Pleurodeles Waltl

Green, I was just noting the potential for an Infected mask. It'll be regular green, though slightly darker and more worn than the real mask, in a similar style to my Hau. However, I imagine Lewa as not having the same damage patterns- he's agile and fast, not one to fall easily but when he falls it's hard, same with taking blows. So, the damage will consist mostly of localized damage, like scrapes and dents, as opposed to the all-out scuffing I did on Tahu's mask.

I made the base for this a while ago, but now I've gotten back to work on it and figured I'd post the progress pictures. I've already made a Hau, but I'm using a slightly different process for this Miru. It started with a paper file from CrunchbiteNuva, then I coated it with fiberglass resin and reinforced it with fiberglass. Now I've coated it with Bondo body filler and sanded it down, I'll add more coats then paint it, with less damage detail than the Hau. Without further ado: and here's a closer look at it, I realized that one coat would be an excellent base for an Infected mask: My garage is a mess right now thanks to some water damage so I'm working on a pizza box on a board, in the driveway. Ta-Metru it ain't. I'll post more pictures as it gets closer to completion.

The models aren't perfect, but most of the errors come out in the process. Overall, serious props to you and Crunchy, these masks are great. I'm really enjoying working with them. Thanks to the both of you!Double-post, don't know if anyone cares or is even looking at this anymore, but I should have my Miru done soon (been busy, gotta finish it before school gets going) and there's actually a possibility that my friend has the proper equipment to help me make a metal firesword. Yeah, that's right. It'd be thin, but it would be a metal Tahu sword to go with my mask. So... that'd be cool once I figured out the hilt. Anyway, I'll probably just make a separate topic for the Miru once it's Bondo'd up.

Quick-made another mask last night, finished it this morning. Been sidetracked with an Iron Man helmet for a friend, first time with resin and Bondo and it came out ok, will probably use the same technique to complete the Pakari and Miru. Reason why I'm not done yet More mask! Edit: Added the first coat of resin to the outside of my Miru. I”ll fiberglass it tomorrow as I have things to do tonight. I’ll finish it off at some point with Bondo, not sure if that’ll be before or after I resin the Pakari. Don’t think I’ll coat the outside of that one since I already added so much Modge Podge.

Ok, I got some materials to fiberglass and Bondo a couple older projects so the Pakari's going on hold for a bit. It's currently sealed with Modge Podge and ready for strengthening, so I'll get back to it eventually.

What have we here...

Assuming I managed to construct such a thing without exploding my face off, I'd give it... oh, three minutes before I caught something, or someone, on fire. "With all due respect, great Toa, you might want to watch where you point that thing" -Jala, Tale of the Toa

I actually have the full files for several different suits of armor (Halo, Iron Man, etc) but the time and expertise (and money) involved aren't really things I've got. The fire sword is a layered cutout, at the moment it's just some cardboard slices but I'll complete the other half at some point and make it presentable. Maybe I'll cut it out of wood eventually.

Oh haha wow that'd be awesome, but no. I don't have the know-how to make the files, and I doubt there's enough general interest for Crunchy to want to make them. The costume I have in mind is more like what a human Toa would wear, not quite a tribal look but a low-tech sort of general-use outfit, loose cloth with wrapping and belts. The color scheme would be based on the set, but at this point the costume's just a rough idea. Oh also a big part would be finishing up my fire sword. I'd use magnets to make it stick to my back, or a sword belt across my back.

Got some more pictures of the final mask, with the additional weathering. Just hanging out. Front shot because someone asked, also you can sorta see the relative size of it better. Tahu quit hiding in bushes. (Pointless) Finally just another look at the weathering detail. I'm really glad to have this done, it's not perfect but it's cool to have around. I can't wait till I get to wear it somewhere. Speaking of: thanks to the padding it's actually quite comfy to wear around and doesn't shift much on my head. It gets a little warm after a while but it would be well worth it to wear with a costume, which I plan on pulling together at some point.

Compared to the DJ Kumo mask, it's mainly not quite as smooth. If I remember correctly he used resin on the outside, which meant he had a thicker layer to work with: If I sanded too far down, I went through my Modge Podge and got to paper, which would make it fairly ugly and then require a looot more effort to fix. So, I had to live with a slightly lumpier overall, mostly thanks to the fact that it was pretty much my first Pep so the shape is a little distorted. It is, however, more detailed than the Kumo mask. His was what I went for at first, the very polished and shiny look of the set masks, but it just didn't work. So, mine now has a more "realistic" feel to it with the weathering. Overall, DJ Kumo's has the much better structure (and DAT CIRCUITRY it makes me jealous!), but I'm still happy with mine. I'll try to get a good shot of the front, and of me wearing it just to show how it sits. It's actually really comfy with all the padding I've put in. And Crunchy, you can (with any luck) expect a Pakari in the near future! I'd actually have it Pep'd already, but my ancient hellspawn of a printer finally died. Even the trouble-shooting software doesn't work. But, I'll get it printed soon then get some resin and get to work! I even have the other half of that strap and some more buttons to use, so it should come together fairly quickly.

