Imperial Guard V2 (PIC INTENSIVE)

Okay folks, here's a project I've been working on for the past few months.

I tried an Imperial Guard last year with very bad results. I'm talking worse than a Rubies Boba. But, I decided to give it another go since I had some success with my custom Mandolorian helmet. (To see the full IGV2 progress thread, click here.)

Here are a few selected pictures from the build process.

To start, I'm modeling it after the Luke IG Disguise figure.

I started bu using the WOF interior form and covered it with a layer of flat cardboard.

I added spacers and another strip of cardboard for the lower outer shell.

Added the slope to the back.

Formed the nose.

The dome was tricky. The standard WOF pattern works, but the center pieces had to be overlapped to make the dome shorter.

I coated it with resin to stiffen it up.

The regular bondo layer.

After sanding that, I added a Bondo-Glass layer.

I sanded again and added another resin layer.

As with all scratch-builds, Bondo or Bondo-glass doesn't smooth out completely. Even with the resin outer coat, there was still a ot of sanding to do, which left small pot-marks. So I turned to Glazing Putty.

Then after an under coat of black paint, here is a sneak peek at what the final color will be.

I have to let my Dremel rest for a while. I've used the snot out of it lately trying to work inside the ears and snout. I've been sanding and filling with more putty and the results are pretty good so far. I'm also going to be fashioning an aerator insert for the snout (perfect place for a speaker or fan) and hopefully start casting this thing within the next few months.

I'll post updates later after the smoke from my poor dremel clears out.

David.

that is awesome! That's always been one of my favorite characters. Always dreamed of having one of those suits haha. when you start casting them I'll be all over it

very nice wish I had your skills

UPDATE:

I've finished the brow "bumps." It was so simple, I didn't think to take pictures of it. All I did was measure out and cut four molds in floral foam and filled them with resin. After they cured, I sanded them down smooth, attached them with hot glue, filled in the creases with Glazing Putty, sanded again, and painted.

Here it is...
(front unpainted)

...and left and right painted.



I've got patterns for the ear and nose inserts. I may end up casting them out of resin as well.

Before I paint the grey ridge, I'm going to look for a visor I can cut to fit. I probably will trim out quite a bit from inside the nose area where it looks too thick.

And, yes, I'm getting closer to casting. I'll probably start gathering what I need for it towards the end of the summer.

David.

I actually like the thickness around the nose because it makes the whole thing look more like a real piece of protective armor

any info on where the disguise came from? anything other than the toy?

If I understand your question correctly, I think the only physical representation of the costume is the toy. Not like when the TK came first and then they made a "Luke in TK Disguise" figure.

Here's the Wookiepedia link. It says that the Coruscant Guards are descendants of The Republic Shock Troopers.

The Coruscant Guards made their first appearance in the Shadows of the Empire novel and game. Other than that, I'm not sure of the other sources, but I know there are some.

David.

QUICK UPDATE:

Temporary visor is installed, along with the nose insert.




David.

Have you thought about using the "full face" replacement visors for motorcycle helmets to make your visor? Like folks have been using in the Halo helmets.

How did i miss this?

Any progress as of late, it's coming along fantastic

That is coming out awesome! Can't wait to see it finished.

it'll look awesome when you're done, im sure... more pics!

Sorry, folks. I haven't had much time for this one lately. I've been trying to finish up on my Mandalorian Merc set before Clone Wars is released. But, I do still have this one at the front of my list and I'll be getting back to it soon.

Thanks for the kind words and I'll try to post more progress soon.

David.

Dave...


Looking forward to more progress pics on this project.


Keep up the good work.

David-

FANTASTIC job sir
What kind of cardboard did you use for the foundation for this helmet?and while sanding in between laying with body filler,fiberglass and kitty hair(bondo-glass) was there ever a problem with your foundation sinking in,cracking or just being a pain to sand to get your shape smooth?
Congrats on your progress .This thread as help motivate me to make my first scratch bulit helmet

That is so friggin awesome!!!

G-Fett

I 'think' the luke imperial guard was from 'Shadows Of The Empire' correct me if I'm wrong, I usually am....

Nope, HH, you're not wrong. The Luke IG figure is the base of my bucket.

Lopero, I really don't know what "kind" of cardboard this is, as in I don't know what brand name it would be sold under. I got a big roll of it a while ago from a guy at work. The best way I can describe it is that it's like a big sheet of natural brown, unwaxed poster board. I've been trying to find out where he got it from, but haven't thought to ask when I'm around him.:o

Sanding and such...not many problems. What I did was after I got the cardboard base form, I coated it with resin. This soaked in to the paper and made it stiff enough to not have to worry about sinking, cracking, and whatnot. The bondo-glass is always trouble to sand on a dome. But, a power sander (palm or mouse) is your best friend to knock down the high spots. After that, I gave it one coat of primer to find defects, sanded them again, filled with glazing putty, and sanded, sanded again, sanded some more, and sanded until my arm was about to fall off. BUT, it's all worth it in the end. Being non-professional, the dome isn't "perfect" (it would be if I had a machine shop) but I believe it's passably smooth. You'll want to use two different grades of sanding blocks when you are doing the dome - a rough-to-medium and a fine-to-ultra-fine (I don't know the grit count). Just put a good CD in the player, get a glass of your favorite beverage, a comfortable chair, and sand away.

David.

Man, Jaiden, I gotta say, this is extremely impressing. You've done an amazing job on your own here! Basing it off WoF's Fett plans, I never would have thought of that. Perfect tho, for basing the size on. Can't wait to see more progress pictures!

Looks sweet man

most paper mills will just give you large rolls of what they call milk carten paperboard, if
you have a truck to hual it away in and are a student or instructor at a school.

Wonderful job on the helmet. Didn't the IG show up in the "Dark Empire" 1 or 2 comics?

Okay, I finally have some updates. I had a half day off yesterday and a full day off today so I decided to get some work done on this thing.

I finished the left ear insert resin cast and started doing fills. There were a lot of gaps between the visor and the sides of the bucket, so I filled those first with hot glue to give me a base, then coated with glazing putty.







What you see here is rough. I sanded all the rough edges down for painting. I have also done more work to the nose area, filling in the gap between the insert and the nose ridge. I've also done some touch up painting, but I haven't taken those pictures yet. I will be doing some more work later today and will post about it then.

David.

BUMP....
More more more, i'm droolin

I completely forgot about this thread. Thanks for bumping it.

I finally got a decent dark visor to put in this thing.


Now comes the fun part. I plan to cast this thing after the first of the year. Being unemployed right now kinda makes it hard, and hopefully I'll get my source of income back soon. I'll try to remember to keep this thread posted when I start the casting process.

David.

New interest thread has been posted!

http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/f45/coruscant-guard-helmet-interest-thread-30080/

David.

looking good.

The Coruscant Guard armor it's an amazing set. It's sad that we only get to see it in Shadows of the Empire, and nobody re-uses that armor in the EU. That helmet looks great. What about the rest of the armor?

I could have sworn I had a CG armor thread here. Hmmm...

So, I just made it!

http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/showt...931#post398931

David.

Killer project you have.

Digging up an old thread, woohoo. This outfit has always been one of my favorites. I'd love to see one of these fully realized one day.