work in progress: WoF gauntlets

I smashed up my left MoW gauntlet pretty badly. Cracking a bullwhip in a Fett suit can lead to the gauntlet flying off your arm and hitting the pavement several feet away! I patched it up, but it inspired me to do something I'd been meaning to do for ages.

I'm making my own gauntlets, using the WoF templates handily linked in this forum.

Me, some paper, a couple of For Rent signs and some hot glue. There's a party! I'm going to mold this and make the wearable one out of resin/fiberglass/something, so I'm not worried about how sturdy this is.











Lots of sanding/filling/priming/repeat left to go, but it's shaping up pretty well!

Keep up the great work Brian! I can't wait to see the end result, I know that they are going to look awesome.

Thats looking great already, nice job

Man... that looks incredible!!!

That looks great Brian, but why isn't it metal.

Very nice start Brian...

Knowing how fast you work....

We should see the completed gauntlet say...... tomorrow!

Nice work as usual Brian!

Originally Posted by Gator Fett

That looks great Brian, but why isn't it metal.

hahaha! i thought about it, but this will just be the master that i make a mold from, not an actual wearable piece.

though cold cast gauntlets have a certain appeal...

more sanding and priming last night. i think one more round of that will make this nice and smooth.

Very nice Brian. Have you started on the right gauntlet at all yet?

Originally Posted by GCNgamer128

Very nice Brian. Have you started on the right gauntlet at all yet?

nope... i'm going to get this one 100% molded and done before i start on that. my right mow gauntlet is fine. my left one took the hit when it fell, so that's the one i want to replace quickly.

i'm pretty sure it's structurally sound, but my repairs were all just painted silver, so that one looks a bit funky right now. not like anyone would notice... just more damage.

coldcast dose indeed sound good. cant wait to see it finished

i started the lower shell and flame thrower housing tonight.








shaping the lower half stinks! it took about an hour of heating, bending, repeating to get them right. i rigged up that little wood structure on the inside to help encourage them to keep the right shape. but now it fits in pretty close to perfectly.

i made sure to make the wrist opening bigger than my current gauntlets. i always have deep red indentations from them, since they are too tight on me even when open as much as the can go.

the top is just about ready to call done. i just need to prime it one last time and give it a 600 grit wet sand.

i've also got to sort out how i'm going to mold the flamethrower.

i got a different resin... "shell shock", which is a brushable one. i got the shell shock fast, aka 3 minute working time. i think that will be too quick, so i may need to get the shell shock slow (8 minutes)

but i think this will be the way to go for the gauntlets, rather than slush casting.

Man Brian.... do you sleep??

Looking good! I've never worked with for-sale sign material does it have a grain like Sintra does?
When I did mine I made sure that the lower clams had the grain running lengthways so that when heat was applied it curved very easily...

Keep it up. 8)

That is just amazing work!! Can't wait to see more progress pics!

no grain, but it does have a super special trick to it that i learned last night.

the red is paint on the white plastic. when heating it, the paint will crack just before the plastic would start to warp. so if you warm it up just to where the red starts cracking, you won't cook the plastic.

i'm not sure how i would have done it if i had planned to make this wearable, but for a master sculpt, the wood frame was awesome.

and sleep... nah, not so much. i got to bed at around 3AM, and was up at 8:30AM.

did you try boiling? i know with sintra you can either bake or boil it...

Originally Posted by gbeef

did you try boiling? i know with sintra you can either bake or boil it...

i don't have the patience to let water boil

seriously.

Excellent job! looking very good! keep on posting those updates.

Alam

first prototype is assembled













the piece of wood glued into the flamethrower housing was because the side walls are WAY too thin on this one and it needed extra support. the more i think about it, the more i think this might not be a bad thing. i'll have to see what the weight is like when they are thick enough to not warp, and compare that to thinner with reinforcement.

overall it's a bit heavier than i'd like. not bad, but not great either. it was my first time using the shellshock resin, and i put it on WAY too thick in some spots, but too thin in others. that will improve with repetition - my first few helmets were terrible!

i'd like to see about 1/8" thickness all around. I've got 1/16 in some spots and 1/2 in others.

i reinforced the resin with fiberglass strips. so if it should crack, it shouldn't come apart completely.

i'm also going to pick up some of the smooth-on featherlite resin next to see how that works out. it's light enough that it floats, so that should be fun.

these are the 2nd pulls. the first were with shellshock fast (3 minute gel time). that was just too fast... i made a mess of them. they came out ok, but the lower shell is about 1" thick

i think now that i know better what i'm doing i could handle the fast.

the shellshock slow was much easier to work with (8 minute gel time).

