My Rocketeer Jetpack build progress thread

[themanwoaname]

ive been working like a mad dog on this thing this week, here's just pics, any questions i'll be glad to answer. i'll probably edit in later a run down of all that i did.

i know the eyes arent the sloped "angry" look. honestly, after building the helmet as many times as i have now, i think i like this look.

im especially excited about the vents on the boosters.

they will be able to have wires for power! i need to think hard about what im going to do about that blue permenant marker. i'll also have better construction pics of the gauntlets when i make my left hand. i learned im definitely not a fan of rivets.


thats about it for now. ive done a whole lot more to this since these were taken, including some cosmetic plating on the boosters, more smoothing out on the helmet and making a back piece. hopefully tomorrow i'll be at a good stopping point for some photos.

btw, thanks for everyone's help in my experimentation thread for some ideas to make cones, i needed the help so i can make the cones for my boosters, as soon as i finish them tonight i'll be comfortable enough to rest easy, and apply them to the boosters tomorrow.

i tell you what, the jetpack is coming really close to being finished and im getting REALLY excited about it.

 

[WarPig]

That is looking SWEET!

 

[themanwoaname]

i'll let these pictures speak for themselves.

i was a hair from not making the fin. i didnt have a valid reason why i shouldnt, so i made it anyway. its 1/8" sintra with 1/16 styrene on each side from the front curve to the back to make that part 1/4". the piping is medical tubing superglued to a pattern that took an hour of taping and finagling to get close. i have to add some more hot glue welds, and then put in the lenses, which were cut from a motorcycle visor (i lucked out and bought 2 at walmart for 5 bucks each). i know i wont have a chinstrap, because i really dont have much time for that right now.

i have to admit i took some liberty with the fin, because as i was making it my router busted and messed up my pattern. i couldnt think of any way to make it flush with out using the router so i did it by eye than the bearing. believe me, i am livid about the router, because it was one of my most invaluable tools.


im pretty much down to cutting out the black part of those wiggly eyes, so i can use the clear part for the pack rivets, and the wiring. like i said, each hand will be wired for something.

im going one further, and my pack will vibrate as well as light up and the fan blow, thanks to princess wands i found in the bday section at walmart for 3 bucks, they spin and light up, so it'll "simulate combustion" and shake the pack a little.

 

[Darth Mawr]

It's hard to believe that the helmet above is the same as the one you Pep'd. Great job sanding. Your pack is coming along real good as well. I'm loving this thread.

 

[Jedifyfe]

Seriously impressed! Great workmanship!

 

[kdawg1]

Hey for rivets on your pac you should use Bump -outs they are the rubber pads used in picture framing they are smooth and round plus they have an adhesive on they to start with!

 

[themanwoaname]

thank you everyone for your compliments! im getting the shakes im so close to being done and im excited about it!

Hey for rivets on your pac you should use Bump -outs they are the rubber pads used in picture framing they are smooth and round plus they have an adhesive on they to start with!

i really like this idea, but im not having any luck finding it on google. is there a way to get 7mm sized ones? where would i find it?

 

[AJLoCascio]

This thread just blew my mind !

I'm a huge Rocketeer geek and it's ****ing brilliant to see someone NOT using one of those gorram kits !

Well done mate ! Well done indeed !

 

[themanwoaname]

the HELMET IS DONE.

 

[BubbaHoTep]

Looks good, what did you use for the tubing on the side of the helmet?

 

[themanwoaname]

1/4" od medical tubing, but you can get away with the same thing in the plumbing dept at homedepot, i think i used less than 4 ft.

i drew out the pattern on some masking tape, cut the tape away, traced the pattern on the helmet and superglued the tubing over the pattern. then i put more superglue on the bottom of the tube and let it run down the crease.

 

[themanwoaname]

i have the pack painted and wired. im working on riveting the harness as i type.

i just wanted to express, how much i hate riveting. i cant imagine someone doing a suit of armor using them. after 10 rivets im done because im filled with anger.

 

[Wes R]

I know what you mean with the rivets. I used to use them when doing body work on my car and back when i tried getting into building robots. Nothing says blisters more than a pop rivet gun.

 

[themanwoaname]

totally. im getting blisters from resetting when it jams. which is every time i shoot a rivet. that takes longer than actually popping the rivet.

 

[themanwoaname]

disregard

 

[themanwoaname]

i finished my jetpack today.
im throwing my rivet gun into a lake. im going to find a better way to do rivets here's some final pics of painting, and then the pack as a whole. i dont have any pics of the harness because i had to feed the control gauntlets through the sleeves of the jacket through the top of the neck and it looks like a giant mess. im sure i'll get a crap ton of pics of that this weekend anyhow.

a note before we dive in, i decided against using the clear part of the googly eyes for the rivets on the pack because they were too large, so instead i used the inside black part. i also spaced them about a half inch apart. rivets for my harness are real rivets and in retrospect i probably should have used the rivet washers too, though it appears to be holding where it needs to be holding anyway.

top vent

center cosmetic plating/vent: i actually got a little too excited with something and i had a screwdriver in my hand and after this pic was taken i have a hairline mark next to this vent, and im out of silver paint.

pack

fins: i wasnt sure if these line things were indented or above the fin, so i went with above. i got the idea for them when i went to another mcdonalds than my usual one and ordered a coffee and they gave me a stirrer. otherwise, they wouldnt be there at all

FINISHED PACK

top. now what you'll notice missing here are those tiny little fins with those three dots in a triangle shape. i went as far as cutting them out of paper, ready to be fiberglassed, and then i got ahead of myself and painted the pack. after halloween i might put them on, or i might put them on the next jet pack. anyway, you can see that i fed the hoses over the top of the collar, and you can see the top of the harness.

blurry full pack photo!

boosters and fins

BOOSTERS AND FINS ON FIRE

so thats it for now, after this weekend i'll hopefully have some pics of the full costume. and then i'll put together a shopping list for those of you keeping up and wanted to give this type of build a shot. im also wondering how much i put into the pack as far as the physical components are concerned too.

 

[jimjim]

Nice work. I love these built from scratch threads. So many imaginative people out there.

 

[Michael Bergeron]

A mighty fine piece of ingenuity there! I can't believe that this is the first I've seen of this thread. LOVE the jetpack!

 

[BubbaHoTep]

Looking good, thanks for the updates.

 

[amityshark]

Great job man!