First build -- Gambit (X-Men Legacy)

[theTavernKnight]

Hey all,

New to this forum and cosplaying, actually. Always enjoyed what people made but never did it myself. I've done historical costumes before but that's about it. Anyways, I'm going to New York ComicCon this year and couldn't go without at least one costume, so I'm working on a Gambit build. I'm going for the more modern look you see in Legacy. A little bit easier to make for first time. I'll make that classic look at some point, I'm sure.

Heads-up: This is gonna be pic heavy 'cause pics are awesome.

Couple of ref pics:

Here's what I got so far. Love to hear what people think so far.

Coat. It all starts with the trench, right? I found this brown leather coat on eBay for $50. Vintage from the '70s and even came with a fur-lining that zips in and out for those cold nights, haha. I pretty much use this as my rain coat, too.

Chest piece. Happily borrowed ne0ven0m's idea of using a paintball chest protector for the chest piece. Picked up this guy.

I darkened the red stitches and added purple mesh the sides. I'll either turn the red bits of the chest protector black with fabric paint or perhaps purple with the leftover mesh (leaning towards the latter). Here's the chest piece with the mesh sewn on.

Boots/shins. I like the boots Gambit's wearing in the teaser for his upcoming solo series (woo!). Instantly thought "These look like motocross boots." Found some inexpensive used ones on Ebay.

I'll be painting the brown bits black. Anyone know of paint that works on a suede-ish material?

Gambit's new shin guards also look like motocross armor. And again, thanks to ebay, I found these babies.

Accessories. Gloves are generic gel padding, pants are spandex, belt w/pouches is from a local Army Surplus store. Also have a bunch of cards (of course), and throwing knives/daggers.

All together here's what the costume is looking like so far. This is before I added the purple mesh to the chest.

Yep. That's a shower curtain rod. I'll get something more bo like later.

Things I still need to do: Either purple or blacken the red bits of the chest piece, add some straps and pouches to the legs, get a bo, and make the head sock/mask. The first one I made didn't come out well. It stayed up fine but it looked bad on me. I'll try again. I feel like that mask is one of those things that look better drawn than in real life. I'm also still debating on contacts. I'd love to do them but not sure it'll happen this year. We'll see.

That's it for now. I'll update with more pics later if people seem interested.

 

[Psicorp7]

Great Gambit!

I really dig that you are using a vintage coat. I feels like a good fit for the character and vintage clothing added to the comic costume armor just seems to make it feel more "real".

Good luck on the head sock. You might want to try sculpting a thin layer of rigid mask with paper and resin and then covering it with fabric. It will stay in place better and this will also allow you to make lots of little tweeks to get it just right without having to sew it a dozen times!

 

[theTavernKnight]

Thanks!

Yea I lucked out with the coat. Perfect size and a great price. I knew I wanted leather instead of canvas. Ebay didn't fail me.

Thanks for the mask idea. Might give that a go if further efforts fail.

 

[Steampunch]

Can I make a suggestion:
What if you got some EL Sheet. Then cut the sheet to card size, print or stick some card designs, an ace or whatever, onto the el sheet. Put the battery/ switch up your sleeve and have the cord to the card hidden by your fingers and glove. Viola glowing card in your hand. (be sure to insulate against shocks)

 

[zombie geek]

looks awesome

 

[theTavernKnight]

Can I make a suggestion:
What if you got some EL Sheet. Then cut the sheet to card size, print or stick some card designs, an ace or whatever, onto the el sheet. Put the battery/ switch up your sleeve and have the cord to the card hidden by your fingers and glove. Viola glowing card in your hand. (be sure to insulate against shocks)

Oh yea, def. I have something similar in mind -- didn't think of using an EL Sheet though. It'll force me to learn some electronic skills which should be fun. Already scanned in some cards so it'll look like an actual card instead of my poor drawing ability.

 

[CelticRuins]

Looks great!

 

[mexicutioner]

Outfit looks great. The EL sheets definately seem like a good idea for this project. I"ve never used them...but seem like a good way to add some awesomeness

 

[CDub]

Great job man. This one's on my todo list.

 

[theTavernKnight]

Just a quick update on how everything's turning out.

Finished adding purple mesh to the sides of the torso, as well as sewing tiny little purple mesh over the red inside the padding. Here's a close up.

And an awful pic of me wearing it.

Back view. Oh hai, butt.

Also got acrylic paint and painted over the white rubber and brown suede bits to make the boots all black. It could use a second coat in a few spots.

Also started playing with the LED lights. Not entirely sure how I'm gonna fit several lights and enough batteries to power them all into a small card shaped plastic but we'll see.

To do: Make the mask, make the leg straps, get a bo, maybe contacts, finish glowing cards, work on really awful Cajun accent.