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 A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« on: Nov 23, 2016, 12:03 AM »
I figured it was about time to get on here and post about the progress of my kit other than my helmet. If you would like to see the progress on that though, you can go here: http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=114215.msg1647975#msg1647975. Where to begin? I started by purchasing a black flightsuit from the local Army Surplus store. This place had everything; while I was there I picked up a pair of gloves that fit perfectly with my vision for my armor.



Afterwards, I had a friend come over and help me make a ductape dress form/mannequin.



I managed to find some decent fabric from another friend that I thought would look cool for my flak vest. After some hours of working off of a template with some awesome help from a Clanmate, we managed to get most of it taken care of. Still need to add the shoulders and put some darts in the front, but I think it is turning out pretty cool. For the design of the flak vest we used two parachute buckles and nylon webbing to snap the front fabric portion in the middle of the back. While the back fabric portion we did the same, but they fold and snap on the sides. As of right now, that is as far as I have gotten for this part. On to the next area!





Due to some great opportunities here in Colorado, I was given the option of going to some Leather working classes. I figured this would be a perfect time to start working on my belt. It was going to be a bit complicated, but I knew what I wanted. I started by buying a whole side of leather. I cut off one long strip at length of my waist, but made it 2 1/2 inches wide. Then I cut it in half, trimmed the ends to curve in some and rivoted them to 2: 2 1/2 inch rings. On one side of a single strap, instead of using rivots, i used snaps, so the belt could be put on and taken off at any point.

Following almost the exact same same guidelines as above, I cut another strip, except this time I made sure both pieces could go from the side of my waist over the opposite shoulder and back down to my waist in the same position as the other end.  this will be the baldric part of the belt and will eventually connect to the other belt already made. Also, instead of cutting it in half I made the cut so that when I put it through the buckle in the end, it would lye just below my shoulder, but not on top of my breastplates. This does mean that you will have to different sizes in length, but that is okay.  Attached two ends together with another 2 1/2 in ring, but on the other two side, just as with a ring, I attached a buckle. This is as far as I have gotten on my belt so far. Updates to follow as I continue to make progress.



I did however happen to get a hold of a belt over at hot topic that I thought I would use for my ammo belt and would eventually go along with the belt I was already making. Do keep in mind, I have not done any dying of the leather yet, but I plan on having them a black or dark purple color and a lighter purple thread sewn throughout.



With the trusty old pepakura files I have found on the interwebs, I put together my left gauntlet and went ahead and fiberglassed it. Did the same steps as found with my helmet WIP (link found above). I ended up getting to a point that I did not completely like how it was looking, so I went back and cut out a section and decided to use an ironman toy in its place. Bondoed it in place, sanded it down, smoothed out everything, and then cut out the top flat section of the gauntlet. this is going to be a small cover to where my phone will sit (made to not resemble a phone later). That way I can control a bluetooth sytem in my helmet without breaking character.





As you notice, there is another hole that I left open. I will be using this area to attach a hose to that area and make it look more like a pop-up flamethrower. Once I got everything all nice and neat, I cut the gauntlet in half and proceded to use epoxy glue and pop rivots to attach a piano hinge to the inside. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned and I broke the hinge off inserting the rivots. Luckily, Bondo is very forgiving and I just redid the edge and tried again, with success!






Aria


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #1 on: Nov 23, 2016, 12:32 AM »

It looks like you're off to a great start with the vest, though you may want to consider some princess seems along the bust to help eliminate some of the wrinkles on the front. That will help your armor plates lay flatter and shift around less when you attach them. :)

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The Aria Pics
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Havelock


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #4 on: Jan 11, 2017, 04:35 PM »
Wow.  Everything's looking really good.  Have you made any more progress?  Watching with interest.

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Raestin Ke'Varek


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #5 on: Jan 11, 2017, 04:42 PM »
Yep, great job so far!!  I can't wait to see how the gauntlets turn out, they look pretty cool so far. 

I'm a fairly new amateur leatherworker too, and I really like what you've done so far with the belt/baldric combo!  Working on leather has been one of the most rewarding parts of my build so far.  Need a pouch?  Make one!!  Need a belt?  Make one!!  Need a holster?  You get the idea...  :P

I'll be following your progress, keep up the good work.  :)

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #6 on: Jan 11, 2017, 11:55 PM »
Because of the holidays and the recent frigid weather, I have stalled a little. Good news though, I should be finishing my flak vest and possibly my kama this weekend. My plates are about half way cut out with PVC. I just have to heat form them. Hoping to work on the leather more between now and next month.

Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #7 on: Jan 18, 2017, 12:19 AM »
Update!!!!

Another weekend gone, but some really good news. Managed to get my flak vest and my Kama all finished!

The flak vest turned out better than I thought it would originally. If you are wondering, it is made with four flaps. the front two wrap to the back and buckle from behind. The back two then come forward and buckle on the sides.



As far as the Kama, nothing super special about how it was made, but I really like how the translucent material turned out on the back.



Here are some pics of both of them on top of my flightsuit for a better visual.


