Tron Legacy Costume

[mworley007]

Haha, thanks! Yeah, everything but the jacket I modified/made. The jacket I ordered from UD Replicas back on May 31st and got it on Oct 20th just in time for the party.
I'm thinking about redoing or adding more details to the pants even tho they are comfortable and easy to move around in now.

You're gonna rock at the party, I was the only Tron costume at the one I went to and I was awarded the party's 1st place ribbon for best costume. It was great fun!

Cool! Congrats and wish me luck!

 

[mworley007]

Can someone refer me to a good source for white reflective tape that I can order very quickly?

Thanks.

Amazon has the white reflective tape (auto pinstriping), glows good with flash and inexpensive.

 

[Eveningarwen]

where should the eyelets go so they are not so visible? In everyone elses costume with el tape I don't see any of the eyelet holes. How is everyone hiding/placing them?

I don't want them to be visible at all and while for the back circle sections of castor and gem we can hide these eyelets a bit, for some of the front bits (like castors circles) we wont be able to. I've noticed folks using copper tape.....is this so you can have a connection that isn't visible? Do you peel back the protective tape on the el tape and then stick the copper tape in there then reseal it and then connect the eyelet and wire to the copper tape? Sorry for all the questions I'm just so baffled at how everyone has been able to hide their connections.

 

[moviebuff5]

I hid mine under folds.

 

[Canobi]

where should the eyelets go so they are not so visible? In everyone elses costume with el tape I don't see any of the eyelet holes. How is everyone hiding/placing them?

I don't want them to be visible at all and while for the back circle sections of castor and gem we can hide these eyelets a bit, for some of the front bits (like castors circles) we wont be able to. I've noticed folks using copper tape.....is this so you can have a connection that isn't visible? Do you peel back the protective tape on the el tape and then stick the copper tape in there then reseal it and then connect the eyelet and wire to the copper tape? Sorry for all the questions I'm just so baffled at how everyone has been able to hide their connections.

The copper tape is ideal for EL tape. Solder wires to two thin bits of copper tape that are about 1 inch long and a couple of mm wide (you can buy it from anyone that sells EL wire and cut it to size) I then very carefully peel back the protective layer and put the copper tape sticky side up (you need the copper to touch the silver layer under the protective covering) and reseal using either apoxy or strong glue. The other thing that's cool about doing it this way is the connections don't have to be at the ends to work. I have successfully got a 200cm piece to light up with the connections in the centre of the tape length. Very cool if you want to hide wires as you can pass them strait through the clothing wherever you want and glue the tape directly to your garment.

 

[Eveningarwen]

The copper tape is ideal for EL tape. Solder wires to two thin bits of copper tape that are about 1 inch long and a couple of mm wide (you can buy it from anyone that sells EL wire and cut it to size) I then very carefully peel back the protective layer and put the copper tape sticky side up (you need the copper to touch the silver layer under the protective covering) and reseal using either apoxy or strong glue. The other thing that's cool about doing it this way is the connections don't have to be at the ends to work. I have successfully got a 200cm piece to light up with the connections in the centre of the tape length. Very cool if you want to hide wires as you can pass them strait through the clothing wherever you want and glue the tape directly to your garment.

Do you have to reseal with glue or do you think you could reseal with the clear laminate tape that I am using? I read that peeling back the protective layer can cause the El tape to deteriorate quickly? The same page also mentioned not to use glue (it is a website that sells el tape called e-luminates). Would I need to cover the copper foil, wire and solder in a heat shrink tubing or just leave it exposed?

Thanks so much!

 

[Vew]

Do you have to reseal with glue or do you think you could reseal with the clear laminate tape that I am using? I read that peeling back the protective layer can cause the El tape to deteriorate quickly? The same page also mentioned not to use glue (it is a website that sells el tape called e-luminates). Would I need to cover the copper foil, wire and solder in a heat shrink tubing or just leave it exposed?

Thanks so much!

I noticed after peeling back or even just being bending the tape too much to make the clear tape separate caused water like spots to appear.

 

[Jaedena]

Can someone refer me to a good source for white reflective tape that I can order very quickly?

