COMPLETE! "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor *PIC HEAVY*

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Thanks Clothar!

Knee joints were kind of tricky, but like so many things the solution turned out to be far more simple than I was making it out to be. I added supports to the thighs, double thick for extra strength. Let me tell you, using contact cement to glue two half inch thick pieces of foam together makes it UBER rigid! Worked like a charm. Then I added the lower support and mount to the top of the calf piece which was tricky because it had to mount on the inside of the thing. Lots and lots of trial and error trying to get these to fit just right BTW. Never give up, never surrender! My plan was simply a cylinder mounted between two thicker discs, similar to a simple hinge. I checked out how people were doing thier Iron Man joints and debated using a chicago bolt to sandwhich the pieces together, but I wanted them to be able to come back apart easily. I heard of people using magnets and after some trial and error found I can't (cost effectively) get a magnet to hold any kind of shear weight while still being able to pivot around the center point. Then I thought of those magnetic purse clasp type magnets with the nub in the middle, but they don't make those strong enough. Then I thought, oh, what about just regular snaps? nope. No way to mount them secure enough to the foam that you could unsnap them without tearing them out. But then it hit me, PVC. A 3/4" sch40 PVC pipe fits nicely inside a 1" sch40! still a little play but enough clearance there's almost no friction between the two! I countersank the 3/4" into the thigh supports and cut holes thru the thigh supports for the 1" and BAM! instant joint that's simple, lightweight, cheap, and repeatedly removable with no wear as well as being invisible. I went back and added the ribs for a bit of support as well as a little extra styling. Rotates perfectly, hides my leg pretty well, and now it's also free-standing! Woot!



Helpful hint: if you take a dremel or knife and sand/carve the inside edge of the inner diameter of a pvc pipe it becomes sharp. This makes a great tool to punch perfect holes in your foam! Just position and start spinning the pipe to bore a hole as deep as you want. Thanks Evil Ted once again!

After more trial and error, sanding to shape over and over, and cutting about half the height out of the mount, I finally got the knee caps attached! These seriously were by far the most difficult and most rewarding to accomplish! I think they completely finish off the legs! Got the little detail tabs assembled, sanded to shape and attached as well. Those are just 1/4" foamies glued together and dremeled to shape.



Next up, the knee "hydraulics"! After those I should finally be caught up to my current progress and updates may take a tad longer, but rest assured I'm seeing this thru to the end! Thanks for the support, comments, and any advice you may have. I'm a perfectionist so if you see something that's not just right please don't let me finish this off without fixing it! The final result is only as great as it's weakest part. TTFN

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

The completed legs look amazing and I really both the mechanical and visual design of your knee joint. From the outside it almost looks like it's impossible for a leg to be inside it.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

@dedguy - Thanks! that was actually one of my goals. Glad I've hit it! They're actually quite comfy and they flex farther than I would have expected. There's still room behind my knee as well for the "rubber" hoses that will go in next. If I'm careful I can still get my foot thru the opening in the calf while still wearing my shoe. And that's an accomplishment 'cuz I wear 13's.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Update to knee "hydraulics"

I cut lengths of PVC (3/4" and 1") for the bodies of the hydraulics and connected them with T-adapter fittings. These are for two smaller sized pipes feeding into one larger one, with kind of a cool taper in the middle. I spaced them to be in line because the 1/2" to 3/4" is shorter than the 3/4" to 1".



quick assemble and test fit! the movement felt too loose so i added some felt my wife had from a previous sewing project to the inside of the larger tube to pad the smaller one. Little resistance but feels like just the right amount!



I threw a quick coat of primer and paint on. Satin nickel for the body and "chrome" for the piston. subtle difference in shade but I think after the weathering it'll look much better. Speaking of which, weathering and clear coat will take place a bit later once I figure that out... Any weathering tips? what kind of paint (spray/brush, laquer/acrylic, black/brown etc) for the color wash??