Seltas Atin


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #8 on: Jan 26, 2017, 07:21 AM »
I really like the look of your soft parts, good job! The material you used for the kama is quite unique and fancy, I like it :)
(Also the wall covered in Nerf guns looks so cool *^*)

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Havelock


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #9 on: Jan 26, 2017, 11:19 AM »
That iridescent liner is pretty amazing.  Very cool! 

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #10 on: Jan 26, 2017, 12:59 PM »
Thanks! I should be working on my plates this weekend, so I will have a new post up I am done.

Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #11 on: Feb 22, 2017, 12:52 AM »
Update!

After experimenting with using PVC as my material to make my armor out of, I realized it was just too heavy to wear on a continual basis. At least for me that is. I know other people who are fine with it and its a great, cheap resource to use. I eventually got my hands on some ABS plastic and managed to get all my parts formed minus the cod piece and due to a mistake in the cutting process, one thigh plate. Most are pretty easy to make into the proper shapes, but with every girl out there we know that it is the chest that gives us the most trouble. For mine, I got the desired shape and soldered the back lines with extra ABS scraps that I had on hand. Afterwards, I welded the front cut areas together just using the solder gun. All and all, I am very pleased with how they turned out. the back plate I got from someone and just need to clean it up and do a little tweaking. As you can tell, I am going with a more Bo Katan style armor plating. Anyways, more to come as I finish up things.




Aria


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #12 on: Feb 23, 2017, 01:20 AM »
Good progress!

The chest plates look good, nice job putting them together. They might be a little lumpy/ bumpy on the front side, but you can easily fix that with some bondo.

Do we get to see them on you next? :)

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The Aria Pics
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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #13 on: Feb 23, 2017, 10:36 AM »
I am going to finish up the cod plate and the other thigh guard first. The moment I do, I will get a picture up for everyone. Should have the done by this weekend.

Zarya Arthos


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #14 on: Feb 24, 2017, 12:46 AM »
Nice work on that flak vest! The material you found for the kama is so cool and unique.

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #15 on: Mar 07, 2017, 11:55 PM »
Okay, sorry for the late response. Things got hectic and I could not find the time to put up a new post with pictures. But, without further adieu I give you the torso plates semi-attached to the vest (just using duct tape). It can be a little hard to see because of the black on black, but the end product will be different colors. Also, after talking with some of my Clan mates, it comes to find out that the collar is just slightly to short. We came up with a solution that we think will look cool and rectifies the situation, see pictures below.



Here is a close up of the collar with the first addition added. It has not been heat formed yet, but I hope you get the idea.



More pictures soon to follow.

Aria


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #16 on: Mar 08, 2017, 12:51 AM »
It's a good idea, I like it. You may want to make the little pieces a bit longer though, so they're even with your collar plate and even out the spacing with your chest plates.

I'm also not sure how the app team will feel about the seems on your chest plates, you may want to smooth them out a little.

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The Aria Pics
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Darth Tenebrus


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #17 on: Mar 08, 2017, 02:57 AM »
Great work, and I really like that piece I'm assuming is your backplate?

Sabine


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #18 on: Mar 08, 2017, 08:55 AM »
I like the side tabs, but I agree with aria on extending them to the bottom of the collar plate.

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Sabine Wren S2

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #19 on: Mar 08, 2017, 09:57 AM »
It's a good idea, I like it. You may want to make the little pieces a bit longer though, so they're even with your collar plate and even out the spacing with your chest plates.

I'm also not sure how the app team will feel about the seems on your chest plates, you may want to smooth them out a little.

I will definitely keep that in mind to extend them out. I think what I need to do now is finish sanding and attaching the plates in a better fashion first. That way I can get a better feel for how everything lines up. As far as the seams, they are on my bucket list of things to get done over the next couple of weeks. I know they are all rather crude looking at the moment, lol.

Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #20 on: Mar 09, 2017, 01:04 AM »
Okay, I ended up working on the breastplates sooner than expected, lol. I was planning on using bondo to cover up a lot of the lumps, but I found a good way to take care of them without bondo. I first started sanding them with my hand sander at 120 grit. When I did this though, it really showed exactly where the lumps were, so I just picked up my heat gun and started fixing them. Just sand again to see if the lumps are gone and use the heat gun to flatten them out. Luckily ABS is very pliable when hot. Here is a picture of the two breastplates: the one on the right has been worked on with the heat gun, while the one on the left has not. The dark spots are where all the lumps or divots are located.


Aria


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #21 on: Mar 09, 2017, 01:13 AM »

That looks much better! Very nice job!  :)

Also, be careful of the double posting. If you need to, use the modification button to update your last post.

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Ja'nyc Crucible


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #22 on: Mar 09, 2017, 09:13 AM »
Great work, and I really like that piece I'm assuming is your backplate?

I am guessing you are talking about the green piece on the right of the picture where the plates are on the floor? If so, yes, that is my backplate. It still needs some touch-up work, but I really like how it looks as well. I also have some old printer toner cartridges that are going to work well for the jet pack. I will put pictures of those up once I get closer.

Raestin Ke'Varek


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #23 on: Mar 09, 2017, 09:57 AM »
Great work on the chest plates!!! That looks much better!   8)

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Sabine


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Re: A Crucible WIP (Pic Heavy)
« Reply #24 on: Mar 09, 2017, 09:32 PM »
That looks fantastic! Much better.

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Sabine Wren S2

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