Nice job, Brian, you did a great job at building those! I wasn't expecting to see a casted piece so soon though! I'm sure you'll get the resin thickness perfect in no time.

Gol dang! that was quick and amazing!!

Originally Posted by GCNgamer128

Nice job, Brian, you did a great job at building those! I wasn't expecting to see a casted piece so soon though! I'm sure you'll get the resin thickness perfect in no time.

i don't like to waste time

Nice work, ner vod!

David.

i'm making progress on the molding...

i built nice wood boxes for each mold to help keep it level and secure when moving it around.

i then made one using the smoothcast roto that i use for helmets. i was able to get a nice consistent thickness, and now have a good feel for how much resin to use.

since the roto is a bit bendy, i think it will make a better choice for the bottom shells at least.

it's a bit of a pain, since i didn't really make the molds with the intent of slush casting them (there's no lip around the edge to keep the resin from splashiing out!). i'm going to have another go at the shell shock, now that i know how to not put it on an inch thick.

i'm also thinking that i may fill the flamethrower with expanding foam to help give it some extra strength without adding a ton of weight.

i've pretty much decided that i'm going to perfect the left one before i start building the right.

I can't believe you did that in a week!
Thats some really nice work there...

This looks awesome. I am amazed over the quick manufacturingtime.
I hope that my attemt at the WoF blueprints will look somewhat similar as this.

Originally Posted by terminal fettler

I can't believe you did that in a week!
Thats some really nice work there...

The templates must have really helped....
Only joking... Brian you do really need to sleep at some point bruv?
can't wait to see these finished.. Sunday maybe?

Oh PM sent...

more progress...

i'm going to have a left gaunt finished by next weekend. we're doing a photo shoot, so i need to be troopable.

tonight my friend carlos and i tackled the flamethrower.





2 coax connectors with the middles punched out (aka removing the plastic bit in the center), epoxied on to short lengths of copper pipe.

in each coax connector is a high intensity orange led.



and here it is with some of the other bits in place:





unfortunately my lower shell was a big old failure. i let the resin cure too long between coats... it de-laminated completely, separating into 2 pieces.

DOH!

ah well. i've got another gaunt in the molds. i'll probably steal that lower shell.

and speaking of, this was my first shot with the shell shock where i DIDN'T slop 10x the amount of material in as i needed.

That looks amazing! Noob question. For the basic shape of the gauntlets is the biggest difference between esb and rotj the flamethrower?

Left gauntlet: DONE!

mine on the left, MoW on the right:





The wizardofflight templates make a longer gauntlet than the MoW.



I stole this from the C4 suit. Rather than the odd little switch looking thing, that one just had a nub sticking off. Since the switch thing breaks all the time, I went the nub route... this one being a 1" x 1/8" steel rod.



don't mind the dust



I almost lost my rocket on a hard impact once, so I've learned my lesson - WASHER!

You'll notice that I made this pretty thick. The inside is almost flat, so the resin weighs a fair bit. But I wanted strong...



The batteries. AA since they are cheap and easy. Holder is glued to the inside of the gauntlet.

Brian, you rock; that's all there is to it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

freaking awesome man! nice job!

Originally Posted by Icedevil

freaking awesome man! nice job!

I'll probably have the molds at CTcon (I'm doing a molding and casting panel with the Rebel Legion there)

I'm not bringing my Fett suit, but I may have some of the bits for the panel.

That is some amazing work!!

thanks all

i started in on the right gaunt. i'm going to do it a little strangely, so brace yourselves for odd looking progress pics!

since the right gaunt has very soft lines, but the templates are flat sheets, i'm going to mold it relatively square and just sand the resin when i make the finished ones. it will be MUCH easier to reshape the relatively solid resin than try to get soft curves like that out of the sheets of styrene.

so fear not! the progress will look woefully inaccurate, but the final product will rock

too tired for pics right now, but i just finished assembling the upper half of the right gauntlet.

*wow*

the right one is much tougher than the left. way more filler needed to smooth out edges and such.

but it's looking good. pics in the morning... hm... 2am... i mean pics later in the morning

Amazing! I've not been here in a while but this gauntlet build is truly impressive! Well done.

holy shlamoligans! what turn around time!

I've been waiting for someone to post such a successful thread of the WoF gauntlets.

