BZP-IRONMAN Build

Good afternoon!

After having spent some time on the forums and picking up on many tips and tricks, I've started my own build of a Mark IV Ironman suit. I will post pics and updates and as always, any and all feedback is appreciated!

Many thanks to all who have provided this community with templates, workarounds, videos and inspiration to make this build possible. With that, I give you my first pics of the helmet that I just finished today. Foam build with 6mm foam from Michaels crafts. Made some mods to the templates to accommodate more details in the build.

Helmet looks nice. I'm using too thick of foam for my first helmet build, I'm going to finish but it will look nowhere near this nice.

Thank you! Yes, I started with 8mm foam and it proved to be a bit too thick as well. That extra 2mm makes a difference. The 8mm will work great for the rest of the body though. Working on the chest now. More pics soon!

Can you share the files you made to do tis . I am just starting my helmet and would love to see your patterns . I am having a hard to chosing the best one and yours looks awesome

Good start! My helmets havent gone so well haha

You'll find the templates in this thread: http://www.therpf.com/f24/robo3687-i...pakura-128147/

Again, I did make some edits of my own to bring it even closer to the photo references I had, but these will get you rolling in the right direction! Good luck!

Is anyone else having issues uploading pics via the iPad app "Tapatalk"? Can't get it to upload pics, keeps coming back with server error.

Interestingly enough, the "Tapatalk" app won't show my subscribed threads either. Weird. Anyone having the same problems or already having found the solution, feel free to educate me.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Alright, still working on a solution for the TAPATALK HD app so I can post photos directly from the iPad. In the meantime, here is a shot of some resin casts that are going to be the foundation for my arc reactor.

Here's a diagram of the arc layout I'm planning to build. Anyone know about wiring LEDs? Is it series or parallel? Also, is it necessary to use a resistor on each?

wire them in parallel as apposed to series. in a series you will have a voltage drop from each led resulting in dimmer lights. and yes it is easier if you wire a resistor directly to the led.

Ok, I figured the parallel was the right way to go, same voltage just more current needed to power the system. But with resistors, what is the practice? I'm at this point planning 10 LED on the perimeter and one in the center. Although 1 in the center might not be strong enough, so maybe 3. At any rate, what type and ohms should I use? Also, would there be a way to put a resistor on the whole circuit to accomplish the same effect? Hmmm… know about enough here to make me dangerous!

One more thing. I've tried to get some response on the Tapatalk issue not being able to post pictures and can't get any input. My research has shown that it's most likely something that has to be update / fixed at the server level.

Who do I get a hold of on these forums to look into that?

Thanks in advance.

Ok, update with the chest piece in progress. Getting better with the hot glue gun.

Working on the Arc some more. Couple of shots showing my wiring setup and a test lighting of the outer ring. First off, didn't use any resistors at all. 5 hours running so far on two AA batteries and still going strong.

Think I might double the number of LEDS in the outer ring to even out the lighting and brighten it up a bit. Will probably double up the batteries to make it a 4 pack of AA's for more current, but should be fine.

I'll keep everyone posted. In the meantime, feedback is always good!

Yep. Going to double up the LEDs and then move to "C" cell batteries for the increase in current. Good news is since the LEDs require 3.6 volts and we're only running 3 volts, the resistors won't be required in the circuit to protect the LEDs. Woot!

So, added the additional LEDs. Think it's bright enough now!

Finally satisfied with my hot-glue skills, we're now moving on to making the suit. Started with a simple piece, the left bicep. Pretty happy with the way it's turning out.

Yeah. Glue gun skills improved to the point where I'm happy. Going to redo the chest and helmet both.

Do you have a link to the foam?

mattaiello92 said:

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Do you have a link to the foam?

I just checked the package and it's called "Best Step". Website on the back refers to www.venture-products.com I picked mine up at the local Sears store.

Been working on the forearm piece and now we have a completed arm.

It's looking really nice keep it up!!! I still haven't made up my mind, if I should start with a foam build or fiberglass build.

GrumpyStud said:

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It's looking really nice keep it up!!! I still haven't made up my mind, if I should start with a foam build or fiberglass build.

Thanks for the feedback! With this being my first build, getting this far is exciting and has provided the momentum to keep going. We'll see what happens when I get to the legs… lol.

I was on the fence at first too between foam or fiberglass, and I may eventually go the route of using a foam suit to create molds for fiberglass (ala the "xrobots" project). I have to say though, that after creating the test pieces to get the hang of the glue gun and learning to cut the foam properly to get tight seams, foam is really the way to go. What really seals the deal is that you can get a very respectable result in a fraction of the time. Employing some of the finishing options I've seen on the forum also really heightens the the look of the final product. Personally, I'm either going the Smooth On 65D or Rondo route for finishing. Will have to do some testing to see which I like better.

Stay tuned.

I have some friends observing this build. For them I'm going to be showing some of the steps while building the suit. These two photos are the raw pieces and the next photo is the right bicep under way.