LTCAlex Posted April 15, 2021 Author Share Posted April 15, 2021 Bondo applied and sanded off! The most prominent parts needing it being on the snout and one of the...lower...front...thingies look I dunno what it's called but blaaaaaah. Anyway now they're nice and smooth. Barely any was needed on the middle seam and there was a tiny little part at the top back that needed it as well but yeah - woot! Don't worry, blast shield is not attached, just sitting there for the picture. Wanted to see how it would look. Still have to paint everything before attaching! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOtrooper Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 Looking good. Sometimes it's helpful to hit it with a light coat of primer to expose all of the imperfections you need to fix. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKZombie Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 You need to fill in all those ridges on the nose part under the eye hole. Also in the corners of the cheeks are little pin holes that need to be filled. Whatever imperfections you see now will only be made worse once painted. You have to be really diligent filling all the Imperfections now as trying to fix them once you put the paint down is a nightmare. Give it another pass filing every spot and show us, with the visor off so we can see the seam front, sides and back. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted April 16, 2021 Author Share Posted April 16, 2021 Second round of bondo GO! And I know things look a bit rough but everything's actually really smooth. I've doublechecked everywhere and, save for the dust (which will get rinsed away), it looks and feels good to me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted April 18, 2021 Author Share Posted April 18, 2021 Took the recommendation to spray some primer on the blast shield to see if any more sanding was needed and I think I spotted some more parts. One of them was a bottom corner that I actually bondod and then sanded and, after sanding, saw no bondo so it wasn't needed? Still did lots of sanding though and it feels really smooth, so. 🤷♀️ I'm making do with what I have, sanding-wise, as the stay-at-home order has just been extended another two weeks, so I can't just bop out to the store and pick up various levels of grit. Right now I have a rough sanding block of unknown grit and some 220, so that's what I've been using. I do hope it's enough, because if I stop doing stuff now I'll basically lose all momentum and that would be bad for my progress and self-confidence. I'm already quivering over basically everything I'm doing, heh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minimo Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 It will get there, these things take time!!! A few cans of this will do wonders in helping you smooth everything out!!! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted April 24, 2021 Author Share Posted April 24, 2021 For accountability: have been sanding the stupid collar piece edges. Have officially reached the point in every costume build where I am seriously considering throwing this all in the garbage and breathing a huge sigh of relief. Of course I'll push through because shoretroopers are cool but hng. Someone please remind me why I love being a plastic spaceman so much. 😓 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aradun Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 You love doing it because when that kid’s eyes get wide with awe at the site of you, you know it was worth all the blood, sweat, and tears. You love it because when that guys asks you where you bought your costume and you grin from ear to ear under your bucket as you see his jaw drop when you tell him you made it. You love it because you’re making a difference raising money for charity dressed as the plastic spacemen you love.Hang in there trooper. You got this! 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOtrooper Posted April 24, 2021 Share Posted April 24, 2021 You're making progress, so that's good. What grit sandpaper are you using? Lower grit (rougher) will sand away more at once but leave a rough finish. Higher grit will leave a smoother finish but take sooo much longer. Usually a bit of the rough passes will get you the shape you need, then smooth it out with higher grit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 2, 2021 Author Share Posted May 2, 2021 Sorry for the lack of updates. I've had zero energy or motivation over the past week. I've been trying to force myself to get back to this though. Hopefully will restart soon. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 Hang in there, Alexandra! When I was feeling less than motivated to do anything on my kit, I told myself to do just one little thing on it. Nothing was too small. A trim of 1cm. One pass of the sanding block on an edge. I tried to do one super small thing a day... and more often than not (and if I had time), I would end up doing a little more than I had planned. And if I didn't, it was no biggie. You got this!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 2, 2021 Author Share Posted May 2, 2021 3 hours ago, Cricket said: When I was feeling less than motivated to do anything on my kit, I told myself to do just one little thing on it. That's an excellent way to deal with this. Thanks for the suggestion - I will put it to good use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minimo Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 Keep it up! You got this trooper!