When a son asks if you could help him dress up like the exiled Dwarf King of Mithril Hall: “Ye do what ye has to do!” to make it happen. That’s forgotten realms character Bruenor Battlehammer’s motto. On this particular occasion back in July we had just witnessed a YouTube video by a professional prop maker and Cosplayer Evil Ted Smith. Ted had showed how easy it was to make a Sci-Fi helmet out of an EVA foam puzzle shaped floor tile. Using nothing more than a box cutter, template, and contact cement he created something cool.
We know this trap. We’ve all been here before. It’s just all so easy until you try it yourself right?
On this particular day though, I really liked the character my son had chosen as his possible costume to wear to a Comic Con that was 2 months away and Halloween which was three months. I knew I had to wait a couple weeks for supplies to arrive but the major build took place over about 3 weekends and a few spare hours here and there. When I set my schedule goals it seemed reasonable, so I decided to go for it and give it a try. In the end, it's really not that hard to work with foam, especially when you know a few hints.
The InspirationMeet Bruenor Battlhammer. The 8th and 10th dwarven king of Mithril Hall, Bruenor is from the world known as Faerun in the far northern parts of the “Forgotten Realms” universe. Bruenor is a character created by R.A. Salvatore for his Dark Elf series of books. For this costume, we chose this cover art by Clyde Caldwell for “Streams of Silver” which was the second book in the Icewind Dale trilogy.
For the project, we want to try and make a few key props that will make Bruenor come to life. We need a Shield with foaming mug crest on it, a one-horned Helmet, and an Ax. Lesser elements that will be made, store bought, or items picked up and put together from local thrift store finds include the red beard, furry boots, and medieval looking clothing. I think with a lot of costumes I’ve seen, if you nail it on the main items, you can have a lot more latitude on these smaller detail pieces. This is a project for Makers, so let's make something.
The ShieldTime Estimate: 6-8 hours spread over 3 days.2x 24” EVA Foam Floor tiles
1x sheet 6mm(1/4”) 24” x 60” EVA foam (This one sheet can handle all your needs for all the items in the whole project)
1 qt Barges contact cement (this is enough for the whole project) [Optional: you can try hot glue but results may not be as good.]
4x 10mm Binding posts (aka Chicago Screws or barrel bolts)
1 tube Super glue or 5 min epoxy
~24” length of 1” wide webbing strap or an old leather belt you can sacrifice
1x can of Plasti-dip spray.
Various small tubes of acrylic artist paint to taste
Tools ListBox cutter
Knife sharpener
Xacto knife
Metal Straight edge
Tape measure
Sharpie pens
Latex rubber gloves
Scissors
Drill
Screwdriver
Heat gun
Band saw (optional)
Dremel (optional)
Build StepsFirst step is to watch this video by prop builder Bill Doran of Punished Props on YouTube in which he builds a similar shield out of EVA foam tiles:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKO1yrWcNCU
Step 1: Small Victories Build Confidence!The shield is really easy to do so we will start with it. Lay out a EVA foam tile with the texture printed face side down. Most tiles have a usable area of 22” inside the puzzle detail. You want to draw a circle on this tile nearly 22” round. To do this, you can either use either a big compass if you have access to one, or you can use a push pin in the center with a pen on a string to scribe the circle. Also draw 3 parallel lines: One line runs through the center point and the others splitting the distance to the outer edges. These lines are marking faux wood planks to make up the shield. Repeat this for the second tile.
Using a sharp box cutter knife or band saw cut out the circles. Take your time and keep the knife as straight as possible. After cutting the circle, use a straight edge to guide you to cut a shallow groove in the three parallel lines. You can also use a Dremel with a sanding wheel to perform this step if you have one. Do this for both pieces.
Next, Decide which circle piece will be the front an which will be the back. Take the circle that will be the rear and you will need to mark the location of 4 holes that will be used to anchor the 2 straps for your arm. Put your left arm across the center of the shield roughly with your wrist near the center. Mark a dot about 1 inch above and below your palm area and again 1.5-2” above and below your upper forearm. These are the anchor points for the straps. Once you have them marked, drill the holes and test fit the 2 part Binding Posts or "Chicago screws" in them. Ideally, you want to drill the holes a bit small to keep the barrel part snug so they can’t pull out easily. Apply super glue to the barrels and push them through from the back side. Allow this to dry. We won't put the straps on till after the paint step.
Using 80 or 100 grit sandpaper to sand the textured side (finished face) of the 2 circles to rough them up for gluing and smooth the bumps a bit. Put the 2 pieces together to check for any pattern left that may prevent the parts from going together tight. Hint: place a line across the top of both tiles to use to align them the same way every time.
