General ROTJ Boba Fett WIP 501st Approved

toolguy301 · Aug 19, 2013

Well I have put a few posts out there of a few things I have been working on towards completion of my ROTJ Boba Fett build. I figured I needed to just start a WIP thread to just keep everything in one place to make things easier.

I have slowly been in the construction phase for quite a while. I have been working on my Boba along with my wife's Boushh costume, which I just completed. http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/f68/boushh-wip-47893/

My goal in starting this was I wanted to make everything from the ground up & make it as accurate as possible within my means. I have done things somewhat different in the way of construction than what I have seen in the past as far as scratch builds go. Here is the run down of where I am at current.

Helmet & Range Finder: I started with a pepakura file (Skip) & did some modifcations using WOF & Raf's templates. I have layered the cardstock shell with architectural cardboard to make it rigid and have used smooth cast to tie it all together. I am still in the prep phase at this time. I purchased a real Borden connector to put on the right cheek. I am also working on a LED set up for the range finder. This is in the roughing in stage.

Jetpack: I started with a couple of different pepakura files (skip & Soba). I also used WOF templates with some mods here and there. Similar construction as stated above. I made the beacon & the stabilizer both from scratch. The beacon is a 3/4 inch copper tube that I did some black smithing on. The stabilizer was made from a pen, micrometer thimble, & some architectural cardboard. This is still in the roughing in stage. http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/f20/pepakura-jetpack-47919/

Gauntlets: I did the gauntlets in pepakura as well (Skip). I used WOF templates to create a 3D model of the rocket & made a pep file from it. I made the MQ-1 keyboard from scratch using the buttons from 2 watch calculators. I made the darts from ink pens & paper clips. I made the hose fittings on the right gauntlet from air fittings that I soldered brake line fittings to. I did some grinding on them to make them look accurate. All painting & weathering was done by myself. I have a few finishing touches to do on them to be considered complete. http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/f25/first-boba-fett-wip-46463/

Armor: This is a mixed bag. I can't remember when but a number of years ago prior to really getting the word that you need to stay away from ebay. I bought some sintra armor there. Wasn't very good but I am working on it to make it work for me. I decided to use the chest, ab, & shoulders from this set & possibly the cod & back plate. I opted not to use the knees, collar, & back armor. The pieces that I reworked I used a heat gun to reshape them to fit me. In doing so I rounded the edges to help give depth and not make them look flat. Also used the heat gun to put in the dents & damage.

I made the knees from scratch. I drew them up in cad creating a 3D model using WOF templates as a base. Then made them up using pepakura with similar construction as above.

The collar & back armor were made using pepakura. I found a pep file (Prince) & re-modelled it to make it more accurate by adding the side sections. Also similar process as above. I did go thicker on these 2 items in making them 3/16 inch thick.

All the armor pieces are almost ready for paint except the cod & back plate.

EE-3 Blaster: I had a complete build thread on this which was all done as a scratch build. (Build thread)
http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/f20/scratch-built-rotj-ee-3-a-47899/
Jumpsuit, flak vest, ankle spats, belt pounches, ammo belt, gloves & boots are all MOW. I need to dye & weather them at this point.

Wookie braids & cape are Woodman.

Girth belt: I have this & plan on dyeing it myself.

RichardJones · Aug 20, 2013

wow! Everything looks great! I cant believe that you made that rocket on the left gauntlet look that good. the back armor is really well done as well! I love that blaster, it makes it soo much better knowing that you scratch built that!! good work, can't wait to see more progress!!

toolguy301 · Aug 21, 2013

Thanks for the kind words. I know that most of this stuff has been all done one way or another. I thought I would try some different techniques. Needless to say there has been some trial and error along the way.

I wanted to make the rocket light weight. I used a toilet paper roll holder for the main tube & worked the paper around that. When it was all set up I used Smooth Cast & brushed a layer on the outside to firm up the paper. When that set up I then mixed another batch & poured it inside & rotated it around till it set up. The Smooth Cast comes in different sure times, the version I have been using sets up in about 10 minutes. So the paper had plastic built up on the inside. This made it light weight & strong. I painted the gauntlets with rattle cans.