I've finally completed the Hau I started last summer! It started as a Pepakura model thanks to CrunchBiteNuva, then I Modge Podged it and poured casting resin on the inside to strengthen it. I then spray-painted it and it kinda sat around forever looking a bit sloppy... it didn't have a way to stay on my head, the paint job was messy, and the lines from the base model still showed. So, the other night I took it and sanded the Karzahni out of it until it was smoother. From there, though, I kept going: I've always liked the feel of the original comics, where the Toa were scratched and scuffed, and did my best to translate that into this mask. I scarred it a bit with a Dremel drill and knife to simulate damage, and to break up some of the remaining lines, then added primer: Once I was satisfied with the "damage" I moved on the the actual paint. I gave it a nice shiny red coat... then sanded and scratched it up, using the Exacto knife to expose some of the primer layer while the sanding dulled the finish. Overall, it worked well. The damage looks fairly natural, and the scuffing and less shiny paint job makes the lines less noticeable. The whole thing looks more like an actual, used mask now like I always imagined. I couldn't get a good picture of the whole mask, but here's a part: EDIT: I added some more weathering to the mask and now I'm completely done messing with it. I took a black oil pastel (for lack of better materials), put a bit on all the scuffed areas, then rubbed it around really well and wiped it off. This left "dirt" in the scratches in a fairly organic way, making the damage seem a bit smoother and more realistic. My sole dissatisfaction in the weathering came when I tried to fill some of the deeper marks with a small amount of borrowed black nail polish. It didn't wipe off quite like I'd hoped, and stayed darker than I wanted. However, it covered over the areas where paper was showing so I can live with it. I'll say they're scorch marks. I'll put up more pictures soon. The button there is part of how it's held on my head: I drilled two holes in the mask, painted some buttons, and used them to secure a ring and part of a hunting rifle strap I got for $1 at Goodwill like thus: The adjustable strap keeps it on, the foam keeps it in the right place and keeps my chin comfy, and the mesh keeps my face partially obscured while allowing me to see. I've also since added some foam in the forehead for comfort and position. Final note: it's pretty tough. I accidentally hit my head pretty hard on a table corner while wearing it, and the blow just bounced off the mask and didn't leave a mark. So there it is, my finished Hau! It's not perfect, but for a first completed Pepakura project I'm pretty pleased.

Glad to have the archive back up, with new masks to boot! Excellent, excellent, more things to make after I fix my Hau. Thanks Crunchy!

Thanks, I'll definitely consider that. It could be a while before I get around to it, my free time has been eaten by school and Speech, so I'll have time to check things out. Also, congratulations on the news page! I actually saw your Chronicler's Coffee in a couple places before I realized it's yours, so it's gotten around. Awesome work!

That's a great idea! I don't have any old headphones laying around but I'll see if I can make something like that work.I'm thinking of doing a simple Iron Man helmet, and not putting too much into it but I would like it decently reinforced. Crunchy, any tips on helmet reinforcement? I'm also eyeballing a Mark VI Spartan helmet for later on...

Well, I'm fairly glad I saved all the patterns to my computer a while ago. I do think you should leave it up for a while.Anyway, used my mask tonight. Couldn't wear it to school and didn't go trick-or-treating (never too old but had other plans) but I took it to a party. People thought it was pretty cool, especially those who knew what it was. Still haven't got a good way to keep it on though...

I do agree that a Kraahkan would be pretty awesome if insanely hard.I'd already thought about drilling, but the resin is too thing on one side- it didn't pour quite evenly. Even with thick resin I'd still be hesitant. I'm pretty against hurting my baby. I'll figure something out, even if I just have to duct tape it to my head for Halloween.

Alright, thanks! I'll do that tonight or tomorrow and let you know how it goes!*Edit*Yeah. So. Hot glue: not enough of a bond on mask or goggles to be long-term. Strap: too long.So my mechanism wouldn't stay on my mask and my mask wouldn't stay on my head. Back to the drawing board...

It also depends on how far you're taking the construction of the mask. Cutting+glueing will take several hours. Coating it with podge before painting, a while longer depending on how many coats. Adding resin, though, will be by far the biggest time-consumer, though I couldn't put a figure on it. A long time. If you just want to cut, glue, podge, and paint a mask, you could probably do it in a dedicated weekend. Casting would add probably a day though.I'm basing that estimate off the Medium-difficulty Hau. An easy mask may take less time, and a Hard will definitely take more. It's a fun experience though, and your friend will certainly enjoy it!Alright, I've dug out an old pair of ski goggles and taken them apart- I'll try to cut the orange plastic into lenses, I may or may not be able to make the amount of plastic fit the eyeholes on my Hau.But the main point is, I've now got the strap with almost half the frame on each end. My thought is to hot-glue them into the broad, flat part of the inside, near the back edge. It wouldn't be the most elegant-looking, but it would hold the mask on and offer some degree of padding and adjustability. Anyone have any better ideas? I'm sure there's a better way to do it but I'm having difficulty coming up with anything feasible.

i think there's a lot of stuff here to work with so there's no real hurry, but I'd love to see the Akaku and Kakama (lot of ak's!) just to complete the Mata set.

I was planning on humming Flight of the Valkyries loudly in MNOG spirit.

Almost used my Hau for a rather unique purpose today-So we have a hot tub but some of the side panels are loose and a bunch of wasps made nests under them- we got Raid and it was my job to dress in heavy clothing and go out in the 90-degree heat to spray the nests. At first I used a swim mask and tightened my sweatshirt hood way up, but I couldn't breathe and the goggles fogged up. i was trying to figure out what to use when it hit me: I ran to my room and tried my mask on. It fit snugly enough against my hood to not let wasps in and the mesh allowed me to breathe while keeping the wasps out. In short, it was perfect.But, sadness of sadness, I had no good way of keeping it on my head yet- still no strap. :(So instead I opted for a Creeper head that I made for Halloween last year and that used the same mesh for the face. It seemed fitting enough for destroying their painstakingly made homes.

impressive. Is there a particular reason they didn't post it here?

Finished as in resined, painted, whole shebang, or just paper?

Hey, congrats on the Flash Fire contest!But yeah, I think probably what I'll do is make a new one and hopefully it'll be better than my current one, then I can repaint my current one. Hopefully I use the paint job to cover over or distract from those lines.