Best foam to make a costume and where to get it in the uk

Picard1471

Active Member
Hi I'm new to this forum I'm based in the uk and am looking firstly to make the iron man costume then war machine just wondered where best place to get the foam and templates full size from ??? Any help will be useful
 
Contact xrobots.uk he has used foam in the past and knows where to order it from. Good Luck with your builds.
 
I use 6mm camping foam mats which is plenty thick enough to be building with I don't know how others build with the floor mats as they are so thick really hard to bend and move in it in my opinion you can get 3 camping mats off of ebay for £10 which is a good price
 
Thank you sooooo much camping mats sounds good but is 6mm too thick ?? Just ordered glue gun knife anything you think I will certainly need right away ??
 
IMO the best foam is Plastazote available here: thamesvalleysupplies.co.uk or rapid online.com It's a bit more expensive but it's definitely worth the extra. Good Luck with the build.
 
Ive just tried my hand at an iron man helmet last week and was surprised with the results, i think i could really get into this foam pepakura thing !

I went to tesco and they sell blue camping matts with a silver foil like backing, that just peels off though. They are about 4 quid each and i only used about half of the matt to make the helmet. Heres my first ever attempt, its a bit rough round the edges but i just wanted to see what it was like making one, so im planning on starting a new helmet and getting the joins a lot better before PVA'ing it and then coating it with resin etc

ironmantp.jpg
 
IMO the best foam is Plastazote available here: thamesvalleysupplies.co.uk or rapid online.com It's a bit more expensive but it's definitely worth the extra. Good Luck with the build.
Just looked at your build wow wow looks amazing hope to get some hints and tips from you creep creep lol , just going on themes valley supplies as the red and yellow looks great how much do you think I will need as it comes in 2m x1m ?.?

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Ive just tried my hand at an iron man helmet last week and was surprised with the results, i think i could really get into this foam pepakura thing !

I went to tesco and they sell blue camping matts with a silver foil like backing, that just peels off though. They are about 4 quid each and i only used about half of the matt to make the helmet. Heres my first ever attempt, its a bit rough round the edges but i just wanted to see what it was like making one, so im planning on starting a new helmet and getting the joins a lot better before PVA'ing it and then coating it with resin etc

http://imageshack.us/a/img560/1825/ironmantp.jpg
love the mask looks great I'm getting excited now and it's for my son lol
 
Just looked at your build wow wow looks amazing hope to get some hints and tips from you creep creep lol , just going on themes valley supplies as the red and yellow looks great how much do you think I will need as it comes in 2m x1m ?.?

Think I used 1 yellow & 3 Red of 6mm & 1 sheet of red in 3mm for detail work.:thumbsup
 
Here's mine the first helmet is one I built last year using stealths tutorials and dancing fools templates the second which is coated in pva mix at the moment is mk 8 using jf customs speed foam building templates and guides and the 3rd helmet which ive just finished tonight its also jf customes speed building template a Iron patriot helmet but its a bit to big :S

 
For most of my mass effect armour I used this 6mm matt Lonsdale Fitness Mat - SportsDirect.com from sports direct, you have to remove the fabric on them, but that's quite easy and the foam underneath is dense and easy to work with.

And these 8mm interlocking mats like this
3.5 sq ft Big EVA Exercise Safety Play Cushion Foam Floor Interlock Puzzle Mats | eBay
The quality isn't to bad, but the carbon fibre effect on one side is annoying if you don't need it.

Also 2mm craft or fun foam Foam Sheet | Hobbycraft from Hobby craft is good for detailing

You don't want to go too thin, below 5 or 6mm or it will be to soft and floppy for main pieces, but too thick like the 12mm (half inch) mats you can get in Argos and its harder to work with and very bulky to wear. Also if its your first build, its possible you are going to need a lot more foam than you think, becuase of mistakes or get the sizing wrong and having to redo sections, I certainly did.
 
Soooo from all your experiences where is best place to get templates and which is the best ?? Think I will definetly go 6mm and then 3 for the intricate pieces loving all the great advice can't wait to order and get started my son is going to be so excited I did a full dr who Tardis 2 years ago before we moved and wanted to move into costumes now :)
 
I would say check at jfcustoms speed foam building thread lots of suits there to choose from and if its your first time easy templates to build from :)
 
In my personal opinion 3mm to 4mm foam is best, simply because if you prep it with three coats of PVA and say two coats of resin , it will by comparison to say a 6 mm or a 10 mm one prepared in the same way , weigh over half as much and when you've got your body suit on and the foam suit you are going to sweat as it's going to get hot in there - why do you think so many of the add mini disk fans inside ? Trust me on this ! I appreciate it's is easier to build rigid pieces out of heaver foam , but I would suggest where possible reduce the thickness to suit the task and you shouldn't go wrong .
 
I would say check at jfcustoms speed foam building thread lots of suits there to choose from and if its your first time easy templates to build from :)
I checked jf and I've commissioned a build and from the progress pics I'm soooo glad I did this guy is just amazing
 
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