Tarkov/Bravo 21 ODST WIP

[XtremeTACTICS]

Hey everyone,

Halloween is quickly approaching, and time is running short to assemble a completed costume. With approximately 28 days remaining until Halloween, I have decided to restart an age-old project that I first started back in 2007. I’m fairly new to costuming, so everything from 2007 until now has been a learning experience in this particular method of costuming.

I have decided to replicate a ODST costume primarily based on the design of multiple Halo live-action short film costumes. Mainly the Legacy Effects ODST costume featured in the “We Are ODST” live-action short film released in 2009.

Because of time restraints, I have decided to skip a few of the armour parts to insure the completion of my “partial” ODST costume by October 31, 2010. The armour parts that will be left out for the Halloween variant of the costume will be added to the costume later down the road. However, the majour components of the costume (chest/back armour, shoulders and thighs) will be finished in time.

Anyway, onto my progress…

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CONCEPTS AND FORMER ATTEMPTS

I have been at the conceptualization stage for the better part of my time as a costumer. This project has been a on-going experience between multiple other projects I am working on. As new ideas have come to the table, I have had more to work with. My imagination gradually expanded, and my knowledge of modern day tactical body armour and other tactical components has increased aswell. With the information I now posses I was able to add to the Legacy Effects ODST costume design to create a more tactically efficient costume, aswell as keep its “tacti-cool” look.
As an example, I decided to base my thigh armour on the 3-piece thigh featured on the Legacy Effects ODST costume. However, I changed the design slightly aswell as added a MOLLE system to attach pouches to.

After evaluating my first attempt at the ODST chest armour back in 2007 (pictured below) I realized that there was very little flexibility, and its overall strength due to it being completely constructed from cardboard was pour to say the least. After researching around the RPF and the 405th aswell as experimenting a lot I have gained valuable knowledge of new methods that can meet my needs.

With the new knowledge I gained from the RPF, the 405th and the release of multiple live-action trailers, I was able to gain a new understanding of how I should make the armour, and the design I should follow. Eventually the “We Are ODST” trailer was released, and I saw my final objective.
I went to work on my first version of the chest plate (pictured below) using a simplified version of the method I use today that I have dubbed “scratch peping”. “Scratch peping” is very similar to the Pepakura process, but the entire Pepakura assembly is done without the aid of 3D models and the Pepakura Designer/Viewer software. It’s a form of scratch building a physical 3D model from cardstock, apposed to a virtual 3D model. The process is very hard, but with the proper mindset, experience and knowledge, you can pull it off as I have.

As depicted in the only in-progress shot of the chest plate I had taken, after the “scratch peping” phase, it quickly turns into the traditional Pepakura assembly method. Using the traditional fiberglass reinforcement method, and bondo for detailing, you achieve the same results as you would if you were to use a pre-made 3D model uploaded into the Pepakura program. The only difference is you get exactly what you want in the end instead of having to sacrifice some of your original ideas because the restrictions of the pre-made model.

The final result of this method is pictured below.

However, I have declared this chest plate inaccurate after some light was shinned later on down the road from a few friends in high places. As a result, I went back to square one with my “scratch peping” method to make version 2 of the chest plate (Pictured below).

Again, this chest plate I have declared inaccurate due to an error I made during the “scratch peping” process that I had only noticed after reinforcement of the part had been completed.

Finally, after receiving more reference from my friends in high places I was able to draft out every view of the original Legacy Effects “We Are ODST” main chest plate, and the rest of the chest armour.
　

After finalizing the drafts, I got to work once again using my “scratch peping” method.

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CURRENT PROGRESS

Version 3 of the “We Are ODST” variant main chest plate has already been “scratch peped” and its design is currently being finalized. The rest of the chest armour (disinclining the belt plate) has also reached the same stage. Every part is in perfect scale to the original chest armour of the “We Are ODST” armour using references and measurements supplied by my friends in high places, and numerous mathematical equations. Luckily the chest armour is fairly universally fitted to anybody from 5’9”-6’3”, so naturally at 6’1” everything fits me very well.

Using the same method for the version 3 main chest plate, I “scratch peped” the rest of the chest armour. Every part naturally fits together, and the design of each part flows in sync with each other.

Main Chest Plate.

Stomach Plate.

Kidney Plate.

Groin Plate.

Current Assembly.

I purposely left out a large amount of details that will be added in later with sheet styrene and bondo. Rest assured that the chest armour will be a very close replica of the original “We Are ODST” costumes, but with the addition/subtraction of a few small details for a slightly more custom and/or tactical effect.

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To avoid adding another “Great Wall of China”-like wall of text, I will spare you all the details of the rest of the armour and my exact plans for the future of this costume as it progresses. However, rest assured that everything will be revealed in my future updates as the build continues.