Reassembled with the legs and they move beautifully! I'm kind of a perfectionist so it will always bother me just a little that the mounts ended up in slightly different spots making the lengths of the cylinders different and one leg flex farther foward than the other, but for now (since my deadline is quickly approaching) it'll do just fine. I also added the hoses on the back of the knee joint but haven't got a picture of it yet. I'll upload those when i get one.



Also this past weekend I got a little work done on the gun! Head over here to check it out! Thanks for watching!

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*



For a gun of that size, doing it out of foam is probably your best bet. EVA would work, you could even do insulation board. You'll spend a small fortune in silicone if you mold it to rotocast, but that's definitely an option. If you can find someone who has a vacuum forming machine big enough to handle it, that would be an option too.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

This thing is beautiful. I thought it was impressive seeing someone attempt scratch building a Starcraft Marine in 1/6 scale.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

I have to say that the PVC pneumatic cylinders are a great touch. It makes it feel more "could be real" than costume

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Thanks again guys!

Quick update for today and i'm finally up to date with my progress! I made up some duct tape templates for the codpiece, freehand this time because the frame I had discovered was way too small. Trial and error, test fittings and modifications finally got me there. I only created half the pattern then just flipped them on the foam and traced out the other side as well. Nice symmetry! Glued the whole thing together then added more flexible tubing with t-fittings as a frame to add stiffness as well as anchor points to hang the thighs off of. I've ordered all the strapping for the legs and i'll be putting those together next week and hopefully get a video of the first test fit and walk-around! Exciting! Anyway, I threw the cod up on the legs as a mockup just like everything else and I can finally see this thing taking shape! and yes, before you ask, the kink in that pipe is intentional. It's filling in a bump in the back side that appeared as I was gluing the thing together.

FYI, this type of pipe is very thin wall and rather flexible. however, the smaller the radius you try to bend it into the flatter the pipe will get until the walls give up and fold. at that point, you can never straighten that bit again. the bend will always be a weak spot in the tube and will forever more want to bend there and nowhere else. There are other types of pipe that are probably equally flexible but stronger than this, but I got a roll of 100 feet for $10. Can't beat that!



Also just this morning I built the armor plate for the front of the cod. I've added another layer of foam since the picture but this is mostly done.



I'm out of town for a few days but by then the rest of my supplies should arrive and I can hit the rigging pretty hard and hopefully (finally) move on to the chest piece! (scared) Thanks for watching.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

The legs are looking really great. The pistons, and all the little details are very well done. I look forward to seeing how you rig it all up!

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Thanks Clothar! As always the comments are greatly appreciated and keep my motivation up!

BIG UPDATE! Strapping came in and I rigged up the cod and the thighs. two shoulder straps to suspend the cod, connected in front with a sternum strap and crossing in the back to minimize rotational swing. 'Course the thing fits tight enough that's not a prblem anyway but just in case. I used two straps for each thigh mounted in the same place but each wrapping around my leg a different direction, then both buckling into a single buckle at the hip. That gives me stability in the leg itself, (minimal wobbling) the ability to adjust height and rotation of the leg, and a central pivot point from the hip for flexibility! If anyone wants more detailed pics on the rest of the rigging I can post a few more. I also added buckled straps to the inside of the knees to lock the joint to my own, but the buckles don't seem to like to stay tight enough. I will revisit this soon, possibly with a velco solution. Other than that, my wife helped me strap everything up and I took a test drive around my garage to see how it all fit and if I had issues I need to address. And can I just say, a huge hand of applause to my wife who's been such a trooper thru this whole [insanity] project! Wouldn't be anywhere near this far without her!



So, after the initial suit-up I found a few issues. I will say, there are definitely more friction points than I would have liked, but far fewer than I was expecting. I had to adjust the straps on the thighs to rotate them further out, the knee strap issue which made it slightly more cumbersome to walk, I still have to finish the nubs on the outer edges of the boots for a little added stability, the shoulder pads need more padding (of course) and I'll have to find a way to attach the calf pieces to the boots because they tend not to want to rotate at the knee quite as I'd planned. Other than that, the whole thing is suprisingly easy to move around in and there seems to be no crazy stresses going on that would cause flexing of the foam. I'm quite happy with the initial run! On that note, it was about 95° in my garage that day and MAN that thing was hot! EVA foam does not breathe, people! even as big as it is and as far away from my body as most of it sits, it traps in heat really well! Hopefully come Con time it will have cooled down a bit.