Thanks.

I found some at my local surplus store, for $2/roll.

 

[Canobi]

I noticed after peeling back or even just being bending the tape too much to make the clear tape separate caused water like spots to appear.

Hi all. There are different types of EL tape, so I guess it's ok to do with the type I use. I recently bought some from a company in china, on arrival I noticed that one of the lengths was laminated and the others weren't. One of the unlaminated ones even had the very thin protective layer coming off all over the place. Which sounds bad but actually isn't. I can now put a connection anywhere along the tape I need to. The laminated tape on the other hand is a different story. It's a nightmare trying to pry the layers apart, and yes, the connected area is a bit spotty. As for glue..... I use something called Wire Glue, it's a carbon based glue that when dry is totaly conductive. I then add a spot of apoxy resin as a coating to strengthen the hold. No soldering required. You'll need to hold the connections together until it's dry, and it's incredibly easy to get it everywhere, so handle with utmost care. I use a toothpick to place little blobs over the place I want to join:

The black tape was added to help strengthen the join

Tested it and it's not bad, but to the naked eye the join is visible

But not to a camera at a slight distance

Now I know what type of EL tape/sheet to shop for I'm going to do this as a costume

 

[Eveningarwen]

Hi all. There are different types of EL tape, so I guess it's ok to do with the type I use. I recently bought some from a company in china, on arrival I noticed that one of the lengths was laminated and the others weren't. One of the unlaminated ones even had the very thin protective layer coming off all over the place. Which sounds bad but actually isn't. I can now put a connection anywhere along the tape I need to. The laminated tape on the other hand is a different story. It's a nightmare trying to pry the layers apart, and yes, the connected area is a bit spotty. As for glue..... I use something called Wire Glue, it's a carbon based glue that when dry is totaly conductive. I then add a spot of apoxy resin as a coating to strengthen the hold. No soldering required. You'll need to hold the connections together until it's dry, and it's incredibly easy to get it everywhere, so handle with utmost care. I use a toothpick to place little blobs over the place I want to join:

Ahh I see. I have luminous film el tape and it is all laminated. Sigh. Well for now we'll just deal with the eyelets and maybe in the future we'll play around with trying to make them not visible. It's exactly like you say though, to the naked eye it's visible but to a camera from a tiny distance it's not visible at all. I guess I wonder if some of the tron suits look like the eyelets are hidden not because they are but just because of the camera and angle of someones body etc. Thanks so much for posting that though! I'm sure I'll work with this stuff again and it was very helpful to see how you did the connection and joining.

Here's some photos of our castor jacket so far, I can't believe I still have to make the pants and have the lighting all put on by tonight....oh and the cane....ack!

 

[shogunvader]

Hi all. There are different types of EL tape, so I guess it's ok to do with the type I use. I recently bought some from a company in china, on arrival I noticed that one of the lengths was laminated and the others weren't. One of the unlaminated ones even had the very thin protective layer coming off all over the place. Which sounds bad but actually isn't. I can now put a connection anywhere along the tape I need to. The laminated tape on the other hand is a different story. It's a nightmare trying to pry the layers apart, and yes, the connected area is a bit spotty. As for glue..... I use something called Wire Glue, it's a carbon based glue that when dry is totaly conductive. I then add a spot of apoxy resin as a coating to strengthen the hold. No soldering required. You'll need to hold the connections together until it's dry, and it's incredibly easy to get it everywhere, so handle with utmost care. I use a toothpick to place little blobs over the place I want to join:

The black tape was added to help strengthen the join

Tested it and it's not bad, but to the naked eye the join is visible

But not to a camera at a slight distance

Now I know what type of EL tape/sheet to shop for I'm going to do this as a costume

Don't forget the clear tape. Since its near the human body you want to prevent moisture from shorting it. Just like the corner, no one will see the the tape. I worried about my split electrodes line in the middle. But 2 feet away, no one will ever notice.

 

[Mr Scarecrow]

Here's my finished costume from a Halloween party from last night. I was going for just a minimalistic, Tron themed jacket, like what one of the characters might wear in Castor's bar. I think I did a pretty alright job for my first time slinging glow wire around. I ran out of time and wasn't able to attach a disc holder, so I opted out of bringing a disc with me. I might just straight up velcro my disc to my back if I go to any more parties.

