Aeruk

I didn't take any pictures while weathering, only after I was finished. The posted photos don't really show most of what I did (the sun blows it out), and I've added a bit more since then as well. My main issue with weathering my armor was that I was afraid to commit fully to any marks, so I wanted something I could remove later and redo if I wanted. What I used was matte black (and a touch of "rubber", which is a dark brown) Testors model paint, applied with a variety of tools (dry brush, paper towel, rough dry sponge, etc.). To remove it, I can use a citrus based cleaner like Goo Gone. I put down way more than I wanted to keep and then used the Goo Gone to dial it back a bit. This works on my helmet too, as I put down a couple of coats of clear coat before adding the dirt and grime. I'm still afraid that too much of the cleanser will ruin the helmet's finish, but if I needed to I could always lightly sand it down and reseal it.

Yeah, the zap pads work great. I haven't had an official troop in it yet (will this weekend) but I wore my helmet for about two hours straight during the day of my submission photo shoot and it was extremely comfortable with the pads. As for the holes above the snout, I filled them with Bondo before priming and painting, so there was no issue with sticker alignment. Unless you're planning on painting that detail and leaving the vent holes open, I would recommend filling them. Of course, if you're already applying decals, that probably means your helmet is painted, which means it would be considerable rework to fill now.

Yep, I'll be there!

Any updates on a production run?

Yep, just hot glue. I held it firmly in place and dropped ten or so globs around the edge of the lens, didn't let it go until the glue had solidified.

I agree, which is why I used foam that is very flexible rather than trying to affix plastic to the inside. It will bend just like that, but without crumpling up in the middle.

Super cool! I would have killed for a costume that nice when I was young. How did it go over at school?

I fixed the camel toe issue without tearing my cummerbund apart by attaching a layer of craft foam to the inside-facing side of the flap using snaps. I figured it might prove a useful technique for someone else, so I posted details in a new thread: http://forum.bikersc...showtopic=10898

I recently completed my scout and, while I was very pleased with how it turned out overall, my cummerbund suffered from some wicked camel toe. Even though I had seen the plastic strip mod that prevents this, I didn't want to rip apart my cummerbund and restitch a majority of it to get inside the flap (its construction left no other choice unless I wanted to get real sloppy). Before: I wanted to try craft foam as a method of keeping its shape while also being comfortable and bendable if necessary, but I needed to find a way to attach it to the inside of the flap without stitching through to the front. I figured that small sew-on snaps were my best bet, as I could easily hand stitch through only the inside layer. I cut a wedge of 1/8" craft foam to fit inside the flap and hand sewed snaps into the corners, being careful not to stitch through holes too close together in the foam, else it might rip through when removing it later (the holes are about 1/8" apart at least). Then I sewed the snaps to just the inside layer of the flap, being careful to curve it into a shape like that when worn, otherwise the foam will buckle when it's put on. I secured the stitches with just a touch of glue for good measure, snapped it on, and was good to go. The result works really well and is very comfortable. I may reinforce the tip of the foam wedge to help it stay convex to make absolutely sure it doesn't pinch in the middle, but even like this it's a huge improvement. After:

Ha, yeah, I totally screwed up my first lens by heating it a little to bend, and it warped it in bad ways. Turns out that's not necessary if you have the thinner plastic. I just held it firmly in place in the middle until the hot glue began to firm up.

Jellyfish requested to see the inside of my helmet, and since I thought others might find it helpful I'll post the pics and info here for everyone. I decided to go with Team Wendy ZAP pads which attach to velcro discs on the inside of the helmet. You can place them in any configuration depending on what's comfortable. I actually leave out the top disk when I wear the helmet (as seen in photo on the right) because I found that using it made the helmet ride a little too high on my head. Instead I have placed four pads at the "corners" of my head, which fits perfectly and is super comfortable. I also feel like having a little space between the very top of my head and the dome will keep me cooler than having a felt pad sitting on it. They make a lot of other helmet attachment systems that some might find useful: http://www.teamwendy...-liner-systems/ The ZAP pads can be found all over eBay for a reasonable price. They come in different thicknesses...I went with 3/4" which works well for me (aside from that top disk, as explained above). For scouts with larger heads, 1/2" pads may work better. I added small rare earth magnets to keep the visor/faceplate in place. Because there wasn't enough room to place two magnets between the faceplate and the side of the helmet, I glued one to the inside (covered up by the chinstrap elastic) and one to the inside of the faceplate. Even through the fiberglass, they hold nice and tight. The chinstrap, by the way, is attached with velcro on the inside so that I can easily remove it. It's sort of a pain to wear, and I feel that I'll likely ditch it for longer troops. One other thing I should share while I'm at it is my detonator clips. I ordered a pair of the metal powerdrill clips that others have used to clip the hose ends to the belt, but I instead used them inside the det box to hold the whole apparatus on and let the hose hang free. I used zip ties to attach them so that I can remove them later if necessary without destroying the hose. This allows a slight bit of movement from the clips when it's off, but it's extremely snug and secure once it's clipped onto the overlapped part of the belt webbing and velcro. I'm fairly certain that if the costume allowed me to do cartwheels, this thing would definitely not come off the belt. They were chrome, btw...painted them black and then scuffed them.

