"SECRET-SECRET, I'VE GOT A SECRET..." (Pics intensive)

Well, greetings everyone. I haven't posted in here in a LOOOOONG time, but I've being busy since last year with a project for Dragon*Con originally sheduled for last year, but lack of time and money prevented me of completing the project on time then. Now, I'm in the final steps of finishing it, in which I call it the "SECRET-SECRET" project.

If you've seen my avatar or signature (if it shows), you'd probably know already what I'm doing so far. Reason was to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the video.

Here is a pic of the clay sculpture ready to make a mold of it

One side....

and the other side.....


From the distance, since pics taken at close-up don't look as good....


I've made a silicone rubber mold, to then cast in PLASTER, which will be the MASTER MOLD for the Vacuuforming table. This process took a LOT OF TIME!!! :wacko


Mini-Movie that led to the creation of the video above, played before the concert...
http://photos.imageevent.com/darthvader1/secretprojectfiles/1 - Kilroy Movie.wmv

and the concert version of the video, as a "continuation of the movie"
http://photos.imageevent.com/darthvader1/secretprojectfiles/2 - Styx - Mr Roboto.wmv

Enjoy!
(PS: That's a lot of research....don't you think?)

This is the part I like about, when you change materials and the result is almost as you was told....PRICELESS! The plaster is HYDROSTONE, and I love it!!! I was taking the casting for cleanup the areas that got messed up with the mold defects, and I've spent a good 5 hours cleaning it up and ready it up for vacuuforming.

Cleaning it up with the clay-sculpting tools was relatively easy, but harder in areas. I was feeling like if I was working as a dentist or a dental technician, since I was scraping the hell of that casting in all the areas that has great detail, and really got messed up like the area by the left side of the lip/cheek, that was looking like a "venereal-dicease thing".

I've covered the defects with Durham's Water Putty (I love it too), but when it gets hard....it REALLY gets hard. I had a really good deal of time trying to sand down those areas. Here are a couple of pics of the casting so far before the sanding process. I've drilled the holes for better vacuum and have more details. I have to accept that it looks a little CREEPY, though.




One of the two holes in the mouth actually went through the other side, since the tip of the drill bit I was using, got stuck inside, and couldn't cut through it, and the areas in the mouth that has DWP is due that the drill messed up the detail of the mouth a little, and I had to fix it now. Well, just a little more cleanup, and it will be ready for vacuuforming.
Now I am ready for PART # 2: The top/back of the helmet....it should be easy, since it doesn't have much details.

the third, and final part of the helmet/mask, since the other (very last, namely the front - lower neck) part will be just improvised, custom made to size. It will be a waste of plastic, time, resources and electricity doing it in a vacuum forming way.

I wanted to go with measurements (which I did and kept), to start doing a sculpt of that back piece, but I've just discovered that this piece is the MOST DIFFICULT to accomplish, more than the face, since it has to connect somehow with the other two parts previously done….and based on the last cast….the calculations were a little WRONG……somehow. Not bad news, since I was going BY-SCALE from the original on the videos, but I managed to find a solution, since there's no actual or really defined pics of the back of the original ones, so I am coming with an really original idea, just to unite all parts together, and not compromise any gaps in between.

Here are the pics of the progress so far, be advised that I've tried to do so many calculations, and it's still getting difficult, since this has to connect with ALL the other parts at the same time.
Last minute decision of what to use for the round neck backing. The plastic gallon is ROUND, not squared like a gallon of milk, just to point that out:


I've chose to go with the "flower foam" instead, but they leave a whole mess around....specially sticking to the clay…



...so, I've decided to cover the "messy part" with a plastic bag, and then do the whole shell on top of it with clay, which I had to add some more clay underneath the plastic gallon plastic for support, since there will be a lot of pressure from the sculpting, but not as much as I thought:



Here's the result of the BASIC FRAME (as of today). I did this to save on clay.




Part to be vacuuformed with, just need a few minor fixes here and there, but nothing biggie.



Pic of the silicone rubber mold, which came out....PERFECT! Even the studs that makes the little holes, ALL came out in PERFECT shape, IMHO.



