A newbie in need

[RigidHollywood]

Hey everybody, so I come to you guys in need of some advice. I have been a member for a while now and have often stared in awe of everyone's amazing creations here. I would love to try something along these lines with the armor on the torso over top of the leather. My only question is, how? Honestly I don't know where to begin, other than a template. Any tips, help, and/or recommendations would be extremely helpful. Thank you guys in advance!

 

[RigidHollywood]

I threw together this sketch to try to give you guys an idea of closer to what I am looking for with the finished costume. I already have the leather jacket, just need some different ways to add the armor.

 

[tjbro13]

unless you're looking to mutilate the jacket, your best bet is going to be a series of straps and clips. it wouldn't move as well with the jacket as something like velcro or any other system you'd need to glue or sew on, but if you want a wearable jacket afterward it'd be your best interest to rig a "vest" of strapped-together armour you could pull on over the jacket and a series of elastic straps for vambraces, etc.

 

[Vox]

I agree with tjbro13 if you want to salvage the jacket for use/wear exclusive of this costume.

But in case you do not...

If it is actual leather, then you can use pretty much whatever you like to adhere the armor to it because, unlike fabric, it won't stretch away from certain adhesives. (For example: hot glue doesn't really work on anything that stretches because the fibers eventually pull away from the glue.) If I were going to glue armor onto a leather jacket, I would probably use contact cement, except for the pieces that need to overlap the zipper, in which case I would use contact cement on half the piece, and then velcro on the other half, so that I could attach it once the zipper had been zipped.

Make sure you leave gaps in the armor plating for key flex points. I find it helps to look at a muscle layout of the human body, because you can see where the muscles and ligaments begin and end. For example, I would leave 1/4 to 1/2 an inch between each ab piece, because of how much bending and twisting the upper torso does just in daily activities.

 

[RigidHollywood]

Make sure you leave gaps in the armor plating for key flex points. I find it helps to look at a muscle layout of the human body, because you can see where the muscles and ligaments begin and end. For example, I would leave 1/4 to 1/2 an inch between each ab piece, because of how much bending and twisting the upper torso does just in daily activities.

Thank both of you guys so much for the help. My only other question is, should I use foam for it or should I try PVC armor? I've never used PVC for an armor build and I've only used foam twice now

 

[Vox]

Thank both of you guys so much for the help. My only other question is, should I use foam for it or should I try PVC armor? I've never used PVC for an armor build and I've only used foam twice now

They both have their pros and cons. PVC is generally more durable and easier to paint, but does not do complex curves well and is harder to connect edge-to-edge than foam. Foam is more forgiving (i.e. can be stretched or squished a bit to fit) and is probably cheaper.

Personally, I like to use my own builds as opportunities to learn new things and try new materials. If I were you, I would give PVC a shot and see how you like it! But there is no shame in choosing the foam route since you have worked with it before and are therefore, probably, more comfortable with it.

 

[RigidHollywood]

They both have their pros and cons. PVC is generally more durable and easier to paint, but does not do complex curves well and is harder to connect edge-to-edge than foam. Foam is more forgiving (i.e. can be stretched or squished a bit to fit) and is probably cheaper.

Personally, I like to use my own builds as opportunities to learn new things and try new materials. If I were you, I would give PVC a shot and see how you like it! But there is no shame in choosing the foam route since you have worked with it before and are therefore, probably, more comfortable with it.

Well I will be going the route of 3mm Sintra PVC Foam to see how it goes. Go out of my comfort zone. Thanks for the advice.

 

[SMP Designs]

You can always embed neodymium magnets into the underside of the armor and then use the other half inside the jacket to snap it on. That way, you don't have to use a lot of straps and you don't have to ruin your jacket.