First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura Completed !!!!!

[WarDarkFox]

This is my first attempt at prop making and what could be a good starting point than building a proton pack. I originally was going to do the entire thing out of mdf after seeing Mr. Spiders build on this forum but after my jigsaw busted and without easy access to power tools my whole build stopped. Plus I don't think the wife and kids would appreciate me using power tools at midnight. So it was back to the drawing board.

About 2 weeks ago I found a build done using pepakura. It sounds easy enough and worth the try considering my inexperience with prop building and my hours that I am able to do it. So Proton Charger at gbfans sent me his files to use and I got started. Here is what I have done so far.

Ion Arm




PPD Box 2




Ion Arm + PPD Box 2


Power Cell




That's it for the moment. My next part is going to be the PPD box 1.


If anyone has any helpful hints or tips for using pep or even with the build I'm open to suggestions since this is my first prop. So far I have a plan to finish the top section of the pack and then run those parts through fiberglassing before I work on the bottom part of the pack.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

It been a really long time since I've updated this project. Instead of making a heavy pic post of all the parts I built, I'm going to restart with where I am at in the current build.

All pep parts assembled and ready for resin.

Resin coated the outside of the shell(with epoxamite 101), Ion Arm, and Bumper. My cyclotron unfortunately came off during this process and had to resin it separately

and the back

The tough part now was to tackle the cyclotron and how to attach. I decided instead of just gluing it on, I would cut out that section of the spacer and fit it inplace, secure it with some aluminum duct tape, and they run a layer of resend on the top around the edges to seal it togehter

So with that taken care of I placed my fiberglass mat and applied my resin

So as of last night , another layer of fiberglass mat and resin was applied and probably has cured by now. Tonight I'm going to try my hand at rondo with the Ion arm and possibly the bumper if time permits.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Well my first go with "Rondo" wasn't pleasant and I didn't make it correctly. The "rondo" portion had a tacky texture and the Ion arm walls were flimsy. So I trashed the IA and remade it with a few pieces of syntra glued in places where the attachments would go.

After giving it a coat of resin and allowing it to cure, decided to try a different method other than "rondo" for the inside. Using the same epoxamite 101 I have been, I sloshed some around until i covered all my areas. Then after making a much lager batch of resin I cut pieces of fiberglass mat and dipped it into the resin and allowed it to soak in(like paper mache). After wiping any excess resin off I placed the piece into the IA and using either my hand or brush slid the fiberglass in place. I repeated this until i had every inch of the IA in fiberglass. The end result is:

Hard as hell, just like the inside of my pack. The IA will generally take a beating while I wear it at a con or for Halloween and this make is ready for the challenge. I might add some more fiberglass to the walls just in case but the front has a nice core of resin so i don't have to worry about it.

I was also thankfully able to save my bumper from the fate of the garbage but first dousing the tacky rondo in baby powder and then giving it a coat of resin. If i can pull my self away from working on the thrower(since the weather can't make up its mind) I will likely apply the same method i did for the IA to the bumper to build it up.

Oh and before i forget this is the pack at the moment

Ready and waiting for the nice 70° weather so i can bondo it.(going to use the bad IA as a test for bondo before i use it on my good parts)

 

[Jeebee25]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Exxxxxxxx-celent!

 

[TDKOGC]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Great work, I love to see these Proton Packs.
One of my top 5 favourite props.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Thanks guys (lol love the Mr Burns pic)

Anyway a bit of an update tonight. I put some more fiberglass on my ion arms walls to strengthen them some more, and then cleaned up the pack from the last layer of fiberglass on the inside. I got a little crazy and went ahead and put a layer of primer on just to see where I'm going to need bondo the most

No too bad, a couple spots to give a little bit more love but over all I'm pleased. So until the weather gets more stable and it stops raining all the time the bondo will need to wait.

Worked a little bit more on the thrower but got frustraited with the barrel extension i had rigged up. I'm able to extend it from .5" to 1.5" but when I look at the movie it just looks so much longer. Can't quite get it so if it is not a huge deal I'm going to call it and move forward to getting the parts ready for primer.

 

[paplooo]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

excellent !!!!!!!!

