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[Cattriss Wren]

The girth belt looks great!

can I ask what fabric you used for the cape?

 Thanks! The material is the same as my vest. I had a lot left over so I thought that I would put it to good use.

[Cattriss Wren]

Su'cuy,  I finished attaching my armor to the flak vest with snaps.

 I still need to add a little velcro to the vest. So now it's time to attach my shoulders and cape. Hopefully after that I will start on gauntlets or  guns and holsters.

Also I would really appreciate if you guys could enlighten me about spray paint protocol. Do you prime first? Do you add a protective coating at the end? What are some good brands? What are some problems with it? All that good stuff   I have little stuff to do to my kit so I should have a few more things to update about .

[Karson Wren]

I am 100% clueless, but it looks good so far to me 

[polishvendetta]

I havent made armor yet but have done costumes in the past.  I think the steps you take are going to depend on the weathering.  In general, id start with sanding then priming, then sanding again and paint your base coat.

[Fenn Beviin]

Su'cuy,  I finished attaching my armor to the flak vest with snaps.

 I still need to add a little velcro to the vest. So now it's time to attach my shoulders and cape. Hopefully after that I will start on gauntlets or  guns and holsters.

Also I would really appreciate if you guys could enlighten me about spray paint protocol. Do you prime first? Do you add a protective coating at the end? What are some good brands? What are some problems with it? All that good stuff   I have little stuff to do to my kit so I should have a few more things to update about .

Overall your armor is looking great! Looks like you might need to shape the rest chest "fang" a little bit more to your body to match the left side. Left chest plate might need to slide up ever so slightly as does the center diamond - but this could be the angle.

Now to answer your paint question!

No, you don't need to prime it first. PVC foam board/aka sintra is a relatively porous material so it takes to paint well as is.

Personally, I use Rustoleum paints almost exclusively but it really depends on the available color options at your local stores (in my opinion). Try not to mix and match brands on the same piece of armor as much as possible.

Only problems when it comes to spray painting are either applying it on in too thick of layers which may cause bubbling or dripping or a "dried ground" cracking pattern - same can be said if you try to paint in too cold of weather. Hope that helps! 

[Vercopaanir]

Looking good!

While you don't need to prime it, I usually do.  I like to do a black primer before I add my metallic base coat for when the paint gets scratched.  (It will get scratched)  It is harder to see the scratch when the black is what is showing through versus the white.  But that is purely my personal preference.

As far a paint brand go, I usually use Krylon simply because they had the shade of grey I wanted for my kit and its easy to source locally.  I have another clan mate who only uses Rustoleum and loves it.  Honestly pick a brand and follow the directions and it will work out.  Avoid switching brands as they don't usually play well together.

If you want to top coat it you can but you don't need to.  Clear coats can be tricky and since Mando's usually look like they live in their armor  having scratches, dings and smudges only adds to the overall aesthetic. 

[ishtob]

Su'cuy,  I finished attaching my armor to the flak vest with snaps.

 I still need to add a little velcro to the vest. So now it's time to attach my shoulders and cape. Hopefully after that I will start on gauntlets or  guns and holsters.

Also I would really appreciate if you guys could enlighten me about spray paint protocol. Do you prime first? Do you add a protective coating at the end? What are some good brands? What are some problems with it? All that good stuff   I have little stuff to do to my kit so I should have a few more things to update about .

looking good so far! You've got that shaped real well! Everything looks symmetrical and even. So great job!

Few points that could use some work before you start painting:

- The chest plate looks a bit waving on the left there (your left, right on the image).
- your right chest plate fang portion looks like it can be formed a bit more (can't be 100% but it appears to be floating a bit.
- move the chest diamond up a smidge or shave it down on the bottom slightly to get an even gap all around.

Looking good!

While you don't need to prime it, I usually do.  I like to do a black primer before I add my metallic base coat for when the paint gets scratched.  (It will get scratched)  It is harder to see the scratch when the black is what is showing through versus the white.  But that is purely my personal preference.

