drewthecostumer
Active Member
I've recently been having an internal conflict: I want to make costumes that aren't just Star Wars, but I could never find that movie or TV show that I loved. However, I watched Pacific Rim the other day, and fell in love with Gypsy Danger, the main blue Jaeger. Picture for those who haven't seen the movie:
I'm not much of a man of plan, but I figured I'll do my best to plan this one out as it'll be one of the firsts. I'll be making the MK1, which is the one that goes toe to toe with Knifehead, not the one at the end of the movie. All plates minus the helmet and probably the hand plates will be crafted from PVC pipe. PVC has the right thickness and I've worked with it before. It CAN get the correct compound curves needed for Fett, so I think we'll be good here.
I've seen A LOT of foam builds, and 90% of them are honestly shotty. I'd rather sacrifice the weight of foam for the look of PVC.
Head: I haven't given much thought to the construction of the head. I'll probably just pep it and maybe then cast it in resin, but I'd like to work on other things in the mean time while I think about it.
Torso: GD had an enormous chest/back/shoulders leading into his small abs/kidney/and arms. This is a problem due to the human structure. What I'll be doing to combat this is I'll be buying football pads to use as a "Base." The back plate, side plates, shoulders, and the rear collar plate will be screwed directly onto the pads. The back plate will have a piece of plastic protruding from the underside which the chest will chicago screw onto, thus giving it the appearence of all being one piece (this was tested with my ESB Fett, and worked). This feature will allow for the plates to have a snug fit, and it will allow for the padding to be taken off of me.
Arms: The Biceps and forearms will be attached at the sides of the elbows. Gypsy's arms have a piveting joint where the pieces meet, So I'll install a chicago screw through the greeb that goes there, and use that to my advantage and allow my arms to bend (picture of where I'm talking about will be posted lower). To combat gravity's affect, I'll be installing a parachute buckle onto the bicep, and have the other end under the shoulder. The gloves will be their own entity, and I'll be exploring options.
(quick paint mock up)
Ab/kidney/cod: Haven't given much thought to these pieces, but it will probably be the first piece I make. It's just a little bikini with a nice butt piece. The ab will just be various plates. I'll most likely sew together a base to attach them all to, then use the spinal cord to hide the closure. To combat gravity (again) I'll attach suspenders to the ab piece and cod so they don't sag down (learned the hard way on my TK)
Thighs: These will be suspended using a belt and loop system, to insure they don't fall.
Boots/Shins: Again, not much thought has been explored at this point do to the fact that I like to start from the middle and work my way up, then down. They'll be all one piece, and close likely on the inside where I'll have a removable plate. I looked into stilts since Gypsy has long legs, but I don't want 4ft shins, and 1.5 foot thighs, so I opted out.
Spine: I'll probably make PVC bones, attach them overlapping to a piece of nylon, and install magnets onto them, and the back/kidney so at the end of the day it can be removed.
Bonus props: I'm on the look out for a long thin toy boat, so everyone keep your eyes peeled
I'm sorry I have no real pictures for this build, it's still in the mat gathering stages, but production starts ASAP. If it makes you guys feel any better, I did order a Gypsy Danger temporary tattoo that I'll be applying to the left chest just like in the movie, and I'll be sealing it on there. If anyone has any great screen shots of Gypsy, I'd love to see them , feel free to send me a PM. And as always, I'm happy to hear comments, concerns about any of my ideas, critiscm (good or bad, I take it well), as well as new ideas I may have not thought of!
I'm not much of a man of plan, but I figured I'll do my best to plan this one out as it'll be one of the firsts. I'll be making the MK1, which is the one that goes toe to toe with Knifehead, not the one at the end of the movie. All plates minus the helmet and probably the hand plates will be crafted from PVC pipe. PVC has the right thickness and I've worked with it before. It CAN get the correct compound curves needed for Fett, so I think we'll be good here.
I've seen A LOT of foam builds, and 90% of them are honestly shotty. I'd rather sacrifice the weight of foam for the look of PVC.
Head: I haven't given much thought to the construction of the head. I'll probably just pep it and maybe then cast it in resin, but I'd like to work on other things in the mean time while I think about it.
Torso: GD had an enormous chest/back/shoulders leading into his small abs/kidney/and arms. This is a problem due to the human structure. What I'll be doing to combat this is I'll be buying football pads to use as a "Base." The back plate, side plates, shoulders, and the rear collar plate will be screwed directly onto the pads. The back plate will have a piece of plastic protruding from the underside which the chest will chicago screw onto, thus giving it the appearence of all being one piece (this was tested with my ESB Fett, and worked). This feature will allow for the plates to have a snug fit, and it will allow for the padding to be taken off of me.
Arms: The Biceps and forearms will be attached at the sides of the elbows. Gypsy's arms have a piveting joint where the pieces meet, So I'll install a chicago screw through the greeb that goes there, and use that to my advantage and allow my arms to bend (picture of where I'm talking about will be posted lower). To combat gravity's affect, I'll be installing a parachute buckle onto the bicep, and have the other end under the shoulder. The gloves will be their own entity, and I'll be exploring options.
(quick paint mock up)
Ab/kidney/cod: Haven't given much thought to these pieces, but it will probably be the first piece I make. It's just a little bikini with a nice butt piece. The ab will just be various plates. I'll most likely sew together a base to attach them all to, then use the spinal cord to hide the closure. To combat gravity (again) I'll attach suspenders to the ab piece and cod so they don't sag down (learned the hard way on my TK)
Thighs: These will be suspended using a belt and loop system, to insure they don't fall.
Boots/Shins: Again, not much thought has been explored at this point do to the fact that I like to start from the middle and work my way up, then down. They'll be all one piece, and close likely on the inside where I'll have a removable plate. I looked into stilts since Gypsy has long legs, but I don't want 4ft shins, and 1.5 foot thighs, so I opted out.
Spine: I'll probably make PVC bones, attach them overlapping to a piece of nylon, and install magnets onto them, and the back/kidney so at the end of the day it can be removed.
Bonus props: I'm on the look out for a long thin toy boat, so everyone keep your eyes peeled
I'm sorry I have no real pictures for this build, it's still in the mat gathering stages, but production starts ASAP. If it makes you guys feel any better, I did order a Gypsy Danger temporary tattoo that I'll be applying to the left chest just like in the movie, and I'll be sealing it on there. If anyone has any great screen shots of Gypsy, I'd love to see them , feel free to send me a PM. And as always, I'm happy to hear comments, concerns about any of my ideas, critiscm (good or bad, I take it well), as well as new ideas I may have not thought of!
