Alphonse Elric Armor Cardbord Build (WIP)

TonySingh

Member
Ok so like the title says, Im building up an Alphonse Elric Armor from Full Metal Alchemist in a Cardboard Build. xp but....im keeping a time frame on this one to push it to be finished next week Thursday. Which give me about a week...xp
Im using Carboard, Papermache to smooth is out, with maybe a coat of Gypsum ( I cant really do the fiber glass and bondo as i get seriously sick around the stuff. ;/ And i have to watch budget.) For the most part im hoping to just keep the outlook the same and not going to burden myself with 100% accuracy.

So getting started , with the basics.
First off was getting a model to work with, and i looked up Hot Toys photoshoots and found a great set for front and back and poses.




Getting the first part is always hard, its kinda helps have the actual model ;/...so alot of pics helps alot to break it up in to parts to work out how things looks. Sketch works and some draft.


After a while..and some grey hairs..i worked it around a soft shoe i had.



Heres the back view..a little tricky with the rises, but atleast it look the part.


Now..you may no see it but....it was just an ehhhhhhhhhhhh little to big. So i rebuilt it just a siz smaller which is around the shoe in this one. I like building from the shoe up cause i can get the rest of scale right coming up.


So the shoes are finished added the spikes, butttt....i have to keep in mind to always spread my feet apart just a bit cause if im not careful, the inside spikes will touch off, and hoping it wont rip apart.. >< live and learn....


...Coming to the end of the day...worked on the shin, same method of breakdown..but i had to skimp a bit on the back and make it two layer rather than one layer cause i didnt have any cardboard sides that was long enough not to mention if your going for 100% accuracy bhell... lolz but im happy it still looks the part ^^...and will continue later on with more posts.
 
thanks alot for the comment ^^

So continuing on, I decided the spikes on the feet where too big ><...and shrunk it down a size...also added in the knee caps while i was at it.


Next up was the shins.. D< but i realised how massive they were and had to hunt around for a box that size to work it D<


After some fit errors >< and alot of luck to make it work with that one box, i got the thigh guards made


UNNNNNNNNNNN,,,,,fortunatly...when i just placed them on top to check out how they looked.....i think i made a error somewhere....
Since the shins look.....really...thin >""< too thin...so im going to either add some layer in to bulk them up...or make new ones.... ;/ ......what do you think


 
Thanks alot , but sometimes the limits of cardboard can really bring you down. ;/ as youll see.

I went adhead and just added a layer onto the shin leg and it worked out well to get the size right. ^^


Then i decided to take a gamble and work on the chest pieace...getting another box of that size and getting to bend was making my life ..ughhh..lol


With some more bending and curving i worked out something that resembled the chest


Next up the Neck Collor, i worked it around the guard the would go around my neck



After adding it in, it started to shape together, i had to make it all fit frist before i strenghten them, not easy cause of the size ><...so it kept tearing away...Eva foam does have it advantages in geting curves here...
 
OK soim running short on time and need to push my build xp Since im hoping to have it done by friday, so today with what i had finished and the hot weather, i went adheadto papermache some of the armor as well as Coat it.

First off was the papermache which was your ususal newspaper, and a mixture of Wood glue and water. I perfer wood glue over the white glue cause i get more and it seems to be a little stronger on the cardboard.


Next up was pasting, im going with a gamble and using pure gypsum wall putty. Unlike bondo which costs an arm where i am and makes me sick. Its alot easier to work with and dries and sands like a dry chalk.


One thing i learned and hope it helps someone, is that for larger pieaces,its better to just work 1/2 and 1/2, instead of doing the whole thing and when its time to leave it to set it smears ;/


It taks about...2 hours to dry to a point where you can work gypsome putty, so i rotate between parts and papermaching. but when its dry, it very very easy to sand smooth. But i know concerns on it chipping or flaking, but like i said, im taking a gamble
 
Thanks alot guys for the votes ^^ it means alot.. XD... and with my days getting shorter...im pushing the hours. So heres the updates

I worked out the little parts like the arms guards, the plates for the hands, shoulder, and forarm. Som trials and errror to get them to look the part.


Ready for papermache pasting. Standard wood glue and water.


Things are starting to come together, but it does take a few hours work to get it all done.


I still had a few hours left in the day and started pasting everything in gypsum putty, one thing i noticed is, Dont let it direct sun dry, it creates alot of cracks that youll have to spend time filling over. in a covered place *under* the sun works alot better.


This is the chest and the back, with all things considered all thats left is the helmet which im working on and will post up soon. As for the back and chest, im spilt it down the sides, and will use straps over the shoulders, and buckles to the sides. and over it over with the Side leather guards that you see in the armor.


Again thanks for the comments ^^.
 
Some updates on the armor. With one day left.

These are the curved shoulders, im mounting them on with pvc pipes underneath onto the rim of the back half of the armor


As for priming, i use concrete primer cause the texture of the gypsum is a surface to use it on. I dont add water as when it dries it hardnenes and can be sanded even smoother.


The arm guard ready for painting.


The front chest armor painted in primer.


Got into some spray painting finally, This is using one coat of Aluminum sliver and....pretty much one is all i needed.



After that i dusted out the armor in black spray paint and it brought out the armor. I didnt smooth it 100% for one didnt have the time to spend hours to smooth it out, and two hey, i like it scruffed and scarred ^^


Had to push through to get it all done today. cause with this its about 70% done


Now for the fun part, making the helmet.. >< which made me wonder where or how to start so i just dived in


I think...i got it..@.@...maybe?


The really...hard part was forming the top...>< i dont think i got it right, but hoping once its covered over it will pass for it


And at long last its done. now to get it papermached and get ready for tommrow, hopfully the next set of photos will be me at the mini con in cosplayso wish me luck :3 no sleep XD
 
Well Here it is the Completed Armor In Cardboard. ^^ ...I wish i had more time to sun dry it as was just a little sticky but not enough that it couldnt be touched safely. phew...-w- Im happy its done. Will more personal shots with it later on. For now here it is at the event.




Oh noooo not the Fan girls..XD


Well....maybe having fan girls isnt so bad....-w-



With it No face from the movie Spirited Away.


You made Bro? x3


Thank god it was outside..XD it was really hot in there.


Well. thats it for this one Now back to more Cardboard builds x3
 
These are really impressive results!
Yeah bondo is a pain. Not only does it take a lot of work to sand, but it comes with a lot of health hazards.
How good did the drywall hold up?
 
It has held up very well. Its been a few weeks but other than some scuffing at the extreme ends (possible due to early morning due) the over all is still holding well. Though i recommend a coating of pva glue when one is finished sanding. this helps do a bond over the drywall. plus, spray painting take far far less coats and you get the full *true* color.
 
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