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 Heavy Female Armor WIP

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Heavy Female Armor WIP
« on: Jun 23, 2011, 06:31 PM »
My goal is to go for a heavily armored female Mando. I already have my helmet ready to paint, but I didn't want to jump the gun just yet, I wanted to work on my armor.

Problem is, I have *never* used patterns before, and I have no clue how to make my own. I have an idea of what I want, but a hard time drafting it.

I saw this image in another thread and I LOVE the look of it. I'd modify it a bit, obviously, but I prefer this style way over the mannequin "boob" plates. Maybe it's breast envy, but I want to look scary, not sexy, lol.



I drew up the basic pattern, but I'm just a weee bit scared to move up to full scale. Do I just draw it up on cardboard and give it a test fit? How do simpletons like me jump right into pattern making?

« Last Edit: Jun 24, 2011, 06:13 PM by radiobath » Logged
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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #1 on: Jun 23, 2011, 06:58 PM »
Cardboard, cardstock, printer paper, whatever. Anything can be used for templates. And just go ahead and jump, anything else just takes too long!  :D

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #2 on: Jun 23, 2011, 08:21 PM »
Working on soda can box templates right now. Posting pics in a bit when I'm done drafting them up.

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #3 on: Jun 23, 2011, 08:48 PM »
I think I've said this before somewhere,,,,, I hate waiting!

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #4 on: Jun 23, 2011, 09:20 PM »
Sorry it took so long. Sizing issues, as always. :P





Yeah, sloppy. And I could only tape them with scotch tape. But I'm sure Bondo + heating + shaping + sanding + tears of frustration (if I have any more to spare) will smooth it out.

Opinions??

Also, sorry about the craptastic webcam shots. Everyone is in bed, so I can't take pics with my phone. :(

Edit: Yes, I forgot the diamond. *facepalm* Final mockup will have it, I promise.

« Last Edit: Jun 23, 2011, 09:23 PM by radiobath » Logged
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Zohar Nef


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #5 on: Jun 24, 2011, 12:27 AM »
Looks like you are off to a good start will be following this as it might work well for when I get my wifes kit going.  Thought you might want to enlarge either the chest plates or stretch out(up,down wise) the top ab plate.  Just my opinion.

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #6 on: Jun 24, 2011, 03:31 AM »
Great first attempt , well done  ;) I would add a chest diamond though , but then ive not got boobs .

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #7 on: Jun 24, 2011, 07:28 AM »
Go ahead and steal this idea. It's not easy though. I almost wanted to cry a few times. And that was before I even got near pins. :P

As for the chest plates, I plan on fixing the bottom part a bit. Extend them down, cut out the center bit so the ab plate can fit correctly...

The ab plate will be two pieces, and there will be layered abs. And my plans are to actually bolt down the armor onto the vest for maximum cool effect (and so plates wont be jutting out and stabbing people in the eye).

It needs a lot of tweaking. I definitely need to get better tape, because I feel like they keep slipping and I have to readjust every two minutes.

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Hagen Nor'ak


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #8 on: Jun 24, 2011, 08:30 AM »
Collar plate is to low, it will need to be moved up I'd guess about an inch and a half or so. Which would then lead to the problem of the collar plate needing to be bigger to line up with the chest plates, or the chest plate pieces needing to be taller to meet up with the collar plate. I assume since this is in the legacy section that your going to have multiple ab plates? If your going to go with the standard 3 ab plates... it looks like it would be close on sizing, if I'm guessing right. But it wouldn't hurt to make them a bit taller as well so the cover the entire ab section.

So just keep at it and don't let it get you frustraighted if you don't get it right the first time. It took me 3 years from when I first started putting stuff together till getting official, so take your time and we'll be here to help when you need it.

Have a good one,
Hagen

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #9 on: Jun 24, 2011, 09:40 AM »
Hagen, thanks for the advice. I made the collarplate bigger by about 1/2 inch, and it looks a lot better.

I adjusted the bottom of the chest plate, made a cut-out for the top of the ab plate, but it still needs minor adjustments.

The ab plate, I'm going to make taller/thicker/whatever. The other two will gradually decrease in height/thickness/whatever.

And the diamond WILL be on the final version. Promise!

My cardboard mockups look awful, no matter how hard I try to tape them. When I squish them down onto my body, they look perfect. But it's hard to get a picture like that. I don't mind wasting a bit of Sintra just to get them to look right in photos.

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seugtai


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #10 on: Jun 24, 2011, 09:47 AM »
I really like what you've come up with here, I think they look great! I agree with Hagen about the collar, I think if you add a section to the open collar space, following your t-shirt underneath in the pic, you'll be good. I also like the narrow ab plate and I think if your going to stack them traditional legacy style they will really look great, more feminine. Look forward to seeing this builds progress.  ;)

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #11 on: Jun 24, 2011, 10:19 AM »
Well, the collarplate is much thicker now, but I was trying to avoid having a t-shirt sized hole for mobility sake. I was going to thicken up the ab plate a bit, since they were going to be stacked but not overlapping. Also, decided against splitting them in half, and just go with 3 solid ab plates instead.

Seugtai, thanks for the kind words and advice. It's a tough finding the appropriate balance of feminine and scary-shebs warrior.

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seugtai


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #12 on: Jun 24, 2011, 10:35 AM »
It's a tough finding the appropriate balance of feminine and scary-shebs warrior.

You don't have to tell me girl, I'm covered in spikes. LOL  :D ;) ;D

Can't wait to see what you've got up your sleeve next.