(in Count Dooku's voice) "This is just the beginning!"

this is the part that covers the very back of the head and half of the neck. Believe me or not, this is the piece that got me puzzled, and probably the most difficult to sculpt, since even the design is simple, but it actually have to "interact" with the other two pieces somehow, which means that ALL three parts (not counting one that has to be cut to shape and bend, that goes in the front of the neck) have to touch each other at the EARS area, and THAT is not an easy task, and was a design flaw of not thinking about that before.
Here's what I got so far (looks like a prototype for "Vader's REVEAL Helmet" back piece, somehow):





Some of the plastic (when vacuuformed) at the top of the head, will be cut by eyesight, until I get parts one and two together (the most important ones). The top border design, wasn't exactly what I wanted, but that could be corrected once I make the plaster casting, which needs just a hard time sanding off that part.

Another flaw that just slipped away from my mind and NEVER thought about it, is the back piece for the SIDE DETAILS from the BOTTOM of the mask, just below the ears. Based on the design of the mask, I believe that THOSE specific pieces were casted separately, since there is NO WAY to make them as part of either face piece or top-back piece. This last part pictured above, are essential for the WHOLE costume; but for collectors, they only want part 1 and 2 together, that's about it (front and top-back) :facepalm

I've just done with the casting process (for the MAIN MASK PARTS), but I have to design the ears so they could be useful, or working, not just pieces of resin bolted in place, but something that I could hear through them....but that is coming soon. These are the pics of my last castings, with the one for the backing of the lower details I had to come up with a WOOD MOLD, since I didn't want to go through the process of applying the latex coating/mold 6-8 times or the plaster bandage process....TEDIOUS!!! :x
Here are the pieces for VACUUFORMING, almost ready since I have to do some cleanup AND sanding to all of them, to include the front mask part.
The back of the head part, which I have to add a piece of 1" MDF with the shape of the part at the bottom before vac'form the part, since the sculpt didn't allow me to add space for the cutting line,

The backing detail cover mold for both sides,

And the pic of ALL pieces together.

Yesterday I've started with the gloves casting process, making a casting of my own hands (I still have to cast my left hand, though. I will post pics as soon as I cast my left hand to show up the process of sculpting the gloves. I will find out the "ears" making process, as soon as I find something I need.

This sir, is MOST EPIC!

I am...the MODERN man...

GLOVES

This time I am working on the gloves, which will be casted in latex. I've started with making a cast of my hand to use as model to sculpt the mold of the glove. Looks like "THING" from "The Addams Family"



This is the look I want to have, based on the only three screen captions that I could actually see the details of the gloves.




And I've done sculpting just the top half of the whole mold, to then make the sculpt for the second half,







All I have left to do is to cover some areas, and a little cleanup. More updates coming soon as I keep working with it.

Well, since the funds and the time available to make a vacuuforming machine (TJ style) are not exactly helping me out, so I've decided to go the cheapest way around just to finish the difficult part of my "SECRET-SECRET" project......I went with the GENIUS' design, "DR. CRASH".


http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-good,-cheap,-upgradeable-sheet-plastic-vacu/

The model in the pics is of a 13" X 17" frame size, but after thinking about it, I could actually expand the frame size to maybe 14" X 20" (which is the max dimensions inside my oven, minus 2" each side, just to take maximum advantage of the HIPS plastic sheets.



I've created a silicone "gasket" under the floor flange before installing, and also added silicone after installing the bolts, to include the outside edge between the flange and the MDF (as of Dr. Crash recommendations on his site).







I had to actually increase the platen working area, of course to take advantage of the oven size. What I did I used one of the 2'X2' pre-cut HIPS sheet I've ordered.
As you can see, it came out not exactly within the dimensions as Dr. Crash recommended, and besides, when it was time to measure the platen area, and frame size....something went wrong, which I went oversized in lenght, probably just thinking about the oven area and not working area. :confused

Here are a few pics of my "upgrade", which I also failed to have extra weather strip, leaving a 7" gap between contacts. I gotta go buy me more weather strip, though.

This is the whole working area, as we speak.



Size comparison between the old one......



....and the NEW frame size.



Notice the gap in between the seals...need to buy some more, though.



And the preparation of my frames, which Dr. Crash updated his blog in his website, adding that C-Channel frames will work better, since window screen frames are more flimsy, when it comes to working with them. I don't know if I actually made the C-Channel frames the right way, though... I hope they work.



-------------------
Well, seems that my hard work paid off. I've sucessfully vacuuformed a mask with Dr. Crash's method. No wrinkles, no setbacks.... A PERFECT VACUUFORMING session.



