We just finished our stay in San Diego for the 2012 Comic Con. It was such an incredible experience! It was our first time attending the convention and we had a blast. It was also our first time building a costume and participating in a masquerade (we kind of jumped all in). The masquerade was a fantastic experience, we had the opportunity to meet and learn from some of the most accomplished costumers and prop builders in the world. The cosplay community is incredible and everyone was so generous and welcoming to us.

I can honestly say that being on stage in front of 7000 was one of the most exciting and terrifying things I have ever done. We feel very fortunate to have received two awards/recognition, one from the industry Judges and one from the Comic Con judges. Our skit was a lot of fun, we should have a link to the video soon. If you saw us at Comic Con and have any photos please send us an email (unfortunately we have very few photos of our own).

FAQs:
What is it made out of?
The costume is almost entire sheet aluminum. We have foam underneath certain pieces for comfort and straps and buckles to hold it on, but otherwise it is metal.

What tools did you use?
The main tool was a large Jet bandsaw (machine stands about 6 ft tall). We also used 2 different types of power sanders (so sand the sides of the aluminum smooth: Rikon 4" belt sander and a 1" Rikon band sander

How much does it weigh?
The costume weighs about 20 lbs
The Rifle weighs about 20 lbs. It is solid aluminum cut from aluminum slabs.

Please check out our blog for more photos and details on our our project. Thank you so much for the support.

- Naughty Zoot Design