onepunchdragon
New Member
Such great attention to detail! How many hours do you have into this so far?
mcoractual
Well-Known Member
amuelb
Active Member
I am so very grateful for the pieces he sent. They are beautifully made and I was blown away by his generosity.
I cannot wait to get the rest of the pieces for my helmet so I can fit it to the front — I should be getting my fans and battery packs in the mail today, fingers crossed!
amuelb
Active Member
Thank you so much! I am always happy to hear that the detail is noticeable. People always say "as long as it looks good from 5ft away you're good!" but I feel more confident and proud of it when I can hold it in my hand and feel like it looks real. I always love when people pick up my work and expect it to weigh something
Always funny to watch the surprised looks on their faces!I believe I started the project just before the new year... I spent about 5-6 hours on dielines and research alone! I contacted Bens Collectables on youtube for close up photos of his toy model so I could use it as a reference for those areas you never see in the film.
I worked on the costume almost every night after work for all of January... maybe 2-4 hours a night. I would argue that between research, making the patterns for the build, running around getting supplies, and actually building the costume, I have spent around 90-120 hours so far (I realize thats a broad guess but I cant remember how many full weekends I worked on it — so I really have no idea). I am a slow worker, but I like to take my time and do everything as perfectly as possible — perfectionist at work here.
I have a lot left to go! So no slowing down for the next little while
I have some updates to the arms that I did last night which I'll post later today. I might be doing a test paint on one of the forearms later this long weekend since the weather is mild right now (at -2°c it's practically t-shirt weather!) Stay tuned, it's about to get exciting!
amuelb
Active Member
Oh yes, I have looked at this project a thousand times. The detail is unreal! It makes me notice all my mistakes
Sadly I cannot be quite as accurate with foam as they are with their 3D printer... But I have definitely tried to replicate that one as much as possible. I really hope I can get my ears to move like they have theirs moving... and hopefully quieter since those motors will be really close to my ears! Urgh, Im jealous of it to say the least.
amuelb
Active Member
Hello everyone!
I have been busy lately but have finally got moving on my CHAPPiE biceps!
This piece was time consuming to make, but finally I feel like things are coming together. The bicep still feels a little large for my arm... I made it around 3.5" wide and it's sitting around 0.5" inches too big... but I dont think I have the time or resources to redo it so I will need to pad it and build the front piece slightly narrower to give it a better fit. At least I have a full arm constructed with very little mobility issues! Im exited to do a proper test fitting once I get the front of it complete.
Bicep: (references first)
360° view:
I have been busy lately but have finally got moving on my CHAPPiE biceps!
This piece was time consuming to make, but finally I feel like things are coming together. The bicep still feels a little large for my arm... I made it around 3.5" wide and it's sitting around 0.5" inches too big... but I dont think I have the time or resources to redo it so I will need to pad it and build the front piece slightly narrower to give it a better fit. At least I have a full arm constructed with very little mobility issues! Im exited to do a proper test fitting once I get the front of it complete.
Bicep: (references first)
360° view:
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onepunchdragon
New Member
Thank you so much! I am always happy to hear that the detail is noticeable. People always say "as long as it looks good from 5ft away you're good!" but I feel more confident and proud of it when I can hold it in my hand and feel like it looks real. I always love when people pick up my work and expect it to weigh something
I believe I started the project just before the new year... I spent about 5-6 hours on dielines and research alone! I contacted Bens Collectables on youtube for close up photos of his toy model so I could use it as a reference for those areas you never see in the film.
I worked on the costume almost every night after work for all of January... maybe 2-4 hours a night. I would argue that between research, making the patterns for the build, running around getting supplies, and actually building the costume, I have spent around 90-120 hours so far (I realize thats a broad guess but I cant remember how many full weekends I worked on it — so I really have no idea). I am a slow worker, but I like to take my time and do everything as perfectly as possible — perfectionist at work here.
I have a lot left to go! So no slowing down for the next little while
Great breakdown. Keep up the awesome work, I'm definitely looking forward to seeing it finished.
amuelb
Active Member
HELP! I got crackling paint!
I did a test paint this weekend... And after my test piece came out perfectly, I decided to spray one of my final pieces... But I got crackling splitting paint!
I had my prop sprayed with two coats of plastidip, time to cure, then sprayed with colour indoors to keep the temperature reasonable... One piece came out perfect, but the other is ruined! What do I do?!
I did a test paint this weekend... And after my test piece came out perfectly, I decided to spray one of my final pieces... But I got crackling splitting paint!
I had my prop sprayed with two coats of plastidip, time to cure, then sprayed with colour indoors to keep the temperature reasonable... One piece came out perfect, but the other is ruined! What do I do?!
mcoractual
Well-Known Member
It sucks, but this is probably the best advice. Slow and steady is the trick when sanding it back down!
amuelb
Active Member
It's the day after disaster! I have borrowed a laptop so I can show you guys the horror of what happened.
So, to start off... I bought two different brands of spray paint for my costume, one blue and one orange. The store didnt carry both colours in the same brand, so I just went with it. The two arm pieces were made out of the same type of foam in the same way, they were both coated with two layers of plastidip before painting.
I did two test sprays on scrap pieces before proceeding to the final parts and both had wonderful results... so, I went on to the finals.
(NOTE: I did all my spraying inside due to the cold weather outside, so I know temperature was not a factor here.)
The blue came out wonderfully — it was glossy and pigmented, I actually only neededone coat!
So then, the orange... Let's just say it was catastrophic.
The cracking in the paint was so bad that the foam looked like a wrinkled mans face...
