sigh...

So I was making some good headway on the Spartan Laser... getting on here, posting updates and all that jazz... and the other day I got home from work and open the door to find it sitting right where I left it (out of the way).... and a box on a shelf up above it had randomly fallen and smashed the sh*t out of it........

........I'm not working on a laser anymore...

Wait.... What?

Well, I did it… I finished… a few hours worth of work on the suit, that is… ;)

I work up Saturday morning after a late night Friday night to realize my kids were at Oma and Opas, my wife was going to brunch with the girls, and I had nothing to do. So I got my @$$ up and got to work. I got out to the garage and started cleaning up because it was a major crap hole and I have no clear working space. After that, I got my tools and needed items and realized a very important thing… DON’T SCREW ON THE FIBERGLASS RESIN CAP WHEN THERE IS RESIN ALL OVER THE THREADS!!!! Lol! I spent probably ten minutes trying to open the damn resin bottle before if finally gave loose and the cap came off. So, I cleaned up the table, got my mask on, got my gloves on, lined up all my tools, picked up the Bondo to start mixing

and all of a sudden... “riiiing”….. My dad was on his way to my house with the boys. Lmao. So I hurried through and slush poured one batch of Rondo before they arrived.

I tried as best I could to get some "action shots" of the slush casting. In the background is the Left Shin I will be remaking because it got HORRIBLY warped... =(

Note, don’t rush things because then they will more than likely dry poorly and crooked and you will spend even more time with sanding and shaping…

Okay, so the boys got home and I went in to play with and watch them. But eventually they had nap time. Back to work. Went out into the Garage while they were both sleeping and got a few more rounds of pouring in! I decided to go for the second thigh piece, and the three pieces of the left boot. They all still have a little more work to be done, as it is quite a lengthy process when there are so many steps and just one of me (That’s me begging anyone local to come help… =P)

I also started working on my Spartan Laser since it is apparently SOOO much easier for me to work on the paper crafting inside the house than it is for me to make it out to the garage and finish the rest of my massive project I already have going on… But I made some pretty good headway on that over the weekend as well.

As with a lot of my pieces, I have noticed a lack of stability in some parts of the unit while piecing together. I decided not to give it a chance and used my creative genius to make some pillars on the interior of the model to help hold it up so it stops collapsing in on itself... (Shot A: As it was, Shot B: after I added the stabilizers to it... you may have to look closely to see them, they are just pieces of reinforced paper going from side to side)

And here is where I got to by last night (I tried to show the 3D models image in the background to give you an idea of the size and the look of this item)

There are a few things I am doing differently on this piece than I have on all the others... but more to come on that (hopefully) later!

All in all, it was a pretty good weekend for getting some stuff done. I have come to unfortunate terms with the fact that I will not have this ready in time for this Halloween, which really bums me out, but there is nothing that can be fixed by complaining, so I will carry on and move forward the best I can! 

No pic, but....

So I did make it out and get some sanding done... not a lot, but I made it out there. I didn't take any pics because there hasn't been a significant change in how anything looks to even bother... =(

On another note, I did come to terns with the fact that it is much easier at this point to work on things inside my house, so I decided to go ahead and get started on my Spartan Laser last night! I got the pieces all printed out and started trying to sort through then and get started. I decided to build from the butt of the gun up, so I got a little bit of it done last night and will post pics soon! =)

If anyone is still actually following me, thanks! I appreciate you taking the time to keep up with me on this build.

Time to put up or shut up...

So I know that there is really no chance now of me having this guy done in time for Halloween this year... but I think that it is time I really get back to work here. I have been slacking too long and not making time for it and right now it is just a pile of space filler in my garage... So, tonight I will be working on the suit yet again, it is go time, time to put up or shut up, and I'm gonna give it hell! Anyone who wants to assist is more than welcome, especially if you have auto body experience ;)

".... we're waiting!"

Well, obviously it has been an EXTREMELY long time since I have posted any progress on this project... unfortunately the reason is because I haven't really made any. Life has happened and I have been extremely busy with other things and just haven't had the time to get out and work on it. (On the bright side I have dropped a bunch of weight!) The other night I went out and sanded down a lot of spots on the chest piece and hopefully will be done sanding and smoothing it out soon! In the mean time, I'm just trying to find any time I can so I can complete this thing! Looks like Halloween 2012 has turned into Halloween 2013... hopefully we can make it at that!

