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[Taruk]

(Really hoping these images show, otherwise bear with me and I’ll fix it!)

I’m tackling my first build and I’m already going metal. Having a husband in aviation airframe mechanics so why not? I’m primarily a creature fabricator so of course I’m going with something non human/humanoid. The vulpine Amarans and the felidae Togorian were two that came to my interest, but I’ll be sticking with the Amaran.

Here’s two early concept sketches for both species. I’ve done enough costumes to know well enough these won’t stay as they are for long.





Ignore the spacing on the Togorian armor, it was a quick concept to get the idea down.



Creature builds are no strangers to me so I’m comfortable with going either direction with little concern for ‘cartoon’. 3 big cats and a fox for a small idea of what the Togorian and Amaran could look like.

I had also included a bucket design with a modified open face based off of the Staulker design. HOWEVER after wandering several threads on a similar topic, I will be working to making it a full faced helmet and T visor.


I did the patterning off of a duct tape dummy. Trying on the tape templates I did notice they were a little wider than I wanted. I narrowed it down a tad before transferring onto 3003 .063 aluminum.



I then set to beating the shoulder guards out of .025 and .040 and rounding them into shape via hammer. Would an English wheel be easier? Yeah. I’m not ready to shell out $300 for a tool (yet I’m totally ready to spend roughly that on supplies...)




The vambraces will be getting a leather layered guard on the underside and the tops of the fingers their own separate armor. I cut these out of the .040 and gave them to the husband to grind and bend for me. Sure beats using a vice and a block of wood!





I’ll be patterning out the shin, foot, thigh, and back plates next week. The Kama and loincloth will be leather. Weapon wise I’m thinking Hecate II style rifle, some blaster, and a sword for melee later down the road.

[Jenga]

Heyo! I was commenting on some of your stuff on the RPF fb group. Glad you found the forums 

So these concepts are looking awesome. Plate size looks like it might be a little on the large side, but that's ok in the template stage. A straight on pic would help a bit more.

The only major issue I see is you helmet design. Per CRLs, you must have a full helmet that is easily recognizable as mandalorian. Your concept with the muzzle sticking out is unfortunately a no-go. It must be fully encased.

[Taruk]

Heyo! I was commenting on some of your stuff on the RPF fb group. Glad you found the forums 

So these concepts are looking awesome. Plate size looks like it might be a little on the large side, but that's ok in the template stage. A straight on pic would help a bit more.

The only major issue I see is you helmet design. Per CRLs, you must have a full helmet that is easily recognizable as mandalorian. Your concept with the muzzle sticking out is unfortunately a no-go. It must be fully encased.

Yeah I forgot to update that part about the helm. I’m going to be reworking it to fit a full face (I mentioned it on my post in the concepts but failed to fix here.)

I also narrowed those plates up just after those shots since they really do need to make a bit more of a V line along the abdomen. My brother is in one of the crews out west, that was the first thing he saw too lol.

[T_Jay00]

This looks really cool, yo. I love that first helmet design, too bad about the CRLs. I will be watching this with much interest.

[Jenga]

Sounds good then  excited to see more progress

[Taruk]

This looks really cool, yo. I love that first helmet design, too bad about the CRLs. I will be watching this with much interest.

That’s why I went ahead and came up with a concept a bit more CRL friendly.

[Taruk]

Couldn't find where my clever self placed my belt so I'm working with a sash for the concept only. Getting the soft parts around. The flight suit has been tailored and the Kamas/loin cloth were put together tonight. Weathering all of this will be fun. I have a clip holding one side of the flak vest together. All soft parts are made of leather, 3-4 oz goat skin. I will mount the armor once it's made. The helmet is for placement only, mine is in the process of being made.

[Mi'ix]

Posted on your in-clan thread too. 

Where are we on the plates? I know you mentioned that you're having them fabricated currently, but I want to make sure we're good to go on that end before you get to the point of no return.

[Taruk]

Posted on your in-clan thread too. 

Where are we on the plates? I know you mentioned that you're having them fabricated currently, but I want to make sure we're good to go on that end before you get to the point of no return.

I'm currently having K'raam Xrati fabricate them for me since work has had us doing mandatory overtime and his metal kits were gorgeous. I'll be able to tack them into an approvable position before riveting them to the leather. The armor was something I wanted to do just right. You can find his sales thread for reference here: http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=61771.0

[Jenga]

Glad to see you back at this!

Everything is looking nice

[Taruk]

Finalized the strapping on the flak vest. I had forgotten I need to do a neck seal so I'll get that patterned next. Really happy with this vest. First time making apparel with thin leather (I'm used to working with thicker tooling leather) and I'm very happy with the result. There's a hidden short zipper in the back to make it more fitted and both sides have a mix of button closures and hidden strap magnets. Makes for easy getting in and out solo in case of emergency.

[Jenga]

Fantastic job!!