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #13 on: Jun 24, 2011, 11:02 AM »
Can't wait to see what you've got up your sleeve next.

An arm, covered in Bondo and Sintra dust.  :D

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Ohl'd Vart


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #14 on: Jun 24, 2011, 12:58 PM »
Looking good so far, Radio...I like what you've done.  ;)

And you're doing it correctly....costuming scratch-built armor is all about using cardboard and/or similar materials, cutting, taping ,resizing, etc, etc until you get what you want...then transferring that to a pattern that can used on Sintra, or whatever permanent materials you decide to use.

Keep up the good work!  :)

Rob

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #15 on: Jun 24, 2011, 01:02 PM »
My dremel skills have improved! I cut out one boob plate and the collar piece. I'm heating them up with my hairdryer (which is SURPRISINGLY effective) and shaping them directly onto my body. Not the best option, I'm sure. But once everything is shaped well enough, I'll tape them together with duct tape to show.

And don't worry about critiquing them, because I cut them from a crap piece of Sintra. Mythbusters taught me that no full scale test is complete without at least a few failures.

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #16 on: Jun 24, 2011, 03:36 PM »
Alright. Between babysitting my niece and carrying down 60 - 100 gal fish tanks from the attic, I managed to actually get something done.

If needed, I'll post a pic of it on me, but I shaped the collar piece a bit wrong. No biggie, it's a tester anyways. It's just awkward and uncomfortable right now.



And here's a concept drawing I did in my sleep or something. Pardon the inability to draw at all.



(not pictured: regular old T visor helmet)

PLEASE, critique me! And would anyone mind if I changed this to my WIP thread?

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seugtai


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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #17 on: Jun 24, 2011, 04:01 PM »
Just a tip, can't really tell from the picture, but you can bevel the edges of your boob plates so when the two pieces are put together at the angle you want they will sit nice an flush. Otherwise not much else to comment on right now, I'm sure you'll get that collar piece figured out.  ;)

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #18 on: Jun 24, 2011, 05:43 PM »
Looks good so far, Radio.  :)

Like Seugtai said, if you bevel the edges of the plates, they will fit better, As a matter of fact, if you have the free Legacy templates here on the forum, the knee armor has such beveled cuts....they are similar to the chest plates you have made already.  :)

Rob

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Re: Legacy questions (probably updated daily)
« Reply #19 on: Jun 24, 2011, 06:12 PM »
So, just cut out little V shapes? I know I can just sand and Bondo it over, but maaaaaaaan. It's scary to think about.

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Ohl'd Vart


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Re: Heavy Female Armor WIP
« Reply #20 on: Jun 24, 2011, 06:29 PM »
So, just cut out little V shapes? I know I can just sand and Bondo it over, but maaaaaaaan. It's scary to think about.

Believe me...extended periods of sanding Bondo is a LOT more work than cutting the piece and getting it to form the complex curves as much as possible before. Experiment on the cardboard first to get the right pattern.  :)

As a guy who does a lot of auto bodywork, trust me when I say it will behoove you to get the final shape as close as possible before adding Bondo...the less of the plastic filler you have to use, the less likely it will be to crack later, and it will also be a lot lighter weight to wear.  ;)

Rob

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Slade Kel


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Re: Heavy Female Armor WIP
« Reply #21 on: Jun 24, 2011, 07:09 PM »
Pretty much what's been said ;D. Great start, and I'll echo the Old Fossil; cardboard mock-ups are the key here. I cannot even begin to estimate how much money I wasted in sintra and steel over the first year or two of this hobby, just because I didn't do proper mock-ups first. Also echo the beveling sentiment; more bondo = more suckage :P. Bondo is great to get nice smooth lines to your armor, but it's a stone cold shabuir when it comes to sanding it down, then filling the inevitable little divots, and then dealing with the occasional cracking. The less bondo you can manage to use, the better.

I'm glad to see more Legacy armor in Firaxan land :). You're going with spaced collar-chest-abs, from the concept and your plate placement in the mock-up? Are the ab plates themselves going to be layered, or just abutted? If you decide to go for the layered look, one method with sintra is Falin Skirata's; give yourself half an inch or so of overlap, then sand the front of the lower plate and back of the upper plate in that 1/2 inch, so that they fit together and overlap more smoothly.

Falin and I both did our plates similarly in that the abs are glued together so that you don't have to worry about the plates sliding around. I don't really notice much less flexibility with the Legacy armor than I do with normal modern era, except the biceps, the which are uncomfortable  :-\.

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Re: Heavy Female Armor WIP
« Reply #22 on: Jun 24, 2011, 07:47 PM »
I actually was just thinking of stacking them on top of each other, no spacing, but not overlapping. I might if my idea falls through though.

The biggest issue I have noticed right now just wearing the tester armor is that I can't cross my arms. There goes like, 30 poses I wanted to do. :(

I'll try a mockup again tomorrow. Tonight, I am pooped. It's only quarter to 8 and I already want to go to bed.  :'(

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Re: Heavy Female Armor WIP
« Reply #23 on: Jun 24, 2011, 08:37 PM »
She wants to cross her arms!!!! Oh, the hilarity!!!!!!   ;)  Nature of the beast, put on plates, arm crossing goes bye bye!

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Re: Heavy Female Armor WIP
« Reply #24 on: Jun 24, 2011, 08:40 PM »
She wants to cross her arms!!!! Oh, the hilarity!!!!!!   ;)  Nature of the beast, put on plates, arm crossing goes bye bye!

You got that right.  ;)

Rob

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