Special Safety NoteWhen ready, you are going to glue the pieces together using strong contact cement. Barges cement is really good but it has fumes that can be dangerous if you inhale too much of it. Wear rubber gloves in a well ventilated area when dealing with this stuff. No kids allowed in other words. A respirator is recommended especially when doing large glue ups such as the shield and ax heads. Transferring some of the cement into a smaller Glue-bot or jar can help cut down on the fumes a bit. Alternatively you can use hot glue but the results will not be as good in my opinion.
Step 5Time to glue the two circles together. Set up in a well ventilated area to do this glue up because you will be using quite a bit and the fumes will be strong. Put on rubber gloves and a respirator or a fan if you have one. Lay out the two circles sanded side up and begin applying glue to both pieces. Contact cement works by applying to both pieces and allowing them to dry (5 minutes or so) to a tacky feel. When you place the pieces together you really need to line them up well before allowing them to touch because the bond is almost instant and permanent. Use your alignment lines to bring them together straight. The glue bond is near instant but it can separate a little or warp so you should still use either scrap wood and clamps to hold the edges together tight or use a heavy weight placed on top. If you use too much glue or don’t let it set up tacky first it may try to pull apart or slide so clamping helps. Let this dry for several hours or overnight before you handle it. Clean up the edges with a sharp knife later.
Step 6Lay out the sheet of 6mm(1/4") EVA foam and use a box cutter and metal straight edge to cut 3x 1.5” wide x 60" long strips. These will be the metal bands around the outer edge of the shield. Use a heat gun to heat the strips and bend them with your hands into a curve. Don’t over stretch the foam, you only want a gently sweeping curve that will follow the edge of the shield and lay flat when you glue it.
Step 7Apply cement to one of the strips and to the outside top edge of the shield. Hint: test the strip on the edge and use a marker to mark where cement is needed. Carefully attach the strip to the edge. You may use spring clamps to help hold it in place. Use additional strips as needed to continue around the edge. Use sharp knife to cut off excess to complete circle. Allow to dry and repeat for back side.
If you used hot glue and or your edges are a bit rough you can try this. Cut an additional strip of 6mm foam to the same width as the outside thickness of the shield and bands. Use glue and wrap the outside of the shield in this strip and trim flush.
Step 8The Foaming mug is the standard of clan Battlehammer. I came up with the idea of doing the mug in puzzle piece elements to make the image pop a bit. This shield is for show and not LARP so you can make it any way you like. I’m not an artist so to make this I surfed the web for several images of mugs I could blend a bit to make the final design. Cut the template out and used it to trace and cut out the mug elements using more of the 6mm foam sheet.
Lay out the pieces of the mug centered in the shield and put alignment marks around the outside. Apply cement to the shield and mug pieces and attach.
Step 10Use a tube of Kwik-Seal to fill any seam or joint gaps. Use a wet finger to smooth the filler and hide joints.
Step 11Use small pieces of masking tape to cover the screw holes on the back of the shield. Wipe the shield to remove any loose dust from the surface to prep for paint. Apply 2 coats of Plasti-Dip to the entire shield. The rubber coating makes it tougher and will smooth the surface a bit to give a good consistent surface for the paint to stick to.
Apply acrylic paint. I used Burnt Sienna and Burnt Umber for the wood grain then applied Metallic Silver, Metallic Copper, Titanium White, and Metallic Bronze to the Mug and outer ring. Build up layers of paint until the desired look is achieved. Once paint is complete, use an airbrush or spray bottle to add a couple light coats of Pledge Floor Care wax to seal the paint and protect it. You can also go with spray paints rated good for plastic if you prefer as well. Rustoleum Metallic spray works well.
Measure out nylon strap material and cut to length. Be sure to cut the length long enough to cover any costume pieces you may be wearing as well as your arm. Drill or punch a hole through the strap just big enough to accommodate the screw. I re-purposed an existing strap that was a bit wide so I folded it in half on the handle piece and wrapped with electrical tape to be a better hand grip. Be creative.
2x 24” EVA Foam Floor tiles
1x sheet 6mm(1/4”) 24” x 60” EVA foam (This one sheet can handle all your needs for all the items in the whole project)
1 qt Barges contact cement (this is enough for the whole project) [Optional: you can try hot glue but results may not be as good.]
1x 3/4" pvc pipe cut to 42" long
2x 3/4" pvc end caps
2x 1.5" wide x 54" long strips of Brown (leather looking)Upholstery Vinyl
1x can of Rustoleum Metallic "Dark Steel"
1x can of Plasti-dip spray.