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 4, 2021 Author Share Posted May 4, 2021 Accountability: trimmed the left side of the chest armour of flash. Obvs lots of sanding remains. Forcing myself to continue working on this. At this point motivation and energy are pretty damn low. Ugh. Thanks for all the motivation and help here though - I really do appreciate it. And @TKZombie is going to be sending me some more sandpaper to help with this - thanks so much! ❤️ Do pardon the messy table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minimo Posted May 4, 2021 Share Posted May 4, 2021 Accountability: trimmed the left side of the chest armour of flash. Obvs lots of sanding remains. Forcing myself to continue working on this. At this point motivation and energy are pretty damn low. Ugh. Thanks for all the motivation and help here though - I really do appreciate it. And [mention=82250]TKZombie[/mention] is going to be sending me some more sandpaper to help with this - thanks so much! Do pardon the messy table. Woohoo! Grats on getting back at it!!! Ot will be worth it! Careful with that trim, especially the upper part, you don’t want to make that section less wide than the buckle!!!Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 4, 2021 Author Share Posted May 4, 2021 9 minutes ago, Minimo said: Woohoo! Grats on getting back at it!!! Ot will be worth it! Thank you! At this point I feel like I'm just slogging through a swamp, but I can see the shore on the other side so I guess I just gotta keep trudging through, right? 😓 9 minutes ago, Minimo said: Careful with that trim, especially the upper part, you don’t want to make that section less wide than the buckle!!! I will definitely keep an eye on that as I go! The shoulders were already trimmed when I got the kit - the flash was lower down in the curve. But I don't plan to trim the shoulders any unless I have to, but I feel like that will become obvious later on when I'm fit-testing with tape etc. ❤️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKZombie Posted May 4, 2021 Share Posted May 4, 2021 Are you using the dremel grinding wheel to cut the excess off? If you are that’s likely creating a lot of extra sanding work. A pair of lexan scissors with the curved blade is what I use for 90% of trimming unless it’s a straight cut like cover strips then it’s a score and snap method. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 4, 2021 Author Share Posted May 4, 2021 2 hours ago, TKZombie said: Are you using the dremel grinding wheel to cut the excess off? If you are that’s likely creating a lot of extra sanding work. A pair of lexan scissors with the curved blade is what I use for 90% of trimming unless it’s a straight cut like cover strips then it’s a score and snap method. I had a pair of those but I misplaced them and haven't found them since. I've got a pair of regular scissors that I've been using when the plastic isn't too thick for them though, and then I'll use a dremel cutting thing, and then after that I'll use the dremel to sand what's left and then fine-sand after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted May 4, 2021 Share Posted May 4, 2021 Just a suggestion, but you might find that Lexan scissors cut much more easily through plastic than regular scissors do. They really are time and effort savers! Might be worth getting another pair. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 4, 2021 Author Share Posted May 4, 2021 Yeah, I might just invest in another pair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKZombie Posted May 5, 2021 Share Posted May 5, 2021 Alex, You’re making it a lot harder on yourself than you need to. If you trim with lexan scissors you’ll have minimal sanding to do. You can get a set of straight and curved from Amazon. https://www.amazon.ca/Hobbypark-Scissors-Straight-Bodyshell-Helicopter/dp/B08N48C2RW/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=lexan+scissors&qid=1620184151&sprefix=lexan+&sr=8-6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 5, 2021 Author Share Posted May 5, 2021 Ordering right now @TKZombie. Makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 14, 2021 Author Share Posted May 14, 2021 Sorry for the lack of updates. Have gotten involved in a creative project and been applying for jobs/doing interviews so that's been a big energy leech but my shore's still on the priority list. Trimming update: using my newly arrived lexan scissors I've done trimming of the sides of both the chest and back plates as well as trimmed all the flash off the one shin detail that needed it. I think my next step will be attaching the shin details to the shins. As always, sanding remains. 😑 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTCAlex Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 Gotta admit, I've been looking forward to doing this for a while now - shin details attached woot woot! A nice bump for my confidence. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOtrooper Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 Nice! Looking good! I'm jealous that your plastic is black. Mine is cream so every real world scuff and scrape needs to be painted.Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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