Steampunk Ironman Helmet WIP - finally starting it!!!

indiefilmgeek

ADDED: May 20, 2012

I'm updating the title of this post as I've OFFICIALLY agreed to attempt the helmet build for Digitizit (and with his very skilled help!). I haven't been talked into doing the FULL suit on yet... we'll see how the helmet build goes first!

If you want to get to the WIP, it starts on PAGE 2.

What's below is a discussion about this design and other steampunk related references.

Enjoy!


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Original First Post: April 2011
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So, after seeing Johnnymuffintop's post about this helmet work - which included the By Design Ironman pic (below), I've been desperately fighting the urge to work on a full-size version of this suit.

My love of all things steampunk, and the beautiful artwork of this piece makes me want to order some EVA foam and begin working immediately!


...however, I've promised myself that I'd wait until at least the first of the year (after the holidays) to start another project and of all the projects I'd like to do -- and there are MANY-- I just wasn't expecting to be drawn into costuming again this soon.


So, BEFORE I get too involved, I just wondered if there were any Steam punk Iron man builds already making the rounds?

I know there is the famous (or infamous) version from NY Comic Con, which turned out to be a re-purposed movie costume (although still cool).



...but as cool as it is... I'm not sold on that overall look (it seems a little 'thin' and C3-P0 to me). I just don't buy he can kick @ss - if you know what I mean.

I guess it comes down to personal taste, but just like the By Design look MUCH better...




So, has anyone taken this Victorian Era Ironman concept to full costume before? Any good reference pics of a similar themed IM build that you've seen?

I'd love to hear any feed back you all have regarding taking on a project like this.


Thanks!

Johnnymuffintop

Yes... yes... YES!
I love me some Steampunk (proper Steampunk, where everything has a purpose, not just a clock for the hell of it). And Iron Man is a great thing to use for it.

I don't think anyone has taken on the By Design costume on yet, though I plan to at some point.

Some other inspiration:
Steam Punk Iron Man at Conceptart.org
Iron Man Noir
MORE Iron Man Noir

And if you want a PDO of the By Design style helmet, TA-DA!
Model thanks to a guy on 4chan, unfold by me.

Hogosha

I would LOVE to see this one done!

indiefilmgeek

First off, thanks for the file Johnny! That's a big help!

I've also done a little more web-surfing and still have not found any costume pics (sans the Tinman/Ironman example).

I did find a couple more toy designs, but I'm not especially into either of these designs.







Anyone know if there's a Steampunk Ironman costume touring conventions? Would LOVE to check it out and/or use it for reference!


P.S. If this sounds interesting to anyone else - PepMaster is looking to do a run of this style helmet. Check out his thread HERE.

writefast

I thought hard about doing this but it was just too ambitious for my second build. Here are some of the images I was using for inspiration.











This one made me think "Iron Gentleman"

indiefilmgeek

Nice pics, writefast!

If I take this on, I think I'm gonna have to stick with something close to standard human height rather than tackle something over-sized and involving stilts... I guess I'd just rather spend more time on creating fine detail rather than solving structural engineering issues!


Oh, and in case I haven't mentioned this: I make costumes - I don't wear them.

So, I was pleased to have get official notice from my friend (and fellow Knoxville resident and RPFer), Digitizit, that he would be willing to have me make this costume for HIM... IF I decide to do it.

Creature

Curious, why don't you wear the costumes? I think the best part is having it all finished, putting it on and wearing around all the hard work you've done. But will agree its awesome to make a costume for someone else and see them light up.

Just curious to know!

indiefilmgeek

That's a very fair question!

First off, I'm not the right 'build' for wearing a lot of costumes (I'm sorta built like a Hobbit).

Secondly (and more seriously), I just really enjoy making things... all sorts of stuff from wooden puzzle boxes and clockwork inventions to electronic contraptions and costumes. The fun for me is solving design problems and creating something unique that inspires, intrigues or entertains people.

So, for me all the costumes and Halloween make-up I've ever done (since High School at least) has been designed for someone else to wear.

Honestly, it more fun for me to be free of the costume and the constant photo-taking so I can walk around and talk with folks about the costumes and make-up! It allows me to interact with people without worrying about messing up my make-up or talking through a cumbersome costume.

