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[Kurshi BeJahaal]

I LOVE the weathering stage! It looks great!

[Dra'kar Vizsla]

Really love the helmet design and character background. Big fan of the Royal guards myself. Can't wait to see that helmet in person at Mercscon.

[Evad]

Many thanks vode.  All this work on my helmet recently and the preparation for Mercs Con has ramped up my zeal to start working on the rest of the armor more than I have been.  Still need to work out the where and how to put it together, but that'll come with time.  As of now, I just wanted to throw in an updated checklist to further chronicle the build. 

Updated Checklist

• Helmet - Finished! (Minor details to correct)
• Flight Suit - Needs Re-tailored
• Vest - Velcro Patch needs moved.
• Armor Plates - Partially cut and molded/Other parts in design phase
• Gauntlets - Roughly formed and shaped, with hinges attached
• Girth Belt -  Pre-Design Phase
• Cape - Measured and Cut, needs pleats.
• Boots - Obtained
• Gloves - Obtained
• Kama - Re-Design Phase
• Harness - Pre-Design Phase

The next thing I want to work on is a combination of the gauntlets and the armor plating.  Armor plating I expect will be easier, as I just need to cut and shape the plates properly, and then I can move onto the harness I need to construct.  The gauntlets will need special attention, as I'm really swinging for the fences on them both. 

Miscellaneous Progress

Speaking of Gauntlets, these are where they sit right now.  Just a section of PVC tube cut, formed, and mostly sanded in preparation for adding on what I have envisioned. 

Rough Cut


Sanded

Contacted a guy on Shapeways that had made some pieces earlier for me, and he had already made this for another vode, and I was given permission to order the same.  This is going to be the center of my iron heart, with the engraving being symbolic of his homeworld of Corellia. 

My cape was cut and hemmed a while back, made from a velvet material.  This is specifically another portion of the kit that is meant to be a callback to his Royal Guard days, and will become the shoulder cape.  I do plan to get this pleated, so it hangs down the back nicely, giving it more dimension than it would otherwise have.  The strip at the end though I'm fairly certain I'm going to cut off as it doesn't really mesh with the rest of the theme. 

[aforklikeutensil]

Glad to see this build is moving forward.  Can't wait to see it completed.

[Evad]

Tailoring Take 2!

So I followed the suggestions about my pant legs of my flightsuit, and had them tailored.  Took a pair of jeans and had them use that for the measurement so they would taper correctly and not be so baggy.   I am pleased to report they are still comfortable and lay correctly.  Took a few selfie shots with help of my mirror to see what everyone thinks.  You can scroll up and see what they used to look like when I'm wearing my boots.  I figure they'll work better running over the boot than tucked in.  Easier to see the blood stripes as well.

[Straka Zulu]

Much better!

[Kol Varek]

Looks good!

[Kurshi BeJahaal]

Those stripes look really awesome. The fit looks great too!

[Novoc Mereel]

Sorry for the slight necro-post, just wanted to say this looks awesome so far, mate!

[Evad]

A New Season of Building

So the weather is starting to warm up as April comes to a close.  I've done a bit more in preparation to start working on the kit again.  The first thing I've done is contacted a Merc from Maryland that does amazing fabric designs and takes commissions.  Met her at Mercs Con and so I've sent my flight suit and pattern for my shoulder came out to her.  Going to get much better sewn in blood stripes on my flightsuit pants replacing the very unprofessional iron ons that were never going to last.  She's also going to find a much better fabric for my shoulder cape to match what I need, as well as get the pleats sewn in there.  So buckets off to her for that!

Bucket and Visor

When I went to Mercs Con, people really enjoyed the bucket and was even able to the approval of the app team in making sure it was good to go.  Just a few things to touch up in weathering and it'll work for the kit.  The only issue I have is the T-Visor.  I put out a separate thread in the helmet section of the forums discussing the problem, and I've ordered a face shield from Holbart for welding, that I can cut down and replace what I have now. 

Aside from that issue, the bucket itself is nice and solid and I love how it came out.  Thought I'd feature it a little more here in the thread since the clear coat is done.

I was going to be doing some work with a friend this weekend, but unfortunately he got injured, so we're waiting on that.  I've also reached out to a vod in the Wisconsin clan because I saw his armor plating situation from a video taken at Celebration Chicago, so I'm excited to get some ideas from him.  Only thing left to do now is give an updated list.