Also, special thanks to user ModernDayMarc who provided some great, useful advice.

 

[ModernDayMarc]

Here's my finished costume from a Halloween party from last night. I was going for just a minimalistic, Tron themed jacket, like what one of the characters might wear in Castor's bar. I think I did a pretty alright job for my first time slinging glow wire around. I ran out of time and wasn't able to attach a disc holder, so I opted out of bringing a disc with me. I might just straight up velcro my disc to my back if I go to any more parties.

Also, special thanks to user ModernDayMarc who provided some great, useful advice.

Looking very good my friend!
Job well done, my fellow program
Also, thank you very much for your kind words!

 

[tim]

Ahh I see. I have luminous film el tape and it is all laminated. Sigh. Well for now we'll just deal with the eyelets and maybe in the future we'll play around with trying to make them not visible.

The LuminousFilm tape seems to be of higher quality than the el cheapo Chinese-made stuff I've been reading about. I've bent/flexed the LF tape quite a bit without any separation of laminate or irregularities in the glow.

 

[Canobi]

Ahh I see. I have luminous film el tape and it is all laminated. Sigh. Well for now we'll just deal with the eyelets and maybe in the future we'll play around with trying to make them not visible. It's exactly like you say though, to the naked eye it's visible but to a camera from a tiny distance it's not visible at all. I guess I wonder if some of the tron suits look like the eyelets are hidden not because they are but just because of the camera and angle of someones body etc. Thanks so much for posting that though! I'm sure I'll work with this stuff again and it was very helpful to see how you did the connection and joining.

Here's some photos of our castor jacket so far, I can't believe I still have to make the pants and have the lighting all put on by tonight....oh and the cane....ack!

That's an awesome jacket you've got going thare:eek well done:thumbsup

 

[ARC]

Ok so we finally got this thing put together.... It seems the post office played rugby with it though since as soon as I got it out of the box it had a bunch of problems. The collar isn't lighting up as you can see. I've tried multiple fixes but it's breaking my heart so badly that I have given up for the night in an effort to save my sanity. There will be a couple tweaks tomorrow before work but this is pretty much it:

The End of Line Club Pole Dancer!!

I offered to watermark them for Matt since I've been seeing an increase in Tron-suit plagiarism, not here of course, but mostly on facebook. I want to make sure he gets credit for all his hard work!

Sorry about the lack of makeup, it's super late and I'm frustrated and just not feelin' it. I reeeealllly hope I get some pictures taken at work tomorrow before the suit crashes and burns. We fully expect it to not last through the night, but plans are in the works for a better one for next year!

Anyway.... what do you think?

 

[tim]

^ Looks good! I suspect a break in the wiring, likely where it's attached to the EL tape. How are the wires attached? Can you get to them to re-attach? I attached my EL tape to my costume with Velcro so that I could get to the connections.

 

[DigitalBabylon]

Pretty excellent costume, ARC. It's a shame about the collar. How do the wires attach to the EL Tape? I've been using alligator clips, where I'll use some pliers to gently close them onto the tape to break the skin of it. Then I'll hot glue the seal so it's pretty secure. I'll find out tomorrow how much abuse it can take. The EL Tape I used (from Funhouse/CoolNeon) is tricksy to get a secure connection, so it takes such measures. I've poured over this forum, and besides the above recommendation of wire glue I haven't seen too much for custom EL Tape connections.

Good luck on fixing that little part, but I wouldn't focus on that one piece that isn't lighting up. Overall, your costume is very well done.

I'll get some pics of mine later tonight. I've put together an End of Line club patron costume as well, and I'm siked to go party and cruise Ybor in it tomorrow.

 

[Vew]

Looks good. My break occurred at the ground - where that foil meets the outer jacket wire. If you rely on the copper tape stickiness, it'll eventually fail. You have make sure that is well soldered too. Then heat shrink it for maximum protection.

 

[Bandit-Jedi]

Fantastic costume ARC, it came out great!