Luckily for me, there are LOTS of folks who LOVE to walk around in costume - and they have just as much fun WEARING the costume as I have building it!

Luckily, if I decide to do this costume, my 'partner in crime' is also very talented in make-up and costume-building. So, I get a collaborator as well as a model!

WalkingEye

Oh man this is a really cool idea. I'm not a very big Iron Man fan but all the iron man builds on here are so impressive. Especially the one you built for your son. I love steampunk and I'd love to see this made.

The 'skinny' steampunk I.M. is really cool... What if you bulked up that design? Though I'd mod the arc reactor to look more like a gas lamp or boiler, have some gas or steam lines leading to it or something like that

Shades

I did some very similar research before the gf said "Another Iron Man suit? Really?" lol.

(I then started desert storm batman)

I think you have license to do whatever you want here. In my sketches I borrowed a lot from warhammer 40K. I wanted something along that scale and proportions.

The key would be the weathering effect on the EVA which I haven't seen much of to get the hues just right.

Also, check out homedepot pluming section. I saw all kinds of stuff in there that I thought would be great for a project like this.

Good luck!

Shades

indiefilmgeek

Yeah, I think my advantage is that I only played around with a 'scale' version... I've not done a full-size adult costume of Ironman yet. That's what makes this idea even mildly interesting to me (and something my wife can support as not being too derivative).

We must have very similar tastes, Shades, cause that Batman Desert Armor is the coolest suit I've ever seen for the Dark Knight. I've subscribed to your thread and enjoy seeing your progress!


As far as the parts of this build that are most attractive to me... they would be:

• Weathering detail - I love doing it & and love seeing it done well.
• Mix Materials - the challenge of replicating multiple materials like leather, steel, glass, brass, etc.
• Clockwork elements - I'm nearly obsessed with finding ways to create 'active' clockwork elements for this build. My desire would be to create several pieces of the suit that include meaningful movements of clockwork details.
• Work Steam - I've had interest in creating something that has a steam effect for a while now, so this could be a good project to tackle that.

I'm still not completely sold on this as my next project, but it has enough interesting elements to have me seriously considering.

Johnnymuffintop

For the steam work, my best suggestion would be to get a tank half full of water, drop some dry ice in there, then have hoses leading to where you want steam to pour out of.

indiefilmgeek

I'm actually thinking about using the same system e-cigarettes use.

It's not as dangerous to use as dry ice and it's small (read: light).

breakpoint

Hey indie dunno if u seen em but hereya go

Steampunk Iron Man Suit | Walyou

Shades

Thanks Indie.


Like I said, I did some research on this and also was very drawn to the idea of "steam" in the suit to go really over the top.

Here is what I found.

Wizard Stick Fog Generator at Educational Innovations

Almost bought one to play with. No nastry dry ice or big heavy batteries. I bet the internals on this are pretty close to an e-cig.

Good luck!

indiefilmgeek

breakpoint, yep! Your link contains the most pictures of that Tinman-to-Ironman conversion costume I've seen. If you're interested in more of the back story, my first post has a link to an article revealing some of the drama that came about as the FX folks and filmmakers of the indie film 'Tinman' discovered that one of their team had used their movie prop/costume to make that appearance at NYC Comic Con.

Shades - that's FANTASTIC!!! Perfect for what we're considering! Seriously, that link might make me decide to DO this thing!

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I've also found some other reference images... I'm only posting ones that I found that include certain details I like. So, I'll disclaim any of my comments below by saying that they DON'T reflect my opinion of the craftsmanship or design of these pieces as they were created. All for the artisans involved are truly talented and I have mad respect for what they created. My comments below are ONLY in reference to what elements I like about the pictures as it might relate to what I'm considering in my build.


I really like the treatment of the leather in this piece. The brass-work is also less overwhelming that many of the images you will see if you search for 'Steampunk Armor.' But my interest is mostly in the little details of the leather/brass riveting - which is done very well.

NOTE: I think one of the reasons I like the By Design so much is the way it is very much a steampunk look, but it is clean and not cluttered with too much brass, gears and other odds and ends. My goal would be to KEEP that clean-looking armor style (with any additional clockwork/gear details only showing up as hints peeking out from between plates of armor or joints for example).


