Breakdown - Prime, "Never run when you can fight."

DECEPTICON BREAKDOWN

TF Wiki Page: Breakdown
Percent Complete: 100%
Total Cost: $341.55 + .09/tax = $372.29
Total Panel/Piece Count: 526
Start Date: January 3, 2012
Completion Date: April 8, 2012
Deadline: BotCon 2012

WTF am I doing, am I CRAZY?

Well .... Yes. Yes, I am crazy. I did not want to do a TF: Prime design originally and was simply focusing on Animated Lockdown until my BFF Forever Velocity decided she wanted to make a Knock Out rig, and would die happy if I would be her Breakdown.

Of course, I said "yes."

I will be building this costume alongside Animated Lockdown and maybe one more, if I can stomach working on three rigs at once.

This costume will be made using the fabric over foam technique with foam board used to bulk out his ENORMOUS shoulders and arms (help me).

Pilot, I may need your help with this one since Mirage's shoulders are so glorious.

More progress photos/extra content may be found in my Breakdown Costume Construction Facebook album.

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Main Parts

• Setup
• Head - 100%
• Torso - 100%
• Shoulders - 100%
• Arms - 100%
• Cod/Legs/Feet - 100%
• Full-Body Shots

Side (but still just as valuable) Parts

• Eyepatch - 100%
• Pirate Hat
• Hammertime - 100%

Convention Stuff

• Convention Photos

SETUP

I will likely be cleaving my mobility most severely with this rig, but that's in order to make Breakdown the awesome character he is.

Staring at a lot of Breakdown's screenshots from the show, I've noticed the bastard animators decided that his armor plating across a LOT of his body don't actually touch his body. Whether I decide to keep it like that or connect everything together to eliminate gaps, I am not positive yet.

I have thee months. FFFFFFFFFFFFFNGGH.

MATERIALS/TOOLS USED/BOUGHT:

>>TOOLS<<
Ruler - Self-explanatory, used to measure out most of my body for proportion scaling.
Permanent Markers - Used for marking on materials with measurements. And for drawing stupid stuff on slag to make it look "pretty."
X-acto Blade - Used to slice up my fingers [:<] and the coroplast; used to help cut my super-straight lines.
Scissors - Helped me cut out the fun foamie pieces and cardstock during testing phases.
Hot Glue Gun - Sewing? What's that?? Used to glue all the pieces to one another to create a fun piece of wearable art.
Masking Tape/Painter's Tape - Used for holding pieces of the cardstocks together as well as putting the mock-ups together to help finalize the design.
Duck Tape - Used to secure the shoes into Breakdown's feet.

>>MATERIALS<<
Cardstock - 110lb weight sheets -- rather expensive generic Staples brand. Used to build mock-ups.
Coroplast - Light and durable, this will be used for the base of Breakdown's feet. It holds a lot of weight!
Fun Foam - Easy to work with and flexible, this material makes up detail bits and curved panels.
Bolts & Nuts - Used to help rivet the base of Breakdown's feet.
Foam Core - Is used to strengthen just about everything -- legs, tires, chest ... Is the main construction material.
Spandex Fabric - To add the color, of course. Royal Blue, Midnight Blue, Goldenrod, Red, 2 shades of grey
Voile Fabric - a see-through veil-like fabric. Used for Breakdown's golden optics.
Slip-on Shoes - Will be taped to Breakdown's feet bottoms
Super 77 Spray Adhesive - VERY sticky. Used to help fabric stick to the foam.
Youth-Sized Shin Guards - Take the plastic guard off the front of it and it's essentially a very thick piece of fun foam with elastic Velcro straps. Used to hold the lower arms where they're supposed to be.
Foam Knee Pads - Thick dense foam with elastic Velcro. Sliced in half, it's used as a holder for where the upper legs are supposed to sit.
12ft Long Carpet Tube - Replaced PVC pipe in Breakdown's hammer. Go to the flooring section of Home Depot. They're free.

