how to work with foam for pep armor

bpwmd

Well-Known Member
hey guys i have a question i have yet to be able to answer.

im trying to make a full boba fett outfit, been having a heck of a time with the helmet im trying to use this for my helm (by far the best one i have found)
however i cant find the 2mm paper it calls for however i had the idea of using 2mm foam. first does anyone think that would work?? Rafal fett thinks it might but has never tried it, also this wouldnt be the final model. this would just be a casting buck so that i can cast it out of plastic resin. so i need to know the easiest way to harden the surface for sanding. ive worked with fiberglass resin before but i do not know much about working with foam. (is it castable without hardening just bondo any spots?) also would the fiberglass resin dull the details to much ( would i need a diffrent method) basically i need to be able to give the surface that nice smooth feel please help lol
 
Mod Podge is sandable You will want a few layers.. let the coat dry fully before applying the next. usually people recommend 3-5 coats, I say always go to the high end of those recommendations, and more if you feel it needs it. Sponge brushes will get rid of the brush strokes.

But yes, It is sandable, but make sure it is fully dry before attempting any sanding or coats. and be wary of pools of glue, anywhere the glue pools it will leave unsightly blobs and of course thicker blobs of glue dry soooo much slower.
 
Mod Podge is sandable You will want a few layers.. let the coat dry fully before applying the next. usually people recommend 3-5 coats, I say always go to the high end of those recommendations, and more if you feel it needs it. Sponge brushes will get rid of the brush strokes.

But yes, It is sandable, but make sure it is fully dry before attempting any sanding or coats. and be wary of pools of glue, anywhere the glue pools it will leave unsightly blobs and of course thicker blobs of glue dry soooo much slower.


how much will that mess with the surface detail? fett doesnt have a whole lot but still
also how thick does 3-5 layers end up being with mod podge? is it a real thin glue?
ive also heard of people using a hair dryer or heat gun to "close the pores on the surface" do you know anything about that and if it works?
 
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sorry for the 20 questions but im just looking into weather its feasible or not before i buy all the supplies
 
I used 6 coats of glue on my shredder armour and was still able to retain the textured pattern on the underside of the foam mats.

Paint your coats on thin enough you won't lose any detail at all. The foam will soak up the first layer easy, and will turn shiny rather fast. At this stage any white bits are thicker patches of glue, you can brush these again to spread out any unwanted pools. You can let the glue pool at some points, to look like welding seams. But wait until the glue is transparent and there is no tackiness to the touch If it is any shade of white it's not dry. Even if the top may be dry, the underside is not, and it could pop like a zit and ooze out the wet glue from within. That's why I prefer to use Acrylic filler (the bathroom sealant kind) for seams. Silicon filler does not bond well with the foam, and will simply peel off. I found this out the hard way after about 5 tubes of it on a build only to peel it all off without damaging the foam underneath. It would, however, be good for making moulds of small items. As it retained all the detail of the imperfections I used it to fill. But I am getting away from the topic...

As for heat sealing... Yes it works. If you are just using the 2 or 3 mm foam sheets for this build, you are not going to be needing the use of a heat gun for bending, as you would with the 7+mm foam mats and sheets. So you won't get much chance to heat seal as you work. You can, however, use heat in an interesting way. If you make cuts into the foam, but not all the way through, and heat it, the sides sort of shrink back a little exposing the slit better, this can be used to make more realistic scratches and gouges on foam armour. But I would advise running some heat over the whole project at the end, before the glue.
 
I used 6 coats of glue on my shredder armour and was still able to retain the textured pattern on the underside of the foam mats.

Paint your coats on thin enough you won't lose any detail at all. The foam will soak up the first layer easy, and will turn shiny rather fast. At this stage any white bits are thicker patches of glue, you can brush these again to spread out any unwanted pools. You can let the glue pool at some points, to look like welding seams. But wait until the glue is transparent and there is no tackiness to the touch If it is any shade of white it's not dry. Even if the top may be dry, the underside is not, and it could pop like a zit and ooze out the wet glue from within. That's why I prefer to use Acrylic filler (the bathroom sealant kind) for seams. Silicon filler does not bond well with the foam, and will simply peel off. I found this out the hard way after about 5 tubes of it on a build only to peel it all off without damaging the foam underneath. It would, however, be good for making moulds of small items. As it retained all the detail of the imperfections I used it to fill. But I am getting away from the topic...

As for heat sealing... Yes it works. If you are just using the 2 or 3 mm foam sheets for this build, you are not going to be needing the use of a heat gun for bending, as you would with the 7+mm foam mats and sheets. So you won't get much chance to heat seal as you work. You can, however, use heat in an interesting way. If you make cuts into the foam, but not all the way through, and heat it, the sides sort of shrink back a little exposing the slit better, this can be used to make more realistic scratches and gouges on foam armour. But I would advise running some heat over the whole project at the end, before the glue.

cool awesome thanks!
 
A hair dryer on the hottest setting is enough. shine a light on the foam and heat it and you should see a slight change in colour It really doesn't take much heat to heat seal foam. Just a quick few passes with the hair dryer and you should be good to go.
 
A hair dryer on the hottest setting is enough. shine a light on the foam and heat it and you should see a slight change in colour It really doesn't take much heat to heat seal foam. Just a quick few passes with the hair dryer and you should be good to go.

perfect thanks

- - - Updated - - -

will post pics when finished
 
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