Scratch built left gaunlet and rocket

**SPY007** · 10-19-2010, 12:02 PM

I used WOF plans, but made a cardboard mold and fiberglassed it. A Vasaline like release on the mold allowed for the card board to be torn away. Had to upscale to compensate for thickness of fiberglass and my arm size. Te fiberglass top and bottom halves needed Bondo to fill in bubbles, etc. The rocket is made of PVC pipe and connectors. The ribs are 1/8 PVC strips. The rocket tip was made using a small funnel as a mold to cast a basic fiberglass shape. Careful work on a belt sander to shape the back angle. I drilled a hole through the back of the tip that a nail goes through and a larger hole for a dowel that is glued in place, holding in the nail. The silver tip was made by dremmeling down a small piece of dowel. The sawed off nail tip ca be seen at the front of the rocket tip. I drilled holes in the copper colored part by putting a small drill bit in a dremmel.

**stkline11** · 10-19-2010, 12:34 PM

Very nice Job I am about to start the same build with WOF plans hope mine turns out as nice!

**lukesdad** · 10-19-2010, 12:45 PM

SPV007

I have downloaded the WOF gauntlet plans but am having a little trouble scaling. Can you give me some advice.
A little history on myself. New to this post and am amazed at the information. Building my son a holloween costume and have the bucket mostly done, just wrapping up the rest.

Thanks

**SPY007** · 10-19-2010, 08:24 PM

Luke's Dad.

If you are making smaller sized parts, I suggest making copys of the plans but print them out smaller. I only had to make my parts wider. When I assembled the cardboard molds, I made them 1/4 wider. When I was done the bottom halves of my gaunlets were too tight. I cut them down the middle and re fiber glassed them back together.

Not sure what you are working with. Fiberglass is toxic stuff. Use a face mask and some cheap gloves. For quick costume, I'd say use the for sale signs so many guys use.

**clonecollector** · 10-20-2010, 06:08 AM

Nice guantlet!... that rocket looks great! Its a difficult piece to make and you've done it well!

**kibosh** · 10-20-2010, 08:48 AM

Originally Posted by SPY007

I used WOF plans, but made a cardboard mold and fiberglassed it.

Can you elaborate on this or show process pics? I'm interested in how you did it because that gaunt looks great.

Thanks!

**SPY007** · 10-21-2010, 09:03 PM

Kibosh:

No photos sorry. I buy backer board from Kinkos. It's like the cardboard on the back of a note book. I spray glue the WOF blue prints to the backer board and cut out the parts. But instead of putting the parts together to get the right look on the outside, I build them to get the out side look on the inside. The way the WOF plans are designed, you make the top and bottom curved pieces, then build the structures on the top of the top curved pieces, I basically cut a hole in the top curved parts so I can see the inside of the top structure.

I to create the curved pieces, I cut a rectangle that is narrower at one end out of corrugated card board that matches the length of the gauntlet. I then cut 2 square pieces of card board and in those I cut out a U shape for the front and back opening of the gauntlet top or bottom. I then tape or glue those to the cut out rectangle. Make sense? It is the support structure for each curved part. This get done 4 times.

I had to widen the U shape parts. In the bottom half's, I put in double layered rectangles made from the backer board. These become the recessed rectangles seen on the gauntlets when the fiberglass part is pulled. Does this help?

Also, when I made these molds, I added all kinds of support on the outside. It only matters what these cardboard molds look like on the inside. I used elmer's glue and masking tape to assemble molds. I then rubbed in some mink oil. The mold will not get soft from this. I then work bondo into any small sharp corners and details as fiberglass matt does not work into these details very well. I then layer in 3-4 layers of resin and matt. I do not use the woven fiberglass as you have to cut that. The matted stuff easily tears apart and ypi can put in the best sized pieces as you go. I use a mask and latex gloves as much possible when working with this stuff. I then tear away the cardboard mold in pieces. If they are stubborn, I get them wet and scrape them of with a knife. The pulls from the mold can look sloppy, but some bondo and sanding can make the final part look pretty good. I have had some scoffers at this method, but it works.

**kibosh** · 10-22-2010, 08:19 AM

Gotcha. So you're using the cardboard creation as a one-time mold for the fiberglass/bondo, and then the cardboard mold gets destroyed in the process.

**SPY007** · 10-27-2010, 04:01 PM

UPDATE:
Here is some progress. The white pipe is 1/2 interior diameter PVC. You can buy it but the foot at ACE Hardware. The wider part, tight to the ball, is a PVC connector that I ground out with a dremmel so it would slide down the pipe. I also put the connector into the chuck of a drill press and used a round file and sand paper to give it the dimple. I may drill out the adjustment port and use aluminum tube to make that part metal. Not sure yet on the missing detail on the outside of the ball. Near the bottom of the exhaust part, I laid a metal file on it's side on a half inch spacer. I then turned the part by hand to cut the groove. I bit of Bondo in 4 places breaks up the groove.

**gungrinner** · 10-27-2010, 04:42 PM

Awesome job on the guantlet, the rockets are shaping up nice too.