HEAD

o1.11.12
I got a wild hair up my aft last night sometime around 2am or so to begin building Breakdown's head, just to see how it would work. I'm using a little knowledge about helms from the 405th Legion and how their Halo helmets are constructed, and applying that to how this helmet will be made.

I have decided that I want him to have both optics, and then when I wanna be a pirate (yarr) I can slap on the eyepatch and hat (with a little help from a spotter) via magnets.





This is on the wrong side of his face, but .... I HAS AN EYEPATCH.

The only reason it's on THIS side of his face is because the head itself is rather crooked. For some reason, something happened up near the top of the helm that has skewed the whole helmet to one side. I'm hoping that if I only use one side of the helmet's cardstock, it'll straighten the helmet once I get to the thicker material.

o4.o2.12
Uh. Oh yeah. Forgot to mention this is done now.



(LOL Iron Man. )



o1.29.13
Decided to make a new face for Breakdown. It's a cute little happy smile instead of the fighting smirk that I will be using to pass out Energon-colored ("flavored"?) cake pops at TFCon. The general consensus that Breakdown knows how to cook/bake is an adorable thought. My brain also wants to be retarded and create him literally making the "C:" face.

TORSO

o1.17.12
Trying hard to figure out my exact ways of making this. I've been putting it off because it's the largest part -- hence, the part I'd rather not dive into until the last possible moment.





THIS = GORGEOUS. I've figured out that I'll be using two velcro'd spots on the rig's side to be able to get into this thing. May/may not duplicate for both sides, or may just glue one side together permanently.



Originally had the tire on at 6". This is the final size at 5" and I am pleased with it, though you can see from this profile shot that Breakdown's chest doesn't pop out as much as it should.

Unsure yet if I should attempt to fix that.

o2.26.12
Built out the chest a little further -- it's now just a little wider and a little longer to push out his mechboobs just a bit more.



o3.23.12
Oh yeah. It's colored now. I should have mentioned that. :]





Currently I'm working on the visible armor of Breakdown's torso. It proved to be difficult at first, but I'm getting the hang of all this building stuff. :]

o4.o2.12
Been done with this for a while, but WAHAA.

It's kind of difficult to squeeze my head through that hole, but that's ok. Not like it's supposed to fit something fat anyway. :]

SHOULDERS

o1.23.12
Oh good lord. Just .... Just goddamn.


Sometimes having differently-colored pens is insanely helpful.



o2.26.12
Built out these a while ago -- still only have one of these shoulders, though. Mrf.

Trying to figure out how to properly build these out so the greebles up top sit correctly/neatly on my shoulder.




o3.23.12
Took a shot of them with the torso. Just .... just HUGE.

LOVE the silhouette they pull off for me though. :]




o4.o2.12
OK so not much visibly to show off here, but I finally installed the shoudler's straps. Glad I don't have to hold up those puppies any more!

ARMS

o2.12.12
Planning is fun. Colorful too!




You have NO IDEA how long this took to figure out. After beating myself up over this part of the rig or a few days, I finally had to ask for help. NatsumeRyu agreed to give me some pointers and I've since remedied my issues. I think I'll still have some problems, but those can't quite be ironed out until I begin building.

o4.o2.12
This is the very last piece I have to build. For serious. SUPER EXCITED.

Though, I'm now stuck and need some advice. Gander below to see~





What kind of strapping system can I use to keep this thing up by my elbow? I was thinking elastic, but because of the weight on one side, gravity is working against me.

Suggestions?

o3.o8.12
After getting some suggestions from friends (YOU GUYS FRAGGIN' ROCK.), I decided to try and find bicycle elbow pads to help hold my arms where they need to. Problem was, WalMart didn't carry adult-sized elbow pads. :|

So .... Instead I went with Youth-sized shin guards. Remove the hard plastic on the outside (which was simply slicing up the thick thread they used to attach it) and suddenly I have 6mm fun foam pieces with elastic attached to it. It's a bit of a tight squeeze to get everything in place, but it's manageable.



