Resculpting my Fett armor

After an initial test pull, I had problems getting the mold out of the plastic. That really wasn't what I needed at this point but what can you do? *:-\ *I'm stubborn and won't quit until I figure it out so I decided to add some wood flares and angles to help out with the severe undercuts that are on this piece. (I'm guessing by looking at the exhibit pics of the original screen used gaunts, that this left gaunt was not vacformed because the edges on it are extremely sharp.... so it's shape is going to pose some problems, but I think I can work them out). I also added some bondo on one side to smooth out the transition between the boxy parts and the round gauntlet curve. I think it looks a lot better and more natural. I also went back and did the same to the right gaunt. Take a look:
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And the right gaunt, (still needs to be sanded):
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Unfortunately it's been slow going on this the last few weeks because I recently got my old job back from which I was laid off over a year and a half ago. (yay) But the schedule has not been very conducive to sculpting armor (not to mention filling orders...those I have been able to keep up on because I make sure I get those done before moving onto sculpting projects). I'll keep plodding away on this because I am SO close to finishing the clam shells
 
Got some more progress pics for you all:
Finished up fine tuning the right guant -
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And the final master pulled for the right gaunt:
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On to the left gaunt -
Some more sanding and fine tuning:
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And the final master pulled for the left gaunt -
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A test set pulled of the left guant (.030 styrene like the right gaunt)
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Just got a few minor things to tweak and these should be good to go. Then I can get started on the left gaunt flame thrower and the accessory piece for the outside of the right gaunt. I talked to my plastic supplier today and he told me I should be getting in the special order plastic trial pieces for me to test out. Hopefully they'll work out well and I get the results I'm looking for, otherwise it'll set this project back a few weeks till I can find a plastic that I'm happy with. I"m also looking at doing a high vac pump for the vac table so that I can get some sharper pulls on these. Stay tuned!
 
Those gauntlets looks great!

They gave me an idea for when i start making my fett costume.

So many people on these forums are so helpful with their hints n tips, seem to be a great community.
 
Those gauntlets looks great!

They gave me an idea for when i start making my fett costume.

So many people on these forums are so helpful with their hints n tips, seem to be a great community.
Thanks Pickendi! Glad I could be of some help to someone

OK everyone, I've got some more progress pics for you all. I went to the plastic supply place today and picked up the new plastic that I am looking at and I have to tell you that this stuff is AWESOME!!!! I love the way it forms and it is baby smooth. I pulled the set below out of .090 and it worked like a dream! The only downside to this plastic is that it gives off some really nasty fumes so I'll need to make sure I start wearing my respirator.
At first I was expecting it to droop the same way as the ABS, and at first it did. Then I left the room and came back only to find that it had actually flattened back out! I was thinking, "What the...?" So naturally I turned up the heat and put it closer to the heating element...still no major droop. I touched it a few times to do a bounce test and it was definitely pretty bouncy. I let it droop some more and then decided to pull it. Needless to say, I'm very happy with the results. This plastic has little to no droop but the flexibility on it is fantastic!...what does that mean to a vacuumforming guy?? Well, the less the droop and more stretch means not only better pulls but also I can now do much deeper, larger pulls on a small table and my webbing woes are all but nil...anyway, enough of that boring stuff. On to the pics: Let me know your thoughts
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And here is some texture comparison shots of the haircell .060 and this new boltaron acrylic pvc blend (pulled in .090) It's also much glossier which is nice, but extremely smooth too!
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My good bud Jason (Gee2) is gonna be doing a beta test of this set to see how well this new plastic takes paint and adhesives. I'll keep you all posted.
 
So Will and I have gone back and forth on this project a bit, and being two of only three Fetts' in our garrison we tend to stick together bouncing new ways to better our kits off each other. Last week he asked if I would be available to beta test the gaunts before making them for sale. So the package arrived two days ago;

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DSC00106 by darth_who, on Flickr

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DSC00107 by darth_who, on Flickr

My first thought, holy ****, no packing material! Then after removing them from the bags I realized, holy **** no packing material, because they don't need any. The gaunts are flexible, yet sturdy and hold their shape extremely well despite not being made from traditional material like fiberglass or resin. BTW Will, love the shipping box...

Next up, trimming and sanding...

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DSC00109 by darth_who, on Flickr

So the plastic trims up much like ABS, producing quite a bit of dust, that inevitably sticks to every **** thing it touches...

And after some tack cloth and primer...

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DSC00110 by darth_who, on Flickr

The new material takes primer very well filling any small imperfections in the plastic to make a really nice, smooth surface to paint.

