Make your own "duct tape mannequin"

[pandatrooper]

I'm kind of shocked I didn't make one of these before, these are so awesome! I would love to make one for every costume I own!

A duct tape mannequin is a great way to:

- create a form that is a very close replication of your body shape

- awesome way to display your armor

- a great way to test sizing for parts, armor mods, etc.

This is nothing super new, people have made duct tape mannequins for years. They started off in the seamstress / dress making hobby (people would use duct tape to create a torso dress form for tailoring their own outfits), and there's been many Legion members who have made these for their costumes. It's not that hard, it just takes time and some simple materials.

Materials:

2 large rolls of duct tape (don't get the foil kind, just the regular silver kind

PVC pipe (I used 3/4" pipe)

1 PVC cross connector

4 PVC "T" junctions

4 PVC 90 degree elbows

PVC cement

fiberfill / foam / pillow stuffing

Scissors with round tips

Old long sleeve top, pants (sweats will do) and socks

A friend to help you

1. Get dressed in your old clothes. They should be somewhat thin / not too bulky

2. Go to the bathroom before proceeding (important!)

3. Stand in whatever pose you want. I chose to keep it neutral. If you want to bend the elbows for shooting / blaster poses, it's possible - just keep in mind it may be harder to dress the mannequin. Also, you (as the model) will get hot. Try not to move too much, and don't do this outside / in the sun.

4. Have your friend / helper start wrapping you in duct tape! Star from the bottom and work up. Avoid wrapping the tape "off the roll" if you do this, the tape will be very tight / uncomfortable and the mannequin will be smaller than you. Tear off sections of tape about 12" long and make sure to overlap half the previous strip as you work up.

I chose to wrap the bottoms of my heels so that I can insert the mannequins legs into the boots. This is why you need to wear socks. Don't bother making the feet, it won't likely stand on it's own anyways. You can add a post / stand for it later, or simply lean it against a wall.

5. Continue wrapping the upper body. I found that I was slouching / leaning forward, so try to stand straight. Make sure to press the tape down evenly and smooth it out.

6. Make sure that the tape overlaps all the way around the back. I'm bringing sexy back! Yeah!

7. After you have wrapped one layer of tape, it should be good to cut the tape and extract your self. If you're bigger / taller, I would recommend 2 layers of tape - again, overlap the seams.

Use scissors with round tips, or if you have some - medical safety scissors also work great (the ones for cutting bandages off patients). Cut a vertical seam down the back, across the back of both arms, and down the back of the legs. You should be able to step out easily.

Here's my "body wrap" laid out on the floor. I have laid the skeleton / support frame on it.

8. Go get a drink of water to rehydrate.

9. Make your skeleton support. I used 3/4" PVC pipe. Copy the joints here or make your own. Use your own body as a guide for how long each should be. Notice that I bent the legs of the skeleton outwards to match the pose I was in. I didn't bother making bones / supports for the arms, as I wanted my arms to lay at the sides anyways, and it's just extra weight. Use PVC glue to attach each section of pipe.

10. Tape over the seams starting at the feet, and do about 12"-16" at a time. Tape one section, then stuff it with the fiberfill / foam, etc. You can buy it at fabric stores and even Walmart, it's used for stuffing pillows and such (my wife and I joked about how we should walk into one of those "Build a Bear" shops with my empty mannequin and say "I need this stuffed".

Here's mine after stuffing. I threw some old worn out bike shorts on it since I want the under suit areas to show through as black (*TIP: simply cover the elbow, armpit, and knee areas with black gaffer tape or hockey tape! It will look like an undersuit without the cost!

11. Dress your new action figure! Here's a few pics of my TK test fitted on the mannequin.

Many thanks to my wife for helping me out for a few hours. She thought this was pretty funny, but said it was very cool and turned out great!

[Rolf]

Looks freaking good as all ways Terry.

One question:

When its on the floor, whit the pvc pipes etc.