Installed what I needed to and glued the foam into place. After trying it on, though, part of the joint's glue came undone. (did I mention that, for some reason, hot glue does not like this kind of fabric?) Took it off, re-glued it, and now it works like a champ. :]

COD/LEGS/FEET

o1.o4.12
Slapping up some WIP for now. Not yet positive if I'm gonna sacrifice ankle mobility or not ...




o1.11.12



Shifted down the tire rest on the bottom and scooted back the tire itself.

It's AMAZING the difference that just a little editing can make. Breakdown's leg now looks MUCH bulkier than it did before!



This is actually a right thigh with a left calf (detail-wise) .... But TAADAA.



I've stolen Pilot's "robo-diaper" idea from Mirage and have tried to implement it here. It works wonderfully, besides this piece that's decided it wants to stab my inner thighs.

Don't think I'll be completing the other side of this, but I LOVE it.

o2.12.12
This update will be LARGE (and slightly pic-heavy) because construction on this part has actually been taking place over the course of the last two weeks.

I bought some new shoes from Target ($10, so I'm not heartbroken over sacrificing them for the comfort of my feet) and duck taped them into the rig.

The majority of Breakdown's boning will likely be made with foam core because this material is just AWESOME.




I have two of these legs now, minus the kneecap. I need to seriously find out how to build the kneecap, as I am still lost on it and the silly little mock-up that I made of the knee before wasn't my final design. Hmmmm ....



o2.26.12
Have a LOOOOOONG update from this one, but it's a pretty update too.







I cannot even BEGIN to tell you how beautiful that tire looks in-person. At first, I was iffy on the tread and wasn't sure it should have been done, but now that it has been, I'm very pleased I took this little risk.

o3.o1.12
Making more of a generic update to this one today but MY LOWER HALF IS COMPLETED. Tadaa~





o3.o8.12
Busted out that Yoga mat stuff to give Breakdown's pedes a more gripping surface to land on, just in case I happen to step onto tile or something like that. Y'know, that whole "slipping and falling" thing isn't very conducive to Cosplay.



With some help from EmeraldBeacon, I was finally able to get the design down for Breakdown's kneecaps. He says I did it wrong. I say they are FANTASTIC.

FULL BODY SHOTS




Chest is too small. :/

o3.23.12
OH YEAH.



o4.o4.12
Just an upper-body shot. BUT YAY.



o4.o9.12
BOOYAH BABY.



o4.13.12
Took some shots out and about with Breakdown today. Posted here are some of my FAVORITES from this photoshoot.
Full Photoshoot Gallery

EYEPATCH

I had forgotten to take pictures of this while I was building since it was so damn simple to construct. So .... You get whatever pictures I was able to scrounge up. |D



Earth magnets. I have them.

Also: the inside of that helmet is a WRECK.

PIRATE HAT



Yar har, fiddle di dee, Being a pirate is alright to be, Do what you want ‘cause a pirate is free, You are a pirate!

HAMMERTIME

o2.o7.13
Yeah. I'm building again, and I'm excited for it.



o2.o8.13
Went out and got some materials today. Nothing overly amazing, but I'm pleased with myself for deciding on asking the dude in the flooring department at Home Depot if I can have a carpet tube. Good thing they just throw them away and were totally fine with me taking this 12ft thing home for free.



And then comes the fun part, of course. Cardstock!



Done with this side of Breakdown's hammer! Not gonna worry about the other side, am just gonna duplicate the design.

o2.o9.13
After another day of building and kind of pulling my hair out, I managed to complete the detail that as infuriating me so much last night. In turn, I now have the almost finished product.



It's too wide though. For the evening, I'm through with it, likely for the weekend. Maybe I'll pick it back up Monday to slice up the ends of them and cut off an extra inch or so from both sides.

I hope it's not too big in general ....

o2.17.13
So, I spent the beginning of the day lopping 1" off both hammer heads and squishing them in a little more. The hammer's still pretty big, but I'm hoping it'll be smaller hen shown off next to the whole rig.