Various small tubes of acrylic artist paint to taste
Tools ListBox cutter
Knife sharpener
Xacto knife
Metal Straight edge
Scrap piece of 1" dia copper pipe (for cutting round holes into foam)
Tape measure
Sharpie pens
Scissors
Heat gun
Wood burner kit
Bench Belt sander (preferred but optional)
Band saw (optional)
Dremel (optional)
Step 1: Taking a Project to Another LevelDo your homework. The basic parts of this ax is based loosely on this YouTube video by Maker Chris Huebert aka "LostWax" You can download his pattern for free too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra3QSbxprTQ
My design takes this basic creation and supersizes it and modifies it to a whole new level.
Step 2My ax design is approx 44" long with a dual ax head that is approx 20" wide. If you want more of a hand ax you can shorten the handle and shrink or remove one of the heads. Cut a section of 3/4" schedule 40 pvc pipe to 42" long. This will be your handle. Rough up the whole pipe and end caps with sandpaper to help the cement stick to it later.
Step 3Dry fit the end caps on the pipe and use a sharpie to mark the pipe where the caps stop. You are going to wrap the lower part of the pipe above the lower mark in 6mm EVA foam and the upper blade areas will be built up from several floor tile pieces. To avoid having to be perfect on all the measurements, we will have a foam nut that will act as a spacer in the middle we can cut down to match everything up.
Step 4The outside diameter of a piece of 6mm foam wrapped around the pipe is roughly 4.75 inches. I found it easier to cut a piece that was wider than this and use an Xacto knife to do the final fit while gluing. Suggest you take a piece of scrap 6mm EVA and practice a bit to decide your preference on this. Go my way? Cut a section of 6mm EVA foam 6" wide and 32.5" long
We are going to attach this wrap in 2 separate glue steps but we need it straight. If you have the tools or know how to put a straight line along the shaft of the pipe to keep the wrap from being twisted do it now. The strong tacky nature of the cement will prevent you from pulling this apart and starting over if you screw it up so every advantage you can give yourself in lining things up is a plus. An easy way without special tools to scribe a line along a pipe is to clamp the pipe at both ends along the edge of a bench or board. Use your sharpie against this to scribe a line.
Work in a well ventilated area and use rubber gloves. Use a heat gun to heat the foam and pre-wrap it around the pipe so that it will take the shape. Next, apply Barges Cement to about 1/2" wide edge of the EVA foam strip and also to the same width next to your line on the pipe. Allow the cement to dry till tacky and carefully line up the foam with your lines and stick it to the pipe. Use spring clamps if needed to hold the piece in place until it dries. This first step will give you an anchor to pull against as you wrap it around the rest.
Step 7Apply Cement to the remainder of the pipe wrap area and to the foam (if you cut it 6" wide you can stop 1" short so you can grip and pull with this part). Allow to dry to tacky and carefully wrap it the rest of the way around the pipe. Use a very sharp Xacto knife to cut and tuck the ends together. If you leave a small gap you can fill it using Kwik-Seal later. You can also use superglue if the gap is close to squeeze it together and close it.
Cut 4x pieces of EVA floor tile 2.5" x 6" long (or longer is fine). Sand the pattern sides to rough them up for glue up. Apply cement and glue the pieces together in a sandwich with the pattern sides facing toward the inside. These will be cut and shaped to form the end caps and center nut. You could add a 5th piece to try to make it more symmetrical if you prefer.
The foam end caps are approx 1 3/4" long. You are going to need to "drill" out about an 1" inch round and 1" deep area for the PVC end cap to fit inside(your PVC caps may vary so check your measurements). Hint: DO NOT use a drill. The foam just doesn't drill that well on this sort of piece. One good option is to use a Dremel with a grinding stone to tunnel it out if you have one. Another option is to use a piece of 1" diameter copper pipe. Take a knife and score the inside edge of the pipe to sharpen it. It doesn't take much to make it sharp. Use the pipe and twist it into the foam by hand. It may not seem to be doing much but when it starts to cut it will sink in quick so be careful not to go too deep. Sink the pipe in about 1" and remove it. Take a pair of needle nose pliers and tear out the plug if it remains. Test fit the pipe cap inside and make deeper if needed. You want to have the pipe cap just below the edge.
Step 10Verify your depth of your drill cut in the previous step and add about 1/2 to 3/4" to the number and mark it. Cut the end cap cover to this length and use a knife and sandpaper or a Dremel to bevel the edges. You can modify the design to your own liking and skill. Bevels are a pain to get right so rounded edges are just fine if you prefer. When done sanding, use 5 min epoxy to glue the PVC cap inside the foam cap. Repeat steps 9 and 10 for other cap and center nut. For center nut, only bevel one end and drill completely through the piece. We will set the final length and finish the bevel later. Save the plug material from the center nut. We will take this and slice it up to make rivets out of it for the ax head piece.
