FP Knee Armor Build-up

[superjedi]

Hi all,
Got some new parts the other day! (It's been a long time. . . I've been saving $$$ lately ) I got some vac-formed FP knee armor and a cod piece.
Here's some pics of the knee parts being assembled. I didn't take any pics of the pieces in their "raw" form, as I'm sure most everyone is familiar with what vac-pulls look like. Clean up didn't take much time at all. The parts are reeeaaaally nice pulls! Very clean and shaped very well.
There are 3 parts for each knee; the main knee pad, the inner flat rectangle part, and the outer dart housing. I followed FP's tutorial (sent to me by the individual I bought the parts from), making sure to get each part shaped correctly, then assembly was pretty simple! I used some styrene shims to brace the connections a bit, and secured the parts with super glue. They will be reinforced later with some epoxy.
I still have to form the dents. I'm just looking for some type of tool the right shape to press the dents in once I heat up the plastic.
More pics as I start painting!
Eric

 

[CenteroftheMind]

Looks good. Do you know if those are still being produced?

 

[superjedi]

I don't know. It would be nice if FP was still doing armor. I had sent a few PMs his way, but never got any response.

 

[Tension113]

Yay You allready knew I was looking forward to another one of your WIP threads.. btw, shouldn't this be called "Superjedi's knees"?

Looking forward to the rest.. I'm sure they'll be perfect..

 

[GCNgamer128]

Nice! I'm looking for some new knee armour myself.

 

[Spideyfett]

PM sent..

 

[superjedi]

OK, next stage: PAINTING.

I got some Polly Scale Reefer Yellow and airbrushed 2 or 3 light coats over the knee assembly. Here's the result.

 

[superjedi]

After PAINTING comes WEATHERING.

I waited until my base coat was nice and dry, then started applying the damaged areas. I used my trusty Tamiya Chrome Silver, and following my reference pics, painted on the silver chips and dings using a small detail brush.

I just realized that these pics came out a little fuzzy. . . but I'm already beyond this point in the weathering process and don't have any that are more clear. . .
Anyway, here's how the right knee looks with the silver areas painted on.

 

[superjedi]

RIGHT KNEE FINISHED:
OK, not sure what happened to some of my 'in-progress' pics. . . I had taken some after I painted on the lighter yellow around the silver, but before the weathering. But they seem to have been eaten by my computer. :confused
So anyhoo, here's how I completed the knee.

After I did the silver damage as described in my above post, I added the lighter yellow, using ATSF Catwhisker Yellow. I must have gotten a reeeeeaaaally old bottle of it, cuz I had to stir it forever to get it mixed up! But once it was the right consistency, I painted it on using a fine detail brush, then let it dry for a while.

When it was nice and dry, I went back to my reference pics and started dirtying it up. I used pastel powders in a dark orange and reddish brown, and applied them with a fairly large brush. When using pastels, go lightly at first until you determine you have the colors you want. You can remove them with a damp cloth or paper towel, but if your paint finish is dull, the pastel powder can get into the pores in the surface of the paint, and stain it.
I used the pastels to shade the areas around most of the perimeter of the knee pad, and some areas on the 'face' of it, to give the base color a worn, uneven appearance.

I used the back end of a paintbrush to apply the smaller, more concentrated dirty spots. Then, a charcoal pencil to do some of the darker scratches.

After the pastel/pencil was done, I sealed the knee pad with Testors Dullcote. That serves to seal the pastels, as well as dull down any shiny spots.

So that's pretty much it. Left knee, here I come!!
I'd enjoy hearing any feedback.
Eric

P.S. Oh yeah, those are machined aluminum darts, too!

 

[psberetta]

That looks awesome
Wish I had some FP armor
PMed him..........no response:cry

 

[Mr Fett]

That knee looks really good.

 

[SlaveR5]

very very nice!!

nice wookie braids as well ;-)

 

[Muad Dib]

That looks awesome
Wish I had some FP armor
PMed him..........no response:cry

Same here, multiple times over the past year.:facepalm

Just not in the cards I guess.

 

[Spideyfett]

Came out great!!

 

[hansoloway]

Hey superjedi, First off, very nice paintjob. I have noticed one potential problem however. The outer section of armor which holds the knee darts seems to be sticking out too far. I believe it should be flush with where it joins the front part of the knee armor, but yours seems to stick out about a centimeter or so. Does that make sense?:facepalm .

 

[superjedi]

Hey superjedi, First off, very nice paintjob. I have noticed one potential problem however. The outer section of armor which holds the knee darts seems to be sticking out too far. I believe it should be flush with where it joins the front part of the knee armor, but yours seems to stick out about a centimeter or so. Does that make sense?:facepalm .

Yes, it makes sense. I only realized this after everything was assembled.
Oh well!
My second knee is now complete. I'll have more pics up soon.

 

[DarthMiller]

awesome job!! can I have them back now?? LOL

 

[superjedi]

awesome job!! can I have them back now?? LOL

Well, I'm kinda thinking I'll keep 'em.

 

[MARROW SUN]

That looks great, you did a fantastic job!
My FP armor is still sitting in its box! Maybe one day I'll accually get around to trimming it.

 

[superjedi]

That looks great, you did a fantastic job!
My FP armor is still sitting in its box! Maybe one day I'll accually get around to trimming it.

Thanks!
And regarding your FP armor. . . ya know. . . if it's just taking up space in your home, I'd be glad to work out an alternate storage plan with you.