Sintra Questions

I live in San Diego and need some answers about sintra.

Where can I buy it? anything in san diego? if not what online stores have it for cheap?
When heated then cooled how strong is it? does it break easily?
If sintra isnt that good of a pvc to use what kind of plastic can i use that heats up and is easy to shape?

What i need it for is my Edward Kenway costume and swords. i need it for buckles and other small pieces. If sintra isnt the way to go other advice would be great!!! Thank you in advance for your opinions!!!

pic examples for what i need it for is the base plate for the skull on hid shoulder, the guns holders have a metal sheet over the leather, and his belt on his stomach is what i need a GOOD strong pvc for... so let me know!

Hello Darkvenom,
So Most of the armor I make is made from PVC plastic. Sintra is a name brand.. of PVC plastic. It is a little more durable.. but for what we do as costume pieces... pvc plastic works just fine. 6mm or layered 3mm can take a baseball bat to a certain extent. I've tested it.=) I broke a 3mm plate one time after someone slammed a car door on it with good hard slam. But I don't think you are going into battle with any of this. I would hope not anyway.Anyway... I live on the East coast though... so I mostly know east coast places... but I've heard good things about PLEXIGLASS sheet, Acrylic, UHMW, Lexan polycarbonate, Fiberglass sheets, Plastic & Plexiglass Fabrication, Weld-On Plexiglas Glue, PTFE
They are located in San Diego. But PVC sign plastic can be bought at any sign shop. Now Sintra is generally $10-20 more then regular PVC plastic. I started my costuming armor work with Sintra.. and eventually due to cost and location went with PVC sign plastic. You can fuse it together with PVC glue from any home hardware store in the plumbing department. Carve it down with a rotary tool and you've got your piece. Just realize when you fuse it together there will be plate lines on the side or wherever you carve into. Easiest fix... either dirty those areas when you paint it.. or use some kind of auto body filler like Bondo or Evercoat.
With that being said you can also make that skull piece with Sculpy or some other sculpting material and bake it. You can also use Worbla. Worbla's positives are that you use all of it.. you can heat it and not use glue because it adhere's to itself.. but Worbla is more expensive then PVC and is right up there with Sintra if not more expensive. PVC sheeting is cheaper, but it has waste... unless you have a recycling center that handles pvc.. specifically I think #6 plastic.( I have to recheck that.) But it's cheaper and you get more of it over Worbla. Worbla is a wonderful material.. just don't know if you want to mess with the cost. But all of it is good for any of the pieces you need. I work alot with Pvc, styrene and other stuff =). I just do it for different things. Just ask and I will answer best I can.

DUDE!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU VERY MUCH MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Much appreciated!!!

Hey, where on the east coast do you get Sintra/PVC sheeting?

Looking up "san diego pvc foam" on Google brings up this instantaneously:

KOMATEX PVC FOAM SHEET

Are you doing your research?...hmmmmm...

Anyway, I think the best way to get a good feel for how well the material works (other than asking people) is to look at the works of others who use Sintra a lot. Junkers Cosplay does a lot of work in Sintra, you can check his Facebook or blog to see how he uses it for his projects (including swords, so check those out). More specific to your costume and not Sintra, Fev is a member here who's done brilliant work on a lot of Assassin's Creed stuff, including AC costumes so if you don't know how to do a certain part chances are she's already found away around it. She has her builds documented on her Facebook, blog, and threads here on the RPF.

If you're gonna make buckles I recommend cannibalizing bags and belts from cheap secondhand stores or thrift stores and using those, and customizing these parts with a layer of Sintra and sculpted details using epoxy putty, like Milliput.

Info on Sintra/Komatex/PVC Foam:
Sintra sheets information

I've also read that you can often score free Sintra (and maybe styrene plastic?...) from signage shops if you ask for their misprints or scraps. It's possible they might charge you a little, but it's worth asking.

Good luck, and don't forget the Internet (and therpf) is big, there's always a build thread or a post out there that'll teach you exactly what you need to know.

I did research even called a few sign places but they wont sell raw sheets just printed on -.- and no scraps... and is komatex a strong pvc foam when heated? and ive asked around but i need specific plastic names and stuff but nvm im askin around now! thanks DOOM!