The Wire and Mesh Technique

So, I've been meaning to update this thing more often, but I just kept putting it off. So, until I get around to writing entries about the rest of my projects, let's talk about a method I've been messing with for a while now.

The Wire and Mesh Technique is actually really simple and can be several different ways. I've used the wireframe thing in the past to create large structures and then cover them in cardboard, which gives okay results, but is is flawed for a few reasons. Most of them being the the wireframe shows through beneath all that cardboard and duct tape if you don't make the framework tight enough.

As seen here

Gunlance Complete

It's finally done..
The Iron Gunlance G!

It's big.

And now, with this, my biggest, most complex, and best looking prop completed.. Let's have a look at how it came to be. This is particularly important for me because this prop was the culmination of everything I've taught myself over these past few years of making costumes and props.
 

Gunlance updates

I've been doing some more work on the Gunlance and things have been coming along great. It's pretty much done as far as structure, mechanics, and basic details are concerned. The rest of the work entails lots of gesso priming, sanding, painting, more sanding, then detailing.

I got a chance to get outside during one of the few days it wasn't pouring rain, and even made a brief video about it.

There isn't a whole lot to say that isn't said about the video. The whole thing is heavy as hell and almost 9 feet long.

Since making that video, I've done some further upgrading. All of the magnets are now fully inserted into the cardboard tubing and reinforced for structural reasons.

As seen here

There is now a ring of 5 magnets around the inner edge of the barrel, and 5 on the outer edge of the body. The hold from all 10 of them is pretty astonishing and actually much stronger than I had thought. Which is a good thing. To reinforce the whole thing, I cut up some more tubing and added a few pieces to both ends so the weight wouldn't stress what may be the weakest part of the whole structure.

Right now, I'm in the process of covering the bayonet in more glue to give it a smoother uniform texture, and covering everything else in gesso, which is great for filling in cracks and problem areas. May look like crap right now, but after lots of sanding, this will look fantastic. you won't even be able to tell it's cardboard.

Secret Project: F***ing Magnets

I've been (slowly) working on something for the past few months and it's finally coming together. This is particularly surprising because I've been working on all these different parts separately and to suddenly realize how close I am to being done is quite nice.

So, this announcement is two-fold. First off, I'm building a Gunlance, and it's looking great. Secondly, come ACen this May, I will be entering the Masquerade for the first time. Usually I avoid the masquerades and contests because I never have my costume done in time, but this time I have the fully upgraded set of armor and a new weapon, both of which should definitely be done in time. Also, this should be the second time I've been able to do a group costume with my best friend Kevin, who will be making Monster Hunter Guild Knight armor for the occasion.

Yeah. It's huge.

This have been a fascinating project that really feels like the total sum of everything I've learned about working with cardboard, glue, and tape. It's sturdy, it's fairly light, and it's quite well put together, while still being to scale and fairly accurate. This gunlance has been far more mathematical than anything I've made before. I spent some time carefully measuring and scaling the size of the gunlance from the PSP itself and after some initial calculations, I had to change the scale for someone even shorter than myself so this thing could still be manageable.

What I'm really proud of, though, is that I not only made it to scale, but also functional in some ways. The whole thing can actually fold up and collapse so it takes up less space and makes it easy to transport.

The barrel folds down and the handle slides into itself

However, in it's current condition, there is actually a problem with it being folded out: The barrel doesn't stay up and puts stress on the hinge. So, that brings us to the title. Kevin has given me some rare earth magnets (the ultra strong kind) and I intend to build them into the back of the barrel and the front of the chamber and make it so this thing just snaps into place with the magic power of magnets.

There is still much work to do, but it's finally looking like a Gunlance.

If you want to see more, you can always find more pictures in My Photobucket Album