Updated Checklist

• Helmet - Finished! (Visor to Redo)
• Flight Suit - Correctly Tailored, sent out for sewing work.
• Vest - Velcro Patch needs moved.
• Armor Plates - Partially cut and molded/Other parts in design phase
• Gauntlets - Roughly formed and shaped, with hinges attached
• Girth Belt -  Pre-Design Phase
• Cape - Sent out to be re-done with proper materials.
• Boots - Obtained
• Gloves - Obtained
• Kama - Re-Design Phase
• Harness - Pre-Design Phase

[Straka Zulu]

I can't wait to see it!!

[Khorkhe Ori'tor]

Hello Vod:

I have been impressed with the work of your helmet... This incredible Bro...

Regards,

[Evad]

Visor 2.0

Thanks to some very helpful Mercs for fielding my questions about replacing my visor referenced here, I was able to purchase a couple face shield replacements from the company they mentioned.  The first one I purchased was an accident as it was shade 3 which was too translucent.  The second one which was three times as much is the right shade (5).  However having two was a happy accident so I could do a test fit to make sure I had it just right before the final pattern and cutting.

Pattern Making

I started off taking the visors I did have and traced it out on poster board.  That gave me the rough shape, and through some judicious snipping as I maneuvered into the clips.  Then I marked off where I could add a little extra room to make a seal on the visor and face plate.  Getting that fit was a real challenge, but after some patience and more cutting and adjusting, I finally got a decent fit.  There however was still some daylight peeking through, and that was not going to work. 

What I did next I pulled from watching many episodes of Adam Savage's One Day Builds.  I used painter's tape and covered over all of the poster board, while also marking out more space and very precise edge lines around the clips.  This gave me more surface area.  I pulled that off, and then used that as the rough template for my test visor material (the shade 3).

Test Fit

From there I simply placed that on my test sheet of face mask material, and used an exacto knife to score out the rough pattern.  This wasn't that easy since the material is very slick.  Eventually though I got enough of the outline to use a pair of scissors and power through the cuts.  They are jagged, and it took some real work to use the exacto knife to get into the much smaller spaces.  Thankfully the material is pretty forgiving and malleable.  I was able to then firmly press it into the clips with satisfying clicks all around.  There is still plenty of material around the edges that will help me cement in the visor fully.  However this is just a test fit to ensure it covers all the areas, and sits proper. 

That's all I'm going to do for tonight.  Next up is using the rough cut as a template, getting smoother lines and probably using my dremel to smooth and round the edges some more so they aren't so pointy.  Then I'll be using some E-6000 to cement it in after it's clipped into place.  All in all, I'm pretty stoked that I was able to make that kind of progress in a couple of hours. 

[Evad]

Legacy Collar

Took a small break from the visor, as I'm waiting for the weekend to have some sunlight and outside time to use my dremel to make more precise cuts and clean up the edges.  In the meantime I brought out my duct tape dummy that I had made a few years ago to shape my armor.  I've gone through a few different designs trying to suss out exactly how I want the armor plating to lay.  I didn't want to pick up a pre-made template, so I opted with my own design.  Right now I'm just looking at the main functioning piece; which is the collar.  I have opted to go with a single collar plate that will merge into the front and back plates. 

Rough Cut and Shape

This has taken about two passes with a heat gun, and over the dummy I made with the flak vest on it does fit well, but it's not as curved as it needs to be.  I know I'll need to go over it again and sink it down further so that it holds the shape and doesn't pop up too much.  So far I'm thinking of taking some backpack padded straps and using them over each of my shoulders that will be more of a support for the harness.  I don't want to hang too much weight off each end, as the possibility of cracking could occur on the shoulder curve. 

The thin strips on the shoulders I plan to shape better and glue down as reinforcements on the shoulder to make the piece stronger in that area.  I don't really know if that's the best idea, but I thought I'd see what you all thought, and get some feedback.  Suggestions and comments are always welcome!

[Tek Sa'an]

Wow, you’re the one with that helmet! I saw that a while back on NME’s Facebook. That’s really awesome. What a nice WIP thread. You’ve done great work on everything.