Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
Thanks again all! I finally got the rendering done of the final three color scheme contenders. Gunmetal two-tone (my wife's personal favorite and growing in my estimation every time I look at it) camo just 'cuz I wanted to see what it'd look like (not very practical on Char or Braxis) and of course the version my daughter really wants to see, Buzz Lightyear! However, I do still plan on making an appearance at Blizzcon 2016 and I'm not so sure how well they'd recieve a mash-up of different characters from outside the Blizz-world. Hence, I have to opt out of the Saint's Row idea as well, despite how neat that'd look with the embelishments. However, after that I may repaint in a new scheme to keep things fresh after that event, so I'll keep those in mind! So, here's to falling in style:
Let me know what you think! I'm contemplating building raynor's handgun as well, it'd be nice to have a smaller firearm to carry around besides the massive rifle...
As for the suit itself, not a ton a progress due to the fact that, altho small, the upper light housings were such a huge pain it took several days to work out how to do it, lots of scrapped material and some fudging which was covered up in the final act. All in all, turned out pretty close to how I envisioned, but just like everything else, not completely screen accurate. I'll just call it personalization.
I started the housings with 1/4" foam sheets rolled into a tube and trimmed to shape in order to fit on top of the lower housings and point in the right direction. No googly-eyes here! Next, I hacked up some small bits of EVA and fitted them between the new housings and the center chest piece to fill in the gap. But how to fill in the rest of the curved housing? I didn't get many "during" pictures because there was so much back and forth, so if anyone wants more detail I'm happy to describe it in more detail, but let's just say for now the first three attempts didn't work out. I finally decided to rough in the shape I wanted with a scrap piece of EVA, spending several hours just sanding it and heat-forming it into the approximate shape I wanted. Next, I covered that in tape to create a flat pattern, trimmed that a little more, transferred that to another piece of EVA and sanded the crap out of that one as well, finally getting the right rounded form contoured to the existing foam. Hugest. Headache. Ever. Next one went surprisingly (and frustratingly) smooth.
Now, up until this point I pick and choose my adhesives based on the function of the part I'm gluing on. For major structural pieces or larger pieces that may see more stress, I use the contact cement. (Again, I use Weldwood, but I hear Barge is a better choice) For smaller pieces that stack on other pieces or large flat areas that need to stick together or even parts I know will have a gap after attaching, I use hot glue. For these housings, I used the contact cement for two reasons. One, I want them to stick really really well. they taper off to almost nothing and I didn't think the heat of the hot glue would do that tip any good, but also it's such a complex shape that I didn't think I'd be able to hold it in the right spot while the glue cooled off. With the cement, as soon as you touch the two pieces together, they're stuck! Handy! And second, these are attached to the tops of the other housings which are large, hollow, and not really attached to anything else around the top so this adds much needed strength to the front.
Finally, after all the trial and error, I covered the housings in tape again to creat yet another flat pettern for the 1/8" foam to wrap over the top of it all in order to cover gaps and smooth the whole thing out aesthetically. For the thin stuff and detail work I like to use spray adhesive. I've tried three different brands so far, Elmer's that I picked up from Joann's, an extra tacky industrial stuff from Harbor Freight, and 3M Super77 that I'm currently using. They're all about the same but the last two seem a tad stronger. Anyway, cut, covered, and sanded into shape. Finally, I added the little details of the vents along the sides. That's just more 1/8" foamies foam. I also built (out of 3mm foamies) the little light housings that go just outside the uppers. I rolled the foam into a small solid tube and trimmed it to fit in the corner. I then drilled a small hole in the middle, which is where I'll mount the little orange lights I've dubbed the "parking" lights. I'm getting closer to the lighting/wiring stage! a few more details and I'll be there!
Thanks for watching, and of course the great tips! To infinity and beyond!