EVA Foam?

Ctire here in Ontario puts the foam on sale every other week. My brother works fir zellers and tells people to goto Wal-Mart all the time. From all the shopping ive done Ctire has everything either cheaper or on sale more often hen anywhere else. Plus its all right there.
 
Hey Fullmetalsam (or anyone else with the knowhow :p)

What about using fiberglass cloth with a liquid plastic like smooth cast 320 to reinforce EVA foam? I'm only asking because there are parts that I have that do not need to be flexible and could look better if I squeeze them a bit *letting the fiberglass/plastic hold it's shape*

I got some extra mats I need to use and I'd rather not deal with the toxic stuff in this cold :D

What I have done with some of my foam pieces is I have brushed a coat of urathane resin on the inside of a piece, it gives it a bit of strength, while still bieng a bit flexible, it'll still crack but I don't recommend using fiberglass cloth with it that will make it too strong.
 
Axiom... there's a lot of way you can use to make sure the foam is holding it's shape.

Have you tried heat ???
A bit of time with a heat gun... might help the foam retain a curved shape (just remember that the foam will still try to keep it's original shape (flat :p), so when heating, hold the foam piece more curved than what you're actually looking for)

Anything from hot glue to liquid plastic with fiberglass cloth (or just regular fabric (which will serve the same purpose) will do the trick.

One little trick I've been using when I needed a foam piece to hold a very precise shape is metal wire. I would cut a groove in the piece (usually more than one, depending on the complexity of the shape you're looking for) and would hot glue a metal wire in there. The metal wire needs to be "stronger" than the foam and the hot glue... but once you've got it in there, you can bend it anyway you want and it will help the foam keep it's shape.

If you're going that way... stay away from hangers :)
I've tried using those, but working that gauge of metal wires without any tools (once it's in the foam, you don't want to scrap your foam finish) is a bit difficult :)

Anyhow... that was my way of achieving this without compromising the flexbility of the foam and without have to use any toxic-smelly stuff :)
 
1. What would be the best way to sand it? I took a dremel and some 400 grit sandpaper to it, and it seemed to get the job done, but not very well. Surely there is a better way?

2. Is there a way to glue EVA Foam together? Is there some sort of adhesive that I need, or will any glue work? (I'm partial to hot-glue, but I doubt I will see the result I'm looking for if I use it)

3. Is there a way to glue EVA Foam to cardboard? This question is rather important as I'm nearly done a vest and I wanted to have a cardboard backing to stick all my EVA Foam pieces to. Hopefully an efficient method exists.

I started making costume using EVA foam. Hopefully I can answer some of your questions.

1. I would avoid sanding as much as possible. The best way is to cut the foam clean. I think you can sand but foam has a tendency to flake off. Once you are all done with your foam build, cover it with Plasti-Dip. This will cover some of the imperfection.

2. Hot glue works just find. It melts the foam and fuse them together.

3. I would recommend that you glue foam to a larger piece of foam. It provides more flexibility. Cardboard will fold and break which defeats the purpose of making a costume.

I created a simple tutorial on using foam. Hope this helps. I also address how to retain the bend with foam.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzC8rqAXtsM

Here is a handplate for my son I just completed in 1 hours over the weekend. It is hot-glued and detailed with foamies.
f6b67ee4.jpg
 
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Axiom... there's a lot of way you can use to make sure the foam is holding it's shape.

Have you tried heat ???
A bit of time with a heat gun... might help the foam retain a curved shape (just remember that the foam will still try to keep it's original shape (flat :p), so when heating, hold the foam piece more curved than what you're actually looking for)

Anything from hot glue to liquid plastic with fiberglass cloth (or just regular fabric (which will serve the same purpose) will do the trick.

One little trick I've been using when I needed a foam piece to hold a very precise shape is metal wire. I would cut a groove in the piece (usually more than one, depending on the complexity of the shape you're looking for) and would hot glue a metal wire in there. The metal wire needs to be "stronger" than the foam and the hot glue... but once you've got it in there, you can bend it anyway you want and it will help the foam keep it's shape.

If you're going that way... stay away from hangers :)
I've tried using those, but working that gauge of metal wires without any tools (once it's in the foam, you don't want to scrap your foam finish) is a bit difficult :)

Anyhow... that was my way of achieving this without compromising the flexbility of the foam and without have to use any toxic-smelly stuff :)

Thanks for the tips guys. And yes, I did use a heat gun, but the assembled foam parts when together presented a piece that was not quite narrow enough for my liking. I would use the heat gun on the assembled part, but I know that it could melt the hot glue and cause the pieces to separate. I want to use the urethane plastic and slightly *squish* the part a bit.

I like the idea for using metal wires :thumbsup but I think this time around I'll just use whats left of some of the materials that I have laying around.

I understand the need for mobility and the like, but I'm only using foam for it's lightness and the fact that I can build this part faster than if I went the paper/resin/bondo route. The parts I'm talking about are knee pads and shins, which don't flex normally so a super strong reinforcement isn't going to mess up my build :)

Thanks again!
 
What is the best way to hide seams and joins when working with foam?
I can only get the thick stuff, and thin craft foam. I've been using craft foam to hide some but it tends to bulk areas up to much.
Any ideas?
 
The best way I've found is to make sure your cuts are clean so you have nice clean edges in the first place, then add hot glue but not too much, just enough to be able to smear it with the tip of the glue gun to get a thin layer on one side. Then sandwich the two pieces together, starting by putting the OUTER edges together and closing the pieces together like a hinge so that any excess glue will push out on the INSIDE of the piece rather than the outside. Once the seam is dry and holding, add more glue to the inside seam of the piece and spread it across the join to the inside of both of the pieces which adds support and strength to the seam without the need to have a heap of glue between the two actual pieces.

Also, for long seams (I would say anything over 4-5cms), glue the pieces together in stages so that you are able to hold it together while it cures more effectively.

EDIT: Oh, and seeing as you're in Aus, I don't know what foam you're using or what you call "thick" but I have used 10mm and 5mm camping mats from Kmart as well as 2mm and 3mm foam sheets from my local craft store.
 
Has anyone ever tried contact cement with their foam project? I myself, have not done a EVA armor, so I am curious.. I have seen may projects done with hot glue, which works, but requires you to be a human vice while the glue cools. Super glue, as stated above works well, but has toxic vapor, and you need to spread it on the whole surface.

The toughest conact cemement that I can think of, is Barge Cement. It is available at most hardware stores in a tube.

Thoughts?
 
Rather than answer any questions here I have two videos at the start of my thread that show how to glue the pieces together, no vice like hands needed. How to clean away any excess glue and a little rough tip on angled cuts. Hope they help people needing info on foam suit building.
 
Hi CplSharko, I am not sure if you are still looking for EVA foam for your armor construction. They are very economical and suitable to make custom costume and other DIY craft stuff. I have bought them from China through once and here is an informative post concerning EVA foam material http://www.foamtechchina.com/eva-foam-material/. Hope this can help :)
 
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