First off good effort to the guys that have made their bug suits. Job well done there and great reading the progress threads and your websites.

Doesn't seem like 2 yrs ago the likes of me and BBC Lewis were at the London Comic Con literally dribbling over the original Bug suit on display with aspirations of making our own suits seeing as there wasn't one that was readily available so to speak. How times of changed which is a great thing.

Well hopefully in the new year, the lights go back on in the shed of doom, the dust gets blown off my airbrush and I'll be focusing my attention on making a suit up as well, so with that in mind I wanted to throw a few questions your way:

The jaw, is it made of resin? Looks that way in the photos out there. If so I'm assuming that it doesn't line up with the head correctly and is well, warped for lack of a better term? The all resin Aliens Warrior head I have that's been around suffered with the same problem.

The top teeth part, made of latex?

For the basecoat/primer over the latex pieces, any particular make or brand of paint used or was it just a generic acrylic?

I take it the head is a latex slush casting with a foam core underneath to give it it's shape?

Think that's it for now. Any replies appreciated
( well most anyway )

Cheers



Chris

Well ... mine and most of the other suits in the UK are made from a kit (below). One day I am hoping to start a project to make an ALIEN-style costume of my own design. However, I have as much artistic flair as the average German chartered accountant ...

Raw kit:


The jaw is latex, as are the top teeth. It is VERY hard to get the teeth to align (it took me half-a-dozen tries) but I think I did pretty well.

The head is slush cast with foam filling, but it is heavy. Means a thick neck if you wear the costume a lot! If possible lightweight biscuit-foam would be an idea if I ever make my own.

Not having the artistic talent (or the funds) for an airbrush, I painted mine by brush and sponge with a 25/75 mix of generic acrylic and liquid latex. I then sealed it with "Krylon Triple Thick Clear Glaze". It's held up pretty well, but it does rub off and need touching up after extended wear.

Another thing I would say about the kit: It's small, VERY small. If you're tall and have a big head/feet/hands etc then it's twice as hard to make up cos it needs cutting/modifying to fit.

If you have any more specific questions, drop me an email or add me on MSN etc.

Welcome to the Hive!


(Sorry, couldn't resist)

Woohoo another bug. Looking forwards to seeing your work Chris

Has Big G mentioned the initiation to you?

Oh lovely... the hive needs new bugz! Welcome welcome!!

Owning a bug suit is one of the coolest things ever! The "fans" go wild for em! As you can see from Abe's adventures!

I have a website up and running with detailed pictures showing the construction process. You'll find you will get alot of help here! Thanks to Pug I managed to put mine together nicely! But depending on your height,the suit has to be modified. I'm 5' 11" and fits me perfectly. (Although ive put on a few pounds lately ) lol


But feel free to email AND PM me or pug anytime!!

Goodluck dude!!!

Bri



"HEY HEY"

_________________
In Space No One Can Hear You Scream ...
Dave Xeno - missed but never forgotten......

Uh-huh

Not sure I can handle you again Kev in those high heels and that off the shoulder number

Although the whip bit was fine



Chris

Ahem , err, moving on swiftly.

Been looking again at the suits you guys have made. It looks like some of the detail in the small piping that runs around the head is a little bit rough in places which is understandable.Likewise with the front of the head/dome and the teeth. The all resin head I have suffered with the same thing until i set about resculpting, filling and changing various bits on it to sharpen it up.

If the head is a latex skin then just toying with the idea of carefully cutting away some of the piping and replacing it with some new stuff that I have here. Fix that in place and blend it back in with some latex.

As for the teeth etc. I'd certainly like to , no pun intended, sharpen up the teeth somewhat and get em nice and smooth and then chrome paint them up with some allclad or similar. Think I'll wait until I eventually get the kit then go from there.

Then I'll definitely be sculpting some accurate lips and tendons and use some clear latex. A few highlights with the airbrush should do the trick.

Cheers for the replies so far though, much appreciated



Chris

Take care what you use on latex: Most paints will kill it and/or crack off when it flexes.

As for mouth tendons, boiled condoms work well. However, I am putting off glueing them on permanently until I make a decision about animatronics.

Another member, The Mortal Imortal, has a bug suit as well.

I believe he replaced 90% of the ribbed piping on the head of his kit due to imperfections, so it can be done.

And if I may throw in a suggestion for a sealer, I have purchased cans of acrylic sealer. When tested on latex parts, it has proven to be pretty tough. I can't remember the manufacturer, but I'll get that info. Perhaps you can find it in the U.K.

Or, barring that, I'd be happy to buy some and send it your way. Is it possible to send aerosol cans overseas? I don't know what all they have restricted since 9/11.

_________________
"Awww, someone tell me that's a boot!

It's a boot!"

III drops

Yup, TMI had a killer bug suit. AFAIK, he's now sold it. Not to me, unfortunately!

Each person who makes up one of these kits makes improvements to the method. TMI's costume had the replacement pipes, a pretty good tail attachment and quite a clever torso, which I am trying to redesign to be less hot to wear.

As for Acrylic Glaze, I've not used this specific supplier (the supplier I used folded...), but this is the stuff I used: http://www.horsingaround.com/acatalog/Krylon_Triple_Thick_Crystal_Clear_6oz.html

Replacing the tubing would be the best way to go if you can find the correct type.

Since I live in the middle of nowhere central Ca I couldn't find any so I built up the damaged areas with mask making latex than took my Dremel with a fiberglass cutting wheel and reinscribed all the detail.

For the jaw I ran a steel wire through it so it could be reshaped.
this also acted as a hinge attachment point.

For the upper teeth to sit at the correct angle to match the jaw I added more steel wire like braces inside than used a scrap sheet piece of latex trimmed off the neck piece to cover it.

I spent months filling in all the holes and thickening up all the thin spots on the pieces before attempting assembly.

Since CA glue instantly bonds latex I put on the lycra body suit than painted on latex over the areas that all the pieces would attach to.
After the latex dried I started attaching all the parts.
The whole process took about 5 hours of non stop work.

Took 2 days to airbrush the whole thing.

The most time consuming assembly was the chest/back pieces that have part of a back pack incorporated into it with the adjustable straps.




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