First, I had to add some electrical tape to the joint between the elbow and the vacuum cleaner hose, since it doesn't fit quite tight.



Like I've said last year, I used a 6.5 hp SHOP-VAC, which helped the purposed nicely.



Then instead of glass cups, I used BEER BOTTLES, for not to compromise the plastic corners of the sheets while heating (which later I had to change the location of the bottles, by retiring the bottom grill since they kept falling due to the lack of flat space to rest.



Then I've added a 5-layer of mosquito screen (metal), and I chose BLACK, which I love it. Then added a "Taper", if that's what Jegner calls it. (???) Then the original mold on top of it.





Well, and the final result: TA-DAAAA!!!!







Only thing that happened was that the plastic got stuck to the mold for some reason, which I later found out that it was due to the DUNHAM'S WATER PUTTY patches I have in my original mold. Either way, it was a first chance to see what I should do next or what to improve (namely buy some BONDO), such as to cover inperfections and seal the DWP patches away from the plastic. The mask had to be cut and literally RIPPED from the mold to finally let it go.
------------------------

Well, after over a month hiatus due to personal issues and bad weather at the same time, I've continued with this project, and this time in FULL THROTTLE! I haven't done anything since then, but now I've started sanding the imperfections on the mask molds, and started to work with the GLOVES. Last year I've made just the sculp and didn't even finished, but now the top is done, and this week will be sculpting the bottom (way easier than the top) to then make the bottom half of the mold. Here's the progress so far.










What do you think so far? :rolleyes

EARS
I've finished casting the "ears". What the pics are not showing is the cleanup process (bondo the holes and imperfections and excess resin), and carve the lines along the ridge of the "ring" part.



The mold at the left is the mold of the "ring" part, and the one at the right is for a TOP-SECRET thing I have planned in the near future.




Here are the four ear outside rings, ready for cleanup and attach to the cylinder part...



....and now with the castings of the cylindrical part to be attached to, that have to go through the same process, and also I have to cut come extra slack before attaching...



More to come soon, as I continue with the gloves.

For the issue with the plastic sticking to the mold, I suggest using this:



I have used this on plaster molds to seal them and you get a lot longer life with them...you can also then spray the mold down with a mold release such as wd40 or PAM.

IF you pull the plastic and gate off and the mold is still stuck in it...just hold it about an inch off the surface and pat down the plastic, use some force as this will begin to push the mold out of the undercuts and such, so you won't crack or tear the plastic and the mold will be just fine.

Dude, that's nuts! Great job!

Hmmm, I gotta try that one. Thanks Gilmore for the hint.

Gilmore of OK said:

For the issue with the plastic sticking to the mold, I suggest using this:

I have used this on plaster molds to seal them and you get a lot longer life with them...you can also then spray the mold down with a mold release such as wd40 or PAM.

IF you pull the plastic and gate off and the mold is still stuck in it...just hold it about an inch off the surface and pat down the plastic, use some force as this will begin to push the mold out of the undercuts and such, so you won't crack or tear the plastic and the mold will be just fine.

Click to expand...

Man that is some absolutely amazing work, keep it up!

What a fantastic build...I love the scratch built vacum table.
You know some say that album was the "death blow" to STYX.I did not feel that way,I like the concept of the storyline....Great job..you are blessed with a great talent

Ok, I'm officially diggin' this tread!

Wow that brought back memories.....Great build.

Thanks guys for the words.

LOPERO said:

What a fantastic build...I love the scratch built vacum table.
You know some say that album was the "death blow" to STYX.I did not feel that way,I like the concept of the storyline....Great job..you are blessed with a great talent

Click to expand...

Thanks, and I don't feel it that way either, but as a group it kinda was. Mr. Roboto and Kilroy were ideas from Dennis DeYoung, STYX lead singer back then, and after that there was kind of a controversy about ownership and songs rights.....well, you name it. It's a shame it ended up that way, even though STYX is still playing around, without Dennis DeYoung, that is. :facepalm

I will keep posting more progress pics later, since I have another way to create the gloves....waaaay easier.

Well, since the last update I've being thinking about something that made me change the way I was doing the gloves. I came with a different approach of doing things, this time THE EASIEST WAY POSSIBLE.

I realized that the first mold and sculpture for the right hand was kind of difficult to make it happen, but then I was thinking about the way the TK amor is done with (mostly), and the best solution is MDF board. This is what I came with...

