Iron Man Mark IV - Pepakura, Fiberglass, Arduino and servomotors.

[Gio Sigghi]

Good morning to everybody! Thi is only a bite of my huge work that took the last two years, I am very proud to introduce you my IM Mk4 suit based on the famous Pep by robo3687.
I am gonna finish it (details on arm, molding with care, sanding and painting) for the first of November.

I enlarged the project with the automation of the helmet, as is possible to see a couple of videos of the partial result here (already with vocal recognition)

and here (just for showing that is wearable)

Vocal rec is made with the Easy VR shield, and I am using two Arduino board (the Mega and the Arduino micro fitted into the helmet).
This is my 5th helmet and the most complete and detailed in the end.

Sorry but I can type a good english but I can't pronunciate it very well, so the audio is only for italian speeking guys.

Enjoy a couple of pictures until I finish the whole work and load a complete and more interesting album
My aim is to introduce step by step also flaps, guns, wings and cool stuff that usually we seen on the magnificent suit already finished
Thank you so much for paying attention, and good luck to everybody who loves prop making

Gio


This is the most complete and finished view at the moment I type

And then other pics

I started in 2012 doing an oversized helmet, then I improved my skills in scaling and cutting and pasting paper.

Then it took almost a whole year to complete a first attempt on MKVI suit, disliked it, and restarted a new chest. Downgrade to the lethal palladium fueled MKV.
As you see, sometimes I prefered to coat the papercraft with a hand of resin in order to make it stronger.

And then a more completed papercraft. Meanwhile parts were completed, I started to fiberglass first items, and cover with some putty.

and I kept going on until this moment, when only gloves were missing.

 

[George]

Looks great so far! Any updates yet?

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Hi George, hi to everyone.

Bad luck, I am quite stuck due to job and I had a tedious problem with both the arduino boards, I am working hard to solve.
Since last time, I only cut off wings and sanded something more, a patient work to increase the level of detail on the chest.

And I bought a kg of liquid latex in order to brush it on my evazote joints of the arms, but I had no time to try yet.

I upload some pics!

Here, back and chest are locked to guides and covered with several layers of resin, before a proper and actual process of fiberglassing.

I preferred to cover the outer part of the back with a single layer of fiberglass (the tissue and flexible one, not the mat) in order to sand it away in a second time.

Then I proceeded in cutting away and reinforcing parts who completely lost their shape.

Then, the aim was to reduce in a significant way the number of parts, linking with some screws small pieces, in order to obtain two macro half-upper boby.
During all the time, I continued to apply some putty especially in the inner space to consolidate.

I did the same kind of work with abs.

and with some pic for comparison, I tried to obtain a more realistic shape of the borders, making them bigger than papercraft.

Best regards,
Gio

 

[Spardax]

Wow, awesome work man! Watching the pics, the armor appears very proportioned. D

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Thank you dear italian friend! (I live in Modena) Is not easy to find the right measures and build without altering the most correct shape. Stay tuned for the incoming work...

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Hi! Just some new pics


Legs were fiberglassed and linked in a proper way with some metal plates.
Time to create some stuff for the knee joint.

and a second view: please note that I did practice some 6mm diameter holes in the fiberglass and through metal plates, in order to fiber glass it again from the inside and reinforce the knee.
Of course, all is quite heavy.

after taping surfaces, I fiberglassed it one more.

 

[George]

Ciao Signore! I already like the way the suit looks,slowly taking shape.
Keep it up :thumbsup

 

[Gio Sigghi]

After legs I merged the abs (front, rear and side sections) with some tape and I destroyed the borders, then I fiberglassed the inner part.
Is heavy, is uncomfortable, and I can't move hips.
Anyway with some corrections I am satisfied.
Pics are following soon.

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Tight triangular-shaped polyhurethane reinforcement, waiting for the temporary fiberglass external layer.

I show you the modded middle part: all the parts are grouped in a single section, borders are filled with putty and ready for the main fiberglass process.

second step is done

 

[Gio Sigghi]

This is a picture from september 2013, belts were then crossed and were ok in the end.

And this is the first shoe, only fiberglassed and cut for a preliminar study (actually I don't like it very much, but it works)

As you can see, each shoe is splitted in everal pieces and just at last minute is fiberglassed for applying putty.
Here, the lower parts has been linked with a strong insert of rubber and screwed into fiberglass.

Then I filled with some betaseal, if you know. Is the glue used for sealing car glasses. It becomes very hard and flexible, a good idea. (This picture is most recent than the previous one).

And jumping in the time... after putty, appling details and sanding.

 

[Gio Sigghi]

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Some fresh new pics of the whole suit, as you can see boots are almost finished.

Thursday will be the time of knees and then will go on with the back...
stay tuned

 

[Bogleo]

Nice! I like fiberglass builds.

 

[Gio Sigghi]

Prepare youselves for a crane of pictures of the finished mark IV, There is some update to do...

I am so proud.

 

[NamelessJack]

Hi, I'm going for about the same thing, but with the Iron Patriit, ia working with the Easy VR is really hard ?

 

[Gio Sigghi]

A silly answer would be that there is anything difficult, when you own a matter... the truth is that if you are a complete newbie in electronics and writing some code, even the easyVr is diffcult.

Despite that, there is a plenty of examples and wiring schematics for starting. The hard challenge in the end is to build a strong package for the cstume, that is functional and SAFE.
Is an articulated route,but is possible.

 

[Gio Sigghi]

 

[Gio Sigghi]

 

[Gio Sigghi]

 

[JayCVenlo]

Nice build. Good Job.

Ps.. damn you look a lot like spiderman!!!(Andrew Garfield) :lol