Step 11Apply 2 coats of Plasti-Dip to the end caps and center nut and let dry. Finish these pieces with Rustoleum Metallic spray paint Silver or Dark Steel and set aside to dry.
The leather grip will cover the lower 20" of the handle. Mark this line on the handle. Use a wood burner kit to add random streaks of wood grain to the foam above this. If you don't have a wood burner you can use an Xacto knife to score the foam and then use a heat gun to open the grooves a bit. Next add notches to show the many victories this ax has had.
Step 13Apply paint to the upper handle. Build up layers of Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, and any other woodsy colors to give this area a wooden handle look. Use lighter color to highlight the carve out notches. Seal the paint with clear matt spray or with a coat of Pledge Floor Care.
Cut 2x 1.5" wide 54" long strips of Brown (leather looking)Upholstery Vinyl. Apply contact cement to the bottom 6" of the handle and the back of the first 8 inches of faux leather strip. Wrap from the bottom one full wrap and then half lapping up the handle. At the joint to additional pieces of vinyl, unwrap and apply contact cement to the area and backs of the strips. When tacky, finish wrapping first piece and then begin second strip. At top of wrap, apply contact cement to the top 2" of handle and the back of the strip to complete one final top wrap.
Great handle now let's make it an ax. The ax head is made up of 6 layers of foam. Top and bottom plate, top and bottom 6mm filler plate and two layers that make up the ax face. Use template to trace and cut out 2x ax heads with the template face up and 2x with the template face down. This is because you want the pattern faces in the center on each side and the symmetry of the pattern requires you to flip the template. All 4 can be traced on 1 tile but you have to play with the pattern a bit to get them all on without overlapping each others. Mark each blade to create sets: template upright and template flipped is one set. Mark top edge and bottom edge on each as well. Transfer the bevel lines to the blades.
Sand the pattern faces to rough them up. Make sure you have correct sets (right front and right rear piece etc) together. Apply cement to the pattern faces and glue the two halves of each blade together. Clamp or put weights on the pieces to keep them together. Let dry.
Top and bottom plates for the ax head are made up of a piece of 6mm foam and a piece of EVA floor tile cut to 2 1/2" w x 6 1/2" long and stacked together. Cut out 2x pieces each from 6mm and EVA floor tile. Note: if you choose not to do a detail piece (The Dragon or similar) on the ax heads you can skip the 6mm layer on each side. Rough up the patten side of the EVA foam and use cement to bond a 6mm layer to each. Allow to dry.
Step 18Use sandpaper or a dremel to bevel or round over all 4 edges of the EVA foam pieces. Try to keep the top and bottom symmetrical when finished.
Step 19Lay out the pieces of the ax head and handle and dry fit them all together to look for anything that needs adjusting. Use a scrap piece of EVA tile and 6mm foam sheet under each blade to prop it up level. When assembled the top and bottom plates should fit flush against the ax blade pieces without gaps. You may need to sand a channel into the 6mm sheet layers to achieve this. Line up the top of the heads with the line where the top cap will stop on the handle. Measure the distance between the bottom of the head plates and the wood grain area. Use this measurement to cut the foam nut to the proper length and finish the same as in steps 9, 10, and 11.
Before you glue the ax head together on the handle we still need to do several things. The foam nut must be finished, painted, and then slide into place on the handle. Use a bit of cement or epoxy to fix this in place. Pay attention to the alignment if there is a longer edge you will want this lined up parallel with the top plate and the other caps.
Step 21Using your best tools you have available, it's time to shape the outer blades of the heads. If you have not done this yet, use a sharpie to transfer a 1" line around the outer edge on both sides of each blade. Also scribe a V on the top and bottom edges to give yourself a guide to follow when shaping. I used a bench sander to cut away the material and shape the blade. You can use a knife to trim away material and a sanding block to finish smoothing it if this is what you have. A dremel can also be used but will need to be done carefully.
Time to glue the ax head pieces together on the handle. On this step I used Barges cement on all the pieces but I also used hot glue in the gaps on either side of the pipe. Barges alone may have been fine, but I just wanted to cover all the bases. Use scrap pieces of both EVA and 6mm to align the ax heads level when gluing. Lay out the pieces and heat up the glue gun. Apply cement to entire surface of the bottom plate, the contact areas on the pipe and to the middle edge and bottom contact areas of the blades. When tacky, align the outside edge of one blade with the bottom plate and attach. Keep it as straight as possible. Next apply a bead of hot glue to the inside joint and lay the pipe in place. Apply a bead of hot glue to the other side of the pipe and add the other blade. Apply hot glue to left and right edges on top of the pipe and fit the top plate in place. Allow to dry for several hours before moving.
