COMPLETE! "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor *PIC HEAVY*
- Thread starter MWiggs
- Start date
MWiggs
Well-Known Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
Absolutely! Hardest thing I've done yet! :eek I'm still wearing it down, trying to make it look like it's not new off the showroom floor and it really is nerve wracking...
Ok so first up, I've completed 98% of the spray painting step! I sprayed the silver layers on pretty thick and the top black layer a bit thinner so I could sand thru the black to reveal the silver underneath without exposing the primer coat, plastidip or even worse, the foam itself. Don't remember I i mentioned that before but I thought I'd recap in case anyone was interested.
I masked all the silver parts with tape, and the damaged areas with toothpaste. Masking with the toothpaste was a mess but worked out really well after the fact. I ended up diluting the paste with water to thin it out, as straight up toothpaste is very gummy and didn't like to stick to the paint very well. I added about a teaspoon of water to about 1/8 cup of toothpaste which made it thinner and kind of foamy which actually really helped in cleanup, and still worked beautifully for the chipped paint effect. The tape took by far the longest, as there was a lot of surface area to cover, but eventually (and two large rolls later) I had it ready for final coat.
Black coat went on really evenly, and dried really fast in the 100°+ weather we're currently having. *WARNING!* Don't leave your parts out in the sun, even if they're painted silver 'cuz they will get hot really fast and nothing makes glue fail faster than heat! I had a couple seams start to separate on me and had to get more superglue to salvage them. Only one that I couldn't get closed back up, but that one was actually caused by shrinkage in the many layers of coating. But I'm not gonna point out where it is, so you'll never know! Paint it like it's intentional and move on!
Ok enough jabbering, on with the show!
Also I started sanding the living snot out of the black paint on all the pieces to kill the shine and add an aged weathered look, complete with the occasional "metal" peeking out.
Index finger, sanded and worn, middle finger untouched. I'm liking the look of this!
Left hand (on the right) sanded, right hand (elsewhere) still smooth and shiny
Acrylic washing of silver parts is up next! Hope that goes well.. Yet another first for me!
Thanks again for the kind words, glad y'all are liking it so far! The BIG REVEAL is on the way! getting so close!! 30(ish) days left!
Absolutely! Hardest thing I've done yet! :eek I'm still wearing it down, trying to make it look like it's not new off the showroom floor and it really is nerve wracking...
Ok so first up, I've completed 98% of the spray painting step! I sprayed the silver layers on pretty thick and the top black layer a bit thinner so I could sand thru the black to reveal the silver underneath without exposing the primer coat, plastidip or even worse, the foam itself. Don't remember I i mentioned that before but I thought I'd recap in case anyone was interested.
I masked all the silver parts with tape, and the damaged areas with toothpaste. Masking with the toothpaste was a mess but worked out really well after the fact. I ended up diluting the paste with water to thin it out, as straight up toothpaste is very gummy and didn't like to stick to the paint very well. I added about a teaspoon of water to about 1/8 cup of toothpaste which made it thinner and kind of foamy which actually really helped in cleanup, and still worked beautifully for the chipped paint effect. The tape took by far the longest, as there was a lot of surface area to cover, but eventually (and two large rolls later) I had it ready for final coat.
Black coat went on really evenly, and dried really fast in the 100°+ weather we're currently having. *WARNING!* Don't leave your parts out in the sun, even if they're painted silver 'cuz they will get hot really fast and nothing makes glue fail faster than heat! I had a couple seams start to separate on me and had to get more superglue to salvage them. Only one that I couldn't get closed back up, but that one was actually caused by shrinkage in the many layers of coating. But I'm not gonna point out where it is, so you'll never know! Paint it like it's intentional and move on!
Ok enough jabbering, on with the show!
Also I started sanding the living snot out of the black paint on all the pieces to kill the shine and add an aged weathered look, complete with the occasional "metal" peeking out.
Index finger, sanded and worn, middle finger untouched. I'm liking the look of this! Left hand (on the right) sanded, right hand (elsewhere) still smooth and shinyAcrylic washing of silver parts is up next! Hope that goes well.. Yet another first for me!
Thanks again for the kind words, glad y'all are liking it so far! The BIG REVEAL is on the way! getting so close!! 30(ish) days left!
dedguy
Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
It's looking fantastic it's really great to finally see it in paint. Your seam work looks great. Do you have have any plans on weathering the black aside from the sanding? Doing some brown-ish washes over he black could help with the worn look.
It's looking fantastic it's really great to finally see it in paint. Your seam work looks great. Do you have have any plans on weathering the black aside from the sanding? Doing some brown-ish washes over he black could help with the worn look.
MWiggs
Well-Known Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
Yep that's the plan! I'm finishing up the sanding tonight and that'll be the next step!
Actually, the next step is the skull on the visor and snake insignia on the right shoulder. My wife runs a small vinyl business (check her out on Etsy!) and she helped me cut some vinyl stencils to make those happen! I should have those painted on in the next couple days.