I second this, but since its already plastic, you may be able to get away with just a few coats gloss black coat then a few coats of metallic silver. You may be able to skip the primer if you use a combination gloss black that is formulated for plastic.

after you have the silver base is done, you've got a few choices:
Paint -> sand paper to reveal silver layer (I advice against this as it will out the silver quite a bit and make them appear greyish)
masking -> paint -> peel masking -> add more scratches with sand paper or sharp objects
masking -> paint layer 1 color -> masking -> paint layer 2 color -> peel  masking -> add more scratches with sand paper or sharp objects

work in thin layers, I did 6 layers of color 1 (2 layers of primer, 4 layers of color 1) then 8 layers of layer 2. Adjust it based on whether you reached the amount of coverage and thickness you want.

Masking you've got a few options, or you can mix and match them:
- Use some liquid masking fluids and start blocking out areas for the weathering (think corners and large surfaces that see a lot wear)
- Mix course salt with some drops of water and cake them onto areas you want to mask
- Toothpaste instead of masking fluids
* take a look at my WIP for the weathering if you want some picture tutorials

Looking good!
If you want to top coat it you can but you don't need to.  Clear coats can be tricky and since Mando's usually look like they live in their armor  having scratches, dings and smudges only adds to the overall aesthetic. 

I find top coat very optional, and honestly, I agree with vercopaanir that scratches make it more realistic and adds cahracter

[Cattriss Wren]

Thank you guys so much for all of your help and advice.

[Aster Veris]

Congrats on the plates! People have already given you tips for how to make the spacing/floating better.
What I do is I use a gray primer (aka what the store has) and then do multiple layers of silver. Then a clear coat over the silver. I think I use rustoleum for my colors but no idea for the silver. I use blick's matte fixative for sealing (I have tons of it from school) and it works great! I've tried other clear coats and they react super weirdly with silver.
Anyway the major tip is do tests. Test your colors, test your primer and weathering methods. Idk how heavy your weathering will be but test out how you'll do paint chips (I highly recommend liquid latex) and how the colors will look together!

[Cattriss Wren]

Thanks Aster, will do

I have another question for you all. So I was going to scratch build my gauntlets and then buy the missiles and flamethrower for them from Etsy. But I just found out that no one sell the weapons for gauntlets. So should I just buy my gauntlets instead of building them?

[Tramp Graphics]

Thanks Aster, will do

I have another question for you all. So I was going to scratch build my gauntlets and then buy the missiles and flamethrower for them from Etsy. But I just found out that no one sell the weapons for gauntlets. So should I just buy my gauntlets instead of building them?

I just looked myself, and found at least a half dozen wrist rockets, as well as darts and flame throwers, all on Etsy. I simply looked up “Boba Fett gauntlet rocket” in the search and came up with a slew of options: https://www.etsy.com/search?q=boba%20fet%20gaunlet%20rocket

[Cattriss Wren]

Wow thanks!! Guess I was not searching the right thing. Problem solved!!

[Tramp Graphics]

Olarom

[ishtob]

You can also look into those punk clothing spikes, I've got 3 on my gauntlet for "darts".

I got the #2 spike from this etsy seller: https://www.etsy.com/listing/975079595/20pcs-bullet-punk-spikesleather-crafts
I may have a few more sitting around if I can find them and send them your way

[Second Son]

I bet you can handle scratch-building and adding platforms and housings for your gauntlet weapons - admittedly, a classic Boba wrist rocket might be worth getting a quality resin cast but you could give it a go while you wait for it to ship. Best case, two wrist rockets, worst case, some experience gained.

But other things you can put together with Sintra sheet and a raid on the plumbing and tool aisles at the hardware store:
flamethrower - rectangular Sintra tube and some air hose or plumbing fittings. 
Wrist darts - sports ball inflators pushed through holes drilled in the platform.
generic Zappers - pocket air blowers (check Menard's or similar) with some sort of shroud to tie them to the gauntlets.
Knee darts - air hose connectors again, you could heat them and push&twist them into the blocks on the side of your knees if it's Sintra, (drill a pilot hole just a bit smaller than the threaded part). they come in steel, brass or aluminum in a few sizes, so variety.