I wanted to add an element to really make this prop stand out. You can use a Dremel with a grinding stone and beat up the heads to give them a hammered steel look if you like. I chose though to go with something a bit more showy. I liked the idea of having some sort of raised relief on the heads to set this ax apart from others I saw on the internet. This blade is enchanted with Dragon's fire. Use template to trace and cut out 4x dragon heads and borders.
Lay out dragon heads and borders on ax head and trim to fit. Mark contact points with a sharpie and cement these in place. Also use foam plug scraps to make 4x rivets and attach 2x each to top and bottom plates. Do 4x.
Prep for paint. Use Kwik-Seal to fill all gaps and cracks on the ax head. Use masking tape to cover top cap area of pipe and center nut. Use plastic cling wrap to cover the entire handle area to protect it.
Step 26Apply 2 coats of Plasti-Dip spray to entire ax head areas. Allow to dry then apply Rustoleum Metallic silver to head. Brush on Mars black to inside area of relief and several coats of Metallic Gold (or other color) to the top edges of the Dragon head and border. (Gold paint took many coats to look right. Be patient with it). Apply several thin coats of Pledge floor care wax to seal the paint.
Step 27Remove any remaining masking material. Attach top and bottom caps in place with epoxy lining up the wider flat edges if you have them. DONE!
The HelmetTime Estimate: 6-8 hours spread over 2-3 daysThe helmet is a fun element and yes it is the trickiest part of this costume build. Just because something is going to be "tricky," it should never put you off from trying. It just means that you are about to learn something new. Watch the videos, read the directions for hints, and don't be afraid to even ask the pros if you are still stuck on something. Take it in slow steps and you can learn and achieve great things.
List of Materials:1x 24” EVA Foam Floor tile
4-5x sheets 1mm 11 x 18" craft foam
2x Red (Rubies) round costume gems
1 qt Barges contact cement (this is enough for the whole project) [Optional: you can try hot glue but results may not be as good.]
1x spray can Expanding Window Insulation Foam
Scotch tape
1x roll Plastic Cling Wrap
1x can of Rustoleum Metallic "Dark Steel"
1x can of Plasti-dip spray.
Various small tubes of acrylic artist paint to taste
Tools ListBox cutter
Knife sharpener
Xacto knife
Metal Straight edge
Tape measure
Sharpie pens
Scissors
Heat gun
80 and 100 grit Sandpaper
Band saw (optional)
Dremel (optional)
Step 1Oh yes there is a video for this part, not me though. It takes a good bit of work to create a helmet pattern for your head. Lucky for us there are other people who have already done the pattern for you. I changed up the decorations a bit but I bought and used parts of the pattern shown in this video by Maker Chris Huebert aka "LostWax." The pattern cost $5.99 but I think it was well worth it to avoid some of the hassle and keeps this project more in the intermediate level. The pattern can by found at this link: https://gumroad.com/lostwaxoz
Lost Wax Viking Helmet video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQcpRjfYEvE
Step 2You bought the pattern and printed it out. Hopefully you watched the video a few times to get the gist of what to do. Now we just have to build it. Take a cloth tape measure and measure the persons head who will be wearing this helmet. Chris uses millimeters and centimeters so if that is not your thing you need to consult the internet and covert your measurements to see which pattern is right for you. I chose one size higher than my measurement just to give a bit of wiggle room. You can always add a tiny bit of pad back in the helmet for a tighter fit if needed. Nothing worse than completing a helmet and have it too small though. Cut the helmet shell pattern out for the correct size and trace the pattern on an EVA tile. 2 copies are traced with the pattern up right and 2 with the pattern turned over. Cut these out with a sharp box cutter or band saw.
Use a heat gun to heat the tile pieces and shape them (pattern side down)over your knee or a round ball. You want to get the shape curving over good at the top and the "V" notch on the side closing together.
Step 4TAKE YOUR TIME HERE. In the video, Chris used hot glue to join the pieces together and you are welcome to do that but I like the contact cement because I think it comes out better in the end. Your choice on that just hear "hot glue" in your head for the directions I give. Always work in a well ventilated area and wear rubber gloves for all cement steps I give. Apply Barges cement to the inside of the "V" notch only on one of the tiles and let dry to tacky. Carefully line up the edges and squeeze the notch together. Hold for a few seconds to make sure the glue is set before releasing. The seam will probably give a little bit, this is normal. If the seam pulls apart too much squeeze it back together and hold it again for a bit longer. You are going to see this seam. It is completely exposed so you want it to be the best you can do. We can fill it a bit with Kwik-Seal later but the less sanding and fixing the better. Hint: once the cement starts to set up, if you happen to walk away and come back later to discover the seam pulled apart too much or slipped out of line a little you can use a heat gun on it to soften the cement back up and make it pliable again to push it back or correct it. Don't use too much heat though or the seam will fall apart. Do this for all 4x "V" notches.