After that I got quite a bit done on the details for the cod. Not sure exactly what to call them but there's a big recirc/pump?? thing at the front with a bunch of hoses coming out of it, covered with the armor plate I posted previously, as well as the back-side armor which I'm lovingly calling the butt-plate. Figure it'll be able to withstand all the Space Marines kicks back there. I prettly much had to design the front piece by eye and trial and error because it's not a simple shape. I started with a center rib of the contour I wanted with EVA, added some camping mat foam to each side and carved to shape, then added a couple more layers of EVA on the outside to give it some strength, sanded that to shape, then wrapped the whole thing in 2mm foamie to make a nice smooth surface. Then I added the tubes top and bottom which are rolled 1/2" EVA capped off with 1/4" foamies. Finally, the most time consuming part, I had to shape the entire back of the piece to match the contour of the cod in order to get it to mount correctly. Huge pain, but it turned out quite nice, I thought! Anyway, enough blabbing, on the the pics!





I'm currently working on the butt-plate and exhaust vents on the back of the cod and should be finished up with those soon. Thanks for watching!

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Continuing to be amazing. Have you done any paint tests yet? I know painting is still a while off but I find it's always super helpful to do plenty of testing before doing the real thing.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

dedguy said:

Continuing to be amazing. Have you done any paint tests yet? I know painting is still a while off but I find it's always super helpful to do plenty of testing before doing the real thing.

Click to expand...

Not yet no. I'm still trying to decide the best method for sealing the foam prior to paint. I've tried the watered down PVA glue method but I must have done something wrong because it cracked easily when bent out and created permanent wrinkles when bent inwards. I also tried a poly coating i found on the 405th but that one turned out even worse. Again, I probably did something wrong with the application. i've looked into the epsilon coating by Smooth-On and for a while I thought that would be my answer, but Syligian posted a video about how brittle it becomes and can crack with the slightest flexing of the part so now I'm scared to try that out. Any tips anyone? :confused As soon as I've figured that out then I need to decide what color I'm painting the whole thing. I've toyed with the standard blue and Raynor's black, and even tried out a few others such as white with carbon fiber accents, but I've yet to make a solid decision. Maybe I should start a poll??

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

MWiggs said:

I've tried the watered down PVA glue method but I must have done something wrong because it cracked easily when bent out and created permanent wrinkles when bent inwards.

Click to expand...

You didn't do anything wrong, that's basically what PVA does.

Why not plastidip?

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

msleeper Oh well thats good to know! Ill try it again maybe a bit thinner mix it was getting kind of thick near the last coat. As far as the plastidip goes i just havent gotten around to it yet. If i do go the PVA route i will use the plasti for sure. I was more or less testing to see what it does alone as a base coat. Ill try again in a bit when im waiting on more supplies. Thanks for the tip!

Anyone had any experience with epsilon? I keep seeing good things about it but im scared of it cracking... Havent had the chance to test it yet maybe thats the next step after the plastidip trial.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

I used smooth-on 65D. Not quite epsilon, but similar I believe. It does give a nice durable, rigid finish, but it still has the potential to crack in high stress areas. It definitely took a lot of punishment prior to that, and still remains functional even afterwards.
As for the heat issue in your armour, you are going to cook without some help. I added some helmet fans to my space marine, as well as a camelback with ice water. Even then, it is a hot day stomping around. I would recommend planning a few methods to keep yourself cool. I would hate for you to take a dive in that beautiful armour.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

MWiggs said:

@msleeper Oh well thats good to know! Ill try it again maybe a bit thinner mix it was getting kind of thick near the last coat. As far as the plastidip goes i just havent gotten around to it yet. If i do go the PVA route i will use the plasti for sure. I was more or less testing to see what it does alone as a base coat. Ill try again in a bit when im waiting on more supplies. Thanks for the tip!

