Monster Hunter Altera Body Armor
Constructing the body armor was done in five different parts: the main armor, the front guard, back guard, right shoulder guard, and left shoulder guard. In this brief tutorial, I will show you how the parts of this body armor were made and put together.
The grey section is two different pieces of 10mm foam glued together, and the black is four separate pieces of 6mm foam layered. Bends were formed with heat and bending the foam.
The back side is 6mm foam in three different sections layered, while the white pieces are also 6mm. These can be any color and were glued on after the black was assembled.
The front and back panels were glued together at the shoulders and reinforced with pieces of 10mm foam.
On the back panel, 2mm strips were glued on along the shoulder blades. The white "wings" are each three pieces of 6mm foam glued together into one whole piece. They were then glued to the back panel.
2mm strips are added along the collar and arm sections. The "wings" are the side panels that connect the back armor to the front while providing zero visible seams. This is done with Velcro, allowing the armor to be worn and removed with ease.
The back guard has several angles. To get them right, a clay model was made, and only half was needed. Using aluminum foil, wrap the model, trace the edges with a Sharpie, then cut along those lines to make individual pieces. Transfer the foil pieces onto thick paper to make your official patterns. To angle the pieces, simply bevel (angle) your cuts. the grey piece is 10mm and the black is 6mm.
The resulting piece glued together and glued to the back panel with 10mm foam spacers underneath to help it sit raised.
For the front guard, the same method as the back guard was done.
The resulting pieces. Remember to angle your bevel cuts appropriately.
All the pieces glued together. The grey is 10mm and the black is 6mm. Spacers were also used to allow it to sit raised of the front panel.
A different view. Notice the white "wings" side panels are now attached at the front via the Velcro.
The left shoulder guard, or pauldron, was made starting with a long piece of 10mm foam and a piece of 6mm foam glued on top. This top piece is bevel cut for the angles. The point at the end is two pieces of 6mm, bevel cut, and glued on. The rivets along the guard were made with the end of a sanding drum from a Dremel.
The back end of the guard. This angle was made using separate pieces.
Using a wood burner or soldering iron, the scales were carved into the foam. The spikes are 6mm foam, each two pieces glued together, then glued to the guard.
The guard is then attached to the left shoulder of the armor with spacers to raise it above the shoulder.
A different angle.
An extending flap is added to the guard with the grooves carved with a wood burner.
An additional flap is added with wood burnt carvings. This piece is not glued directly to the guard, but rather suspended with nylon straps hot glued on.
The right shoulder guard is far more mobile than the left, so different construction is needed. I started with four separate pieces of 6mm foam, with wood burnt etchings and rivets made by the top of a Dremel sanding drum.
A closer look
To make the guard mobile/bendable, the pieces were attached by strips of nylon strapping. A piece of 10mm foam is glued to the top piece for leverage.
Four spikes were made, each made from two separate pieces, and glued onto separate panels. As there were four spikes for three panels, two spikes had to go on one panel.
The resulting effect.
The guard is attached to the armor by a parachute buckle and nylon straps. As this setup allows the guard to drop right off the edge of the armor, Velcro was placed directly on the buckle and the guard above.
Before painting, always seal your foam. Plasti Dip is the gold standard. Paint with acrylics, wither hand brushed or with an airbrushed. All the painting on this armor is by brush.
