Dredd straps...the details observed!

First, at long last, kudos to Art Andrews for finally giving us a broad range of new pics in the RPF Gallery, for us Dredd maniacs. I personally have waited way to long for great reference shots of the costume parts I'm trying to replicate. Unfortunately, for many of us, these come too late to help in our attempt to get accurate results the first time around. I personally will have to satisfy myself with a close "replication" of various parts I've already finished or incur the wrath of my wife for well exceeding our budget. Having said that, I may update less expensive fixes to some pieces, using the new photos. I encourage others to make use of this fabulous reference. For newcomers, which included myself, less than a year ago, you will want to click on the "Gallery" box in the menu at the top of the page then on "Movies" at the next screen. Next, scroll down to Dredd 3-d and find your reference shots. I should emphasize that there will possibly be some variation of some features of the suit and belt pieces because that is common with Stunt suits versus "Hero" versions. I thought I'd point out something that may go unnoticed by some folks and may be important for the obsessed fan. The belting is different in several respects and on different articles. The bicep straps look to be all cotton. You can check this for yourself in a fabric store. How do I know? The weave is distinct, and coarser. All the web straps on the Armor (or armour, if in the UK) is poly or polyester. I did see one really good shot from another source, that seems to show the 2" wide, side belts as nylon seat belt type straps. I would welcome anyone who has seen the material close up, confirming or denying this speculation. Again, this is possibly different on which version we are seeing in photos. One thing I noted on the holster rig is that the portion of the straps from the back or rear side of the holster to the buckles is actually a loop of doubled black elastic. This may allow for greater flexibility when crouching; just speculation. The strapping from the front of the holster to the other buckle half is the usual poly web. I thought it was important to call attention to these issues so new people are not as frustrated as I have been in locating the best information available.

Hi Ray, having been privy to closeup looks at several hero and stunt suits from the movie (some VERY close up) I can tell you that what you've said above is basically correct. The one thing I can't confirm is whether or not the hero holsters had that elastic strap in the back. The hero suit that I was able to spend some quality time with did not have a holster at all. And getting answers can be tricky, even for those of us with friends among the crew. That's partly because pieces of the costume were made in two different countries by a bunch of different people. Not only were there differences in "stunt" and "hero" gear, but the hero gear itself had some variations. (Just as one example - Gloves: Dredd has different knuckles on his gloves than any of the other judges, and Dredd and Anderson have ribbing on their palms, while the other judges don't, even though Lex's gloves would still be considered "hero").

The reference photos here on the RPF are excellent, as you've said, but the bulk of them are of the suit that Propstore brought to Comic-Con. They were very generous in giving the RPF guys (and myself) some closeup views for photos. HOWEVER, that suit was comprised of both stunt and hero parts. The Lawgiver they had was definitely stunt (and not in very good shape) and I suspect that the holster (which had the elastic) was stunt as well.

For anyone who wants all of the reference images they can get, I strongly suggest you keep checking the gallery (and Dredd threads) here, like the excellent Judge Janus suit thread, but also the two main facebook Dredd groups, the Judge Dredd Group For DragonCon, and the Brit-Cit Judges Group. You'll find some reference photos there you want see anywhere else (including some amazingly revealing behind-the-scenes pics from time to time) and it's also where most of the Dredd costuming experts check in regularly.

I've been very fortunate to get an enormous amount of knowledge about the costumes and props from the film from various sources, but I'm not on the RPF as much as I'd like to be, so it's not always easy for me to chime in with answers as much as I'd like. Frankly, as a member here and also maybe five Dredd-related facebook groups, not to mention making props (when I should be paying more attention to my day job), it's kind of hard for me to keep up with all of it (and on top of all that, there's also JudgeDrokk.com!)
It would be nice if there was ONE big repository of Dredd knowledge and info sharing, but that's just not the case. So if any Dredd costumers are only checking one site, they could miss some essential stuff.

Luckily, there are a few other guys out there that have a big store of knowledge about Dredd gear and try to share it when they can.

