Custom Mandalorian

[Spanner Murraan]

Hey everybody, This is my first real thread on here, and even though I do not claim to have near the skill that many on this board do, I wanted to show off a bit.

I have been a prop builder for a few years now, and I built my first wearable costume 3 years ago. It was a custom Mandalorian for use in the Mandalorian Mercs. Not being happy with it, I did a complete rebuild from the ground, up. I know the seemingly prevailing opinion of the MMCC, but I am not here for a discussion on that. It's just about the costume.

The base Material for this build was 6" PVC pipe with a thickness of 3/8", supplimented with 3mm sintra. The helmet is Roto-cast resin that I hand-painted and weathered.

Armor:

Helmet:

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4
[IMG]http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/299146_2563571646056_1157055560_33138303_1433314481_n.jpg

All Together:

a few more tweaks are coming, such as upgraded knees and belts. The ones pictured were just stand-ins until the others could be finished. I am also working on some Mods to my gut.

 

[Woolfster]

The paint job is unbelievably amazing. Great Job! Wish I could do something like that...

 

[Judge Spartan]

Sir, that is beautiful work. I wondered if 6" pvc pipe would work and am now convinced it does. I've never used sintra before either but may consider trying it. Great paint job and love the Elvis pose, quite the laugh. Keep up the great work and welcome aboard.

 

[Zorlord]

could you explain what you mean by the base materials? Im confused as to how the pvc pipe is used.. Maybe a bit of a noob statement, but if you could elaborate it would be extremely helpful.

 

[Reg B]

Vary nice.

 

[j0wE]

looks great!

 

[Spanner Murraan]

Thank you everyone for the kind words. It is nice to get praise from other prop builders.

could you explain what you mean by the base materials? Im confused as to how the pvc pipe is used.. Maybe a bit of a noob statement, but if you could elaborate it would be extremely helpful.

I bought a 10' length of 6' diameter PVC pipe for around $30USD. The pipe was cut and then heated and shaped into what you see. Here are some process pictures:

The ab plates were made from Sintra to give a pronounced look to the breast plate. The grooves were channeled out with a dremel as was the cog design in the center so that I could inset the metal piece.

 

[Robert412]

You, sir, have it in you.

I know you claim to be new or novice or whatever, but this is awesome.

 

[tk 9464]

Spanner... great work, awesome. Great usage of the pipe. Great tip. I'm looking into Mandalorian armor for myself and my sons.

Thanks again...

Dominic

 

[Spanner Murraan]

You, sir, have it in you.

I know you claim to be new or novice or whatever, but this is awesome.

Thanks. I have actually been building props for about 10 years, but only in the last 5 have I been any kind of serious about it. But my background is a painter, fabricator and mechanic. I have actually been a member of these boards for about 2 years, but mostly just lurked and learned. this is my first real thread.

I am also building a 1:1 scale R6 unit from HIPS. I will try and get a thread up about it soon.

 

[Spanner Murraan]

Spanner... great work, awesome. Great usage of the pipe. Great tip. I'm looking into Mandalorian armor for myself and my sons.

Thanks again...

Dominic

Thanks. The pvc can be difficult to work with due to its thickness, and the possibility of toxic fumess. Make sure you are in a well-venilated area.

I also used it because i wanted an exceptionally heavy look to the armor. 6mm sintra is srandard, and much easier to work with.

 

[thundrkiss]

wow , makes me wanna revamp my armor!

 

[jqjedi]

Amazing work man.

 

[THURSBY]

Very impressive, good use of the PVC. I'll have to remember that it can be used to such an effect.

 

[Zorlord]

Thanks. The pvc can be difficult to work with due to its thickness, and the possibility of toxic fumess. Make sure you are in a well-venilated area.

I also used it because i wanted an exceptionally heavy look to the armor. 6mm sintra is srandard, and much easier to work with.

Thanks.. Makes A LOT more sense now lol.. To heat it im assuming you just used a heat gun and heated until it was pliable enough to manipulate by hand?

 

[Spanner Murraan]

Thanks.. Makes A LOT more sense now lol.. To heat it im assuming you just used a heat gun and heated until it was pliable enough to manipulate by hand?

Yes. On some pieces I used the oven, or a toaster oven, but be careful because PVC can create toxic fumes, so you want to make sure you are a very well-ventilated area, and wearing proper protection.

 

[TheValeyard]

This is some damn beautiful work! The aging/wear-and-tear effects on the paint job look freaking fantastic.

 

[Spanner Murraan]

Thank you, everyone.

 

[madmax]

COOL stuff ,i love making mando helms (on my 4th now),have you got a template for the chest armour?.And do you mind sharing?

keep up the good work

 

[Spanner Murraan]

COOL stuff ,i love making mando helms (on my 4th now),have you got a template for the chest armour?.And do you mind sharing?

keep up the good work

Sorry, i dont have the template anymore. I made one template for this armor, by hand, and then repurposed it for other parts. The template was just for the upper chest, and was just the outline. All the other parts were done by eye, or drawn directly on the plastic.

To be honest, Even if I had kept them, I wouldnt know how to get them on the computer for sharing. Not really a tech kinda guy, unless you count mechanics. Otherwise, I would share all day long.