sword time once more

[rose_of_pain]

So I'm once again attempting a Buster Sword. Hoping to get it to look a million times better this time.

Sadly am not able to make it out of wood at this time as none of the places had any pieces big enough of the wood light enough for me to actually hold and anything heavier would probably kill me. ^^;; And not really enough time to order anything.

So we're trying foam again as the base but this time a much thinner foam so its easier to shape and sand. So far proving to be a million times nicer looking.

However, I'm of course SUPER worried about how brittle its going to be. So obviously need to put something on top of it. But I have no idea what! So if any of you know of anything to suggest that can possibly make it sturdier, please do tell. I have a few ideas but not sure what one would actually work.

~Lyn

Comments

[cluequeen.livejournal.com]

STYRENE DOO EET!!

No really I did this for my Tomahawk for Lexeaus and it's sturdy and shit

[rose-of-pain.livejournal.com]

Not the first time I've heard its good on weapons. Though by it do you mean the plastic sheets or the liquid form? And where can I get it? I am very much interested to know more.

[cluequeen.livejournal.com]

Sheets. Link below. I use the .002 it's like 5 bucks a sheet and if you order a bunch you get a discount. this is the sane stuff Waltz boots, cowl, gauntlets are made from, and well as a BUNCH of other shit I've made lately.

You attach it to the foam base using a LOW temp glue gun. small sections at a time apply to the foam and get yourself a Brayer or a can of hairspray to smooth it out as you go. you can do 1 or 2 layers, since the sword has no curves and pretty straight forward it'll be easy to put two layers on. and when it's all said and done paint with tester paints, the spray paint in Crome looks just like metal and has a wonderful shin, but then you go over it to dull and age it and stuff, or just use the silver paint which is just silver colored with a slight "sparkle" to it. uuummm blah blah blah, yeah use it, if you don't want to do that, I've also heard that the Cast'n Crafts resin works well for coating and streagthening. but you've gotta get a lot and it take like 24 hours to dry so make sure you've got a place that it could lay down for that long and then you've gotta do the other side, sand and then paint.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/product.asp?catalog_name=USPlastic&category_name=76&product_id=3008&MSCSProfile=95385A1F52DEA1A229D5B3754205446462164A47DEEA1BEC0FBADFB7CA898525076B2736C9F15078AF132477D9E5531E100A2404EB074100CDD13A8C006AE81D7FAC9988529BDA155AFC1C30C0B0AA68F6D891EE58AE04C9B7B4FBAACBDC19DC69C97E4AAB01387955ED33E64947F032CB10EFE8B22D9E685617C1079E6242E5C401C08945CC7863

[rose-of-pain.livejournal.com]

Sweet. o_o How long does it take to ship usually? I'm amazed at how big the sheets are for that price. Pretty nice.

So do the edges of the pieces meld together so there's not obvious lines? Sorry I'm asking so many questions as I'm a n00b at most prop stuff.

[cluequeen.livejournal.com]

=3 if you don't ask you'll never learn >> and trust me learning on your own with a glue gun set to High temp isn't fun >>

It's pretty fast, yeah if you go thicker it's pricey but for what you want it's cheep.

What you'll do is butt the edges together, and trim off with a razor blade or an X-acto (I use one of thows OMG HUGE razor blades for cutting sculpy clay) then if you have any "holes" or spots where the foam is showing threw fill it in with hot glue like a putty on wood, after it cools trim it up with razor, and paint, as long as you get the glue cut even it won't even show under the paint. and sanding has to be done with plastic sandpaper, the kind for model cars, as Styrene IS the stuff model cars are made from.

Just make a pattern of the flat part of the blade, and then the blade edges, and cut them out of styrene leaving like an inch or 2 around the edges, then once you get it glued down you'll trim off the edges.

UUUmmmmUUUUmmmmm go look at my DA TheRealNuriko there's pics of me as Lexeaus, and you'll see my Tomahawk there

[gherix.livejournal.com]

brittany and i swear by the blueboard foam they have at lowes or home depot for cheap. the stuff already comes in huge lengths and thicknesses (for a buster sword its prolly thick enough you wouldn't need to glue pieces together). tho for something that long its prolly good to re-enforce it w/ some pvc pipe or thick wire down the center... and never spray paint directly on it to avoid chemical reactions.

[rose-of-pain.livejournal.com]

I used it for the last sword but wanted to use something a bit easier to cut this time so got something thinner but its kinda similar but anything at this thin-ness needs something to help support it. And I managed to get like the perfect smooth shape with it so its just a matter of adding stuff to it. I'm hoping the plastic sheeting I ordered will do the trick.

[cheebang.livejournal.com]

I think there is a place in Greenbelt called Piedmont Plastics (they closed their rockville location)... they sell styrene sheeting if you're looking local.

[rose-of-pain.livejournal.com]

Good to know! In case I need more and don't have enough time to order it. ^^

[ryuuraigeki.livejournal.com]

best thing for this is probably some type of foamcoat. there's quite a few products available, but this one was recced to me by a prop friend I trust to know his stuff. (think it was used on this)

[rose-of-pain.livejournal.com]

Oooh, though I'm a bit confused as I can only seem to find sites telling me about it, not where I can buy it or how much it is. XP I already am going to be trying the plastic sheeting method but I'll definitely consider that for the future (or if the styrene doesn't work)

[ryuuraigeki.livejournal.com]

I believe you have to actually call them to place an order~ (I don't think there's an internet checkout for it.)