THEN I've got my waterslide decals to put all over the thing, and a little yellow to spray on the fins on the back of the torso, spine and upper arms, THEN I'll hit the weathering paint hard, and I/m pretty sure that'll be the last step to completion!! Any thoughts on clear coating the whole thing or should I just leave it??
P.S. admins... If it's not ok to link to an etsy shop, I'll take it down. Thanks!
Yep that's the plan! I'm finishing up the sanding tonight and that'll be the next step!
Actually, the next step is the skull on the visor and snake insignia on the right shoulder. My wife runs a small vinyl business (check her out on Etsy!) and she helped me cut some vinyl stencils to make those happen! I should have those painted on in the next couple days.
THEN I've got my waterslide decals to put all over the thing, and a little yellow to spray on the fins on the back of the torso, spine and upper arms, THEN I'll hit the weathering paint hard, and I/m pretty sure that'll be the last step to completion!! Any thoughts on clear coating the whole thing or should I just leave it??
P.S. admins... If it's not ok to link to an etsy shop, I'll take it down. Thanks!
dedguy
Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Terran Marine CMC Armor WIP *PIC HEAVY*
So you're going full on Raynor? Rad. Planning on doing his sidearm and putting a holster on the armor? I always liked the idea of a suit of power armor but with something so antiquated as a quickdraw holstered revolver.
This is looking so damn good. This is pretty high up on the most impressive foam builds I have seen. I've only seen one other build that could come close to rivaling this.
So you're going full on Raynor? Rad. Planning on doing his sidearm and putting a holster on the armor? I always liked the idea of a suit of power armor but with something so antiquated as a quickdraw holstered revolver.
This is looking so damn good. This is pretty high up on the most impressive foam builds I have seen. I've only seen one other build that could come close to rivaling this.
MWiggs
Well-Known Member
"It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
Thanks a ton!
Can't say it's the best I've seen but that's a great thing to hear! Yes I'm officially in full-on Raynor mode. I've almost completed his revolver, I designed and 3D printed it, rotating cylinder, removable bullets, spring loaded shell ejector, etc. I think I posted something about it a while ago but yes I'll have that, tho I may just carry that around at the con separately cuz even tho I tried to print it as thin walled and hollow as I could it still weighs in around 4 lbs which is a lot to hold that far out from your body. I'm currently in the process of XTC-3D coating it and sanding and priming, but my focus has been on the suit so I'll finish the gun up later if there's time. I've already got my pattern for the holster too, I'll squeeze that in there as well.
Thanks a ton!
Can't say it's the best I've seen but that's a great thing to hear! Yes I'm officially in full-on Raynor mode. I've almost completed his revolver, I designed and 3D printed it, rotating cylinder, removable bullets, spring loaded shell ejector, etc. I think I posted something about it a while ago but yes I'll have that, tho I may just carry that around at the con separately cuz even tho I tried to print it as thin walled and hollow as I could it still weighs in around 4 lbs which is a lot to hold that far out from your body. I'm currently in the process of XTC-3D coating it and sanding and priming, but my focus has been on the suit so I'll finish the gun up later if there's time. I've already got my pattern for the holster too, I'll squeeze that in there as well.
MWiggs
Well-Known Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
Not a bad idea! Don't know if I'll have enough time for it tho... suit first weapons later. I have, however been collecting the supplies I need to build the holster if time permits. The remaining things should be here in a day or two. More on that as it develops. Now over to the paint booth for the latest traffic report. Mike?
Thanks, Mike, this just in.. lots of masking and painting going on this weekend. Looks like a yellow cloud rolling in off the horizon. This has been a long time waiting, folks, but it looks like we're finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. With the final coat of black on it appears we've got a clear route to start in on the stencil work and decals. Not much work remaining beyond the final color wash and clear coat. Smooth sailing from here on out. Now back to the studio.
I've also got the yellow accents on the fins of the spine and back of the arms done, as well as the spots on the back of the thighs, but forgot to take any pictures.
Also, since this progress, I've also completed all the stencil work and the application of all my decals and anxiously await them to dry so I can get a good photo. I feel like at this point I should cease posting update pics and just make it one big reveal once the final touches are put on..... Yep I'll leave you with that teaser, but also my assurance that I've never been more excited in this build and I hope I don't let everyone down with the final results. Adieu!
Not a bad idea! Don't know if I'll have enough time for it tho... suit first weapons later. I have, however been collecting the supplies I need to build the holster if time permits. The remaining things should be here in a day or two. More on that as it develops. Now over to the paint booth for the latest traffic report. Mike?
Thanks, Mike, this just in.. lots of masking and painting going on this weekend. Looks like a yellow cloud rolling in off the horizon. This has been a long time waiting, folks, but it looks like we're finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. With the final coat of black on it appears we've got a clear route to start in on the stencil work and decals. Not much work remaining beyond the final color wash and clear coat. Smooth sailing from here on out. Now back to the studio.