Because of my build I was worried about the back armor not fitting me so I figured I would make it from scratch.

I am hoping to start paint on the armor yet this week. I am doing final sanding, spot filling & priming.

Added the pep files for the back collar & back armor, knee armor, & gauntlet rocket. Files are in both letter & A4 formats.

toolguy301 · Aug 26, 2013

Worked on a number of things this weekend. Kinda bounced around but I tend to do that when I have to wait on things to dry.

Got the silver base on most of the armor, Chest, ab, knees, & Shoulders. Had to do some spot fills on the collar & back armor so had to spot prime a few spots. Plan on getting those painted tonight. Started reshaping the cod piece, with a heat gun, that I have in sintra, which was part of set that I had bought off of ebay years ago and am making it work now. I had to add 1.500 inches to each side to get the overlap with the back plate. I will have to do the same thing for the back plate as well. Both pieces, cod & back plate, were not made to overlay. I made an offset piece out of sintra for each side & used epoxy to glue it to the main piece. I have some filling to do but it shouldn't be too bad.

Also started work on the shin tools using reference photos & templates (WOF & Raf's). The Sonic Beam Tool, I made from the Patterson squeegee. Removed the rubber blades & took it apart. I then cut the length down. The piece that was removed that is spring loaded & holds the rubber blade was cut down as well. I then glued this into position. Removed the other springs and cleared out the movable side so that it could be glued into position. I opted to do this because with the tight fit and moving I thought it would rub all the paint off in that area. Also removed the 4th finger bump. I painted it silver misted with a metallic black. Then scuffed up all the outer edges to show wear. I masked off & painted the black & red stripes.

The Anti-Security blade started with the piece cut off of the Patterson squeegee. For the paddle piece I took 2 pieces of .100 inch thick plastic & epoxied them together. Once they were glued & dry I cut them to the shape required. Then glued this into the piece from the Patterson squeegee. Using 2 Exacto knife holders for the round pieces. I cut them down to length. Re-tapped the hole on the knurled end & used a 1/4" x 20 socket head cap screw to hold the knurled piece to the main body. Taking a sheet metal screw & ground the threads off. The hex shape was epoxied in the cavity at the end of the knurl to create a cap. Drilled 2 holes in the outer piece. I did have to fill in 2 grooves. Opting to then paint these I did some weathering per reference photos. I still have to wrap the electric tape. I am waiting to do this after I get a clear coat on it.

The Survival Knife I went with the Patterson chemical stirrer. I cut it down in length & rounded the ended. This is in the paint process.

GoldPhive · Aug 26, 2013

wow, great job. il be starting my build soon and will be looking to this thread for inspiration

shadowlova · Aug 26, 2013

that looks awesome. looking forward to following this.

toolguy301 · Aug 28, 2013

Thanks for the kind words.

I finished up 3 of the 4 shin tools and got the 4th shin tool made and in primer. The survival knife, went with the Patterson chemical stirrer, but with a paint scheme on the lines of visual reference. Got the tape wrapped on the Anti-Security Blade to complete that.

Also started masking for paint of the armor.

toolguy301 · Sep 1, 2013

Got my chest, ab plate, & shoulder armor painted, using Raf's templates. Still have to do the final weathering and some fine detail work.

Started on the knee darts. I used Raf's templates again as reference. I went for a light weight scratch build. I used .750" diameter tubing. Pressed 1/2" diameter PVC tubing inside. The actual diameter of this is .630". Then used 7/16" diameter wooden dowel pressed into the I.D. of the PVC tubing. I angled the mounting face & placed a 1/4" threaded stud in the darts to bolt up to the knee armor.

RafalFett · Sep 2, 2013

The armor looks great, and the same goes for the knee darts too! Keep up the excellent work!

I would drop the 4th shin tool (which is not an original tool) and replace it with a 30mm diameter and 100mm long steel/aluminum tube; the wall thickness should be in the 3-5mm range.

toolguy301 · Sep 2, 2013

The armor looks great, and the same goes for the knee darts too! Keep up the excellent work!

