MWiggs
Well-Known Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
Thanks Clothar!
Knee joints were kind of tricky, but like so many things the solution turned out to be far more simple than I was making it out to be. I added supports to the thighs, double thick for extra strength. Let me tell you, using contact cement to glue two half inch thick pieces of foam together makes it UBER rigid! Worked like a charm. Then I added the lower support and mount to the top of the calf piece which was tricky because it had to mount on the inside of the thing. Lots and lots of trial and error trying to get these to fit just right BTW. Never give up, never surrender! My plan was simply a cylinder mounted between two thicker discs, similar to a simple hinge. I checked out how people were doing thier Iron Man joints and debated using a chicago bolt to sandwhich the pieces together, but I wanted them to be able to come back apart easily. I heard of people using magnets and after some trial and error found I can't (cost effectively) get a magnet to hold any kind of shear weight while still being able to pivot around the center point. Then I thought of those magnetic purse clasp type magnets with the nub in the middle, but they don't make those strong enough. Then I thought, oh, what about just regular snaps? nope. No way to mount them secure enough to the foam that you could unsnap them without tearing them out. But then it hit me, PVC. A 3/4" sch40 PVC pipe fits nicely inside a 1" sch40! still a little play but enough clearance there's almost no friction between the two! I countersank the 3/4" into the thigh supports and cut holes thru the thigh supports for the 1" and BAM! instant joint that's simple, lightweight, cheap, and repeatedly removable with no wear as well as being invisible. I went back and added the ribs for a bit of support as well as a little extra styling. Rotates perfectly, hides my leg pretty well, and now it's also free-standing! Woot!
Helpful hint: if you take a dremel or knife and sand/carve the inside edge of the inner diameter of a pvc pipe it becomes sharp. This makes a great tool to punch perfect holes in your foam! Just position and start spinning the pipe to bore a hole as deep as you want. Thanks Evil Ted once again!
After more trial and error, sanding to shape over and over, and cutting about half the height out of the mount, I finally got the knee caps attached! These seriously were by far the most difficult and most rewarding to accomplish! I think they completely finish off the legs! Got the little detail tabs assembled, sanded to shape and attached as well. Those are just 1/4" foamies glued together and dremeled to shape.
Next up, the knee "hydraulics"! After those I should finally be caught up to my current progress and updates may take a tad longer, but rest assured I'm seeing this thru to the end! Thanks for the support, comments, and any advice you may have. I'm a perfectionist so if you see something that's not just right please don't let me finish this off without fixing it! The final result is only as great as it's weakest part. TTFN
Thanks Clothar!
Knee joints were kind of tricky, but like so many things the solution turned out to be far more simple than I was making it out to be. I added supports to the thighs, double thick for extra strength. Let me tell you, using contact cement to glue two half inch thick pieces of foam together makes it UBER rigid! Worked like a charm. Then I added the lower support and mount to the top of the calf piece which was tricky because it had to mount on the inside of the thing. Lots and lots of trial and error trying to get these to fit just right BTW. Never give up, never surrender! My plan was simply a cylinder mounted between two thicker discs, similar to a simple hinge. I checked out how people were doing thier Iron Man joints and debated using a chicago bolt to sandwhich the pieces together, but I wanted them to be able to come back apart easily. I heard of people using magnets and after some trial and error found I can't (cost effectively) get a magnet to hold any kind of shear weight while still being able to pivot around the center point. Then I thought of those magnetic purse clasp type magnets with the nub in the middle, but they don't make those strong enough. Then I thought, oh, what about just regular snaps? nope. No way to mount them secure enough to the foam that you could unsnap them without tearing them out. But then it hit me, PVC. A 3/4" sch40 PVC pipe fits nicely inside a 1" sch40! still a little play but enough clearance there's almost no friction between the two! I countersank the 3/4" into the thigh supports and cut holes thru the thigh supports for the 1" and BAM! instant joint that's simple, lightweight, cheap, and repeatedly removable with no wear as well as being invisible. I went back and added the ribs for a bit of support as well as a little extra styling. Rotates perfectly, hides my leg pretty well, and now it's also free-standing! Woot!
Helpful hint: if you take a dremel or knife and sand/carve the inside edge of the inner diameter of a pvc pipe it becomes sharp. This makes a great tool to punch perfect holes in your foam! Just position and start spinning the pipe to bore a hole as deep as you want. Thanks Evil Ted once again!
After more trial and error, sanding to shape over and over, and cutting about half the height out of the mount, I finally got the knee caps attached! These seriously were by far the most difficult and most rewarding to accomplish! I think they completely finish off the legs! Got the little detail tabs assembled, sanded to shape and attached as well. Those are just 1/4" foamies glued together and dremeled to shape.
Next up, the knee "hydraulics"! After those I should finally be caught up to my current progress and updates may take a tad longer, but rest assured I'm seeing this thru to the end! Thanks for the support, comments, and any advice you may have. I'm a perfectionist so if you see something that's not just right please don't let me finish this off without fixing it! The final result is only as great as it's weakest part. TTFN