First time poster - Bioshock 2 Big Daddy helm help?

[LadyVincira]

Hello! Long time costumer, first time poster. ^^ Pleased to meet you all!

Now...I have rather an intimidating project staring me in the face, and I need some help working it out. For Sakura Con 2010 at the very start of April, my whole group is undertaking some rather extensive costumes.

One member of my group is going to be the Big Daddy from Bioshock 2, as seen in these pictures here (one bigger for your convenience):

I'm not concerned, really, with the rest of the costume. Worked most all of that out by now just fine. But the trouble is that helmet! Been trying to work out how best to go about this for a few days now.

I'm not worried about lighting it - I know how I'm gonna do that - but I'm not sure how to construct that effectively. We have until April and relatively limited funds, but we're pretty skilled at building things up. We're trying to avoid any really hazardous materials, and it needs to be at least relatively lightweight, as this is going to be worn by a woman, not a six foot burly man.

Any input would be wonderful - I've been scouring the 'net and having the hardest time coming up with something that will be effective!

 

[Contec]

make a 3d model and print it out with pepakura then build it and use fiberglass on it....
Here is a link to the 405th forum and a page where one member is making the big Sister from BS 2.

The 405th link.. http://405th.com/forums/index.php?act=idx
Big Sister Link... http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18224&st=0

 

[LadyVincira]

Actually, I was just looking into that. I'm totally new to 3d modeling, though, so I'm still researching. Seems like a really handy tactic, but it'll depend on me getting a workable model to work. Thanks for the links!

 

[Gilmortar]

are the tanks and such attached to the dive helmet? Or is it going to be a seperate piece?

 

[LadyVincira]

are the tanks and such attached to the dive helmet? Or is it going to be a seperate piece?

The tanks are going to be hooked up to a backpack rig we're cooking up. The hoses will connect, but right now I'm mostly concerned about the building of the helmet itself.

I'm trying to cook up a 3d model right now, as suggested...but as it turns out, I have no clue what I'm doing. XD' I'm not very good at digital modeling.

 

[Gilmortar]

In all honesty, I think the easiest way would be to use some blue foam insulation and carve it down to shape you need...then cover that with bondo or wall putty and sand it smooth, Then add the details to that. like the seam lines and Vaccumform it. It will be light weight and probably take less time then taping and glueing together the paper and such and fiberglassing if you have a vacc table readily available.

 

[LadyVincira]

In all honesty, I think the easiest way would be to use some blue foam insulation and carve it down to shape you need...then cover that with bondo or wall putty and sand it smooth, Then add the details to that. like the seam lines and Vaccumform it. It will be light weight and probably take less time then taping and glueing together the paper and such and fiberglassing if you have a vacc table readily available.

We toyed with the foam idea - we've done it before and we'll do it again if we must - but the vacuumforming...not so much. No easy access to a table, I'm afraid. ^^'

I'm trying to gather alternatives. There will already be lots of foam pieces going into my own costume (top secret for now!), but if there are other options, we like to know about them.

Thanks for your input!

 

[Loess]

My fiance and I are actually the ones building that Sister, this reminds me I need to get that posted over here...

I'd second the idea to build up the base for the helm out of blue or pink foam. since you don't have a vac table, you can fiberglass over the foam after a coat of latex paint or modpodge. After you get the fiberglass shell, you can dig out most of the foam, and a little acetone will melt the rest out.

 

[Feist]

I did a Rosie Big Daddy costume when the first game came out, and used cardboard as a template for the helmet. It's not detailed, but you can use it as a "beta" for sizing and fit. Then you can take it apart and cut foam pieces to size it out a bit easier. Just a thought, if pepakura doesn't work out for you.

 

[Evil Benius]

I believe they based the model on an actual dive helmet if you watch the Bioshock 2 Special Edition Unboxing Video. A Big Daddy costume shows up at 3:15 mark. While the costume is not completely accurate to what you see in game, I think the helmet is pretty close.

I actually know the Community Manager in the video and could bug her about where they got the helmet if you want.