Came out fantastic, really. good job.

I'm still waiting for someone to post pics of ESB gauntlets using the prints

here's the start of the right one:









http://stormtrooperguy.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/normal_rightarm_005.jpg[/img]

DUDE! you are a machine

nice fett tattoo btw in the earlier pictures

thanks

i was *hoping* to have them both done by now, but i got distracted by real life.

Very nice! Yeah.. real life has slowed down many of my projects haha, I'll have to remember to go to your panel at CTCon, I'm very interested, those anime kids will certainly learn something I'm sure. I've been practicing myself(so far I made a pacman belt buckle out of sculpey and cast it in resin)

Are you going to try out some of that featherlite resin? That stuff looks pretty interesting. Floating Gauntlets?

i started sanding out the bondo last night. i usually put it on smoother, but i didn't want my mixed up pile to cure on me, so i slapped it in a bit hastily. as a result it's going to take a lot more sanding.

but i'm totally loving the look of it! more pics when the sanding is done - i'm embarrassed by how the bondo looks now!!

Please Brian, can you say me the size of the calculator panel? I need it because I have printed them on a A4 paper, so maybe it's different.

Thank you very much and please post progress!

Those are looking awesome brother!!!!Great job.

my gauntlets are packed away at the moment, but i can measure the keypad the next time i dig them out.

in the mean time, if you post a new thread about the measurements of it, someone else might get to you first.

Thats insane!!!! You guys on here are really talented!!!! I never tried molding or anything like that before, but wouldnt mind trying it.

Great work!!!! I'm in awe as usual!!

inspired by the thread bump, i just did the last round of sanding/filler on the right upper half.

i should have to do 1 more round of sanding filler, then a few repetitions of primer/sand/primer/sand until it all looks smooth enough.

then there's the lower. building that shouldn't be hard, since there's not much detail there, and i learned what i was doing on the left side.

Excellent build! I'm following this for when I do mine.

Hey, I just found that if I see a bit down (in the WoF Gauntlets Templ. thread) I can download them for an A4.

But thank you very much for your help

... pics, pics, pics, pics, ...

i should get some pics up tomorrow... i'm almost done sanding the upper, and getting it all primed and smooth.

i'll be picking up more silicone this week.

ah, the thread is back from the dead!!!

i took most of july and august off from prop building. i was busily looking for a new job, getting a new job, starting the new job, etc...

but now that i've been here for a bit and am feeling somewhat settled, i've picked up on some long lost projects.



i have another round of filler / sanding / priming, but i'm hoping to be ready for silicone this weekend!

Dude! This so kicks arse!!! Great job man!

G-Fett

Those are looking killer, Brian!

Very nice man! Looks so professional

Those really look awesome man. Glad this thread is back.

I have a question for you. are the right gauntlets completely round on both ends, or are they more deformed like if you took both halves, put them together, and squashed them down a bit.

wow those are nice how long did that take

Originally Posted by 987654321a

Those really look awesome man. Glad this thread is back.

I have a question for you. are the right gauntlets completely round on both ends, or are they more deformed like if you took both halves, put them together, and squashed them down a bit.

The templates end up making them a bit deformed, which looks good by eye at least. I think completely round would fit strangely.

As far as how long they took... I have no idea at this point, since I went a month without even touching them (or anything else!)

Outstanding!! Nice job!

Nice to see this going again. Awesome work my man! :thumbup

Brian, I was curious and still learning about molding, resin, etc. Have you created the gauntlets using the for sale sign and then applied Bondo over that and then sanded? Do you use something on the inside to strengthen it?

Originally Posted by kebh020727

Brian, I was curious and still learning about molding, resin, etc. Have you created the gauntlets using the for sale sign and then applied Bondo over that and then sanded? Do you use something on the inside to strengthen it?

that's basically it yeah.. the plastic is glued together on the inside with hot glue, then filler is used on the outside (i used water based wood putty and bondo). there's a wood frame on the inside that i built out of hot glue and dowels to make it stronger while i was handling it.

i've never intended for the originals to be worn, so i wasn't worried about durability, just looks. they only have to survive the silicone to do their jobs

Thanks for the info, I am getting pieces here and there and it is finally coming together and I have a clearer picture of how to do it, thanks to all!!

Ever get the right gauntlet completely done? This thread was awesome to follow!

nice work. I look forward to your other props.

