WOF Scratchbuilt Knee Armor

Hey Guys,

I'm putting the finishing touches on my SE Fett and decided to finally scratchbuild the knees with WOF's templates. I was going to use a 3" pvc pipe to cut and heat, but that idea fell through so I used an old bucket! I heated them with a heat gun for molding and made the blocks out of wood. They're not done yet, but the major construction steps are completed. Thanks WOF! I've used your templates A BILLION TIMES! I really don't know how my Fett would have turned out without those templates or this forum! It would probably would've been....terrible!

Thanks,
Kody

Looks good. Do you have the curve at the bottom of the knee with the small moon sliver shaped piece? It's hard to tell in the pics. Nice job.

I'm going to dremel the curve in but I was wondering the difference between the moon sliver 2 and 3 on the WOF template.

As near as I can determine, the slivers are supposed to connect to each other to help complete the curve. I'm working on my knee armor today and hope to post pix later. Very ingenious, BTW, using an old bucket for the knees.

Originally Posted by Southern hunter

As near as I can determine, the slivers are supposed to connect to each other to help complete the curve. I'm working on my knee armor today and hope to post pix later. Very ingenious, BTW, using an old bucket for the knees.

Ok, I held them together, and that seems to be what they're for. I just got done dremeling and sanding, filling and sanding, priming and sanding.....ugh! I can't stand sanding anymore! That is probably why my Iron Man helmet is still covered with un-sanded bondo...

lol power sanding

Well, I started painting and masking, and it was going great! I must place emphasis on WAS. I had some problems with the lighter yellow damage sticking, and it was "spitting" out of the rattle can. I shook it thoroughly, yet it seemed really thin. I was extremely pi$$ed and discouraged....I need an airbrush!!! Any suggestions?

Harbor Freight has an inexpensive airbrush. Honestly, if you mask off your areas, this should be as good or better than a spray can. It won't be an awesome Iwata or Paasche airbrush, but it would be a good entry level tool. Of course you can custom mix paint etc. also and thin it down to make washes or mist with. Here's a link.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=95810

There are lots of resources online for tips and tricks with airbrushes also.

Thanks. That is pretty cheap. I don't really know too much about airbrushing, but do you need to get a special compressor for it? I have an industrial compressor we use for nail guns. Would that work, or is that too much pressure?

Kody

It depends on the compressor. I'm not an expert on airbrushes, but you would need to dial the pressure down to like 30 psi or less to run an airbrush. You'll need to experiment some too. Here's a link to one of many websites about airbrushing.

http://www.howtoairbrush.com/start_airbrushing.htm

I prefer to use Tamiya Acrylic paint because it is water-soluble and clean up is very easy. Spray Windex through the airbrush to clean it with, but use Tamiya thinner for thinning paints. Humbrol is one of the oil-based brands people use also.

There are many others here who are far more experienced airbrushers than me. You may want to send them a PM or two asking for info. Check out SD-68's helmet build and check Rogue Studios paint list.

If you can use a spray can, you can use an airbrush.

Keep us posted!

Thanks for the info buddy! I think I'm going to drop some coin on an airbrush...I don't want to, but I'm sure I will use it quite a bit.

Originally Posted by Kwally89

Thanks. That is pretty cheap. I don't really know too much about airbrushing, but do you need to get a special compressor for it? I have an industrial compressor we use for nail guns. Would that work, or is that too much pressure?

Kody

I use a big campbell-hausfeld nailgun compressor. as long as you have a regulator on it that can tune down to 30 - 40 psi you'll be fine. personally i prefer these... i can paint for 5-6 minutes off of the tank, so the compressor isn't running all the time. and they are WAY cheaper than the kind designed for art.

the only downside really is the noise. the airbrush specific ones are usually designed for quiet.

but on the flip side, get a 50' air hose from a hardware store and you can put the compressor so far away that the noise doesn't really matter anymore

Originally Posted by stormtrooperguy

I use a big campbell-hausfeld nailgun compressor. as long as you have a regulator on it that can tune down to 30 - 40 psi you'll be fine. personally i prefer these... i can paint for 5-6 minutes off of the tank, so the compressor isn't running all the time. and they are WAY cheaper than the kind designed for art.

the only downside really is the noise. the airbrush specific ones are usually designed for quiet.

but on the flip side, get a 50' air hose from a hardware store and you can put the compressor so far away that the noise doesn't really matter anymore

Hmmm. I'll have to look into my nail gun compressor and see what would work. I did find quite a few art compressors on ebay for under $40. That is a reasonable price IMO.