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[Tethys Vox]

Howdy!

Okay, so I'm not exactly sure where to start here...been meaning to start this thread for ages but never did until today. I've honestly done more research and perusing through the boards than actually posting on them and it's about time that stops!
 I'm going to do my best to be as organized as possible with everything that's getting ready to be presented here. Any help/suggestions/advice anyone has would be more than appreciated since this is my first go at this!

This is my original concept drawing. I initially wanted to do a black/red Mando but I felt there were already enough without me. So I decided to just use the red to accent, which didn't go over well in my book.



I decided to do black and red anyway since I knew I just had to make the color scheme my own so as not to feel like "another black-and-red Mando". I also decided to use the gray to accent instead, thankfully that worked a lot better with generating ideas. This is my second conept, still debating on a few design/color things as I still feel like it still seems a little boring. A few of the notes on the design have been implemented but still need tweaking.


Thankfully, my buddy adamkadmon had me come by his place the other day to help me with sizing pictures and talk about ideas. Just wondering if they looked okay. The gut plate needs a very obvious trim-down and I'm most likely going to trim down and lengthen the shoulder portions of the collar plate since it seems too fat and short. Starting to wonder if maybe doing an accurate spacing would work out better. I was more concerned about the sizing at that point, but looking at the picture now it seems as if that might be throwing it off. Then again, this is my first stab at this sort of thing so what do I know?


I suppose that's all for now, don't wanna get terribly pic heavy straight out of the gate. I'll probably sort through a few things and get other portions of what I've gotten accomplished so far posted and see what you guys think. Any help is welcomed and appreciated!

[Naren Sprax]

Bah, didn't I take a closer picture than that one? You already echoed what I think about the size, sorry I used blue tape  really messes with the plate outline. Was expecting to see pics of the gaunts... 

[Dar'manda]

top drawing looks so much better than the bottom one!

[Naren Sprax]

 Sorry I didn't realize I had the plates so close Cy. I think a mix of your two ideas would be good. I like the color contrasts of the first one but I like the raised details idea of the second.

[Tethys Vox]

Bah, didn't I take a closer picture than that one? You already echoed what I think about the size, sorry I used blue tape  really messes with the plate outline. Was expecting to see pics of the gaunts... 

LOL! Gonna post up a few more, I was just dying of starvation earlier and had to fix that.

That's what I told him.  Sorry I didn't realize I had the plates so close Cy.

I wasn't worried about it. Was more worried about getting the pictures just so I could get more opinions. I didn't think about it possible skewing the perception of sizing until I was looking at it and thought "Hmmm. Should have posted the closer one instead."

First concept seems better, eh? I'll have to work some more on that then. Maybe integrate the two drawings more or work a bit more on the first. The idea driving my Mando is assassination so I thought the gray was a little counterproductive. I suppose the red is actually more so since it's a very eye-catching color. Definitely going to have to meditate on that a bit more.

So, here's a closer pic of the armor plates


And here's a few shots of the gaunts. They're metal and I feel as if I have some immediate complications here. First, a few shots of them:
 


I feel as if they come out too much on the forearm. I'm guessing if I decide to stick with these I'm going to have to use a torch to heat them up and bend them in so they close more, correct? There are some alignment issues which I can fix. My other major concern is how they curve inward on the inside of the forearm. Am I going to have to either weld something to make it continuous and uniform or would it just be better to scrap these entirely and start from scratch? I'm not entirely sure about how well plastic is going to adhere to metal via adhesive, though I'm sure there are a million other methods of making that happen. I'm still learning 

Here is the first mock-up of the shoulder piece. Gonna add a bicep plate but iffy on the design of it. I just made another shoulder bell out of poster board like the rest of my current templates but I'm not happy with the shape (at least for a bicep).Still debating on that one as well.


I suppose that's enough pics for now, trying my hardest not to oversaturate here. Thank you again for the help, adam.

[Naren Sprax]

Yeah, pec plates are probably too wide, the upper corners are supposed to align with the collar if I recall correctly, explains why the interior spacing is so tight, I was trying to squeeze them on you.  I like the look of the gaunts with the curve in btw. But you knew that.

[Walon Ferrel]

yeah i have to say you spacing is slightly too close, so far so good though love the gaunts

[Dar'manda]

also if you do go with the black and red on the bottom (dont tho hehe) definitely don't outline the plates in a different color like in the drawing

[Naren Sprax]

also if you do go with the black and red on the bottom (dont tho hehe) definitely don't outline the plates in a different color like in the drawing

The outline you see is a concept for raised details McCoy, does that change your opinion or make it worse? 

[Dar'manda]

outlining armor plates in a different color should just always be discouraged as a design aesthetic. it distorts the iconic shape and look of the armor and there are way too many other (better) design choices =)

[Tethys Vox]

Well, it's been quite a bit but I've got a few updates.

Bucket with Bondo!