Nice work! What kind of hinges did you use? Where'd you get 'em?

hah... the right gauntlet has been sculpted for months, but i've gotten all distracted by the clone project. i'm hoping to mold it up in a week or two.

the hinges are piano hinges from any hardware store. i got a pile from a friend, but home depot sells them.

Thanks for posting your build... I've watched your work on your clone helmet for some time. Very impressive stuff!

Wayii, nice scratchbuild!!! I love the flamethrower you got there!


Question, were you the Rex at the Parade in Boston on the 15th of March??

Yes, Brian was the Rex... and I was the Boba.

Brian... *cough* guantlets please... *COUGH*

Very nice thread. Who knew. I know its easier to buy, but maybe its more rewarding to build

These look great stormtrooperguy! Just started working on a pair of these myself using Skip's pepakura files, just about to go and put the first coat of resin on them, hope they turn out half as good as yours did! lol Here are mine so far: http://joesprops.blogspot.com/2009/0...gauntlets.html If anyone has any suggestions please by all means let me know.

Amazing,simply amazing.

I'm just now slowly venturing into 100% scratch building,I'm gonna work on a Fett bucket first,then armor,and I believe I will end with some nice Fett gauntlets.I doubt they will turn out anywhere as nice as yours but one can only hope right?

I havent been here in ages, but this threads got me off my butt and templates are on styrene and being cut as we speak,
well not whilst Im typing

great thread with pics too!

Agreed,this is a very great thread,the pics really give you a sense of what to do,this will be my benchmark for my own gauntlets.

I have a question if i may ask, the curve templates, Im taking a guess that the inner part of the template is for the smaller end and the outer curve is for the larger end of the upp and lower shells with those templates respectivley?

Nice work Mr. im so time poor i cant wait to take this project on...

May I ask where s the link to this so I may give this a try? Your help would be much appreciated.

any chance a fella could get one of you master craftsmen to cast a set of these for him?

Originally Posted by ONE END

May I ask where s the link to this so I may give this a try? Your help would be much appreciated.

the blueprints are all linked to in the wiki. the wiki link is in the main forum navigation at the top of the page.

i've made some adjustments to the gauntlets and am hoping to mold the right one this week some time... maybe even tonight, but i'm not sure about that.

they look great

I looked at the left gauntlet blueprints, but did not see an "upper half" like I did on the right. What gives?

Originally Posted by Southern hunter

I looked at the left gauntlet blueprints, but did not see an "upper half" like I did on the right. What gives?

The upper half of the left gaunt is made up of several different pieces. Once you lay out the pieces to the pattern and start putting it together, you'll see how it all works out.

David.

webchief came over and laid down some silicone on the infamous right gauntlet. nearly a year after assembly was complete, i'm almost ready to actually have a wearable right gauntlet!!!

almost there!!!

Great job. I wish had the time, errr, skill...lol to do something like that.

looking great and the idea to use a sign is just amazing, I think Ill follow your example and go pick up a few when I eventually get around to my gauntlets

Awesome work, my friend! Nice job!

David.

Awesome Dude!!!

very awesome! they look beautiful!

Today is Gauntlet Day!!!! WOO HOO!!!! Be over in a few hours! HAHAHAHA

WOW!!! Awesome work man!!! I remember reading this thread a year ago. The end result is great!!

Kody

Originally Posted by stormtrooperguy

Why make a cast of a dowel when I can just use a dowel?

LOL! That's so funny!

Great work Brian! I love 'em!

So, I went over Brian's house last night and we knocked out a pair of guantlets for me in about an hour and a half. Amazing!

It was so fun to finally be able to cast something (I've never had the chance before) and to actually say that I made my own guantlets is a pretty cool feeling.

I want to thank Brian for his generosity, time, patience, skills and supplies. A true asset to TDH community.

Is it hard to make the molds? I live in an apartment, and I don't have much outdoor space, so I need to know if it's possible to do this given my location. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

"hard" is impossible to answer... it really depends on your skills and resources.

expensive is easy... i spent about $180 on silicone, $20 on plaster, and $40 on misc stuff... wood to make the boxes, clay to plug up holes, disposable brushes, gloves. so a bit over $200 to make the molds.

it's definitely much harder to make the original than it is to make the molds... heck, even webchief was able to brush the silicone on

there are TONS of tutorials, videos, guides, etc... online for making molds. there are links in the wiki here to some good ones.

it is expensive and messy, but fun.

as far as doing it in an apartment... there are no particular odors from it, so no worries there. but you'll want a good space to work where you can afford to spill some silicone. drop clothes are your friend.