Step 5Do one seam at a time again on this because it is better that way. Pick a piece with a left facing V and a piece with a right facing V seam. Apply cement to the sides that have the V seam and join them together when the cement is tacky. work from the top tip back carefully aligning the edges and the registration lines A to A and B to B. Keep an eye on the seams and allow to set up a few minutes then do the other A and B sets. These are now the two side halves of the helmet. Allow the glue to set up a while before the next step.
Step 6Apply cement to the C and D sides of the two halves and join them together when tacky. If the inside seams are completely set up and dry when you are ready to do this, you can heat the 2 halves and shape them again to make the sides come together better when you glue them up. You now have a dome! Allow this to set up overnight then use the heat gun to heat the dome and adjust the shape for your head for a better fit. If the shape came out a bit too pointy on top you can heat the area and push down a bit to round this off.
Step 7This helmet design is not going to follow the Viking helmet instructions very closely from here on although a couple pattern parts are still going to be used later. Take a 12" x 18" sheet of 1mm craft foam (any color) and you will cut 4x strips 1.25" wide x 18" long. You may need more but just cut them out as needed(You can use other sized sheets just be careful of where the joints end up). At this time, if any of the seam joints on the dome are deep or badly aligned with a ridge, use sand paper to smooth out rough spots and then fill any deep cracks with Kwik-Seal and smooth with a wet finger. Let dry.
Step 8Apply a 1 1/4" wide layer of cement to the vertical seam running from left ear to right ear across the top of the helmet and to one side of the same length of a foam strip step 7. When tacky, attach the strip as straight as possible but centered on the seam all the way across the top of the helmet. Trim both ends flush with the bottom edge of the helmet. Apply cement and do the same to the vertical seam running down the back of the helmet running a strip from the crossing strip at the top to the bottom edge of the helmet and cutting it off. Do not do the front yet.
Use 2x of the foam strips and attach along the bottom edge of the helmet. You want to have 2 joints centered over the center strip when you are done because this area will be hid a bit by the horns. Also note that the bottom edge of the helmet may be a little wavy depending on how straight your cuts were. Just run the strip of foam as level as you can for a neat and tidy look. Apply Cement to the bottom 1.25" of the front half of the helmet and to a strip and attach when tacky. trim at the center of the center strips on each side. Apply Cement to the back half and another strip and repeat. Try to butt the joints tight together to avoid gaps. Fill any gaps later with Kwik-Seal after it dries.
Step 10Print out the Bruenor-Helmet-Front template and cut it out. Trace 2x copies onto 1mm craft foam sheet and cut these out. This will be a built up two layer design on the front of the helmet. The first layer will be centered on the front but you will trim away the bottom 1.25" edge and butt it against the strip running around the bottom of the helmet. The second layer will then lay flat across the two pieces without bulging or dipping. Trim, apply cement, and attach the first and second layer as shown.
Take a short (4" or so) piece of the 1.25" wide strip foam and trim one end to match the top curve of the front plate. Apply cement to both and attach from top of the front plate to the cross strip at the top.
Step 12Retrieve the top circle and 1/3 circle pattern pieces from the Lost Wax template. On a sheet of 1mm foam, trace and cut out 1x big circle for the top of the helmet and 4x 1/3 circles for where the horns will mount. Mark the location o the top of the helmet centered and cement the top circle in place. Note there will droop in the 4 areas where there are no built up cross pieces. This is fine, we will put rivets there to make the piece look nailed down. For the horn placement I placed the top of the circles about even with the V notch seams. Just make sure they are even. Apply cement and glue the 4 pieces in place.
Step 13 Horns!OK the horns are the toughest element to build, shape and paint in this entire project. I tried 4 ways of making horns in case I messed a few of them up. All 4 ways worked with good results. There were some ways better than others and some less time consuming. A big factor in this project is I needed to lop off one of the horns which plays in to how I made some of these. I'm going to detail the method that was the quickest with good results. Print out the Bruenor-Horns template and trace and cut out 4x of these from the 1mm sheet foam.
Take 2 of the horn pieces and heat them with a heat gun. Work to shape them into a curved half circle shape along the entire piece. Try holding the two halves together while holding the curve in them and you can see this is going to be tricky. Now, in my opinion, using hot glue like the guy in the video I think will just burn too many hands and is messy so let's throw that one out. I did do one horn with Barges Cement working in half inch steps around the perimeter. This horn looks great but took forever. If you want full horns that will be hollow(and squishy) but won't take someones eye out you might want to use this method. My assembly I'd like to suggest a different approach. Use some scotch tape. That's right, we are going to scotch tape the two halves together, wrap them in cling wrap and then we are going to use spray foam to fill the horns. The expanding spray foam is very messy but it acts as an adhesive and will fill the void and stick to the foam just as well as any glue and hold them in shape.
