Just doing some minor improvements today. The fake screws I engraved into the helmet really didn't look good, so today I drilled and countersunk the helmet in those locations, then screwed in some brass screws. Looks heaps better.
Busy night tonight. Four hours in the shed with a bunch of scraps, just like Mr Stark in a cave...
Thanks to Xrobots for the ideas, I found some equivalent gear in the $2 shop, plus some junk from my shed and put together an arc-reactor to mount in the chest of my suit.
Off to work early morning, get home late afternoon, straight outside to work on the observatory and as soon as it gets dark, into the shed to work on Iron Man. I often get to come home at lunch time too so I get some work in on the obs or Iron man then. Juggling a newborn baby, time with wife, socialising with friends and family as well as all that...who has time? That's why I usually stay up until around 3 or 4 am. It's the only time I actually get to myself to relax!
Up for work 5:30-6:00 at work by 7:30-8:00 home 4:45pm usually, exercise maybe 1hr walk or bike ride 3-4 times a week. play with dogs (2) feed them, cook dinner most nights, clean up dishes etc, bit on computer catch up emails, IIS etc, watch maybe 2hrs TV usually a serial, watching BSG at moment, then bed by 10:00 - 10:30 most nights.
Wiring in the lights for the eyes on the inside of the faceplate. Some wiring harness to organise and some reflector/shielding to reflect the light forward but shield my own eyes from direct light.
1. Using the spring out of a pen soldered onto the wire and hot-glued to the inside of the faceplate, when the faceplate closes it contacts the bent-over spade connector glued inside the jaw.
2. Completed eye illumination rig. Now to put some shielding over them to dress it off and also reflect the light forward through the glass.
1. FINALLY!! The servo and cable kit arrived from Singapore. Only took 8 weeks...
2. Installing the first pull-cable to the inside hinge of the faceplate.
3. The pull-cable goes through a bent and shaped copper sleeve towards where the servo-motor will be installed in the chin cavity. Glued in with liquid-nails and left for a few days to go rock-hard before I put any kind of stress on it.
Last edited by bloodhound31; 02-02-2013 at 06:45 PM.
1. Installing the servo-motor in the chin space. First a fitted card tub is made then the resin is poured.
2. Installing the servo-motor in the chin space. Once the resin has hardened, the servo motor is dropped into place and screwed down.
3. Parts of the suit are starting to fit together really well now. Neck, shoulders, chest and back brace inside, chest, back, abdominals, rib and lumbar armour.
As part of the whole suit currently under construction, the helmet has taken me a while, but I got the servo and cable working for the downward motion of the helmet's faceplate. Now to duplicate this for the upward motion.
1. The cable tube for pulling the faceplate up has too many curves in it, as well as lifting against gravity, compounded by pulling on the hinge from too far back in the helmet. All these things led to the servo being unable to lift the faceplate, even though it can lower it perfectly well.
2. To solve the problem, the cable tube was removed. Instead, I have placed an aluminium plate inside the helmet. The pull-cable will now be routed through steel eyelets screwed into the helmet and plate, right at the tip. This will achieve superior mechanical advantage to pull the faceplate up.
Trial and error is making the inside of the helmet look messy, but it will all be cleaned up and then lined when it's working properly.
3. To ensure the back, ribs and abdominal armour retain the correct size and shape while the slush-cast is poured inside, I test fit it over my waist, marked the contact points then wired it in place. Braces inside maintain shape while the resin cures and hardens.
Today was all about getting the mid-section of the armour to fit. I fibreglassed the inside, then drew a line where I want to cut it for fitting. I used a couple of plastic wall-plugs wrapped in paper to make seating pins and poured resin mixed with car-body filler over them. I then cut them apart, pulled the cut wall-plugs out and installed new full-length ones. One end will be glued in, while the other end will serve as a guide-pin when getting dressed.
1. Wall-plugs covered in paper and tape. A block taped off to form a dam where the casting will be poured.
2. Cast poured
3. Cut the armour apart with a hacksaw, straight across the middle of the pins.
4. To get the pins out, I used a wood-screw, screwed it in part way then pulled out the plugs.
5. Now both halves fit together perfectly, lined up by the guide pins.
6. It fits! I might have to go for a run or two though, this mid-section is starting to getting a little bloated underneath...
The suit is now ready for the bench. Now that the waist is hardened, it's time to fit it inside the torso to begin hardening the torso in shape. While the fibreglass inside was curing, I modified the arc-reactor and fit it inside it's housing in the torso. I found a beautiful big glass lens out of an old overhead projector and it fits EXACTLY over the top of the arc-reactor, sealing it into the suit.