Now on to some Krylon aluminum matte and some duplicolor automotive high gloss

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DSC00111 by darth_who, on Flickr

Nice and shiny :icon_wink:

After they were dry I took each piece and bent, flexed and twisted them (much more than would be expected of a normal troop), and no cracking, flaking or peeling of the paint or clear coat. Tomorrow I'll start the tedious task of masking (anyone that's worked a Fett knows of my pain) and then on to more paint on Monday (if it doesn't rain, again...). At this point in the testing I can say a few things; Will has done his homework. I've owned three set of gaunts since I started costuming as Boba from low end to high, and these are slowly becoming my favorite based on accuracy of the sculpt, ease of work and overall sturdiness and lack of weight of the product. I'm interested to see how the flamethrowers box and hose details are tackled but I assume they will be as good as the shells.
As I get further into the project I'll post more, but for right now, I'll say well done IOA.
 
Thanks again for helping me out with this Jason! I really appreciate your input as well because I KNOW you know your Fett! Anyway, those are looking GREAT so far!! I can't wait to see the end product brother! (y)
 
Alright, so the first few layers of paint worked out great, now for a few more. First some yellow for more weathering/masking, along with some dullcote...

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DSC00114 by darth_who, on Flickr

Then some claret wine, that was followed up by some more dullcote and more weathering. Again another flex test all around and still no cracking, peeling, flaking, etc. Up next the adhesive test!

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DSC00115 by darth_who, on Flickr
 
My apologies for no pics. on this update, but the camera was totally dead and I didn't feel like waiting for it to charge. So the adhesive test; I used two types just to see what would happen. The first was normal Super Glue gel, it held up fine when trying to remove the magnets (what I'm using for closure on the shells) and it also held up after a few collisions with other magnets. However after the fourth time one of them popped off, and then another started to tear away.
Next up the two part epoxy; I used the quick set (1 min) two part loc-tite stuff. After application I tried the same test as above, same results. But on the collision test I got a 50% survival rate vs. the super glue. So I cheated a bit and hit the spots with 80 grit sandpaper, then re-epoxied and also built some on the outer edge of the magnet instead of just the bottom. This seems to have done the trick because they aren't coming off without some serious effort and possible tool involvement
All in all, the gaunts much like the Fett armor produced by IOA are great pieces; this fact along with the fantastic service makes the new gauntlets a very good purchase choice in my opinion. As I upgrade my kit, I will absolutely use Will’s armor and look forward to any other projects/pieces he chooses to produce, especially if he takes on the Imperial Knight project I've bugged him about.
 
Thanks again for helping out with this bro. This is some really great info on this new plastic. Definitely making the decision easier with every update (y)
 
Made some pretty quick progress on the flamethrower last night so I thought I'd share. Here's some pics (I know it looks weird because of the necessary flares for the pulls, but once I trim them out they'll match up forming the flamethrower box). Take a look:
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Up next: Right gaunt tube connector housing assembly:
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So, they paint up real nice, but how do they hold up for trooping. Well...

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IMG00034-20100914-2038 by darth_who, on Flickr

Unfortunately the flamethrower box didn't make it before our troop at EpCon last weekend, but the gaunts performed admirably without it. I banged them around a bit after they were on, no issues whatsoever. The magnet method had me a bit cautious but once they snapped in place they stayed put, even with the weight of my MR blaster bouncing around on them. I had folks knocking into me (as per usual trooping) and again no issues. I even had a guy get his zombie bandages get caught on the darts and try too pull away and the gaunts stayed put.
Now on to finishing the flamethrower and installing it...

Again, I can't say enough good stuff about the IOA product; it finishes and troops well, has more than enough room for electronics (LEDs, helmet servo controls, more LEDs, etc.) and use of magnets for closure worked fantastic. If I had to change anything I would maybe add one more set of magnets per gauntlet, just in case...maybe I'll try it on the ESB gaunts, as soon as Will gets them finished :duim:
 
Another quick update:
Flamethrower for left gaunt
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And with left gaunt for reference
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Still working on the right gaunt tube connector housing...stay tuned!
 
Finally got around to doing the knees. Take a look -
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And here are some pics of the pieces assembled
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And some shots of the inside
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Inner shell knee molds
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Kneecap molds
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And finally the side parts for the darts, etc.
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I think your doing a really good job on this one thing you may want to look at doing is on the knees they should have a beveled edge running around them...making them appear thicker than the plastic theyre made out of. Same on the chest and other armor pieces. But great work non the less
 
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