This Is Gonna Be Good...

All-in-all, I would say the weekend was a success. I didn't get as much done as I wanted to, but I did get done about what I expected to. There were four pieces I worked on this weekend, the first and main one of course being the helmet. Second I wanted to get some work on the chest and back. and then if I had time I wanted to get after a bi/tri/shoulder and a thigh. The helmet was coming along, but it still had some nasty cracks and nicks in it that were driving me bonkers. I did some reading online and found this amazing stuff called "Bondo Spot Putty". I have been using Bondo's body filler and resin for a while now, but never heard of the spot putty. Simply put, the spot putty works like Bondo, only it comes pre-mixed in a tube and is a gift from the gods... I had been trying to get info on using it over the primer because once the surface is primed and all the same color it is SO much easier to see the imperfections. So once I got that stuff the helmet came together much nicer.

It also looks pretty badass in that nice dark red color... after it dried I did a little light sanding and re-primed.

There are still a few minor spots that could use a fix up, but definitely looks 1000% better than before.

That was all Friday night, of which my good buddy James came over to once again assist me in my venture. after a quick lesson on Bondo application, he was off to work on the chest.

I didn't tell him until later that he would have been shot if he damaged it... you know, don't want an employee with bad work moral or anything ;)

After a couple hours of Bondo'ing, and a lot of talking, he left me with this.

I was really excited to see how good it looked. The front of the chest was a bit caved in on the left breast plate, and he got a good amount of even level out of it. From that point, we called it a night... and went inside and played Halo Reach for several hours...

Monday, I got back to it. I started back in on the torso in hopes of getting it done. I am sure that being an amateur I don't have all the proper tools and know how when it comes to Bondo and sanding (or at least I pray there is a better way out there) because about 7 hours of work later it looked like this:

and at that point my back was killing me! I also discovered that there are some downsides to working outside.

1) The sun is hot.

2) Hot sun equals hot driveway.

3) Bondo sets MUCH faster in the heat.

I might as well be holding a handful of quarters! (okay, so maybe its not that much... but I'm cheap!) However, I adapted to my surroundings (move into the shaded garage) and pressed on! I picked back up on Tuesday due to some other chores and things I needed to do around the house since I was off and all.

After a lot of Bondo and sanding and Bondo and sanding and Bondo and... where was I? Oh yeah, sanding! I got a good layer across the whole area.

There was another area that was caved in on the outside of the right shoulder blade. I slathered that up pretty good with Bond and did a little shaping and carving. Here it is before I sanded it down.

I also had to pour some more Rondo into the piece because as I was sanding I ran across a few week points in the front of the chest and one or two in the back. After that, I decided to go ahead and see out we looked in primer. 

I knew it wouldn't be perfect, but like I said earlier I can now see all the impurities in it and know where to use the spot putty at.

Throughout the day as I was waiting on things to dry, or realized I made too much Bondo, I worked on the Bi/Tri/Shoulder and the Right Thigh pieces. The arm piece is pretty straight forward, just some Bondo work:

The thigh however was a bit more involved. The edge was very thin, so I used a technique I have seen online (thanks Thorsson) where you use duct-tape to line the edge and do a roto pour so as to thicken up an edge.

I then realized that when I made these I didn't give them a good test on their size and as it turns out, now that they are hardened and more stable, I did and they are a tad bit too long! Oh the horror!!!! I tried not to panic, and instead got out the ol' Dremmel tool. I cut off about 1/3-1/2 an inch on the back of the knee because the problem I had was that I couldn't bend my knee enough to sit or squat... and as we all know, Master Chief has to be able to squat over his victims...

 I did do a little sanding to round it off, but didn't take an after shot.

I might trim a hair off the top of the front as well for a good hip crease, otherwise I think it will work great!

Finally, I was done for the day. Like I said, I do wish I had gotten more done, but for me, this was a lot of work to get done all at once and I am thankful I was able to get the time to do so! Here are some final shots of everything I worked on.