Do you then fill on more old cloth to fill it up, and then close it up whit the silver tape again, when the size and shape look good.

Or what do you fill it out whit, to get that accurate beautiful body look you got here.

I have made one my self too.

I made it out of:

1. Metal goose net.

2. Old cloth.

3. Light brown cardboard tape roll, where there are glue on the one side when it gets wet.

I then make the body, add the legs and arms, and head, add cloth all over it, and then roll the tape all over, let it dry for 24 hours and its solid.

I can try to add some pictures maybe of it, if people likes.

But yours might have a better shape to it them mine, it just made as good as i could to my own body from the ground.

Yo

[pandatrooper]

Hey Rolf. I initially used some old fabric scraps (bits of "sweatshirt" material, my mother-in-law used to be a seamstress at a sportswear factory, so she had these scraps she gave me). I used them for the shins and knees, up to the mid thigh. This added some weight / stability to the mannequin.

For the rest of the mannequin, I used "fiberfill". You can get it at fabric stores, craft stores, etc. Hobbyists use it to stuff pillows, stuffed animals, etc. It's very light weight, you pull it off in chunks, and stuff your "project". You'll need at least 2 bags. (enough to stuff about 4 bed pillows worth to do a mannequin)

[Elder]

Nice tip Panda! Cheers!

[Rolf]

Hey Rolf. I initially used some old fabric scraps (bits of "sweatshirt" material, my mother-in-law used to be a seamstress at a sportswear factory, so she had these scraps she gave me). I used them for the shins and knees, up to the mid thigh. This added some weight / stability to the mannequin.

For the rest of the mannequin, I used "fiberfill". You can get it at fabric stores, craft stores, etc. Hobbyists use it to stuff pillows, stuffed animals, etc. It's very light weight, you pull it off in chunks, and stuff your "project". You'll need at least 2 bags. (enough to stuff about 4 bed pillows worth to do a mannequin)

Thanks for the reply Terry.

One thing is for sure, you have done a A+ good job on it.

I might try your method out too, and skip the old one i got if this one turns out better

[KarmaTiger]

I make sculptures the same way out of packing tape

[sir david]

LOVE THIS IDEA!!!!! COOL!

[Scootch]

The duct tape suit looks cool too!

[iconoclasta_88]

Great idea, and doesn't seem to difficult!

I would try doing one for my armor, but I don't have room for displaying it.

Thx bro!

Great tutorial / idea as always!

Saludos.

[redcorellian]

I just made another torso dummy this last week - do you think the fiber fill would give it enough rigidity to sculpt on? I'm wondering if I should have gone ahead and done the legs while I had help lol - figured I'd be able to do those by myself but... that could be a bad idea pending in my near future.

[pandatrooper]

No, fiberfill does not make a solid enough form for sculpting. Its soft like a pillow or stuffed animal toy. I've heard of people using expansion foam, but its messy and you risk it not drying thoroughly.

[redcorellian]

Hrmmm.. do you think the fiberfill would work enough to make a plaster cast of it?

[pandatrooper]

If you're going to go to that much effort, you're better off getting a few buddies together to make a plaster life cast of your body instead. You're adding the extra step of making a duct tape one and casting that which isn't as accurate as just casting your own body.

It's not that hard to do a life cast, but you need to do it right / correctly and safely.

[woodman]

You can use the duct tape torso and add a single layer of plaster soaked burlap then let that layer set hard completely then add a few more layers for strength. If you dont let the first layer set you run the risk of the weight of the wet plaster deforming the torso but a single layer wont do that.

[redcorellian]

You can use the duct tape torso and add a single layer of plaster soaked burlap then let that layer set hard completely then add a few more layers for strength. If you dont let the first layer set you run the risk of the weight of the wet plaster deforming the torso but a single layer wont do that.

That's probably my ticket. Thanks guys!

[pandatrooper]

Just be careful not to build up too many layers before sculpting, as you will be increasing the size of your "cast" original.