Shades
Well-Known Member
Hey Guys!
Lurker here. First thread. I have been watching the RPF for about 3 years and I am finally stepping it up with my builds. I did Iron Man last year, in a goofy piece meal way using toys, moto cross gear, foam, and air clay.View attachment 61093
Well I got the bug and decide to try pep and eva foam.
First off, I need to give credit to Stealth for all the great tutorial vids that got me started and Juice/ Dubean33 for the war machine pep files. Also iceagonakilya on youtube known as Ben on the 405th has great vids on youtube. I would not of been about to start this build without the knowledge shared by these gentlemen.
I started with the .pdo files and modified them for EVA harbor freight foam. I removed all the tabs and "trim" pieces that aren't needed with foam. The trick is to visualize how the pieces will hit together. The Join/disjoin tool is your friend. I try to make most pieces flat as I find it is easier to bevel two adjoining faces then to bend a larger one.View attachment 61094
Once the files are printed on standard paper, I use "tack" adhesive spray by 3m to attach the whole sheet the the foam (you need to make sure the paper can be pulled off the foam after cutting). I have tried cutting the foam about 8 different ways and all have advantages and disadvantages. I HATED using a hot knife. it is pain and the foam is too thick. I went a got a scroll saw from Harbor Freight for 60 bucks with a coupon. Totally worth it. The cuts are quick and accurate. To clean up edges and put bevels where I need them, I use a dremel tool sanding wheel. I also found an electric carving knife to be useful. I got one for 25 off amazon. It is good for large rough cuts and putting a bevel edge on foam. View attachment 61095
After I have all the pieces, I peel off the paper and pull up the model. Using a hot glue gun and duct tape to hold things in place, I attach all the foam pieces together using the demel for angled joints.
Using this method, I made a helmet in about 3-4 hours start to finish. Beats the hell out of the week of work that was the pep helm.
View attachment 61096
Here is my progress so far. I am about two weeks in, but the first week was all research and planning. Hope to get the arms and guns done this weekend.
View attachment 61097
My thoughts...
EVA is awesome. I have about 60 bucks in foam, 20 in glue, 20 for a bad ass glue gun, and 60 for a saw. I will spend about another 100 on trim material, that includes a spinning gaitling gun. So, this should be a 250- 300 dollar build.
Once you get a feel for the foam, it is really easy to work with it. A year after I first started using is, I can now whip up a pretty decent helmet on short order.
No resin and no endless hours of sanding are also awesome.
Thanks for Reading-
Shades
a.k.a.
Keith Charles
Lurker here. First thread. I have been watching the RPF for about 3 years and I am finally stepping it up with my builds. I did Iron Man last year, in a goofy piece meal way using toys, moto cross gear, foam, and air clay.View attachment 61093
Well I got the bug and decide to try pep and eva foam.
First off, I need to give credit to Stealth for all the great tutorial vids that got me started and Juice/ Dubean33 for the war machine pep files. Also iceagonakilya on youtube known as Ben on the 405th has great vids on youtube. I would not of been about to start this build without the knowledge shared by these gentlemen.
I started with the .pdo files and modified them for EVA harbor freight foam. I removed all the tabs and "trim" pieces that aren't needed with foam. The trick is to visualize how the pieces will hit together. The Join/disjoin tool is your friend. I try to make most pieces flat as I find it is easier to bevel two adjoining faces then to bend a larger one.View attachment 61094
Once the files are printed on standard paper, I use "tack" adhesive spray by 3m to attach the whole sheet the the foam (you need to make sure the paper can be pulled off the foam after cutting). I have tried cutting the foam about 8 different ways and all have advantages and disadvantages. I HATED using a hot knife. it is pain and the foam is too thick. I went a got a scroll saw from Harbor Freight for 60 bucks with a coupon. Totally worth it. The cuts are quick and accurate. To clean up edges and put bevels where I need them, I use a dremel tool sanding wheel. I also found an electric carving knife to be useful. I got one for 25 off amazon. It is good for large rough cuts and putting a bevel edge on foam. View attachment 61095
After I have all the pieces, I peel off the paper and pull up the model. Using a hot glue gun and duct tape to hold things in place, I attach all the foam pieces together using the demel for angled joints.
Using this method, I made a helmet in about 3-4 hours start to finish. Beats the hell out of the week of work that was the pep helm.
View attachment 61096
Here is my progress so far. I am about two weeks in, but the first week was all research and planning. Hope to get the arms and guns done this weekend.
View attachment 61097
My thoughts...
EVA is awesome. I have about 60 bucks in foam, 20 in glue, 20 for a bad ass glue gun, and 60 for a saw. I will spend about another 100 on trim material, that includes a spinning gaitling gun. So, this should be a 250- 300 dollar build.
Once you get a feel for the foam, it is really easy to work with it. A year after I first started using is, I can now whip up a pretty decent helmet on short order.
No resin and no endless hours of sanding are also awesome.
Thanks for Reading-
Shades
a.k.a.
Keith Charles
Last edited:
i still would recommend doing helmets pepakura style, as they have more details and you dont have to work that hard in the bondo stage 