This is what I ended with for the evening. About halfway through gluing everything together, and although I'd like to continue, not only does my back hurt from sitting on the floor all day, but this carpet REALLY sucks for prolonged sitting. My knees, elbows, and ankles are not happy.

o2.22.13
I always forget to update these in a timely fashion. Been dine with it for the last few days, but been too lazy to update the log.

CONVENTION PHOTOS

BotCon 2012




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SavCon 2012



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San Diego Comic-Con 2012

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El Paso Comic-Con 2012

UPDATED!

• Setup
• Legs/Feet

HM. Still trying to figure out if I want to sacrifice ankle articulation and connect these pieces as one unit or not.

Also not yet positive if the tire is too big or not.

Those look good so far. Can't wait to see more.

Wow that leg mockup looks awesome!
Can't wait to see more!

UPDATED!

• Setup
• Head
• Legs/Feet

OH YEAH.

I ADORE that helmet, though it's very crooked and looks terrible if you stare at it straight on, LOL.

Also figured out that the tire wasn't too big, but his leg was too small. So, I scooted back the tire some and came out with THAT amazing beauty.

Speaking of "thicker material," I keep thinking that fun foam will be too flimsy for this. Should I try posterboard or foamcore instead, maybe ....?

Those legs look downright sexy.

Thanks-!

I'm beginning to get to the part I'm nervous about, and you have the most experience with this -- can has tips on how to make those ENORMOUS shoulders?

*puppydoggy eyes*

Kay. First, make em sturdy enough to hold their shape no matter how little of a surface (your shoulder) they're sitting on. And second, prevent them from falling off--namely, out and down--so connect them with a strip of something in the back like pauldrons as high up on your back as it will stay to preserve mobility. I used a piece of thin foam and some velcro, but if you're better off, I'd recommend making a proper harness for it with parachute buckles and everything because using velcro sucked.

Make sure the mechanism that you're using to secure them around your arm is really good and tight, otherwise that sucker's gonna come loose.

Hope that helped. :>

lol it most did.

What did you use to build Mirage's shoulders and helm? I'm thinking 2mm fun foam will be too flimsy for both of the main components there.

Also" hot glue is heavy in mass quantities. :x

That flat metallic part facing inward was foam board and the rest was 3/16" foam. The boxy bits that actually sit on my shoulders are also foam, but because the pieces were small, they didn't warp too much. I'd recommend foam board for all the flat pieces that *aren't* going to be the bits attaching to your arm, because that'll probably chafe and be difficult to get yourself into. :T Stuff is light as hell, though! 4x8' piece is probably only a few pounds if memory serves me right..

UPDATED!

• Torso

Hnnnnn ....

I'm not as pleased with this part as I should be. Some of the plates still need some tweaking, as when they sit on my body, they bow in/out.

Still also trying to discern what my main building material will be. Trying to figure out foamcore.


ALSO.

Fabric samples came in, but for some reason, we missed Breakdown's metallic blue. Still trying to figure that one out. :/

Whoa, it's looking great already!! Haha, Breakdown FTW!
Do you use pepakura for the building schematics?

Thanks!

Nope, no Pepakura here. This is all measuring and eyeballing. After working on one of the Halo helmets, though, I now understand much easier how these paper mockups work.

UPDATED!

• Setup
• Shoulders
• Full Body Shots

OH HELLO, UPDATE.

Found myself some (kinda expensive) Super 77 adhesive, but it's a HUGE can, so I'm comfortable paying that price for it.

The torso has been widened by two inches, but it's currently in pieces, so there's no point in taking snaps of it at this time. Likely won't make much sense to random passerby.

The shoulders were a daunting task, but very easy once I began to get underway (and had help from Pilot THANK YOU).

Of course, now I am utterly TRAPPED on how to make the lower arms/elbow joint. I will lose mobility if I make it that round joint, I'm sure. Someone (ANYONE) wanna help a girl out and suggest how I go about this part of the rig ....?