After some spot filling, I've been meditating on how to attach these antennas to the earpiece shown:


Any suggestions? What I've come up with so far is to drill small holes into the filled-in portion, attach a piece of toothpick or paper clip to the inside of the antenna and use some epoxy to secure them in place. Would it be a better idea to do this before or after priming or is there a better way to go about it?

The ear pieces keep getting cracks, so I'm under the assumption that going with Loc-Tite was a terrible idea and I'm gonna have to bust those bad boys off and do them again with some 2-part Epoxy. After the grand sand down, I'll have some updates there. The plus side of temporary loss of motivation with my bucket has forced me to make progress in other areas though.

After the feedback I've gotten, I've decided to redo the colors using more grey. I still can't come up with anything I like so I'm stuck there as well. I've ordered a Jango-esque belt from eBay, my gloves have shown up and I'm waiting for a corrected post office goof so I can get my boots. I've got dual Jango Westars on their way that come with a holster that appears to be pleather, but knowing my luck it'll probably be vinyl. I figure worst case, I can just use them as a template or pattern to make my own and my blaster pistol issues are taken care of.

Still hunting for my girth belt. With the brown belt and holsters in the picture, I think the only thing I'm being picky about is the color since I'm still not set on exactly how I'm doing my colors. Everything I come up with seems either too plain or not creative enough. I'm thinking I'm probably being a perfectionist and making this more difficult than it really needs to be. So for now, I'm gonna just go back to the drawing board.

Oh! Almost forgot plates! Does sizing look better this time around? adamkadmon helped me out with this one again, Scotch tape likes cloth a LOT more than masking tape. Still had issues with keeping them to form. I guess I know better than to use poster board now, though I still have the paper ones around as well.

[Tethys Vox]

Another update.

The gun I'll most likely be modding. Both assembled and broken down. I forsee a lot of work on this one, that scope isn't looking acceptable.

[Naren Sprax]

I think a trim is needed on the plates buddy, the interior spacing is just gonna be too tight.

[Tethys Vox]

Yeah, thinking the way I'm built I'm gonna have to get them resized for 5'8" instead. Stupid twig body.

[Niabi]

I think the sizeing is fine but i like tight plates less room for lightsabers to get though 

with your nerfs .... my advise is to chop it up and stick it back together then cover as much Nerfy bits as possibal

[Tethys Vox]

My it's been a while, hasn't it?
Been a little busy with a few real life things but the serious work has once again resumed! I've finally decided on my Mando's name: Tethys Vox. I've finally finalized my colors as well, but the problem I've encountered is my striping designs seem to fall short. I'll be posting that later once I get closer to something I'm comfortable with. For now, here's what I've been up to lately.

Just did the silver undercoat about an hour ago. I noticed I missed a few nooks and crannies underneath, so I'm just going to wait for it to dry and hit the last of it tomorrow since I'll probably start painting my gaunts at that point.


This is the girth belt I made using Deimos Ordo's tutorial (http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=62774.msg922988#msg922988). It only took about 2-3 hours to make using some clothesline rope, burlap jute, overall buckles, elastic, hot glue and fabric glue. The tutorial already goes through this, but I'll post what I did to make it happen.

I started off wrapping the clothesline rope around something a little bit bigger than my waist, which happened to be the box my boots came in. I hot glued burlap strips along the inside to keep it all stable, slid it off of the box and put some gorilla tape where the belt was going to be cut. The excess burlap was trimmed off and then I hot glued one long strip along the back for more stability.



I then hot glued two pieces of burlap on the outside with a little overhang to attach the buckles. I used fabric glue instead of sewing them to the straps, which may very well change simply because I'm very paranoid. However, it holds just fine for now. I tested it with my ammo belt last night and it seems okay. I used dark brown Rit to dye it.



For now, I'm going to make an attempt at working on my gaunts. I ordered the CWDW V1 gaunts from The Mandalorian Arsenal (great product, by the way!). While this is obviously a pic heavy thread I'm trying not to clutter up a single post with a million pictures so I'll save those for later. I've got to heat form the oval shape out of them but the hot glue tabs that were used to keep the upper shell bonded to the flat melted pretty quick. I'm trying to devise another way to keep the upper shell bonded to the flat so I can heat up the gaunts, shape them the way I need to and then remove them so I can get my velcro attached. Any suggestions there?

[Kelan Ord]

Looking good! I like that girth.

As for the gaunts, you might wanna try E6000 or any plumber putty or even epoxy glue.

Good luck on your build.

[Tracyn Ordo]

Looking good so far. Great job with the girth belt!

[Tethys Vox]

Looking good! I like that girth.

As for the gaunts, you might wanna try E6000 or any plumber putty or even epoxy glue.

Good luck on your build.

Looking good so far. Great job with the girth belt!

Thanks guys!

I almost scrapped my gaunts the other day, I'm a tiny little guy and it seems like there's nothing I can do to make the end near my wrists smaller (seriously, I have some skinny wrists ). So I think I'm either going to have to get some bigger gloves to take up the slack or start them over. Bought some PVC tube just in case.

