Duct Tape Dummy

Now that we're going full-tilt and getting into the resin part of the process... you're going to run into a bit of a snag in terms of not only specifically shaping the pieces to fit the contours of your body properly... but where to put them all.

... 'cause there's a lot of them... and some of them take up a fair bit of space.

I give you: the duct tape dummy.
I went to a local thrift shop and purchased a long-sleeved t-shirt and trackpants that were a size smaller than I usually wear - so as to avoid bagginess in the clothes. Put those clothes on, then find somebody you trust to wrap your body with the duct tape around the clothes you're wearing.

All the way... ankles (or as close as your clothes get) to wrists and everywhere in-between.

You will not be able to move much and don't make it TOO tight... make sure you can still function and bend a little... you won't get much movement, but you don't want a lot... just enough to not have your hands and feet fall asleep from lack of circulation.
Think of it as a really tight wetsuit.  =)

When you're done... and here's where the trust comes in... you are going to get your assistant to cut you out of the duct tape.
VERY CAREFULLY!

(To the assistant:
Use scissors, but be ginger when you're going up the forearms and calves... YOU may not feel like you're stabbing the dummy, but THEY sure feel it!)
Once up each calf and forearm to the elbow (or so) then down the back (again - CAREFULLY!) to just around the waist line should do it... that should be enough to wiggle out of the duct tape suit. If not, cut a little more until you can.
Once you're cut out of the duct tape prison, you're going to want to figure out how you're going to MOUNT your dummy (dirty! LOL)
Some people have used thicker dowling or broom-handle poles in the legs, I've also seen a single piece of rod stuck through the middle. I found an iron bar croinked into a shape vaguely resembling a coat hanger with a long neck, so I stuck THAT inside the chest cavity of my dummy as I was stuffing it, then sealed up the neck fairly tightly... and hung him from the basement rafters like an effigy.

To STUFF your dummy, use duct tape and seal the calves and forearms back up, then 'tie off' the ends. So your dummy has no hands and feet... oh well. Go up the back to the neck again after you stuff some rags or some kind of non-toxic stuffing material into the legs. Stuff the torso and arms from the neck hole, then go around the neck until you're happy that the stuffing won't come out.

Now you can drape your armor bits and pieces on the dummy and see how they fit! (More or less...)



You won't get an exact measurement on your dummy... and the dummy will probably bulge a bit in areas... oh... go around the midriff of the dummy a few times and do some crotch-over-the-shoulder loops as well. The weight of the stuffing will pull your dummy apart at the middle if its legs aren't supported.

"Bits my shiny, metal ass!"