I've also got the yellow accents on the fins of the spine and back of the arms done, as well as the spots on the back of the thighs, but forgot to take any pictures.
Also, since this progress, I've also completed all the stencil work and the application of all my decals and anxiously await them to dry so I can get a good photo. I feel like at this point I should cease posting update pics and just make it one big reveal once the final touches are put on..... Yep I'll leave you with that teaser, but also my assurance that I've never been more excited in this build and I hope I don't let everyone down with the final results. Adieu!
MWiggs
Well-Known Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
Ok I know I said I wouldn't post any more photos until it's done but I've been working on weathering and I had to share.
First off, stencil work! Skull on the visor, snake on the shoulder. Airbrush white and reveal! I feel like the snake's a tad big but hey you'll be able to see it better from a distance.
I also finished all the yellow and black striped accents on the legs and spine and applied all my waterslide decals... BTW very fragile even once dried so I'll clearcoat the entire thing when I'm done to protect them.
And finally, I've been heavy into weathering! Acrylic paint a smallish area and wipe/blot it off with a wet rag. I'm using primarily black with a little dark brown mixed in and a cheap chip brush to smear the paint into all the little cracks and grooves.
Which, of course meant I could pull the tape off the lights and finally FINALLY try them out really for the first time!
GETTING SO CLOSE! A bit more weathering on the arms and shoulders then clear coat time! I'm thinking a matte spray should do the trick. Evil Ted uses floor wax thru an air brush. Anyone have any experience with that? I'm also wondering about clear plastidip, but not the glossifier stuff. Thoughts here would be appreciated!
Thanks again for looking, final suit up on the way!
Oh and it's official - I'm registered as a contestant in the Cosplay Contest for SLCC and the prejudging event is the 27th, so I have exactly 23 days left! Been a long journey, we'll see how it ends!
Ok I know I said I wouldn't post any more photos until it's done but I've been working on weathering and I had to share.
First off, stencil work! Skull on the visor, snake on the shoulder. Airbrush white and reveal! I feel like the snake's a tad big but hey you'll be able to see it better from a distance.
I also finished all the yellow and black striped accents on the legs and spine and applied all my waterslide decals... BTW very fragile even once dried so I'll clearcoat the entire thing when I'm done to protect them.
And finally, I've been heavy into weathering! Acrylic paint a smallish area and wipe/blot it off with a wet rag. I'm using primarily black with a little dark brown mixed in and a cheap chip brush to smear the paint into all the little cracks and grooves.
Which, of course meant I could pull the tape off the lights and finally FINALLY try them out really for the first time!
GETTING SO CLOSE! A bit more weathering on the arms and shoulders then clear coat time! I'm thinking a matte spray should do the trick. Evil Ted uses floor wax thru an air brush. Anyone have any experience with that? I'm also wondering about clear plastidip, but not the glossifier stuff. Thoughts here would be appreciated!
Thanks again for looking, final suit up on the way!
Oh and it's official - I'm registered as a contestant in the Cosplay Contest for SLCC and the prejudging event is the 27th, so I have exactly 23 days left! Been a long journey, we'll see how it ends!
skiffy
Sr Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
Frankly I'm astounded that you're not swamped with gushing replies on this build. You've shown outstanding ability in planning and execution. Congrats on everything you've achieved so far. I'm really looking forward to the final reveal!
Frankly I'm astounded that you're not swamped with gushing replies on this build. You've shown outstanding ability in planning and execution. Congrats on everything you've achieved so far. I'm really looking forward to the final reveal!
JediMichael
Master Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
Just finished SC2 few days ago. Was wondering if anyone had done Jim's armor. Then I run into this thread. Amazing. No one ever need and try again.
Was playing first few level of SC1. So annoying only being able to select 12 guys at once.
Just finished SC2 few days ago. Was wondering if anyone had done Jim's armor. Then I run into this thread. Amazing. No one ever need and try again.
Was playing first few level of SC1. So annoying only being able to select 12 guys at once.
dedguy
Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
This is looking gorgeous. I don't really have much more to say than that. Very very well planned and executed. I have followed quite a few builds of various things over the years and the only thing I'd rate in the same category as this is the Robocop 2 Cain puppet build that a fellow in the UK did a few years back.
This is looking gorgeous. I don't really have much more to say than that. Very very well planned and executed. I have followed quite a few builds of various things over the years and the only thing I'd rate in the same category as this is the Robocop 2 Cain puppet build that a fellow in the UK did a few years back.
Hoplitespear
Sr Member
Re: "It's About Time!" Starcraft II Jim Raynor Armor NEARLY COMPLETE! *PIC HEAVY*
That looks stunning. Paint can be scary, but you pulled it of really nice!! Can't wait to see it all together.
That looks stunning. Paint can be scary, but you pulled it of really nice!! Can't wait to see it all together.