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Mixed up some bondo and put it on the surface of the cyclotron. This is my first time working with it and after my screw up in the rondo department, I'm wondering if it looks right?

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura



I think I'm getting the hang of bondo work

 

[Jabberwocky]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

View attachment 181407

I think I'm getting the hang of bondo work

Practice makes perfect right?

Loving this build! Do you still have the PDO's for the unit? I'd love to get a copy

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Practice makes perfect right?

Loving this build! Do you still have the PDO's for the unit? I'd love to get a copy

Thank you..it is indeed a learning experience especially when you hit the of-sh** factor when it starts to dry and you haven't smoothed the areas.

I do have the.pdo file but I cannot give them out. I made a promise the Adam that I would not distribute his work..Sorry

 

[Jabberwocky]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

I do have the.pdo file but I cannot give them out. I made a promise the Adam that I would not distribute his work..Sorry

Hey, i can respect that! I'll be watching your build avidly!

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Got some more work done, strengthened the ppd box1 on the side after i felt a weak point, and added the holes in the cyclotron. I'd say i have about 75% done with the bondo. I'm not going to make the pack 100% smooth cause I want it to look like it has seen some action and most places will be never seen(only by me) So I'm ok with that. The areas that I want to finish smoothing(strengthening) are where the ribs are going to go and any area(like the gun box) that will need to hold weight.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura



Finding little things here and there that I need to fix. The pack wasn't sitting entirely flush against a piece of mdf(what I'll use for the motherboard) so I'm building the areas up with fiberglass, sanding till they are level, then slapping more bondo on it. Once I finally get the bondo done I'll cut the hole for the booster tube next and if all is well move onto the Ion arm for fake welds and painting.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Now that the issue with the pack being level has been taken care of, I moved on to cutting the hole for the booster tube (I favored this way over just cutting and putting it flush with the ppd box, so to give it strength and keep it from moving), attached the ribs to the power cell, and partially to the crank gen(testing my expanded pvc instead of wood). Rest of this week will be to finishing all ribs on the pack, bondoing and seams, and sanding it down.

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

It's been a while since my last update and several things have happened since then. Some good, and some bad with the occasional oh **** moment. During the attachment of the ribs I had an issue with the expanded pvc board melting and warping with the bondo. When I tried to pull them off the pack i discovered weak spots which were air pockets that never got the fiberglass all in there. 3 major air pockets and a lot of work wasted, after curing up the stairs to bed I would sleep off my frustration and restart anew.

So I have back filled the air pockets with bondo. Redone the ribs on the crank gen and ion cell(ran out of material for the gun box) out of 1/4 wood, measured and cut the pvc pipe for the booster tube, and fake welded my Ion arm.

As the pack stands

I still have a bit more to do body work wise before I'm comfortable sending it off for final paint.

Until next time(hopefully sooner this time around)

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Back from a bit of a vacation and ready to get going again. Spent the last 2 nights attaching the ribs and then applying bondo sealer to fill in gaps and other issues. I used up the remaining primer i had so I'm going to need another can to help show any spots to fix while i add more parts.

Here are the ribs primed, there are a few gaps/cracks to fix tomorrow when the paint dries but otherwise I'm pleased with how it turned out this time.




Next I want to either continue to make/attach parts to the top of the pack or work on the plates for the synch gen. I need to find a straight edge or small "L" ruler so I can make my cuts straight for the plates and other parts out of the styrene I finally found.

 

[Cockers]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Looking good fox! I really need to get some resin & fibreglass on my pack, the project has kinda stalled...

 

[WarDarkFox]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Looking good fox! I really need to get some resin & fibreglass on my pack, the project has kinda stalled...

Thank you!!. Don't give up my friend and take it at your pace. There have been several days where I just am not in the mood to build or just too tire. I generally put in about 1-2 hours a night working on the pack when the family goes to sleep, between 11-2am is my project time. So don't get discouraged. Its not a rush right now but I hope to have it finished by September for the comic con in Cincinnati otherwise I'm alright for wearing it on Halloween.

 

[Jeebee25]

Re: First GB1 Proton Pack - Pepakura

Looking good! You're almost over the hump now.