**clonecollector** · 10-28-2010, 06:56 AM

I love the thruster rockets! How did you make the inner details? They look very fine indeed!

**teamzoth** · 10-30-2010, 10:34 AM

thats so awesome, great job with the gauntlet! I'm pretty new to all this, so i'm still trying to figure out the best way to tackle everything. i don't even know where to start, but this makes me want to begin my costume here

**SPY007** · 11-01-2010, 04:00 PM

Clone collector:
The inner details were originally carved in the Bondo layer after drilling the hole, but I was not happy with the painted results. I had actually started a thread on how started building the thrusters, but accidentally continued it here. Anyway, I drilled out the detail and put in some aluminum spacers that I had found years ago. I drilled them out to make the hole bigger, added the inner taper with a large bit and cut the 4 slots with a file. I really like the look of real metal.

**clonecollector** · 11-02-2010, 09:01 AM

Originally Posted by SPY007

Clone collector:
The inner details were originally carved in the Bondo layer after drilling the hole, but I was not happy with the painted results. I had actually started a thread on how started building the thrusters, but accidentally continued it here. Anyway, I drilled out the detail and put in some aluminum spacers that I had found years ago. I drilled them out to make the hole bigger, added the inner taper with a large bit and cut the 4 slots with a file. I really like the look of real metal.

Thanks for the upclose look. These are excellent! I was looking to change mine when I had a chance.

So did you fill the entire ball part with bondo? And then dremel in the indentation?

**SPY007** · 11-02-2010, 09:56 PM

Clone Collector:

When I was ready to put the two ball halves together, I mixed up a little resin and hardener, then tossed in several small torn of bits of fiber glass matt. I stirred it all togther with a popsicle stick. It made for an unruly glob whose glass fibers wanted to flex back to their original shape. I brushed the insides of the ball halves with resin and shoved in the glob before taping the halves together. They are basically glued together with fiber glass. Drilling the holes for the PVC pipe was difficult because the hardend glob inside is random in shape, but solid bondo would ad extra weight.

I used 3/4 wood bit to drill a hole inwhich I put the aluminium spacer (jet pack adustment port), I actually had to make the hole a little bigger with an exacto knife.

**Canned Ham** · 11-02-2010, 10:19 PM

I'm not following how you made the ball part, Spy. Very nice work. Keep it up. The close attention to the little details really pays off on the overall appearance at the end.

**SPY007** · 11-03-2010, 07:08 PM

Canned Ham:

Thanks. I will post the final thrusters soon. Have you worked with fiberglass? My description may not be that clear and I did not photogtaph all the steps. I covered "fiberglass thrusters" briefly above and in another thread on the forum. Writing a full blown tutorial would be a major task. Making fiberglass parts is messy and not really easy, but the end results are very durable.

**clonecollector** · 11-04-2010, 03:50 AM

Originally Posted by SPY007

Click image for larger version.

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Canned Ham:
Making fiberglass parts is messy and not really easy, but the end results are very durable.

You're right... I fiberglassed the entire body of my scratchbuilt jetpack. I'ts held up to quite alot of stress during the past year. Most notably going to CV. I cant tell you how much it got knocked around and except for a paint scratch here and there the body of the pack is still holding up.

**SPY007** · 11-04-2010, 05:37 PM

Clone Collector I was at CV. I took picures os several Fett costumes. Probably got yours. I am trying to find the most screen accurate measurements of the "stabilizer" to the right of the JP rocket. Any info? The WOF plans have it about 7/8" tall with a 3/4" round base. Evolution props shows theirs at 1 and 5/8" tall with a base about an inch and 3/16. Do you know of screen accurate size? Thanks.

**TB7024** · 11-27-2010, 04:26 PM

Thanks for the progress photos. Looks good.

**SPY007** · 06-25-2012, 06:14 PM

While looking at reference material for other parts, I discovered Fett Pride's new excellent ESB gauntlet designs. I decided to revamp my WOF left gauntlet. This meant adding ad subtracting fiber glass and bondo. It was tedious, but I think the end result is much better that the original WOF version. Like all of my build, it is a continuous work in progress. Also. by shortening the bottom half, I have much more freedom of movement.

**clonecollector** · 06-26-2012, 07:05 AM

Excellent upgrade! I love those details under the guantlets.

**Terrantula** · 06-26-2012, 07:51 AM

Spy,

What did you do for the flamethrower? Mine got knocked.off during a troop so I am looking to replace it. Your work on this.us.amazing btw.

Thanks,
Terrantula

Originally Posted by SPY007

While looking at reference material for other parts, I discovered Fett Pride's new excellent ESB gauntlet designs. I decided to revamp my WOF left gauntlet. This meant adding ad subtracting fiber glass and bondo. It was tedious, but I think the end result is much better that the original WOF version. Like all of my build, it is a continuous work in progress. Also. by shortening the bottom half, I have much more freedom of movement.

**SPY007** · 06-26-2012, 04:04 PM

Terrantula;

Thanks. I haven't got to the flame thrower yet. I want to use as much aluminum as I can though. My brother and I are buying a small, used lathe, so I may actually machine some parts.
SPY007

Scratch built left gaunlet and rocket

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