Take scotch tape and tear off a half dozen short 1" or so strips and have them at the ready. Place the top edges near the point of two horn pieces together and put a piece of tape on it. pick the pieces up and bend the curves together in the lower half of the tip and put tape on there. Alternate top and bottom squeezing a section together and taping all the way to the end. Try and keep the joints as flat as you can and looking like one natural piece. You can sand the joint down a bit when this is done but try to save the work later. Great thing about the tape is that if you mass a section up you can peel those pieces off and start over with no real loss. Add additional tape until all of the seam is covered and keep massaging the seam as you do to keep it flattened out. Repeat steps 14 and 15 for the second horn and suggest you do an additional one as a spare.
Get ready for the crazy messy part. I set up a decent sized cardboard box to work in, catch the mess, and help with the cleanup when it was all done. Take each horn and wrap it with cling wrap snugly right up to the edge of the round opening. Not too tight that you crush the shape though. This will help keep the horns in their proper shape as the spray foam expands. It will also keep the sticky foam off of the sides of the horn at it expands out everywhere. Use scrap cardboard or some wadded paper in the box to prop the horns up a bit and at an angle away from everything to encourage the foam to stay inside the horn and box but allow the over expansion to spew out in a safe spot as well.
If you have used expanding spray foam before you know what to expect from this stuff. Shake up the spray can and attach the straw. Check the directions as to which way the can needs to be when you dispense the foam (upright/upside down). Push the straw all the way down in the bottom tip of a horn and begin spraying foam inside. Withdraw the straw slowly as it fills but make sure you are coating the entire surface inside. Set the horn at the safe angle and do the other horn and your spare if you have one. Very helpful hint: Spray foam is very sticky and once you've sprayed a bit through the straw. If you do not clean it immediately the odds are you are not going to ever be able to use that can again without a lot of work on it. Best trick is to as soon as you are done spraying, take the can to a sink or other safe spot. Just unscrew the straw and spray some Carburetor Cleaner into the straw and tube on the top of the can. Carburetor Cleaner has acetone in it and will instantly dissolve and flush the foam out like new. Now go back and watch the foam expand! Let this cure overnight before you mess with it again.
Step 18The curing process can actually take a few days to totally complete inside so if you notice the horn feels a bit squishy this is why. Once the foam has cured at least overnight you can safely handle it. Take a sharp knife or band saw and cut the excess foam away from the top lip of the horn. Unwrap the cling wrap and examine the joints to see if they leaked. Carefully remove the scotch tape. If the foam is still a bit uncured the seam can split open when you pull the tape off so take it slow and easy. If the horn feels a bit soft and spongy set the horn aside and let it cure another day. Use a dremel or sand paper to smooth out the seam. Don't sand too hard but on a bad spot you may expose a little of the foam underneath but this is alright. Once you have the joint sanded down you can use Kwik-Seal to smooth it a bit more.
Take a scrap piece of wire or a wire coat-hanger and poke a small amount into the foam and put a hook on the end of it. Use this to hold the horn and apply 2 coats of Plasti-Dip. You can use the wire to hang the horn to dry thoroughly.
At this point you can still change your character a bit but if you are going with the Bruenor Battlehammer costume you are going to chop one of the horns off right around the first bend. Keep your best horn and do this to the other. Take a sharp knife, sword, or band saw and make a clean cut all they way through at the first bend. My horn was actually still hollow a bit inside because of a gas bubble or something when I cut it. Not to worry though, simply wrap the part of the horn we are keeping in cling wrap again and use the foam to fill the gap. When it cures, trim it up again. You can leave the cut a bit rough looking, as it is battle damage. Spray the newly exposed foam in Plasti-Dip and let dry.
Remove the wire hanger from the horns. The helmet will have a bit of a curve in it and the horn will be fairly flat. We want to cup the opening of the horn a bit to ensure the outer edges stick flush to the helmet. You and dry fit the horn and see how much work you need to do. Take a dremel with a sanding drum or sandpaper and sand a bit of a bowl shape into the foam. It doesn't take much to get the horn flush so go slow. Center the horn on the mounting circle and mark the alignment with a sharpie to make sure you put it on straight. The cut horn is the left one as you are facing it. Apply Barges Cement to the horns and contact are on the helmet and attach when tacky. Allow to dry.
