Black Widow (Avengers) 3D Printed Buckle, Mines, and Glowing Bites

[MisterXero]

Hi all,

So after seeing all the work I had done and all the cool things happening over on the Dredd costume project, my wife decided she wanted to get in on the fun and asked me to create a Black Widow costume for her. How can I say no?

I looked over all the great BW builds on here and decided to give it a go. The first piece I wanted to tackle was the BW belt buckle as it is very iconic to the character.

I started with a 3D model of the buckle created by me and 3D printed:

I made the buckle in three parts with guides and interlocking features to make assembly easier. The three parts were cleaned up and molded. The back piece is cold cast in aluminum, the middle was cast in red, and the front piece was cast in black. The results vs. the one that came with the elite costume was night and day!

I found these screws lying around in my toolbox and they were perfect for what I needed:

I glued the belt to the back of the buckle and used the holes I made in the 3D file for the screws. The standoff on the screw provided a nice "hook" for the other side of the belt.

The final result after assembly and polishing up the aluminum casted back:

If I find a more accurate belt, I will change it, but this was the closest thing we could find to date. Any suggestions for a more screen accurate belt would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[annet52]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

Nice job!

 

[MisterXero]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

Thanks!
And now to try and tackle a set of blue glowing Widow Bites!

 

[MisterXero]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

Hey guys,

Here are a few more items I did for my wife's BW costume.

 

[MisterXero]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

Finally, the Bites:

 

[thegrinch584]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

Nice work!

 

[littlemissnerdy]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

OMG! Light up Bites!

 

[MisterXero]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

The light-up bites looked awesome on the dancefloor, haha!

 

[littlemissnerdy]

Re: Black Widow Buckle (3D Printed and Molded)

You know BW likes to hit the raves! LOL

 

[annet52]

could you share how you made the widow bites?? They look so cool!!

 

[MisterXero]

could you share how you made the widow bites?? They look so cool!!

Thanks, annet52!

For the bites, I made a 3D model of a single section and had it 3D printed. In the model, I incorporated cutouts where the light was going to shine through and six holes, (after measuring the EL wire diameter), behind the opening to accomodate three passes in and out of the wire.

I then proceeded to cast the individual bites. I wound up using 13 per side. The 6 holes mentioned above did not turn out, so I had to re-drill one larger hole per side and I was able to fish the wire through twice instead of the originally planned three times. It was still quite bright though!

The original plan was to make clear lenses to put on top to cover each window. As time ticked closer and closer to the date of the party, concessions had to be made. The final lens was actually hot glue. This also helped to hold each pass of the EL wire down so the wires and the bites would not come loose.

Finally, I had to find a place to put the inverter for the EL wire, and as it turns out, 13 bites around would have been fine for my wife's wrist, but not after she put on the Alpinestars Stella gloves. So I put the inverter between the two ends of the bites, tied everything together with elastic and wholla! Done. =)

 

[annet52]

wow good work!! Thanks!!

 

[andveryginger]

Nice work! The glowing bites are a brilliant touch! I'm looking at casting a total of 22 (11 for each wrist), but not currently planning on lighting them up. Maybe v2...

I'm working on my own holster rig at the moment, and was wondering -- how did you attach the straps/webbing to the CQC holsters?

Thanks!

 

[MisterXero]

Nice work! The glowing bites are a brilliant touch! I'm looking at casting a total of 22 (11 for each wrist), but not currently planning on lighting them up. Maybe v2...

I'm working on my own holster rig at the moment, and was wondering -- how did you attach the straps/webbing to the CQC holsters?

Thanks!

I had sections of Kydex cut for a rigid support behind the holsters. The Kydex was screwed onto the holsters via the screws supplied. The webbing was then just hot glued to the kydex. The way it turned out, the holster was vertical against the leg the whole time and not wanting to flex in if it were attached directly to the webbing.

 

[SirRogue]

Wow, the glowy bites are truly amazing! I can't wait to try this out!

 

[andveryginger]

I had sections of Kydex cut for a rigid support behind the holsters. The Kydex was screwed onto the holsters via the screws supplied. The webbing was then just hot glued to the kydex. The way it turned out, the holster was vertical against the leg the whole time and not wanting to flex in if it were attached directly to the webbing.

Sorry for the delay... I went on vacation. =)

Not sure where I'll get the extra kydex, but I think I get it. Will have to see what I can come up with. Thanks!

 

[ashleyin1drland]

Oh my gosh this is amazing! I have been trying to start a Widow costume forever. Quick question, what program do you use to make the 3d models? I'm not exactly a master sculptor.

 

[Jsweeney]

Would you seller a set of the black widow bites?