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[Kryamla Redalur]

Hello fellow femmandos! I already have my soft parts started and almost completed so I figured it's about time that I start my armor thread. (see signature for the soft parts thread link) I currently do not have lots done and it probably going to be a long process since I'm in my final semester of college.

Here is the overall goal/look for my armor.


Here is a picture of my right knee and both shoulder armor parts. I only have the right knee because I accidentally cut through the left and have yet to make a new one. This is the first coat of silver for the base.



Side view of silver base paint


Painted knee!


Side view!


So I need to black wash still amongst other thing that still needs to be done. But any thoughts or comments thus far?

[Ref Al'drann]

What is your armor made from? It looks pretty thin, which has lead to warping during the shaping process.

[Kryamla Redalur]

It's kydex. And yes I agree. When I ordered it, I didn't realize that it was going to be that thin. Any suggestions to fix it?

[Ref Al'drann]

Is Kydex similar to Worbla? Do you have enough to dual layer it? You could also form it on a buck, which is basically just anything solid that you can press the material onto and form the shape around instead of doing it by hand.

[Kryamla Redalur]

It's a plastic type material. I'm not sure what worbla is like so I'm honestly not sure about that. I can try reshaping it  using the buck method! If not, I'll go with another method.

[Kavryn Falco]

I'd suggest taking some time to sand the points off of your edges - they're looking a bit ragged 

[Kryamla Redalur]

I'd suggest taking some time to sand the points off of your edges - they're looking a bit ragged 

Are you talking about on the shoulder thingys?

[Kavryn Falco]

Are you talking about on the shoulder thingys?

Yes, particularly on the forward edge.

[Kryamla Redalur]

Yes, particularly on the forward edge.

Gotcha! Thank you! I shall do that!

[Ronin Tavic]

yeah the form on them could use a little tweaking... I'm not as much of a fan as thinner plastics, as they tend to do funky things when they get hot.. a trick to eliminate that is dont get them quite so hot next time, sometimes you can heat them enough, and bend them to the shape you need.
You could also try to find some cans or jars or something hard and sturdy to bend the plates on to give them a more uniform bend.

The colors are gonna look super cool together when its all done btw, i love the purple/white combo

PS: double layering some pieces would be a pretty good idea with this thinner plastic, as it will help reinforce and add strength to the plastic. as well if you layer the outside it can look pretty awesome. I love my layered chest plates

[Erio J'uni]

Kydex is the material that fitted gun holsters are made from.  Most are either wet-formed leather or Kydex.  Even though it's thin, it should be pretty durable.

[Kryamla Redalur]

yeah the form on them could use a little tweaking... I'm not as much of a fan as thinner plastics, as they tend to do funky things when they get hot.. a trick to eliminate that is dont get them quite so hot next time, sometimes you can heat them enough, and bend them to the shape you need.
You could also try to find some cans or jars or something hard and sturdy to bend the plates on to give them a more uniform bend.

The colors are gonna look super cool together when its all done btw, i love the purple/white combo

PS: double layering some pieces would be a pretty good idea with this thinner plastic, as it will help reinforce and add strength to the plastic. as well if you layer the outside it can look pretty awesome. I love my layered chest plates

I haven't quite decided in what direction, everyone has given good advice so now it's just sorting through it all. I'm at the point where I'm considering buying the armor and painting it. Lots to think about! But thank you!

 

Kydex is the material that fitted gun holsters are made from.  Most are either wet-formed leather or Kydex.  Even though it's thin, it should be pretty durable.

That's how I got the idea to use kydex for the armor, my boyfriend has made some holsters out of it and it seemed relatively easy to work with lol. But time will tell if I decide to further the use of it or not.

[Ajax Kaal]

You can go in either direction with the armor, there are some great armor makers here on the boards and you can get a set at a really reasonable price.

If you want to do the home made, as others have pointed out, heat it up until it just starts to bend and then form it. Shoulders don't need much of a bend, so just making them even is a good thing to shoot for. Knees are pretty similar in that the forming is more of a "u" shape when you look at them from the top down as it would fit on your knees. My chest plates, I literally heated one side at a time and using heat resistant gloves so I didn't burn my hands, pushed the plates to my chest to help get the shape and the bends in the right places. Highly suggest putting on your vest first as using that as a layer of protection from the hot plastic. If you are going to do the formed breast plates, you'll have to watch the forming over complex curves as the plastic can form folds, and if you get the pieces too hot, they will warp and create sharp bends/divots that you have to reheat and gently coax back into shape.