[Taruk]

I tackled a soft part I had completely forgotten, the neck seal! It's light and very comfortable. Good with and without a balaclava. It attaches in the back via magnets since I'm not always a huge fan of Velcro. Up next will be fine adjustments and weathering.

[Taruk]

@Mi'ix the armor pictures were sent to me today and I'm esctatic! He did a brilliant job and the color is perfect.









Moving into what armor I have here. I need to order more buckles but in the meantime, the vambraces are all assembled and the leather cuff is secured. I would love to wesponize these sat some point when I have a drill press available again.

UPDATE: JULY 4


Added straps and finished filling in the gauntlet to make them a fully enclosed set. Aluminum hand shaped with hand set rivets.

[Jenga]

Very nice! Beautiful work 

[Lynx7386]

Love your creature builds there, looking forward to seeing how you work a helmet around the heads though.

[Taruk]

The armor is getting fitted to the flak vest, tape holding it temporarily. The helmet will be last since I'm waiting on the real one to arrive. Should be soon!



For reference, the flak vest comes to just above the belly button.


Here it is on a few weeks back for a short test fit of everything. The dummy I think is closer to the proper positions.

The diamond is getting resized, hence why it's missing in the first shot. The edges will be rounded when I drill it for rivets and magnets. I've been slowly shrinking the armor set since I am crazy tiny lol.

Lastly, the blaster has been getting some work. The optic is off to my brother getting some alterations and color. He did the paint on the blaster (soon to be weathered by me) to look like a repurposed Storm trooper weapon.



Gotta hurry, less than a month before the event!

[Malakier Vhett]

Unfortionately, the metal overlay you have on your backplate and collar isn't going to fly as-is. The overlay itself isn't the problem, but the metal you used is far too thin to hold up to trooping, and the wrinkling seen where you tried to flatten out the bend line would need to be smoothed out. The thinnest aluminum i recommend using, based on my own experiances building an aluminum kit, is 14ga (~.06) (steel you can safely go all the way down to 18ga). Yours looks like flashing that has been flattened out, which is typically no heavier then 26ga (and based on years of doing metal roofing and flashings, this looks to be closer to 28ga). If you want to keep the overlay, you will need to get thicker metal and rework the pieces in that. It is more work, but quite doable and the results will be much better.

[Taruk]

Unfortionately, the metal overlay you have on your backplate and collar isn't going to fly as-is. The overlay itself isn't the problem, but the metal you used is far too thin to hold up to trooping, and the wrinkling seen where you tried to flatten out the bend line would need to be smoothed out. The thinnest aluminum i recommend using, based on my own experiances building an aluminum kit, is 14ga (~.06) (steel you can safely go all the way down to 18ga). Yours looks like flashing that has been flattened out, which is typically no heavier then 26ga (and based on years of doing metal roofing and flashings, this looks to be closer to 28ga). If you want to keep the overlay, you will need to get thicker metal and rework the pieces in that. It is more work, but quite doable and the results will be much better.

Aircraft grade aluminum alloy actually. It helps having a husband in airframe mechanics. I get to pilfer the scrap bin.

Armor wise, I noticed the leather stretched a little to contour, but in doing so it spread the pectoral plates slightly ascew. I will be fixing that before the app is sent in.  I also noticed the waist belt would ride up a little and tuck under my back plate. My armor never touched my pouches and after seeing so many MMCC kits with the belt under the back plate, I'm not sure if that's ok or not?

It's been all cleaned up since that shot and hopefully the pictures will come through, especially the videos. I took the kit to Salt Lake Comicon this last weekend for a test run and I'm very happy with the comfort of it all. Incoming, image heavy!!

View My Video









I have some small adjustments to make and some details I want to add in. The Digi feet will be coming later before I apply, but this was just from the con prep.

I plan on modding a regular helmet and with my small frame, proportions will be a snap. My bicep plates, thigh plates, and foot plates are missing at the moment, those are going to be done when I do the feet. I also need to pick up a larger satchel or pouch for my Aker. I would like to do some claw caps for the ends of the gloves as well, just as an added touch. The blaster was done up by my brother in law and lacks weathering. It's too clean for my liking.

On the back of the waist belt you'll notice a bone 'dragon tooth' knife. It was a last minute add on since I didn't get the chance to print the one I rendered. Worked very well for the style though.

Painting the rivets will happen in a bit as well. That was one of those little details I didn't get to before the con.

The head has a moving jaw and some LED accents. I have a direct reference for the eye itself and other references for the bionic metal constructions around the eye.

[Malakier Vhett]

Looks like you are definitely on the right track.

My only major concern at this point is still whatever you used for the accent pieces on your back plate. Regardless of what you used ("aircraft aluminum" doesn't actually tell us much, and the issue is thickness is the issue anyway), it looks extremely thin compared to the rest of what you used, and the forming is not up to your usual standards.

