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[Second Son]

You are so prolific it's amazing (and a little bit annoying, in a good way!), and your work is on point as usual.

Love the undersea dazzle camouflage on the tassets and the pattern on your backplate is...spot-on. 

That fade at the edges of the central pattern is just beautiful.

[Vercopaanir]

You are so prolific it's amazing (and a little bit annoying, in a good way!), and your work is on point as usual.

Love the undersea dazzle camouflage on the tassets and the pattern on your backplate is...spot-on. 

That fade at the edges of the central pattern is just beautiful.

   I think our senses of humor are very similar.  Thank you.    I hope to inspire but not discourage.  Plus this is currently my only artistic outlet.  (Usually I have others but with the plague and everything...)  Besides your metal kit will be awesome when it's done.  I have spoken. 

Chest plate and shoulders re-imagined.  I am much happier with the results.

 

 

After laying it all out to get the feel for how it looked overall, I felt like something was missing.  So I grabbed my acrylics and mixed colors until I got the match to my tiny can of spray paint and added touches to the tasset plates and shins.

 

Then I just had to try it all on.  Obviously it's taped in place so nothing is quite right, especially my back plate which ended up to low because the top of the vest folded over.



 



Still need gauntlets and a helmet for this build.  I plan to scratch build my helmet out of the hard hat I've had for the past year just sitting around.  And the gauntlets are already cut, just need to be heat formed and hinged.  I plan on leaving them pretty simple for now, but that is subject to change as all things are.

[Second Son]

   I think our senses of humor are very similar.  Thank you.    I hope to inspire but not discourage.  Plus this is currently my only artistic outlet.  (Usually I have others but with the plague and everything...)  Besides your metal kit will be awesome when it's done.  I have spoken. 

Mos def inspiring, not discouraging. Your art motivates me to keep working and up my game.  And seeing as you have spoken, I better get to work.  Still chasing that OM. 

The spot highlights - such a simple add but it hits it right to unify parts and add the depth to the pattern.
I think this kit is going to be one you see years later on peoples inspo boards when they decide the want to go for the life aquatic.

[Aster Veris]

Awesome paint job vod! As I suspected, the new paint design really just ties the whole kit together and makes your armor look like it's all inspired by the same creature!

[Vercopaanir]

Awesome paint job vod! As I suspected, the new paint design really just ties the whole kit together and makes your armor look like it's all inspired by the same creature!

Thanks!  Appreciated bouncing ideas off you.   

Update:  What have I been doing, oh just some stuff.

I attached the backplate to the vest with butterfly pins and magnets.  I switch out the butterfly backs with locking backs to ensure it stays in place.









I attached the tasset plates to the leather backing and put the belt loops on.  I connected them with snaps so that if I need to remove them while in full kit I can just unsnap them.







I added the top attachment for the shoulders.  I'll need to add a second anchor point to help keep them in place as they move far to easily as is.







I added snaps to attach the Kama to the sash, as when I apply for aquatic specialist in brigades a kama is not allowed but I am much more comfortable in one so for now it stays.







I heat formed my gauntlets but my gorrila glue had dried out,  it is over a year old so I guess it time to buy a new bottle so I can attach the hinges to the gauntlets.









I still need to finalize what kinda extra's I'm going to put on them but having base gauntlets is a step in the right direction.

And I got the magnets on for the front plate.  This one is held on entirely by magnets.

[Fenn Beviin]

Impressive work and great WIP - definitely can serve as a good tutorial/follow along as well.

[Vercopaanir]

Impressive work and great WIP - definitely can serve as a good tutorial/follow along as well.

Thanks!  I do try to record these builds in such as way that if I forget what I did I can look back and go, 'oh right! That's what I did there.'  Short term memory 

Small bits of progress on this build.  Outer hinges are attached for the gauntlets.







I also got the magnets added to the shoulder straps, not loving the way the one sits though, might have to try and tweak it a bit.

[Vercopaanir]

Little things happening!

Added a box to the top of one gauntlet to house the remote I wired to my visor lights.  Speaking of which, clan mate gave me crash course on wiring and I made my first circuit!