Another way is to use a bowl with a rounded bottom on the inside and get the plastic heated up and then push it gently down into the bowl, usually using something round to push the plastic with, to form your cups, remembering to leave enough material for the bottom corners of your plates and when you are forming plastic into cups you have to remember that the flat shape will be bigger than you think.

A tool that a lot of costumers use is to make a duct tape dummy of themselves so that they can form the armor to their body shape and is usually a lot easier than trying to push the items onto yourself.

Anyway, looking forward to seeing your armor progress.

[Kryamla Redalur]

I'm thinking at this point in time, I'm planning on buying armor from the mandalorian arsenal. I've seen a lot of people use their armor and they have pretty reasonable prices. As for a helmet, Im hoping to buy a helmet from saz. I just have to save a little bit more for everything and hopefully I'll get that going soon!

[corriban]

I got all my armor, save for my shins and gauntlets, from Mandalorian Arsenal. Great products, definitely recommend!

[Kryamla Redalur]

I got all my armor, save for my shins and gauntlets, from Mandalorian Arsenal. Great products, definitely recommend!

Was it hard to reshape and trim? I have zero experience doing things like that and don't want to ruin it lol

[corriban]

It's sintra, so you can use a dremmel or a really heavy duty box cutter if you're more comfortable. And yeah, reshaping is really easy as long as you have a heat gun. I had to reshape most of the plates a bit so they fit me properly.

[Kryamla Redalur]

It's sintra, so you can use a dremmel or a really heavy duty box cutter if you're more comfortable. And yeah, reshaping is really easy as long as you have a heat gun. I had to reshape most of the plates a bit so they fit me properly.

That's a relief!

[Ajax Kaal]

Yeah sintra is easy to work with, just go slow with your cutting. I usually use a very sharp exacto knife and the key is to make several light to medium cuts and let the blade do the work. If you try to force the cut on one path, you will definitely get hurt. Use a heat gun and slowly work it up until it just starts to get bendy and then start your bends, but go easy on the bending. You'll do ok.

[Kryamla Redalur]

Yeah sintra is easy to work with, just go slow with your cutting. I usually use a very sharp exacto knife and the key is to make several light to medium cuts and let the blade do the work. If you try to force the cut on one path, you will definitely get hurt. Use a heat gun and slowly work it up until it just starts to get bendy and then start your bends, but go easy on the bending. You'll do ok.

Okay that makes sense! Thank you for the advice!

[Ajax Kaal]

Meant to say on one pass...basically go over the same cut over and over again letting the blade cut through the layers. I use a ruler to guide the cuts the first few times and as they get deep, you can just let the cut guide the knife until you cut through.

[Kryamla Redalur]

GUESS WHAT CAME IN THE MAIL TODAY?!



I'm super excited! I'll get pictures uploaded tomorrow with it on me! The chest pieces and knees are a pretty good fit, probably just a little trimming there. The collar plate and shoulders will need some trimming too. It's the back plate that does worry me a bit, it's much bigger than I anticipated.... So I'll need some help figuring out how to fix it... But gosh, I feel like a kid on Christmas! 

[Evaar'la Kal]

Super cool vod!  The arrival of mando related packages is always very exciting 

[Kris Jasra]

Yup, even better when the postmen ask what's in the package. I mean, can you imagine the look when you tell them it's your second set of breasts...
Looking forward to seeing what you do with them.

[Kryamla Redalur]

Super cool vod!  The arrival of mando related packages is always very exciting 

Yup, even better when the postmen ask what's in the package. I mean, can you imagine the look when you tell them it's your second set of breasts...
Looking forward to seeing what you do with them.

Haha wish I thought of that!

Here are some pictures of them taped on. I know I'll have to do some trimming and such, but I definitely want some opinions on how much.


The chest part near the diamond isn't exact even, so that'll need some adjustments


I only put one shoulder on, the other side is the exact same way. Definitely needs to be smaller



There was no good way of getting a picture of the back plate on me, I'll try to figure that out lol

Thoughts on what needs to be done?