BTW, this is the mask mold, with some bondo and a lot of sanding, ready for step 2 for vacuuforming:



First cutout of the left hand, using a piece of MDF board...


Giving it some shape with my dremmel tool...


...to try to get the proper "hand" shape...


Size comparisons between the mold and the real hand..just to keep the actual shape...



That's the thing about MDF boards; easy to work with, but really messy when it comes to sand down. :shock:

Now, this is the end result: (MEMO TO SELF: remember to make/finish as much details as you need, before applying primer or preparing for a mold). I sanded everything with fine grit paper AFTER I sprayed the whole thing with automotive primer, which makes you see all kinds of imperfections during the process, not to mention the clay I used before while preparing for the mold-half. I've carved the lines where the fingers bend in the MDF hand mold, which will minimize the use of clay for sculpting the details of the hand later on...the less clay, the better.



I've came up with a design for the inside of the hands, since there area no reference pics showing the inside of the hands, sooooo, I will make them more "ROBOTIC", and less "human-shaped" as possible...



Now, a comparison between the original size, and the sculpted hand so far...




And this is the setup for the mold. I flattened about ¼ to ½ inch of clay, so it could properly cover HALF of the “glove” mold, which I did by carving around the hand mold with a knife, and extracting the clay that’s laying underneath the mold, that way to accommodate the mold and be easier for preparation.




More updates coming this weekend, which includes upper and lower hand detailing, more vacuuforming progress and more.

Great insight into your build, this is exactly the type of info we need people to share.

Kepp up the great work!

As I've previously noted, I've decided to change the method of creating the gloves; cheaper, faster, easier, and cost-cutting measure.

Of course, the "easier" part doesn't come THAT easy, since I have to go back and redo the details of the forehands from scratch, since it's a different model/sculpt. The volume overall is lower, and as the originals, they'll be made out of a THIN LAYERED LATEX, just way thicker than your traditional latex gloves you see used at hospitals....and prostate checks.



Seriously, if you see the videos I've posted earlier in the thread (specially of the concert versions), you'll see that the thickness is really close to the actual hand, making the effect believable as a "ROBOTIC" hand. Well, here's the progress so far, which I was able to complete the first half of the right "hand", I've started by sanding the "details" of the palm, which looks a little like a "SPIDERMAN" glove, but it won't.

I came with this UNIQUE design, since there's no physical proof of the design of the palm, not even on the videos.....I've decided to do a design of my own, and make it my "signature design" by creating a ROBOTIC palm, and I will be adding more details later on (details to be shown on my next update this week), but I want to concentrate on the visible details first......



Preparing the forehand mold first after shaping the bottom/palm...



Adding more volume to the upper hand, due that the hand mold is almost "flat", and I want it to be more shaped to the real deal...



Compared to what I was just talking about....



...adding the "tendon" details...



...adding the "forearm" part, which is the same plastic cut out from the gallon, used to make the "neck" area of the very back of the head mold...



Added the "wrist" detail and the "knuckles" details. Knuckles details what I came out with, is basically those flexible plastic things you use for under the furniture to prevent scratching. I've paid only about $3 for a set of 12 at HOME DEPOT. Less time and hassle for me to sculpt.



Hand, almost ready to make a mold of the first half... notice the "guides" I used in the clay...couple of them are the same things I used for the "knuckles" in the hand mold.



More updates coming this week, since I'm rushing this project as fast as I can.... I promise.

Well, finished the whole mold for the left hand. (NOTE TO SELF: Do not use the plastic film to build the wrist or a cylinder of any kind). Unfortunately, when I did the first half, the plastic "wrist" came out loose while pouring the plaster, and it made a little mess outside the mold and some inside the hand mold itself. Fortunately, nothing that I wouldn't clean myself or fix. For the other half, I've decided to use clay, with some kind of support inside, such as an empty PVC Glue can.



I did some details of my own, as a "signature design", unfortunately on the finishing making of the mold, two or three of those designs were erased from the mold somehow.



I've done both halves, and time for cleanup the mess. Not the prettiest job in the world, but practical. As you look at the left half, reminds me of another note: APPLY SOME MOLD RELEASE before casting the mold half. It took me a good deal of time cleaning the details of the forehand.



Mold is cleaned up, and ready for first casting....



