Topic: New project......stormy outfit

[benjani_1976]

Yeah I knocked up the mannequin from some old crutches for legs and hips,then wood frame for the rest padded out with foam and bubble wrap.
It's not me in the suit though,it's the mannequin.

Now I'm off to prep and paint the bucket some more while the UK is basking in extremely rare but glorious sunshine  

[Tamer]

Pics my good man. Pic please!

[benjani_1976]

Here's the finish prior to buffing,I don't think it needs cutting back and polishing......shines enough,can see my hand reflecting in the laquer.

Repair is barely noticeable now,i did notice the ears are separate to the main lid spooky but I can't remove them now,they're out of symmetry by a few millimetres. I think they were stuck on with silicon and I had enough hassle getting it off the brow,the cracked area and the mic tips so cleaning up the ears and lid of that large area would likely caused more harm than good.

[benjani_1976]

No idea how long the cure time for the paint is gonna be,it's acrylic aerosol. Sun is helping,not one run in the paint.
I've got a litre of basecoat and laquer to dry,I'll get the heat lamp on it overnight.

No point rushing the bucket,decals on route from the US,mic tips need doing properly,lenses need trimming to fit flush inside.
Decals will take a few days 1st class international post,should be just about right.

Couple more pics.......flawless victory  

[benjani_1976]

New brow trim cut,depending on which thickness looks best I'm going to put a chamfer along the back surface so it's thicker at the bottom edge than at the top. Should also improve adhesion as the back will be roughed up from removing excess material.

I'm using the 3mm green acrylic,flimsy stuff will distort vision.

[Tamer]

Looks great, sure does make me wish I had a TK outfit!

[benjani_1976]

Just waiting on decals before fitting the new brow trim. Got the lenses in place,still need to smooth around the sockets where the lenses meet with some silicon.

Just ordered 1" black webbing,clasps,adjusters,50mm Velcro tape,20mm white Velcro tape,and a padded lining for a motorcycle helmet with chin strap.

[Tamer]

Sounds like you are getting closer. You have made a ton of progress in a relatively short amount of time.

[benjani_1976]

I've been drilling out those tacky looking rivets today,to hide the holes left over I'm going to have to try a butt joint.

Found this tutorial,apparently it's a more screen accurate way to join the halves.
http://www.whitearmor.net/fisd/Tutorials-legs

Ordered some e6000,an industrial strength hard plastic adhesive. Just waiting now on deliveries.

I'm going to go through your driver costume for some tips

[Tamer]

My biggest ordeal was getting all the button snaps on and everything set that way and drilling through pretty much a thousand dollar suit of armor to add the metal greeblies drove me about half crazy. I also had a fun time glueing the velcro on for the shoulder plates and making sure those all stayed straight.

I would also think some velcro straps would go good holding all the armor plates too. If my shoulder bells drive me nuts when I troop I aim to attach some to them to make em stay on straight.

Adding some lights is always fun too.

I also am thinking about some helmet fans and a helmet mic system too. Fans first thats for sure.

[benjani_1976]

The back of the calfs have to be Velcro,the rest of it can be butt joined. Got plenty of Velcro on order for making sure it all holds tight and sits right.
I've also ordered some neodymium earth magnets to put along the middle of the joints,clamps for each end.

This is a bit more work than planned but those rivets have to go,here's a pic of the lid awaiting decal delivery,and a brief tinker on the joint and shim.
With a front piece glued on its goodbye ugly holes........I hope

In fact it's not far off how I was going to hide the holes initially. The joint was going to be overlapping,the holes filled and smoothed over with a strip of white sticky vinyl along the seam..........now I'll be using a strip of PVC and heavy duty adhesive. Stronger join being both sides bonded.

[benjani_1976]

This is what I'm aiming for...........inside and out reinforcement strips.

Also I'm looking at using button clasps with the webbing for the precise fit areas,and those fiddly shoulder parts. When I tried them for size as they came they moved too much with flimsy Velcro straps,webbing more rigid and less prone to wander.

Been tinkering with brackets for the detonator,first style was a fail.......these door hangers could be the way forward with a tweak here and there.

[benjani_1976]

Just received aluminium gauze in the post.......hovi mic tips completed.

Originally the mic tips had a mesh pattern,I removed that with a radius cutter,then made it flat with a square corner cutter in the Dremel.
Cut mesh to size with scissors,the gauze is aluminium.....also received 10m of black 1" nylon webbing,should be able to make the harness for the abdominal sections.

Errol starting to look sweet......busy weekend ahead when all the fixings turn up

[Tamer]

That mic tip work is flawless Ben. Excellent.

[benjani_1976]

Hell of a lot better than before. Been fixing the harness today for the abdomen sections.

I've left the Velcro on that was already in place and using 2part epoxy and CA glue in places stuck the webbing to the adhesive Velcro.
Can't see it going anywhere,made sure I stuck a lot of webbing down for a big surface adhesion.