I would drop the 4th shin tool (which is not an original tool) and replace it with a 30mm diameter and 100mm long steel/aluminum tube; the wall thickness should be in the 3-5mm range

Thanks Raf, your templates are great. I think I am going to go that route for the shin tool, I have been trying to find something that I can easily make up a tool similar to what you have found. I mainly did that one for the 501st approval cause they list it in the criteria.

I did finish the weathering on the shoulders & painted the Mando symbol on the left shoulder using Raf's template again. Used Frisket paper to make the patern to paint, cutting out the shapes with a Exacto knife. Put down the white first letting it dry, then put the Mando symbol on & did the Red-Orange. I wanted the painted look for this. The weather was some some misted orange & black, with a some dry brushing of black, & some light scuffing of sandpaper.

All the armor was painted with Rustoleum spray cans. These were the colors that I came up with after studying all the reference pictures. I know some of the colors are different than what have been used by others but I like how they looked.

Shoulder armor:

Striping Yellow
Straw Flower (instead of mustard)
Summer Squash
Metallic Silver

Mando Symbol:

Blossom White (with weathering)
Chevy Red-Orange

Chest & Ab Plate:

Hunt Club Green
Moss Green
Lemon Grass (instead of striping yellow)
Metallic Silver

RafalFett · Sep 3, 2013

Love the shoulder emblem, it looks perfect! The right shoulder looks a bit over-weathered, especially those scratch lines, which should be a different color, somewhere between the base color and the main scratch color. Keep up the great work!

toolguy301 · Sep 3, 2013

Thanks Raf for the kind words of encouragement & the critique. I agree with you on the right shoulder, too much weathering. Wasn't entirely happy with my results & should have done it differently, but lesson learned. I did use a different shade of yellow on the scratches between the base & the final yellows & is more visible in better lighting.

toolguy301 · Sep 4, 2013

Got the chest & ab plates weathered. Painted the emblem onto the right chest plate, but need to do a little weathering on it.

Got the knees painted as well & they are ready for weathering.

I can't say enough good things about Raf's templates.

In between coats of paint I have been working on my helmet getting that ready to paint.

DeathProof · Sep 4, 2013

Looks awesome! Great job on weathering the armor!!

What paints are you using for the helmet and jetpack?

toolguy301 · Sep 4, 2013

Thanks for the kind words.

I haven't decided on paints for the helmet & jetpack as of yet. I need to do some home work & decide on the colors based on the reference photos & what others have come up with. I have been using Rustoleum plan on staying with that brand. The local Menards has a great selection of Rustoleum spray cans. I know that the helmet & jetpack are both going to be a challenge to paint.

RafalFett · Sep 4, 2013

Love the chest emblem and the knees! It seems that you are having fun doing the armor paint job. Can't wait to see you painting the helmet!

toolguy301 · Sep 4, 2013

Thanks Raf, I did some minimal weathering to the chest emblem, but in looking at the movie references there isn't much weathering on it. I actually like the way it is looking right now. The white looks a little bright in the photo due to the flash. I know some of the exhibit photos there is more weathering.

I am really enjoying the paint process cause I see real progress now. I have been gaining confidence with my abilities & learned something with each step and I am really looking forward to painting my helmet.

Syper · Sep 4, 2013

I'm a big fan of this build Brother, great paint work...

toolguy301 · Sep 9, 2013

Thanks Syper.

Got some stuff done this weekend. Worked on my knees getting them weathered & painted the darts. The small cone shaped one is just a mock up not the final one in any way. I need to do a little weathering on the darts.

Also got my neck armor painted & ready for weathering.

In between the painting I have been prepping my helmet for paint. I have got it filled & sanded. I also put a coat of smooth cast over the outside to give it a hard shell. The interior has also been coated with smooth cast. With this it is now a good strong shell. The read is from the spot filler & the white patches are from the smooth cast after setting up. I still have some filling to do & lots of finish sanding. The ear pieces, except for where the range finder pivots, are just taped on.