Now, the interesting part...adding color to the latex casting while pouring the latex in the mold. I used something called ALUMILITE, which is a metallic talc/powder used for cold-cast molds. It serves as MOLD RELEASE at the same time, giving the casting a metallic look once it's out of the mold....no need to paint afterwards....we hope.



I've applied the powder in the internal cavities of the mold with a clean, soft brush, to then close it, and secure with ratchet straps or rubber bands. Be advised...this process is rather messy, and make sure you use some kind of protection on the floor, such as brown paper or anything you could use to pick up the excess and throw it back in the canister....and not to do this in a windy area......trust me. :rolleyes



Latex poured in the mold once it's secured....



...and taking the excess out once you pour back the rest of the latex back in the gallon after a few minutes.



Next day, I separated both halves to expose the final result, and....EUREKA.....well, somehow. You could see that came exactly as my hand is, which is what I wanted.



Obviosly there's some cleanup to do, specially the excess latex where the mold halves meet...



But there's a problem. Once I took this glove out of the mold, the ALUMILITE didn't stick completely to the glove, since I have to find a way to clean it without removing it from the glove.....I will update on that soon...
And if you look at the outside edge on the hole of the glove, you'll see that it's warped...that's because some of the latex haven't dried up since yesterday.



Another thing, the glove came out perfect on the outside, but in the inside is still wet, and a lot of latex got to waste. The main problem I found was that I let the latex in the mold for over 30 mins (45 mins, actually), and the glove was supposed to have a thin layered wall, similar to those yellow gloves you use to wash dishes, but the walls came out too thick, similar to those found in quality halloween latex masks. Next time I will let it sit for only 15 minutes to see what happens....and NO ALUMILITE (until I find out if after cleaning is good enough). Same thing happened to the last two fingers in this pic....latex too wet inside, and the inner layers got stuck to each other. What a shame. :angry



More updates coming later on.

This is my progress as of today...

During the weekend, I received a large roll of goodness....meaning it's the CAR HEADLINER MATERIAL which the original suits were made of (we think). Using a CIVIL WAR UNIFORM sewing pattern, I'll be making the pants and coat, but as you saw in the videos and screen caps, it's designed in a slighly different way, which I will be creative for that.



Here's the roll in the back of the pattern package and my prototype mask (BTW as you see, it's painted and holes for lights done....i will explain later)...



I've started cutting the pattern with the easiest part....the pants and the jacket sleeves.



I will update more on the suit sometime this week.

I've being working with the helmet, which constitutes the MOST IMPORTANT part of this project. Couple of days ago (and as I mentioned before), I painted the mask trying different paints and colors. I tried the best around for this purpose (TAMIYA Gunmetal spray). It gives a nice and shiny look, but it's too dark to be noticed around, specially in the dark. I decided to use acrylic paints found at WALMART...



And with the use of the cheapest airbrush available (even though I have a compressor and a professional airbrush handy), and only for one reason....to obtain the right color not available in stand-alone spray can or bottle.



For this one, I had to use 3 parts SILVER to 1 part GUNMETAL to create the best effect. I could still use 50/50 of each color, but I prefer the silverish color better, since it was still looking dark before compared to the gloves. :facepalm

At the left of the screen (side where my TOE is ) , it's sprayed with the acrylic mix; the right is painted with the TAMIYA spray paint. Notice the difference in color / tone while outside in the porch.



And in broad daylight...



Today, I've decided to go forward with the vacuuforming process (again), to finally see what has to be fixed before creating another mold. Once again the mask and the top back molds of the helmet got stuck to the plastic, but with a little patience I was able to retrieve them without breaking the mask parts.




Here are the parts cut from the rest of the plastic. The small two pieces are to cover the back of the lower "ears", which I didn't designed properly, and will be added later on once the LED lights are connected and glued in place.




Side view of the 3/4 helmet (the way it will be assembled if I decide to do a run of these helmets:




And now with the rest of the back that covers the mid section and neck. NOTE: there is another part that goes in FRONT of the neck, but I will do it with a strip cut to shape from a cheap FOR SALE plastic sign, and the areas in between parts will be covered in BONDO to camouflage the errors that will be fixed at a later time in the molds. The black line is where I have to cut so I could move my neck upwards, and most of the lower part will be covered by the neck of the jacket.





This is a screen cap showing the same angle of view.



What do you guys think?

"Ears" coming up next.