Most of today was spent getting some of the details on my shin pads done, since I like jumping around between parts of this project like crazy.
The links were primed with a rust-colored primer and then sprayed to death with a bunch of various metallic paints that I have in my workshop. I think I used a hammered copper one, and a stainless steel one primarily. I also brushed-on some iron filings in an acrylic medium so I could rust the links a bit more authentically. I have a ‘rusting solution’ that is basically hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, salt, and a tiny bit of degreaser in a spray bottle that I hit the links with, and they were given a good portion of the day out in the sun to rust before I matte sealed them.
These links were then glued to the front of the shinpads with E6000 glue, and then I set to the laborious and annoying job of sewing them onto the pad by punching holes and sewing with an awl. The loops were each threaded verticaly through the holes in the links and then through the pad, twice per link. After like 4 hours of sewing, I have very firmly secured the links to the pads, which is good, as I didn’t trust the glue not to flex and eventually start dropping chain links off the pad.
I’ll be applying a bit more weathering to both the pad and the links once tomorrow rolls around. In the mean time, I have a good-sized pile of aluminum cold cast emblems for the front of the shins.
Pardon the mess! These will all be polished up and painted, and since they’re cold cast I’m hoping they’ll look properly metallic when I’m done. They’ve also been shaped onto a curve with a heat gun to make sure they hold the general form of the shin pad once it’s on. I’ll be gluing and sewing these on tomorrow.