On this picture, I like the design of the lower leg armor (especially the heavy spring look at the knee, the leather straps and the metal bands and toe-cap over the heavy leather boots). I don't know if any of this could be worked into the By Design suit, but I like it.


Now, while I am in awe of the leather-work that Ian (aka Skinz) does, I'm gonna point out that with both this piece and the other one above, I'm just not into random gears or tubing appearing on pieces. On the IM suit, I'd rather see these revealed within the joints of the armor only (providing only the hint that a complex clockwork engine running the suit).


Speaking of steampunk engine... check out this collection of do-dads. Wow! I'd love to have access to some of these for the elements of the boiler-pack on the back!

On the subject of backpacks and thrusters... I LOVE the design of the leg jets on this drawing by Zackary Coe (very cool illustrator - HERE is his site)!

Maybe there's a way to use some of the leg thruster in the By Design costume... maybe...


I also like a couple of the elements in this Bjorn Hurri illustrated jet-pack backpack (the fuel cylinder on the side for one). However, I think scale is an issue... I'd like to keep things on the subtle & smaller side of things rather than going enormously over-sized.

...and finally...

wtf? Steampunk Sarah Palin?!?!? Is this really a 'thing'? If the Tea Party is going steampunk, this fashion/style might very well have run it's course.

IRONFETT

rad idea, its awesome to see steampunk becoming more and more popular, looking forward to see this thing come to light! Subscribed!

IronCostumer

Gosh darn't guys, now I want to design a Steampunk IM Helm! Another thing to add to my gigantic list of projects! But please someone get on this, because chances are it'll take me forever to get to it.

indiefilmgeek

I'm extremely tempted to try it... Obviously, I'm spending some time researching it and sketching some things out, but I just don't want to declare this as my official next project until we clear the holidays... and I can promise myself that it will get completed (and be on time).

Yeah, I totally feel your pain.

It's one of the reasons I'm hesitating on pulling the trigger on this project until I'm 100% certain I can work it all the way through to completion. It's very, very important to me to fight off my adult ADD and complete projects I start.

If you ask my friends from HS and college years, they would tell you tales of the vast wasteland filled hundreds of unfinished or half-started projects that littered my wake... After I turned 30, I made a very clear decision to work through selected projects until completion. And, although it's still damn hard to do, I finish what I start now days.

Johnnymuffintop

I had been meaning to ask. What point of reference are you using for your design?
Are you starting with the classic Iron Man design and then applying a steampunk touch to it , starting with the movie one, or just whatever works mechanically and having it be deep red and brass?

indiefilmgeek

Definitely starting with the 2010 By Design cover artwork by Gerald Parel that you posted. However, since this is just a cover picture with limited sketches in the background hinting at what the back or sides of the suit looks like, there will likely be some liberties taken. The backpack is definitely one area that will be mostly made up, as it's not shown in any detail.

Also, unlike the movie suits that were physically created for actors to wear, this suit is just a drawing, so there might be things that must be altered to allow it be something wearable at Conventions.

Lastly, while I LOVE this piece of artwork, there might be one or two elements of other suits that I may try to use in combination with (or instead of) specific sections of this picture. The toe of the boot, for example, is not my favorite part of the suit.

Digitizit

Yeah, I said I would wear it. I also want to help build it. It's been YEARS since I've built a cool costume. I think this would be loads of fun to build and to wear (because I'm just that much of an attention ho).

That means we BOTH have to go to Dragon Con, as I'm guessing there's no way to get into this thing without a lot of help.

blf

SO....where are the updates?

Digitizit

We've both been sidetracked on other projects, but hopefully we'll get back to this one soon.




Chris

indiefilmgeek

Yeah, Chris and I have both been pretty busy recently.

For my part, the plan to quickly design and prototype a new puzzle box for my own evil delight has unexpectedly developed into something that will likely result in a very cool Kickstarter project - which would be awesome!

Aside from that, Allison and I are now fostering a FOURTH kid (cute little 2yr old girl). So, I'll have FOUR costumes to create this fall!


But in regard to the Steampunk Ironman costume, it's definitely on the 'to do' list. I just want to make sure I've got the time and energy to do it RIGHT before starting working on it.

I promise this much... When we do start work on it, Chris and I will certainly be posting and sharing WAY too much info about it here on RPF. This community rocks and I can't wait to have all our friends on the forum participate in our build!

Take Care!