Step 22Cut 2x strips of 1mm craft foam 1" wide a little longer than required to wrap around the base of the horns. You will want to apply the wrap with the joint underneath. Apply Barges Cement to the the foam strip and to the contact areas on the horn. Attach when tacky and use an Xacto knife to trim the joint flush. When dry use Kwik-Seal on the joints.
Step 23Use superglue to attach small googly eyes to the helmet to create rivets. I found this much easier and more consistent than epoxy drops but you can do that if you choose. Let the glue dry.
The helmet build portion is now done! Apply 2 coats of Plasti-dip to the helmet and let dry. Spray the helmet shell with Rustoleum Metallic Dark Steel or Silver. Use acrylic paint on the horns. Paint a white base coat then paint the tips Black. Build up streaky colors on the horns to look more authentic. I used more of a mixed sand color and Burnt Sienna on the lower horn. When finished seal the entire helmet with a thin coat of Pledge Floor Care no buff wax. Optional you can add weathering to the helmet a bit if desired.
Last finishing touch. Place two round rubies on the front plate of the helmet for decoration. You can attach with epoxy or super glue.
It took me well over a month of Sundays to pull this project all together. Several of the accessories you will want to pick up you can order early online at a fair price and cheaper slow shipping and set them aside while you build. Also I took time out to actively shop around at the thrift stores for some clothing bits. Here is a highlight of the outfit.
Red BeardI picked up California Costumes Red Pirate Beard and Mustache for about $8 online. The mustache needed a bit of work though when I got it. Used some hair trimmers and Got2be Glue to detail it a bit to make it look right. http://www.buycostumes.com/p/33948/pirate-beard-and-moustache-red
Hero Cape/CloakThere are several choices out there for this one. I ended up going with Dark Knight Armoury and the RFB Arthur Cape that was on sale for $28 at the time. This is a nicer and slightly thicker cape than the LOTR capes out there and yet slightly cheaper. http://www.darkknightarmoury.com/p-41912-rfb-arthur-cape.aspx
BeltBelts are expensive but I found a wide tool belt from Harbor Freight for $8 in the local store. It was not finished in any color so I took a can of wood gel stain and put a few coats on and hung it to dry. It came out great. http://www.harborfreight.com/embossed-leather-tool-belt-47637.html
ShirtIt's a simple black cotton shirt loose fitting and it didn't have any collar or visible seams. Pushed up the sleeves a bit to show off the bracers. Thrift store find
PantsJust tan trousers with little detail and no heavy seams. Thrift Store find again.
BootsWas hoping to find some work boots or Uggs at the Thrift store but that didn't pan out for us. Instead I got some Pirate Boot topper Spats on sale for $6 from Dark Knight Armoury The quality is not that great with these but they were OK in a pinch. http://www.darkknightarmoury.com/p-14636-classic-pirate-boot-toppers.aspx
Furry Boot ToppersThese I made from 4x pieces of Creatology Craft Fur I picked up at Michael's for $3 each and 2x elastic straps I added buckles to. Simply drape 2 of the fur pieces over the elastic strap and snap it in place at the boot tops. Looks great. http://www.michaels.com/creatology-craft-fur-black/10047172.html#q=fur&start=2
2 Special Bonus BuildsBracersI picked up a very simple pattern for free from Storm The Castle.
http://www.stormthecastle.com/how-to-make-a/make-craft-foam-armor-vambraces.htm
There is a video tutorial and the pattern for free. Simply trace the pieces on 1mm Craft foam sheet, glue together, add Velcro fastener to the inside edge and paint.
I bought a yard on that Faux leather Vinyl from Jo-Ann Fabric and only used a couple inches so I took some of the leftovers and made a draw string coin purse. Take a round pot lid or pie pan and trace a circle on the fabric and cut it out. Next, use a leather punch or even a paper hole punch (cause this stuff is thin) and punch a series of holes equal distance from each other and a half inch in from the side. Make sure you have an even number of holes when you are done. Finally take about 12-18" of leather cord or boot lace and beginning at one hole zigzag through all the holes around the edge. Your entry and exit points will be side by side and passing through the finished side of the vinyl. Tie a knot in the cord and pull to cinch it together. tie it off on the belt.
That's it. I know we could have done more if I had time. Overall though I am very pleased with how this project turned out. This project may not be as popular as "The Boy and his Tauntaun" but it spoke of my sons own individuality. Feel free to comment or ask questions. Many thanks as well to those YouTube folks that inspired me.
I really hope that I might have inspired someone to try and make something like this for themselves or for their own kids. My son is a bit older and I encouraged him help out and learn so much with me as we tackled this project together. It's great to get to say "We made this." My son also took most of the build pictures which helped out tremendously when you do want to share the story. Finally, I would ask that If you build your own variation of any of these pieces please share a pic and encourage others as well to make something great.
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