And here's a nice group shot to finish it off:

If you would like to see more come together and happen a lot faster (and you know you would) send me money! =P

Nothing to See Here...

Well, unfortunately I have been at a stand still once again as far as production and headway on the suit go. I am however taking some time off this weekend and plan to get a heavy amount of work done, so that will be good. My buddy James is also planning to come and help (at least on Friday) to work and get things moving along. I am still not satisfied with the helmet... I dont know if I am being too picky or if I am right/realistic in wanting perfection out of it. so I will probably work a bit more on it this weekend as well. I am starting to do the chest piece to get it all Bondo'd up and start the sanding process on it too. once I get it done we will start cutting! (Yikes!) So hopefully all goes well!

The Blacker, The Better

I FINALLY got some more work done tonight... I am a little behind on my whole "one piece every two weeks", but hopefully I can catch up by doubling up on the smaller pieces. Tonight I added a layer of fiberglass resin to my uncoated forearm piece, but more importantly, I got a lot of Bondo and sanding done and (while there are still a few areas that aren't perfect...) most of it is looking really good!

Here are a couple shots on it's stand:

You can see the little marks on the side that look like maybe fingerprints or something. That's one of the little imperfections where I sanded down to the paper... :( having a rough time getting that to smooth out...

And here's a couple of vanity shots:

 It still stunk a bit... but I did JUST prime it...

 Stupid splotches again.

 Top shot. Left side of the top (right side of the picture) in the front, I guess you would say the visor, there are a few nicks I need to get out.

and of course I had to wear my Reach shirt while taking the monumental photos! ;)

Also, I spent about 30 minutes trying to figure out the lights in the helmet. I had an old cheep LED flashlight, so I tore it up and tried to wire it to see if it would work. I got it to work surprisingly!... for about 2 seconds. I think I fried the lights because, and I am just guessing, I fried the bulbs by using a 9V...? I don't know what I am doing when when it comes to electricity, so if anyone has any input on a good light source for the head lamps then please let me know!

There's a Hole in My Helmet!... Five Actually

Well, I finally sucked it up over the weekend and decided to get to cutting! I was really nervous all throughout because I knew if I were to cut incorrectly I would be screwed and I have put a lot of work into this so far. I hate that I am unable to show action shots or anything throughout the process. Its just too difficult to hold the camera with one hand and take pics while doing everything else with only the other hand. All that being said, here is where I got to

I had some old foam laying around that I picked up from work (we were going to through it away and I knew I could find a use for it) so I put it inside the helmet for a little temporary padding.

And then, I put it on

Now if only I had money to buy some paint and primer =P oh well, first of the month is almost here!

Mix, spread, sand, repeat...

Stayed up late last night working on the helmet and shin, and just hanging out in the garage after everyone else was asleep anyway. I spoke with my neighbor across the street about some tips on how to properly go about the Bondo’ing process and he gave me some good pointers:

-Don’t make a lot at a time (You would think that would be obvious...)

-Apply only what you need (Minimal amounts) so you don’t have to sand as much

-If you have little holes or gaps, take a rubber spatula or a credit card with a little give and press a little more Bondo into it

(Thanks Dan!) 

After that he offered me his belt sander and a couple of other tools, but I’ll see if I end up needing them or not. The Dremel it pretty cool for sanding down thick areas in little patches, but to go over the whole thing was a pain. Obviously using less Bondo the first time around would have saved be a lot of sanding =P

Here are some updated shots of the helmet!

And I also started Rondo’ing my left shin piece. Unfortunately there is a spot in the bad that popped out when I wasn’t looking so it is a little uneven. Not a real big deal, but I will have to do a little artistic carving back there to fix it.

All in all a good night of work. I will probably sand down the helmet tonight and get on what should hopefully be the last round of Bondo!

Better Hop To It!

Well, I decided that I had better get a move on since I have only 2 weeks (apparently) to finish my helmet! I got out the Bondo and started pasting on a layer so that I can sand it down once it dries. Hopefully tomorrow... I didn't quite get the entire thing covered in a layer and I unfortunately wasted some because I made too big of a batch, but I got most of it covered and I think it is gonna look really good once it is sanded down!

I also busted out my Halo3 collectors helmet holder (I had to make it a little taller) and used it to hold the helmet up.