Another place worth checking - Jeff over at studiocreations.com has been starting to put together a pretty authoritative info site and I'm looking forward to seeing that grow.
How To Build a Judge Dredd Costume

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Hi Ray, having been privy to closeup looks at several hero and stunt suits from the movie (some VERY close up) I can tell you that what you've said above is basically correct. The one thing I can't confirm is whether or not the hero holsters had that elastic strap in the back. The hero suit that I was able to spend some quality time with did not have a holster at all. And getting answers can be tricky, even for those of us with friends among the crew. That's partly because pieces of the costume were made in two different countries by a bunch of different people. Not only were there differences in "stunt" and "hero" gear, but the hero gear itself had some variations. (Just as one example - Gloves: Dredd has different knuckles on his gloves than any of the other judges, and Dredd and Anderson have ribbing on their palms, while the other judges don't, even though Lex's gloves would still be considered "hero").

The reference photos here on the RPF are excellent, as you've said, but the bulk of them are of the suit that Propstore brought to Comic-Con. They were very generous in giving the RPF guys (and myself) some closeup views for photos. HOWEVER, that suit was comprised of both stunt and hero parts. The Lawgiver they had was definitely stunt (and not in very good shape) and I suspect that the holster (which had the elastic) was stunt as well.

For anyone who wants all of the reference images they can get, I strongly suggest you keep checking the gallery (and Dredd threads) here, like the excellent Judge Janus suit thread, but also the two main facebook Dredd groups, the Judge Dredd Group For DragonCon, and the Brit-Cit Judges Group. You'll find some reference photos there you want see anywhere else (including some amazingly revealing behind-the-scenes pics from time to time) and it's also where most of the Dredd costuming experts check in regularly.

I've been very fortunate to get an enormous amount of knowledge about the costumes and props from the film from various sources, but I'm not on the RPF as much as I'd like to be, so it's not always easy for me to chime in with answers as much as I'd like. Frankly, as a member here and also maybe five Dredd-related facebook groups, not to mention making props (when I should be paying more attention to my day job), it's kind of hard for me to keep up with all of it (and on top of all that, there's also JudgeDrokk.com!)
It would be nice if there was ONE big repository of Dredd knowledge and info sharing, but that's just not the case. So if any Dredd costumers are only checking one site, they could miss some essential stuff.

Luckily, there are a few other guys out there that have a big store of knowledge about Dredd gear and try to share it when they can.

Another place worth checking - Jeff over at studiocreations.com has been starting to put together a pretty authoritative info site and I'm looking forward to seeing that grow.
http://www.studiocreations.com/howto/dredd/index.html

Thanks for sharing that, Max. I am not much of an internet guy and this forum is about as far as I go. As you said, it is indeed too bad that one repository does not exist for Dredd. It was a noble effort to establish the "definitive threads" which should help serve that purpose but are woefully under utilized. I am pretty confident that my observation on the elastic is correct, as I am on the other straps. I've utilized many of these materials over the years, myself, and I'm pretty familiar with the appearance of the weave patterns on all of them. I usually just need a close-up pic to validate my impressions. I can't say if the elastic was used on only stunt suits or the hero rig as well. You can identify the lengthwise ribs that are typical of elastic straps on the rearward straps. I can only assume that the reason has to do with keeping the rig from flopping about without constricting the thigh muscles at the same time. For the cosplay individuals it is unlikely that this is an important detail but it would allow for ease of putting the rig on without excessive adjustments and it may have allowed for different stunt performers to wear any given rig without excessive strap ends flapping loose. Just speculation. I have just about completed my outfit and it will be slightly less than 100% accurate. Some due to cost and some due to not being that anal about small details. A seamstress is working on my vest and I didn't include leather edge binding, opting for easier and less costly bias tape. My leathers are not custom made and I bought a jacket that has ventilated mesh panels. I've done cosplay for years and spent many a day in sweat dripping hot costumes and this one is likely going to be in the top ten, with the foam padding in the helmet to the LeatherNext lined gloves and the motocross style boots. I'm still struggling with the knee and elbow pads and how to attach them. No one has confirmed my suspicion that they were attached by gluing or sewing them to the leathers permanently . I would prefer to make mine removable but don't want them to slide around either. I'll probably use hook & loop straps to start and see how they work.

Check out this link... might help...

Dredd (2012) - Judge Dredd's Costume

As always, you seem to share the best reference links! Thank you!:love