Constructive criticism and personal opinions are welcome and encouraged. I will update again with some more parts “scratch peped” aswell as some resin/fiberglass work done in the near future.

Until then, stay frosty,

Jake
Xtreme TACTICS

 

[Reap]

Amazing progress so far mate. All the best to get it done by halloween.

 

[XtremeTACTICS]

First off, thanks for the encouraging comment!

Now for an update.

School has been taking a large toll on my time, but today I managed to get back to work today.

I looked into the designs of all of the shoulder/bicep armour of every known variant of the ODST. After narrowing the variants I wanted to make down to the Halo 3:ODST, Weta ODST and Legacy Effects ODST variants, I looked at their tactical advantages. Each design was either very bulky or too small to mix with the Legacy Effects chest armour’s design. The only feasible design I liked was the Legacy Effects ODST shoulder/bicep that was based on the original Halo 3:“Recon” ODST variant armour. So, naturally, I set my sights on the Halo 3:“Recon” announcement trailer variant shoulder/bicep.

After finally deciding on the variant, I figured out the most feasible fabrication method. Because of the rounded nature of the shoulder, I settled on sculpting as my method of fabrication. After acquiring what little reference there is, I got to work on sculpting the upper portion of the shoulder.

The shoulder is now ready for molding either tonight or tomorrow morning. The lower part of the shoulder will follow closely behind. The shoulder armour should all be molded by the end of this weekend.

As always, constructive criticism and your own personal opinions are welcome and encouraged.

Stay frosty,

Jake
Xtreme TACTICS 101

 

[Chronos]

Great work so far! Looking forward to more updates.

 

[XtremeTACTICS]

Once again, thanks for the comment.

School and my recent enrollment with the Canadian Armed Forces has been taking a toll on my time once again. I have managed to work around as many obstacles as I can, but as one thing after another keeps popping up. Building this costume has becomes a high density minefield. While walking through this minefield, I wish not to step on one of the MANY lurking menaces, who in this case, are known as unwanted chores, school work or work in general. However, sometimes I can make it through this high density minefield unscathed. I have managed to do so for the past few hours.

After having to purchase new molding materials for the costume due to my others being declared off limited by my father, I finally got to work molding the upper part of the shoulder after modifying the sculpt slightly to be more accurate and smooth (updated picture below).

After hours of brushing, dabbing and hoping for the best possible results, all of my sweat, blood and tears were worth it in the end. The mold has no bubbles or air pockets that will effect the casts in any way, and its glass smooth surface will help limit sanding and bondo/spot putty work on the casts.

I learned a great deal from my UNSC SOCOM Trooper’s shoulder, and I applied my new found knowledge and experience with great effect on the ODST’s shoulder. By blowing on the silicone so it would fill the engravings on the shoulder, there were no bubbles to speak of. The UNSC SOCOM Trooper’s shoulder was riddled with bubbles due to me not employing this technique before.

I also learned to shrink the size of the registration keys to better the registration of the silicone into the mother mold. This will decrease the chances of warping, aswell as provides better support to the gelcoat as it is curing.

I should be able to pull the first cast of the shoulder tomorrow as long as the weather holds.

I also managed to work on the shoulder straps of the ODST. Early on in the build I decided I wanted a dirty looking ODST to create the illusion that the soldier had been through hell and back. I began constructing the shoulder straps with some EVA foam floor mats cut to shape and size. I then layered some black “foamies” foam on top of the EVA foam to create an indent through which the straps would run.

After the glue holding the foams together set, I carefully cut and glued some black canvas onto the shoulder strap, being sure to keep a tight wrap around it to insure the detail I layered in with the black “foamies” foam would remain once the shoulder strap was bent in its correct shape.

Next, I took some 120 grit sandpaper to the canvas to create a warn and faded effect primarily around the edges of the canvas. This also made the canvas more flexible as an added plus.

Closely following the sandpaper educed fading technique, I began ripping small holes into certain parts of the canvas to create the illusion that the ODST had been crawling and running around in the wilderness and/or metropolis. This effect panned out far better then I had hoped, and really helped achieve the warn look I was looking for.

After realizing the lack of a backpack would limit the “communication” between the various position of the squad members in the unit through the secondary colours on the armour (in my case, yellow), I decided to add my own touch to the shoulder straps by wrapping some yellow electric tape around the bottom of the shoulder straps. I then weathered them accordingly with sandpaper and ripping.

Finally, some dirt dust was added to help complete the shoulder straps overall look. Pictured below is a heavily weathered shoulder strap compared to the clean shoulder strap. I can now honestly say I would much rather prefer the weathered look apposed to the clean look.

