(Friday 11-Feb-2011, 07:47 PM)bodieh Wrote: I don't understand how people seem to think accuracy comes from pouring money in, i think making accurate armour would come from spending time making the moulds.
The process of vacuum forming is generally the same with everyone, the only thing that changes is the moulds, which come down to how good you are with sculpting/woodworking.
Take it from me, scratch building an armour to wear is bloody expensive. I've lost track of how much my Seatrooper has cost me in cash, let alone time, and I know that there is still alot more to be paid.
While the accuracy of the mould is heavily reliant on the time you spend on it (because it's never an over night, over week or even over month project), it is also reliant on the quality of the stuff you use to make it, and the cheap stuff ain't gonna get you decent accuracy. Or a decent final product.
I think, if a kit is there that you can buy, you'd be saving yourself time and money (because what if it gets rejected for approval, you basically have to re-work your moulds). If you plan to go into production and do regular runs of kits on the other hand, it is probably the best thing to do as you would avoid anybody accusing you of recasting. But that's where the hard work and effort comes into play. And for a TK, there's a pretty defined benchmark that you'd have to replicate or improve on.
Don't let me discourage you though, I'm just speaking from experience. I've spent 13 months on the seatrooper now, and still have a long way before it's finished. Then longer again before approval and even longer still before making moulds to make copies of it.