[Kol Varek]

This looks like it's coming along well! The soft parts are very well executed, and the detail work on the head is intriguing.

In regards to the metal accents on the backplate and collarplate, the issue isnt necessarily the metal type as it is the thickness of the metal itself. Judging by the ways in which some accents have been pinched, it would appear the metal would have issues maintaining its shape, and run the risk of being dinged for quality. I would strongly recommend going up in metal thickness for those accent parts.

I look forward to seeing how this build continues to progress!

[Zedrin Ho'dag]

Marking this for future updates 

[Taruk]

Quite a lot has happened since my last update. My plan for this kit was to have a human version for when the Amaran wasn't best suited so the helmet for that is almost complete. Weathering on the Kamas and loin have begun and I played around with a small idea for an accent with powder effects.  I will probably remove it later.  I'm going to weather the edges a bit more next week. I've also gone over the flak vest with a wash since I didn't like the bright color.

The Amaran feet are complete for the full digitigrade effect. This kit has now been worn a total of 60+ hours and it's holding strong. Thigh armor has been added as well. I need to add the bicep guards for the full heavy armor set up. I need to take down some of the corners a little more on the chest and finalize see gloves. In some shots of the Amaran, I have a temporary set of paws. Used those for an event since my regular gloves had poofed. Pictures incoming.

Kamas

Vest (scrap leather to show original color)


Full body shots at GRCC with the new feet, taken Out 2018:


Helmet shots:


Rough shots of the new thigh armor:


Full body 'human' shots (neck seal wasn't full tucked, I'm going to make the bib for that larger for easier securing). Taken March 2019


There's still some things to fine tune but overall I'm pleased with the progress. I won't be making another kit for some time since this metal kit will last me for a good while. It handles heat and cold well and has taken quite a beating. Most weathering is natural on it. All steel save for the lower arm and shoulder guards.

[Jenga]

Wow lots of progress!!! You've done a great job!

A few things that are sticking out

- Looks like your knees and thighs are overlapping quite a bit. the thigh will need to be trimmed or the knees moved down.
- All the rivets will have to be painted
- If I'm seeing it correctly, there may be a zipper on the back of the boots that will need hiding.

You're getting so close!!! If you could take some straight on shots so we could get a better look at your spacing that would be awesome 

Again, great work! The bucket looks awesome.

[Taruk]

Wow lots of progress!!! You've done a great job!

A few things that are sticking out

- Looks like your knees and thighs are overlapping quite a bit. the thigh will need to be trimmed or the knees moved down.
- All the rivets will have to be painted
- If I'm seeing it correctly, there may be a zipper on the back of the boots that will need hiding.

You're getting so close!!! If you could take some straight on shots so we could get a better look at your spacing that would be awesome 

Again, great work! The bucket looks awesome.

I still haven't gotten around to painting those rivets yet, but I've been adding onto the kit to widen my front profile since some folks over on FB mentioned the helmet being a little wide. All steel, aluminum, and leather to keep with the theme, I've done a bicep guards, an upper arm Bandolier, a leather cowl, and a double shoulder pauldron with trauma plates:







The pauldron is entirely modular so if I need to remove the collar piece or the lower shoulder piece (or even the straps) I can.




The alien build is done for the most part aside from the head and the adjustments to the armor. I'm looking to get the human version of the kit approved first before layering in the Amaran so either can be used if needed.

I would love to include the Mithosaur somewhere on the kit but I haven't quite decided just where would be suitable yet. Also, suggestions for items inside the ammo loops would be greatly appreciated!


Editing to add new progress May 11, 2019!

I still haven't gotten around to painting those rivets, reshaping the back plate, or adding additional weathering to the body, but I have included new greaves that tie the newer armor pieces in (as well as keeps the knee plates from overlapping the thighs.

Best part? I can kneel and squat now with ease. Dude, no more chasing knee plates around or worrying about the Velcro from letting go on a hot day. Pictures and a video link inbound!

https://youtu.be/UVA8FzwuMxE

Here's the build for the greaves. 22 gauge steel hand formed then riveted to 8 oz leather. These are very balanced in weight and comfort. I want to make some slight shaping adjustment to them but overall, they cover my boot zipper and don't overlap any of my armor.





There's hot glue from the Velcro I need to remove on my knees. When I did the video and pictures, I didn't realize my shirt underneath wasn't tucked so it's sticking out the back a little.



My neck seal fits comfortably beneath the leather neck pieces. I'm really happy with the overall comfort and flexibility with this kit.

 

The blaster is being built piece by piece. I acquired a Nerf Longstrike and I'm modelling it off of a few rifles I took a fancy to, including one I have in the photos for reference so you guys can see where I'm going with mine. I prefer long range shooting in real life so it only makes sense to carry that skill over to my kit.



I don't know if the blaster will be ready, but the rest of the kit will be getting another test run next week at Michigan Comicon. This will have given me about 4 conventions under it's belt before app.