Both shoulder straps weathered and awaiting straps and buckles.

More coming soon. I have a long weekend ahead of me with plenty of work to do on this costume.

As usual, all constructive criticism and your own personal opinions are welcome.

Stay frosty,

Jake
Xtreme TACTICS 101

 

[XtremeTACTICS]

Wow… Sorry for leaving everybody out of the loop for so long.

As I have said many times throughout my previous updates, my time is extremely restricted. Because of this, the costume did not progress any further since the last update (October 22, 2010). However, that is no longer the case. I have once again managed to jump-start this project, and with some luck, it should be completed for October 31st, 2011.

Because the weather here in Canada is beginning to warm up to the point where resin will cure before it freezes, I have started working on version 5 of the main chest plate. The scratch-pepping stage has been completed and I am currently waiting for the temperature to hit a positive number before I begin to resin (pictures of the main chest plate below).

As I continue to wait for the temperature to co-operate with my progress, I have started and nearly finished scratch-pepping the Legacy Effects version “We Are ODST” helmet.

Because there are no pepakura files for this specific variant of the helmet, I took it upon myself to heavily modify an existing file. Kirrou’s HD ODST helmet caught my eye as a favorable base to build from. I pepped the helmet as I would any other helmet, but I left out a few details due to any future modifications of the file that would be needed to produce the most accurate reproduction of the original helmet as possible.

Soon after comparing my reference images to Kirrou’s file, I noticed that I was in for a wild ride. More then 60% of the helmet would need to be completely re-built in order to create an accurate replica of the original “We Are ODST” helmet. All but the dome of the helmet needed to be re-built. However, even the dome will be almost unrecognizable due to a massive amount of bondo sculpting that will be needed to create an accurate replica. Obviously, to be a perfectionist warrants a high price to pay.

The main bulk of modification to the helmet lies within the sides and front of the helmet. A before and after shot should be enough to describe the large amount of work I undertook to insure proper accuracy.

Before:

After:

After removing the inaccurate parts of the helmet and mounting my own scratch-pepped parts, the helmet looks far more accurate at this stage in the game then it did when I first started.

Surely you have noticed a large number of raised details are missing. Rest assured that every detail will be present before I mold the helmet after its completion.

I still have to pep the back of the helmet, the helmets visor, and the details around the opening of the helmet. I will be sure to update on the helmet once it is pepped and ready for resin.

As always, constructive criticism and personal opinions are welcomed and encouraged. I’ll be sure to update again soon.

Until then, stay frosty,

Jake
Xtreme TACTICS 101

 

[XtremeTACTICS]

Sorry for the double post, but update time.

Progress has been slow over the few months. Due to school followed by work on week days and training on weekends my time spent on costuming has been extremely limited. Non-the-less, I have progressed notably and am now prepared to reveal my progress thus far. I managed to fiberglass the main chest plate, aswell as began sanding and sculpting the parts with bondo. The process is long and sometimes hard on the fingers, but it will be worth it in the end.

I first purchased a couple of power tools to aid my sanding as I had attempted to sand the fiberglassed parts by hand but soon realized that a Mouse Sander and a Dremel tool would be a wise investment.

I also gathered a large amount of reference for the main chest plate. Due to the lacking amount of reference material my “wall of reference” isn’t as large as I would have wanted it to be, but it does the job.

After taking a close look at the main chest plate I noticed that the areas meant to be flat were warped outward terribly, thus requiring a large amount of sanding to insure the sides were completely flat.

Before:

After:

Soon after a notable amount of Bondo autobody filler was used to adjust the angle of the lower half of each breast section of the main chest plate. This proved to create a far more accurate angle, as well as helped solve an odd angle that had developed in the flat surfaces of that area.

I am currently adjusting the depth of the main chest plate as well as sculpting certain areas of detail and trying to make the main chest plate as accurate as humanly possible.

The kidney plates have been worked on too. I am currently making sure the surfaces are flat and the angle of each corner is sharp. I am running into a large amount of bubbles in the fiberglass, and have decided to epoxy some sheet styrene to each exposed surface.

After realizing the stomach plate was too small and needed to be re-built, I decided to test my epoxy that was meant to bond most plastics and fiberglass. It was successful and did not melt the 1mm sheet styrene as well as bonded well to the fiberglass.

The groin plate has been sanded and is currently having a few large bubbles patched with Bondo before I begin to use finer sandpaper to smooth the surface before I apply a coat of primer.

I suppose I’ll finish this update with a picture of the chest armour together as it currently stands. I have a large amount of work ahead of me, but the finished product will be worth every second spent, every bead of sweat and drop of blood lost.

Stay frosty,

Jake
Xtreme TACTICS 101