I also am trying a new gauntlet closure type.  I have since added a few more things to the other one but haven't taken pictures yet.





I've also got three visor color films to pick from for my helmet.



I am also trying to pick which version I want to use for my propulsion pack/diving rig (the central one will be an oxygen tank and have a tube running from it up into my helmet)  So opinion?  A, B or C? 







I am leaning towards C at the moment.

[Aster Veris]

Okay so first, great work! Second, I'm leaning towards the second visor color (the bright blue). I think it will pop really well from the rest of the kit but still be a part of the color scheme. For the back pack rig, I'm also leaning towards C but I think you should heavily modify the middle component (obviously it's not going to be just a water bottle glued on there, but maybe change up the shape a little bit, make a really cool connector for the top bit)?

[Celtkhan]

Personally, I prefer the B style backpack, but you’re the one that needs to be happy with it. I assume the two bottles on the side would be the propulsion system, and that they would be symmetrical.

Speaking of, what kind of propulsion did you want to go for: twin props, twin turbines, or compressed air-type jets? I think that would inform the design more than anything else (I like the idea of twin turbines, which is why I like B. C looks more like compressed gas, which strikes me as inefficient.)

[Fenn Ryse]

I'm really liking C. It has a more streamlined look, which is essential for efficient movement underwater.

[Cattriss Wren]

I'm with Fenn, C is my favorite. Gauntlets are looking great too!

[Karson Wren]

Wow I'm liking this, It's really different to anything i've seen before.

Looking forward to seeing what you do next 

[PSessum]

As an aquatic build, I was thinking it would be funny to have two sea scooter engines instead of rocket cones and a torpedo instead of a rocket coming out of the oxygen tank.

[Vercopaanir]

Wow guys thanks for the feedback!

Okay so first, great work! Second, I'm leaning towards the second visor color (the bright blue). I think it will pop really well from the rest of the kit but still be a part of the color scheme. For the back pack rig, I'm also leaning towards C but I think you should heavily modify the middle component (obviously it's not going to be just a water bottle glued on there, but maybe change up the shape a little bit, make a really cool connector for the top bit)?

Thanks!  I was leaning that way as well for the visor color I just need to test and make sure it's reflective enough to not see my face through it.   I am planning on adding to the central water bottle as I need to modify it to accept a hose.  So it will get changed mostly based on what I need to do to make that connection and maybe a bit on what I think looks cool. 

Personally, I prefer the B style backpack, but you’re the one that needs to be happy with it. I assume the two bottles on the side would be the propulsion system, and that they would be symmetrical.

Speaking of, what kind of propulsion did you want to go for: twin props, twin turbines, or compressed air-type jets? I think that would inform the design more than anything else (I like the idea of twin turbines, which is why I like B. C looks more like compressed gas, which strikes me as inefficient.)

B has it's charms for sure.  In my brain the propulsion system is more like a caterpillar drive only Star Wars. Reality is its probably going to end up being an entirely enclosed system where the outside view will only be lights in vents on the bottom of the pack more like Shea Viszla vent but not exacly...

I'm really liking C. It has a more streamlined look, which is essential for efficient movement underwater.

Agreed, C is more streamlined but also bigger, so more resistance but also less.  That's not confusing at all. 

I'm with Fenn, C is my favorite. Gauntlets are looking great too!

Thanks!

Wow I'm liking this, It's really different to anything i've seen before.

Looking forward to seeing what you do next 

Thank you!

As an aquatic build, I was thinking it would be funny to have two sea scooter engines instead of rocket cones and a torpedo instead of a rocket coming out of the oxygen tank.

Torpedos!  I hadn't thought of that.  Might need to reconsider some stuff.  Thanks!


Bit more work on the gauntlets.

The base of the comlink has been added to the top of the left gauntlet.



The sonar screen has started it's journey but isn't mounted yet as I am not happy with the current way it's lighting up.  Might need to move around the LED until I like it better.









And I got the dart launchers built into the latch I have on the left gauntlet.