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It has taken me a little time to decide just what to put on my page. Not that it is of any great importance to anyone in particular but I guess as a member of a fan club of this magnitude, someone may be interested in knowing a little more about its members and me as a new member.

As far back as I can recall I have had an inclination to build and make things. I have dabbled in so many projects, succeeded in some and failed in others but it never stopped me from trying something new.

At first it was woodwork and then metal and back to woodwork.

I designed and built a unit for our Special Forces, designed and built a specialized tool for an Ammunition Company I worked for a long time ago, just to name a few.

As of late my interest has been perked in working on COSplay and this, as most of us know, covers a very wide field.

Sewing, metal work, woodwork, making molds and the list goes on and on.

My first attempt at a costume was a skull and a cloak along with a scythe to wear at a Halloween party as “The Grim Reaper.” It was a learning curve as it was my first costume but I was pretty pleased with the result.

My next costume covered a group of COSplay characters.

Pirate, Musketeer, Renaissance and basically the only item that changed was the hat and sword.

But each hat was made to complete the costume and the sword for the Pirate was a purchased item but the sword for the musketeer I made.

During my learning curve I wanted to build a costume that would be different from the norm and it became a choice between the “Lycan” from “Underworld” or, the “Cylon” from “Battlestar Galactica.”

Not having worked much with Alginates and Silicon and realizing this could be an expensive learn, I decided to build the “Cylon”.

I am a Mechanical Engineer by profession but retired and making up costumes is a past time filling the hours when I am not ten pin bowling.

Starting out with the plan, I wanted to make it a costume I could wear and my target date for completion is February of 2016. This is when Colorado Springs has “Galaxy Fest 2016” and my intension is to wear the costume to this event.

I became part of this event two years ago taking on the roll of one of the many organizers as well as presenter for the models in one of the many fashion shows held during the weekend. I had the privilege to meet and mix with famous Movie Stars, Authors and many great and well known figures in the movie and television industry from the USA and from around the world.

For instance the original cast from “Dr. Who,” just to name but one group of actors.

This year I was not able to participate as much as I would like to have as I was working on a screenplay for a local Networking Station but next year I hope to be able to show off my costume.

The build has been a learning curve, to say the least because, in-as-much as I have worked with my hands and built so many items, working to get what I want and what I need, has required many hours thus far and the progress has been painfully slow.

Being somewhat of a perfectionist, I have spent more time getting what I want than necessary but I realized, if I want the costume to be what I want it to be, I will have to spend time on building it.

My first hurdle was the boot of the “Cylon.”

Here I took a pair of old hiking boots and started to fashion the boot around it.

My first few attempts proved to be a failure as I used a material I thought would be easy to work with but, alas, it was not the right material. So I reverted back to Plaster of Paris and was finally able to come up with something that was close and wearable.

The added pieces around the boot proved to be more of a challenge.

In order to get each piece the same I decided to make a Master piece of each part, make a mold and cast them so they would all be the same.

It was then I came to the realization if I wanted the rest of the costume to look and be correct, I would have to make a Master of each section and work off it to duplicate each piece.

First the Calf, then the Thigh, and work my way up the body to allow me to successfully work over a solid base forming each part.

I have not worked with “WonderFlex,” and I felt as it is a forming plastic and using heat to shape it, the surface I was going to work off had to be free of any irregularities. So hence, the time spent finding out the quickest way to get the surface I required. Not only did this take the many hours I have spent on each piece, but I have also learned during the process, what to do and how to get the finish I need for the rest of the costume.

  Along the way I have had to calculate and design the costume in many ways so that when I finally don the costume, it is going to fit and allow me to walk and move as freely as I possibly can.

When next I write I will add some photo’s of what I have accomplished to date.

So say we all.

John.

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