Hmm...so it is. I hadn't noticed at all, but this will be an easy fix. This was a commissioned piece from LadySewForUs. I wonder if she does them all this way? As for the camel toe issue, I think I would have to tear the whole cummerbund apart at this point to get the plastic inside the wedge. I was planning to try attaching a wedge of thin closed-cell white foam to the suit-facing side, I just need to find a way to do it without stitching all the way through to the front. It's thick enough, I should be able to hand stitch to just the inside layer.

It's an MLCv3 fiberglass helmet with the MC snout greeblie.

The boots were made by Marcel, so they should be up to snuff. I can definitely post some pics to verify when the time comes. [Edit: on closer inspection, I may need to cut the grooves into the front of the soles after all. Only the back currently has them.] It won't be too difficult for me to tighten the legs up a bit. I'll have to stitch them on the outside, since the suede patches are attached with Heat n Bond, but that shouldn't be too much trouble. Thanks for the feedback!

Also, since the sun really blows out the details on the white stuff, here are a few closeups of the helmet.

I've finally completed my scout! I started collecting pieces in early 2012, but I shelved it when my wife got pregnant with our first child. I spent the next few months buying a house and preparing it for our daughter, who was born in November. I got back to working on the costume this past February, and just finished it this past week. I submitted my application today and thought I'd share some of the photos. I hope to submit for Lancer soon after my basic approval, so any Lancer-specific feedback is welcome. (Note: I recently saw the updated specifications for the pouches. I am working on getting a new set with no top stitches. Everything else has been done with Lancer specs in mind). Helmet is a MLCv3, armor set is MC. Thanks to everyone on this forum for all the great ideas and guidance to help make this happen! Cheers!

Nevermind, I discovered the answer today. I picked up some Heat n Bond Ultra Hold, and it clearly states on the package that it's "great for: fabric, patches, denim, leather, suede, appliques." So, should work fine for the real stuff too. I will find out for sure this week when I add my riding patches.

Can real suede be ironed without ruining it, or would I need to turn the suit inside out to bond it?

I found it at Menards (a regional hardware/home improvement store chain). They have a rather large selection of Rustoleum spray paints. I'm sure you can find at a comparable store. I've bought paints at Home Depot as well, but my local one doesn't have nearly as large a selection as Menards. Here is what I bought, and it worked great: http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=11

Looks fantastic! Just curious, how much does this sucker weigh?

Thanks for all the advice. After sanding the affected pieces, I tried the filler primer. It worked fantastically on all but one of the t-bit pieces, which for some reason was still soaking it up. I resanded that one, patched it with bondo, and reprimed...seems to be okay now. The second coat of black is drying on them now, and they're looking a lot better.

I'll try sanding, filling, and sanding again. The bubbles weren't visible before I started painting. Even if they were there, though, it doesn't explain the strange surface sheen I'm getting around that area as well. Maybe the bondo will help with that too. Thanks for the help!

I'm having some issues with a few resin pieces. I washed these with warm water and dishwashing soap, primed and painted flat black. I'm getting strange surface problems and these small dimples, and no amount of sanding and recoating is making any difference. Did I need to scrub them more before priming? If that's the case, what can I do now? Is there a good way to strip all the paint off of these guys safely and start over? Any help from the pros would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

These look great! Considering the referenced screencap, would these be acceptable for Lancer?

I can't seem to find 1 3/8" elastic anywhere either, but I DID find this: http://www.nancysnotions.com/product/fantastic+elastic+black.do It's 1 1/2" and can be trimmed down lengthwise to any size without unraveling. I can't speak to its quality just yet, but I'm going to order some and cut it down by an 1/8". We'll see if it works.