So here's where I'm at currently: I cut out and smoothed out the edges for my plates yesterday. I'm not sure if I have enough left over to do my back plate but I do still have to finalize my knee/bicep armor designs as well. I was at Naren Sprax's house the other day and he gave me his collar plate from a suit of armor he got so I'll probably use that instead of the one I cut out. Here's the kit so far:


So I'm becoming increasingly frustrated with my colors. To be more accurate: placing and things to make it pop, such as patterns, stripes, etc. It's been a while since I've flexed creativity muscles that didn't have anything to do with music so I'm thinking that's the problem. Anywho, here's where I'm at with the latest concept. The super dark details are changing because I don't like them. I'm having a major issue being creative here.

I'm thinking about just going back to my original idea with the red. It's boring but I wasn't frustrated with it.

And lastly, here's the issue I've encountered with the bucket. To put a long story short: the can suddenly bubbled underneath and shot paint all over the back causing some pretty bad drips and some rough surfaces. I had one drip I was able to fix but couldn't get the gunky black stuff underneath to sand down very far, luckily I was able to hide it with the Silver. Since these are worse, am I screwed or is there a way to make them go away without having to sand for the rest of my natural life? To be perfectly honest, I'm about ready to just order one from NME and be done with it. J2P's are great if you're not accident prone lol!

[Deimos Ordo]

Great Work So Far, that girth belt looks just like mine  , great Job 8). I like the Paint Scheme too and choice of ammo pouches. Keep it up

[Tracyn Ordo]

As far as those drips go, my suggestion would be to wait a couple of days for the paint to cure fully, then lightly sand the area with something like 220grit sandpaper, wipe it down and repaint. It shouldn't require too much sanding and it'll give you the best results in the long run.

[Naren Sprax]

This guy just doesn't trust me.  And dude, I told you I got a run on my bucket too and told you how to fix it before this even happened, lol. Looking great vod. Wonder which one of us will finish first?

[Tethys Vox]

Great Work So Far, that girth belt looks just like mine  , great Job 8). I like the Paint Scheme too and choice of ammo pouches. Keep it up

Thanks vod!
You have NO idea how glad I was to find your tutorial (thanks for sharing, btw). I was ready to spend 2-3x what it cost to make that on one from a tack and feed store that would have taken more work to fit me properly. This was just a one-shot and I'm happy with it. I did a test run with the flight suit and ammo belt and it fit very nicely.
And I really do appreciate the encouragement on the colors. I've been so picky about them and any alterations made that it's driving me nuts! Will probably nail down the pattern for the stripes and such over the next couple days since the plates and gaunts are almost ready for silver. I may go back to the very initial design and have a bit more gold and red on one side, divided by the black. Gotta put it on paper to see how it looks, I guess.

This guy just doesn't trust me.  And dude, I told you I got a run on my bucket too and told you how to fix it before this even happened, lol. Looking great vod. Wonder which one of us will finish first?

I do kinda remember that, now that you mention it. I have it in my head that your process was free of obstacles, for some reason. Maybe it's just because I've had so many.
Honestly, I'm betting you'll finish first. Since I step back for almost a week every time I get frustrated and I still haven't gotten my flak vest situated, knee designs finalized, alterations to the flight suit, minimal work on my blasters and I still need plastic for the back plate: oh yeah. Naren'll be official first. But you've also got far better reasons for slowed progress than I do. Then again, who knows? I might finally stop being super picky about everything and just move forward. I'm thinking about just ordering a flak vest from either Sidi Ren or K'raam Xrati since my sewing skills are awful.

As far as those drips go, my suggestion would be to wait a couple of days for the paint to cure fully, then lightly sand the area with something like 220grit sandpaper, wipe it down and repaint. It shouldn't require too much sanding and it'll give you the best results in the long run.

I guess I'm just gonna have to buck up and get it over with. The bucket has been untouched for about a week now, I've just been too sad about it lol! The first drip took forever wet sanding with 400 grit and I figured since these were worse I was stuck with sadness.

Thanks to all of you! My motivation is back in the clouds!

[Niabi]

Looking good vod the paint drips are an easy fix you can do it

[Tethys Vox]

It seems I like to vanish for months at a time lol! Had to take some time to defrag and plan a little. Back to the grindstone!

So the bucket is near completion, here's what it looked like after I did the black wash and charcoal.


I did a clear matte coast to seal the bucket, the conclusion I have come to is my spray paint skills need some work. Here's what happened:



I'm terrified to take sandpaper to it since the coat is so thin. Please tell me this is salvageable!

I've had some serious issues with my gaunts, learning the whole heat gun/plastic thing has been a pain but I had those mostly figured out. I'll get some pics of those up later. I've also decided to scrap the plates I had as well and will use those for a personal Mando for Halloween since I feel like I did a terrible job there (which I probably didn't; I've been told I'm too hard on myself more often than I'd like to admit). I ordered a full set of armor from tk2280, so since I've got about a month until I get the order, I'm going to start figuring out what to do about my blasters/rifle.