Click to expand...

Are you saying you will do both PVA *and* plastidip?

You don't want to do that. You want one type of sealant, layering them like that will only cause more problems. You know how the PVA flaked off after it cracked? It will do that with the plastidip over it as well. Same with any sort of resin; if you're going to use Epsilon, don't seal the foam with anything first.

I don't think you can solve the cracking/flaking problem with PVA even with thinner coats. That's simply what it does when it bends after it dries, it's not flexible.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

CLOTHAR said:

I used smooth-on 65D. Not quite epsilon, but similar I believe. It does give a nice durable, rigid finish, but it still has the potential to crack in high stress areas. It definitely took a lot of punishment prior to that, and still remains functional even afterwards.
As for the heat issue in your armour, you are going to cook without some help. I added some helmet fans to my space marine, as well as a camelback with ice water. Even then, it is a hot day stomping around. I would recommend planning a few methods to keep yourself cool. I would hate for you to take a dive in that beautiful armour.

Click to expand...

I saw what Xrobots did with 65D and it looked really good! It's on my list of possibles for sure. As for the cooling, i've got the camelback already and I do have twin fans planned for the torso section. I found orange LED PC fans that should work nicely. Depending on how much time I have when I get to that step I may add more to other parts later. Gotta say tho, if I do fall in this thing it'd be pretty epic! I'd probably just lay there afterwords pretending to be a Zerg casualty. Thanks for the tip!

msleeper said:

Are you saying you will do both PVA *and* plastidip?

You don't want to do that. You want one type of sealant, layering them like that will only cause more problems. You know how the PVA flaked off after it cracked? It will do that with the plastidip over it as well. Same with any sort of resin; if you're going to use Epsilon, don't seal the foam with anything first.

I don't think you can solve the cracking/flaking problem with PVA even with thinner coats. That's simply what it does when it bends after it dries, it's not flexible.

Click to expand...

Yikes that doesn't sound good.. I thought I heard the pva seals the foam and the plastidip keeps the pva flexible and/or at least hides the cracks better? I'll have to swing by the store tonight and grab a can to see what I can do with it! Thanks for the warning! I knew the epsilon goes right onto the foam so no worries there. Guess I'll have to pick up a few different things and try them all out, see what works best for me. I've read a few other methods on here that would be worth trying out as well. I definitely want this thing to last a while.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

It may hide the cracks, but it won't crack at all if you don't use PVA in the first place. Plastidip is a perfectly fine sealant, and it takes paint really well.

If you use spray Plastidip, you may not get a smooth surface to it. (Not that it leaves a really noticeable texture, but if you look at my Ultron build for example you can see how it comes out.) If you are wanting a glass surface, you may want to opt for the cans intended for dipping, and use xylene to thin it out into a regular "paint" consistency.

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

Thanks Msleeper I'm going to pick up a couple cans this weekend and give it a try. Seems to work great for you!

Quick update today, I've been working a bit more on the odds and ends attached to the codpiece, mostly the back end. I think I've finally gotten it to a point I'm happy with. There were more parts in the original design but after test fitting everything on I think it'd be too tricky to add more pieces to it. I have some nylon bolts on order that will fill in the holes on the tabs. Still trying to keep the weight down after all.



Also made the little tabby things for the thighs, kind of like gap fillers. These truned out well but they're very flexible. Only two layers of 1/4" foamie layered together. I'm hoping after I seal them they'll be able to take a bit of abuse. Guess we'll see.



After that I've gone back to working on the hands and arms. More to come!

Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*

i suscribed to your work 2 months ago!i am overwhelmed to see the amount of details you go into!
the simili hydraulic system is amazing
i dont think anyone has done it before!
and your seams and trims look so clean... i wish i could cut and glue like that too haha
definitely need to meet you someday ... blizzcon maybe?