Sintra Armour (shaping)

Hello folks.
Can I start by saying "WOW" I stumbled across this place by chance and couldn't believe the amount of info and drool worthy images in this place. You guys really know your stuff. I'm not a noob when it comes to costume building having been putting together My Predator suit for the past 3 years and hanging out in the Hunters Lair.

However! Boba Fett has been a mild obsession since I first saw him on the big screen and had always toyed with the idea of recreating his suit, So now is the time. I'm not sure I'll do as good a job as some of you guys but I'll give it a go.

Right! Sorry to waffle on, I'll get to the point. I have a set of templates for armour from this site and I have sheets of sintra. But I was wondering if anyone could tell me if there's a certain way to form it? For example the chest armour seems to have a few curves going on and looks like a nightmare to get them in the right place and at the right angle. Is there a certain way to do this or is it all trial and error?

Sorry for the noob type question. But thanks in advance.

hey there sinisterfett and welcome
i am pretty new to this site as well but for the time i have been here all i can say that the folks here are soooo much help its unbelievable.anyway for the parts of armour i have made so far i have used a heat gun an basically anything thats got a curve in it to heat/bend it round to shape.hope this helps you on your way
cheers
paul

I got myself a large pot and boil water in it, drop the sintra in it and shape everything by hand. I'll use corners and rounded objects like coffee cans to get the basic shape I'm looking for. But yes, your right, it's mostly trial and error. It wouldn't be much fun without it.:cheers

The pot of boiling water works great ... and for bigger parts like the backplate and cod, you can use a paint stripper/heat gun to warm up target areas enough to bend.

Boil up some water in a pot, leave the Sintra in there for just a little bit, then pull it out and slightly bend it into place. You may want to do part at a time, one curve here, one curve there. I formed mine and then made them form to my body while wearing the vest.

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Yeah! Thanks folks I'd heard about this mythical pot of boiling water and banging your sintra bits in one at a time. I guess I'll be annoying the Mrs and taking over the kitchen for a bit and then cursing loudly as my first few attempts don't go as planned.......Isn't costuming fun!!!

SinisterFett said:

Yeah! Thanks folks I'd heard about this mythical pot of boiling water and banging your sintra bits in one at a time. I guess I'll be annoying the Mrs and taking over the kitchen for a bit and then cursing loudly as my first few attempts don't go as planned.......Isn't costuming fun!!!

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don't forget the burning yourself with the boiling water part! i find that no project is really complete without a couple of burns and a few cuts

I use a kerosene space heater. I flop the piece on top of the cage for a little bit, then take it off and it bends like rubber however you want. Works great for large pieces like the backplate as well

Make sure to use a different pot than you use for cooking. Sintra gives off hydrochloric acid, so it's not the best thing to have in the pot when you cook your spaghetti.

Hydrochloric acid !!!!
Jeez!! Thanks for that piece of info, it's duly noted. I guess the spaghetti pot is out then. Time to go shopping for my own.