I tried sanding it but it just started to peel away in chunks... I had NO IDEA what to do. :angry:confused
:cry After the night of tragedy... I did some planning and went to the store in the morning and picked up some Filler Primer and a new can of orange paint—one that was the same brand as the blue one I had bought previously—and I got back to work! I started with one solid coat of primer, and I heavy grit wet sand, then another pass with a lighter grit wet sand, and then another hit of filler primer. It took me about 3 hours to get the results I was looking for.
Phew, theres the texture issue fixed... But now what about the colour? I decided to do another test spray with my new paint on a piece of scrap foam that had already had a layer of primer. AND IT WORKED. Phew, and back into the box it goes for its final spray.
Crisis averted. Thanks my friends for all your help and support!
$
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amuelb
Active Member
Thank you! Shame you had to come by during my painting disaster!
Things are on the mend now, hopefully I'll be doing more uploads soon.
mcoractual
Well-Known Member
I didn't do much but I'm glad things are back on track! The blue is sooooooo aesthetically pleasing. I'm glad the orange one was not a total loss. I was scared it would be...And word of advice on orange paint. It's a disaster. And if you need orange several layers thick, go with white as the base layer. Learned that with my rifle prop...the hard way. Lol ooops! I'm stuck on my second cosplay right now...And I have no idea what to do. I'm working on an Assassins Creed one themed in world war 1. I am unsure on how to make the belt but want it to be leather or look like leather. All those options end in huge price tags though! But otherwise everything is looking good on it...being world war 1 themed, I am thinking of including a gas mask and gas mask container. The other props are shaping up nicely though...
Radical Gordon
New Member
This is amazing, makes me want to go back and re-do parts of my Chappie cosplay. Great work.
amuelb
Active Member
The blue is really nice, but I'll admit I prefer the orange — it's my favourite colour!
I am way too eager with my paint layers, I always end up with drips which is a shame. I need to learn to slow down a little I think.
You can always make foam look like leather eh? If you heat it up with a heat gun and press crumpled tinfoil into it, it gives it a leathery look. Then you just need to paint it with some high and lowlights to bring out the texture. I like using a rough sponge for those kind of textures. I think thats a really neat idea, they never made a game from that time period did they? I cant remember... I got lost after a few of the games.
I have been following your progress on Instagram
- - - Updated - - -
I have seen your build! I referenced yours quite a lot when planning mine. It's a great cosplay you should be really proud! I loved going through your progress photos to see how you did things (to be honest it really helped
)if you ever redo any parts, keep me informed I'd love to see!
amuelb
Active Member
It's been a while since my last update... so let's begin!
Since I already had the arms well underway, I decided that finishing the rest of the arms would make me feel like I was finally getting somewhere. With only two months left on my count down I'm feeling really stressed for time.
In an earlier post I showed progress shots of the biceps — amazingly the sides and back of the biceps were the easy parts. I had a lot of work ahead of me to figure out the intricate front of the arm and how it was going to fit once I had it all together.
Bicep References:
Bicep Build:
(excuse my finger in the frame... it was filmed at 12am)
Test Fitting:
Painting:
(no excuse for the finger in the frame this time...)
Since I already had the arms well underway, I decided that finishing the rest of the arms would make me feel like I was finally getting somewhere. With only two months left on my count down I'm feeling really stressed for time.
In an earlier post I showed progress shots of the biceps — amazingly the sides and back of the biceps were the easy parts. I had a lot of work ahead of me to figure out the intricate front of the arm and how it was going to fit once I had it all together.
Bicep References:
Bicep Build:
Test Fitting:
Painting:
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mcoractual
Well-Known Member
The blue is really nice, but I'll admit I prefer the orange — it's my favourite colour!
I am way too eager with my paint layers, I always end up with drips which is a shame. I need to learn to slow down a little I think.
You can always make foam look like leather eh? If you heat it up with a heat gun and press crumpled tinfoil into it, it gives it a leathery look. Then you just need to paint it with some high and lowlights to bring out the texture. I like using a rough sponge for those kind of textures. I think thats a really neat idea, they never made a game from that time period did they? I cant remember... I got lost after a few of the games.
I have been following your progress on Instagram
I went with a time-period change and instead picked American Colonial era (mainly because it would be easier to make the props...) It's the third installment of the series. Assassin's Creed III.
Amazing work update! All your hard work is coming together nicely. Can't wait to see it worn as a completed product.
By the way! I found a discord community of awesome cosplayers. You can share your work and ideas and voicechat/video in real time. Pretty useful stuff!
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amuelb
Active Member
Despite all my priming, sanding and prepping... I'm still having paint cracking. So no new bicep updates.
I will have to do further testing on scrap foam to figure out what exactly is going wrong with my painting process. It's so complicated my brain hurts. This time even my blue is having a cracking effect... though its no where near as drastic as last time, it's still quite textured. Lets hope I don't have this issue for the entire costume!
Oh well, in spite of the impending doom slowly setting behind me... I did manage to get some weathering done!
Weathered orange vs. unweathered blue:
Orange Closeup:
Blue Closeup:
Both weathered:
I will have to do further testing on scrap foam to figure out what exactly is going wrong with my painting process. It's so complicated my brain hurts. This time even my blue is having a cracking effect... though its no where near as drastic as last time, it's still quite textured. Lets hope I don't have this issue for the entire costume!
Oh well, in spite of the impending doom slowly setting behind me... I did manage to get some weathering done!
Weathered orange vs. unweathered blue:
Orange Closeup:
Blue Closeup:
Both weathered:
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