and should work on most PCs. In the case that you have something else, try using Windows emulation software.



Mac users who only want the helm are in luck as there are JPEGs of it available in 25 scale here: http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2867





8. Could I get some help with a weapon as a first project? etc



Weapons are much more complicated than armor and should be considered as expert level projects. If you are not good at pepakura, they won't turn out well.



The best advice I can give is patience and try doing something a little easier first to get your feet wet.





9. Help me get each piece on a single page. How do I do multi page pepakura? etc



Simply overly the corner crosshairs of the pages after trimming away the margin of one. Then glue both together to make larger pepakura pieces.







Questions Section Two Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo (begin armorfication)





Before you even think about beginning Stage 2 read these stickies.



Resining Tutorial/How To

Pepakura Fiberglass and Smoothing Tutorial



*also take note of recommended safety equipment*



Mixing instructions will always be included on the resin package.





1. What's the difference between Fiberglass/Resin/Bondo?



Bondo is a company that manufactures many products, when used as slang around here it refers to Bond Brand Body Filler It is always recognizable as the can with the red Mustang on the front.



Resin is a liquid plastic that when mixed with a catalyst hardens to a tough but brittle substance.



Fiberglass is actual fibers of glass and comes in both cloth and mat variety.





The verb use "to Fiberglass" means that you use fiberglass to strengthen your resin coats on your papercraft





2. Where do I get materials/safety equipment for fiberglassing?



Most appliance stores and auto parts places will have them and so will Walmart.





3. What kind of fiberglass should I use?



It's really a matter of preference but I think fiberglass cloth is the easiest to work with.





4. Should fiberglass go on the outside?



No Never Ever Ever! However, you should resin the outside.



4.1 - Why above?



It is a pain to sand and makes it a much bigger pain in the ass to smooth properly. If you want more fiberglass reinforcement, just add more layers of fiberglass to the inside of the armor!





5. What about using expanding foam/Great Stuff as reinforcement? etc



Use the Red and Blue can of Great Stuff or the foam will shrink and warp your work.





6. What about using plaster/paper mache/duct tape instead? etc



I've only seen one example of this working out right and it was duct tape on scratch-built armor.



I strongly recommend that you not attempt this. Most people who try end up tossing their helmets afterward.









Questions Section Three Detailing and Completion(Pimp my Mjolnir)





1. What do I use for a visor? Can I use anything other than a motorcycle visor? etc



HJC gold motorcycle visors are the preferred visor (Search HJC visor on ebay for a good deal) though you can use other motorcycle visors.



You can also purchase motorcycle visors locally at at motorcycle or all-sports store.



The only good looking alternative I've seen is Spartan 419's CD carrousel cover from Walmart.





2. What do I use for the vents in the helm?



Use black corrugated PVC plumbing pipe from your local hardware place.





3. Do I cover the entire helm in Bondo Body Filler? How do I detail with Bondo? etc



I prefer to only add Bondo to the specific areas that I'll be sculpting with a dremel tool (use lots of reference pics). It's less work that way.





4. How do I add lights and a fan?



Link has a great tutorial in the stickies: Wiring LED TO helmet















The last thing I will leave you with is PLEASE spell pepakura correctly in help posts.



If you don't it seems as if you don't really care enough about any of this to see it through to the end.





If you guys think of other common questions that I've missed (I'm sure there are more than a few). Please post them here

 

[h3thetruth]

ok im a complete noob to this and i need some help. i have looked into all this. im going to use the pepakura method. what i dont know is how to get the correct scaling and the right design. although this might be because i havent downloaded the free pepakura yet. that brings another question can i use just the free version for this or do i have to buy it? also i was wondering what type of printer you need i have a pretty high tech one so hopefully thatll work. i am only interested in making a helmet....for now=]] and i was wondering if i can us it for paintball.





and the reply before this was an accident i didnt know how to work this

sorry

 

[h3thetruth]

ok im a complete noob to this and i need some help. i have looked into all this. im going to use the pepakura method. what i dont know is how to get the correct scaling and the right design. although this might be because i havent downloaded the free pepakura yet. that brings another question can i use just the free version for this or do i have to buy it? also i was wondering what type of printer you need i have a pretty high tech one so hopefully thatll work. i am only interested in making a helmet....for now=]] and i was wondering if i can us it for paintball.





and the reply before this was an accident i didnt know how to work this

sorry

 

[KyleZ]

I may be new to this but i've read enough to say that using this armor for paintball or airsoft is not only dangerous as the armor may not withstand the paintball/bb, but why would you want to possibly ruin it? (correct me if i'm wrong please)



On a separate note: I have been reading and re-reading all of the stickies for a few weeks and I think I'm going to finally pick up some cardstock paper and start my armor. *yay!*

 

[Drumbtr]

So I am starting to build armor, and I'm new to Pepakura. I have a question, whether or not I should cut this line. Here's a pic of the line...

It's the thick line, not the dotted one. The line that merges with the dotted though.

Thanks!

 

[CaptainImpactor]

So I am starting to build armor, and I'm new to Pepakura. I have a question, whether or not I should cut this line. Here's a pic of the line...

It's the thick line, not the dotted one. The line that merges with the dotted though.

Thanks!

Yes, you should. You should always cut along the solid lines when using Pepakura. The only instance in which it shouldn't matter too much is when the dotted line is on top of the solid line, and in which case you can treat it as a fold. If you've got a small section (1-2mm), in the same predicament as your photo, then you should be able to avoid the cut if it's too tricky, and make up for it in the glassing &sanding, then bondo.