Hey all. New to the RPF forum. I'm working on an Immortan Joe costume of my own and I stumbled across this thread cruising for pics and such. There is some really impressive stuff here. The pains some of y'all go to for detail work are really something. I am by no means a serious cosplayer, or even really much of a crafter. I have always enjoyed making costumes, however, and when I saw Fury Road I made up my mind I was going to be Joe for Halloween this year. Upon further reflection, a bit of a challenge! I'm sure my end result won't be anything near as good as some of the great stuff I've seen here, but I've thrown myself into the project anyhow.
I ordered a mask, and mostly painted it. Pretty pleased with the results. Besides the respirator, the centerpiece of the costume is obviously the translucent body armor and pauldrons, and I really want to get that part right. I've found some great information in this thread. I've basically synthesised the approach a few of you had of using a set of contoured armor as a mold and shaping thermoplastic over/under it. Not really knowing much about the materials except what I've learned here, I decided to go with PETG. So now I have a big sheet of PETG, some costume armor, and a heat gun sitting on my floor. Things are about to get serious, before I dive in and start shaping pieces over the next few days I thought I'd be a shameless newbie and ply you a guys a bit for tips.
So, any just quick general advice you might give somebody who's about to try molding thermoplastic for the first time? I've watched a few vids and read most of this thread, and that's about all I know about it. I know I'll probably need gloves and some kind of release agent. What works well for that? Just cooking spray or something? I think I will mold the plastic over the top of the armor (positive), but I'm not totally sure. Who tried each and how were the results? I also know the PETG may be a bit tougher to work with than some other materials, but I'm rolling with it now. I'm sure the best way to learn is to just try using a test piece, but since there are so many experienced folks here I thought there was no harm in asking for quick pointers. Sorry to be that guy!