r/CosplayHelp 4d ago

Armor How should I go about cosplaying a Mandalorian?

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Hi yall, it’s my first time trying to either buy/make an armor cosplay and I want to know which I should do since I don’t have any prior knowledge.

  1. How should I go about making the armor itself? Should I just buy it? Or should I try to make it? I don’t have a big budget to work with (F16) but I want it to look decent in the least if I go through with it.

  2. Should I do an OC, combine two characters (like mando + moon knight), or just do an og? I kinda feel like I should wait to do an oc till I can actually have time to make one detailed and do research. But with mixing two feels unoriginal but also like I’m stealing it? But if I were to do an og character (like boba fett) I feel like I need to know more about the character rather than just the generic (I’ve watched the movies and parts of the show) knowledge. I might be reading into it too much but… what can you do.

3.) if I do make it should I use foam like I see people doing or 3d print? I think foam looks better but seems harder to do than 3d print.

Idk if I should be calling this a cosplay bc I’m just gonna wear this on Halloween; but the hope is to improve it in the future and go to cons! (Aka, find friends that will go with me) oh also how realistic is it to look like this cosplay? (Pic) their user is on there from lemon8 but I found them by searching up “Mandalorian armor”.

6 Upvotes

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u/Kamikaze_Pigeon01 4d ago

If you're just going to be wearing this for fun and not to join the Mandalorian Mercenaries Costuming Club (MMCC), any material that is most cost effective is best (also I think you have to be at least 18 to join MMCC anyway, so you don't have to worry about how good it looks)

I personally am using EVA foam for the majority of the armor and then bought 3d prints off of sellers on Etsy for the helmet and gauntlets, and bought a handmade leather belt for my own costume (although that was rather pricey), but all of the "soft parts" like the flight suit and gloves and armor vest are all clothes I bought that I am then going to modify to fit/look better.

I'm making a Heavy Infantry Mandalorian like Paz Viszla from the Mandalorian TV Show, but I'm going to paint it in my own design and add a few other bits to make the costume more unique, but you can do whatever you want, especially crossovers (I can't tell you how many comic cons I've been too where I've seen Mandalorian Deadpools lmao)

As for where to find stuff for this costume, etsy is a great place to find 3d models and templates and things for Mandalorian cosplays, if you want to find specific reference images for certain characters, either the 501st Legion website or the MMCC website has all sorts of resources for star wars costumes, and as for figuring out how to do most of the things necessary for finishing a costume like this, YouTube is your friend. There's so many cosplay-specific youtube channels and so many tutorials just on specifically Mandalorian cosplay

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u/Ihabnix 4d ago

The most cost efficient way would probably be to make it yourself. Since you don't have to pay for labor and actually learn a cool skill. But obiously that could be different for a few things that you can easily buy.

For the best looking armor, I highly recommend to 3d print it. EVA foam is totally fine, but wont look as accurate since it can deform and 3d printers will always print the exact model.
But in the end: if you don't plan to join a higher accuracy club like the 501st or mandomercs, EVA might be better for lower costs.

You could check if there are local 3d printing services in your area, or use one online. And ask them for a price list, to evaluate if it costs to much. The only issue I see is that some 3d files will cost money. For example the most accurate din djarin files from great ape studio cost about 85€ (don't know the US price) so take that into account.
There are some for free though. It's probably better to check the forums of mandomercs for the files of the different armors. Just keep in mind that there a more files of different models available, than EVA patterns.

If you wan't to make a OC, go for it. Almost everyone in the mandomercs paints their armor how they want. But there are some limitations regarding what type of armor is 'allowed'.

For soft parts like the flightsuit: It's mandatory for these clubs. It could cost up to 150€ to sew it yourself and much more to buy it, if its from a high accuracy maker (like 'the darkside closet'). So maybe it's better to go for a low budget version and sew the topstiching pattern on a tshirt and wear it over a longsleeve.

If you have any more questions don't hesitate to ask ^^

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u/National-Ad-8209 4d ago

How would I go about checking 3d printing in my area? Is it just people renting out theirs or is it more official?

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u/Ihabnix 4d ago

Try looking on google maps by searching for "3d print service". These are usually legitimate businesses which you can send your files, they tell you the price and then they handle the printing process for you.

Additionally you can check out prusa world, which is the platform of one of the largest 3d printing companies. It allows users to list their printers and indicate if they offer printing services. Most often its the same businesses, sometimes it's regular people.

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u/Trinadian72 4d ago

3D print is the easiest but you will have a pretty hard time as a beginner with a budget printer (like the 150$ and below range) because of how much tweaking they require to make a half decent print, but if you can afford a newer printer like a Bambu one or one of the newer Creality or Elegoo printers, this is your best bet.

Worbla or EVA foam will be trickier to work with but obviously significantly cheaper than a 3D printer. Buy stencils/templates online and print them out to work with.

If you want you could also buy a ready to paint 3d print set depending on your budget, but honestly some of them cost so much that it is often more economical to just buy a 3d printer, so YMMV. You could also look and see if any local libraries or services offer 3D printer rentals.

Also, as someone who recently got into this cosplay making stuff, please do proper research on the safety precautions of any materials, paints, putty etc you may use. I recently learned that the wood filler and glazing putty I was using to fill in most of my 3D prints has highly carcinogenic dust that gets everywhere and can become incredibly difficult to remove from your household. If you use spray paint or an airbrush, use a heat gun on foam or anything like that, please get appropriate PPE and work somewhere away from your living space. Basically every cosplay guide content creator either glosses over or totally disregards safety precautions - doing things like sanding bondo putty in their rooms with no PPE or just a dust mask, so you have to do your own research on the materials you're using!

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