If you happen to be in the Greater Tampa Bay area dont be freaked out if you see this guy walking around. Its probably local artist Brian Cargile walking about in what he has named Panzer. A 100% custom made armor for the mercenaries of the future.
Yes, this is real and you can wear it!
Brian is the owner of TwoHornsUnited, a creative costume/armor company that specializes in making wearable suits that look straight out of a SyFy movie and Panzer definitely accomplishes this. Surprisingly light, the panels are made out a compound called Ethylene-vinyl acetate or other wise known a EVA. A kind of foam rubber that is used in things like ski boots, hockey pads, and boxing gloves. Its a popular material used by Cosplayers and other costume creators because its very light and can be melded and cut into almost any form.
But EVA doesn't come looking like this...... For this armor Brian used a special combination of sealants, paints, and finishes to coat the rubber so that in person you can't tell it isn't metal. He first smoothed out the porous EVA with rosco flexbond and two coats of plastidip (a sprayable black rubber). Secondly he applied a coat of primer followed by a dark metallic gunmetal paint to give the armor its base color. Then finished by dry-brushing it with silver enamel paint to emulate scratched metal, followed by a wash of black, brown, and burnt umber colors to give it that grungy worn look.
And if thats not enough, this entire armor is wired with red LEDs! At night this armor turns head everywhere it goes....
100% Original.....
Outside of this armors amazing craftsmanship is the design. For all of Brian's costumes he first comes up with a narrative like one would when writing a book. Is the character a solider? Is he/she good or bad? What realm does he/she live in? When he comes up with a character he wants to see come to life he builds the costume around that narrative. In the case for Panzer, Brian wanted to paint the narrative around the actual armor itself. Read Brian's description that inspired this armors creation.
"The “PanzerSöldner” as they are nicknamed, are mercenaries fortunate enough to have acquired advanced armored suits through unknown and/or potentially nefarious means. These suits were originally designed for a secret super soldier program that ultimately failed, and have since been lightly modified to accommodate normal human physique. With a limited production, an unbreakable fail-safe preventing reverse engineering, all blueprints destroyed, and their engineers all assassinated, these suits are highly sought after by mercenaries not only for their power, but for their rarity.
Beneath the rugged and riveted exterior of this armor lies a technological powerhouse and pinnacle of modern combat armor truly ahead of its time.
The suits feature a multi-functioning backpack which serves as an oxygen supply, a harsh environment filtration system, a hydration system, a medic system which automatically administers morphine and a tissue regenerative compound upon injury, and a seemingly unlimited self-recharging supply of energy from the palm-sized cold fusion reactor in the backpack’s core. This micro reactor provides power for all of the suit’s functions as well as it’s strength enhancers, limited shielding, and all directed energy weapons compatible with external power.
Perhaps the only weakness these suits have is that although limitless in term of overall power, the core will overheat if too much power is exerted all at once, leading to a temporary shut down. During this short cool down period the power is all but cut off save for a small energy reserve for the internal systems. The armor becomes much heavier so the wearer will have a hard time covering any distance. In addition, no further energy can be supplied to other systems like shielding and weapons. This leaves the wearer temporarily vulnerable for an attack. Attention and proper tactical managing of power levels must be maintained to keep the core from overheating." - Bian Cargile
How can you see and How long did it take to make it?
When people see Panzer for the first time two questions normally come to mind; How can you see and how long did it take to make? Well the first question is easy to answer, you see through the eyes lol. Brian makes it a priority to hide the wearers eyes from sight. So he places bright LEDs over the eye slots blinding onlookers from being able to see inside the mask while allowing the wearer inside to see just fine.
As far as time. Some projects take Brian months or years to complete 100%, but believe it or not after working 10-18 hour days he finished Panzer from start to finish in just 12 days.
For years Brian has been mastering the art of costume making by incorporating his love for fantasy with a level of craftsmanship that is almost unheard of outside of Hollywood. Well known in the local fantasy scene Brian's won several awards Including Spooky Empires Best In Show 2015 for this incredible Panzer Armor. Starting on his living room floor, Brian now works out of his self made studio selling his work online through the TwoHornsUnited Etsy shop.
Links Too TwoHornsUnited:
FB: https://www.facebook.com/2hornsunited/home
Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/twohornsunited
DevArt: http://twohornsunited.deviantart.com/
IG: twohornsunited
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