As you know we accept a wide range of various types of sources for making armour to even the type of material you decide to use. So to help new members find the appropriate materials to making their own unique costume or a character from the movies or comics we have a few places that are good to go to and get decent material for a decent price.
Bunnings/Warehouse/ Hardware Stores. This is your main go to place for things like Power tools, heat guns and Dremels, which depending on what you want will depend upon price, Bunnings sells their brand Dremels for about $40 and about the same for heat guns.
It’s also the main go to place for things like Pvc, pipe joiners for making detonators/grenades and various other devices including staff’s like Rey’s. If you want to use stuff like Sintra (a PVC foam Type) you will not find it under that name as it’s the American Brand. Ask them for Pvc foam and if they still do not know ask for Suntuf, which is our Australian brand name for Sintra. It’s about $40 odd a sheet but very much worth it and you can make almost a full kit of armour out of it.
On the cheaper side you can use what I use, Pvc piping. Depend on the thickness and length of the pipe will depend on the pricing which is usually between $4- $20. Some places may vary in price but Bunnings sells them within that price scale and Pvc Piping is pretty easy to cut, trim and heat up.
They also sell Fiberglass here as well in the kits, but sometimes you can get them cheaper at other places.
Hinges, screws, paints, sprays you name it you can find it all in there. Though I will say if you are looking for things like Spray paint, Bondo or cheap fiberglass your best bet is….
Supercheap, Repco or Autobarn.
The Aussie Car shops pretty much. I prefer Autobarn as you can get primer, fillers and spray paints for only a few simple bucks, its cheap and easy and comes out looking fantastic on almost anything and very long lasting. They also have a wide range of glues that can hold things together strongly if need be and also Body Filler, or as it is known by its American Brand Bondo which is used for helping to smooth out surfaces or fill in gaps. You may also get the chance to grab some cheap goodies in there as well depending upon the place you go.
A spray can for me costs roughly $4 for a big one at Autobarn.
SpotLight aka. Material Fabric wonderland.This is almost every Cosplayers one stop shop when it comes to any type of sewing desire, from sewing machines to even fabric or little nick-nacks to put on your costume. It’s a never ending land of fun and wonder that you often will end up getting lost in as it provides for a lot of high quality crafts. Another place that you should make as you’re one stop shop.
You can find here costume patterns including the Jedi/Sith Tunic’s and cloaks, sometimes they will sell Leather scraps, but they normally have a wide range of Fabric. They even have sewing machines if you require one and jewellery that can be used on your costume. Heck I even bought a packet of buttons that I used on the side of my shoulder armour that look fantastic. The sky is the limit in this shop.
Lightsabers.Heres an interesting resource to look up, Lightsabers. We have all heard of UltraSabers and Saberforge, pretty much everyone’s go to for a nice looking saber with sound and flash and clash. There are also sellers such as Gary Ripper, known for his remarkable custom designs as well as his Ripper blades. However there is a New Aussie provider, they are called the Sons of Obi-wan. You might have seen them on Tv or maybe at a Convention. They recently started to produce their own Sabers which have their own unique aircooling system, battery charger and a lightweight Hilt, not to mention that they also include a Saber that you can literally never break. They also do saber fighting training at Conventions and do various panels and workshops. Good if you are close to Sydney as they do weekly classes.
Their Website:
http://www.sonsofobiwan.com/Another good Saber seller is KyberLight. They also just started up and their Sabers range from $200-$500 and have customizable features, various saber colours to pick from and also another brand that has a saber which has been proven to deal with the weight of a car going over it, so very durable sabers, and also all their sabers have Flash and Clash on them.
Their website:
http://kyberlight.com/index.php/Other items such as Masks, armour parts you cant make or even clothing:
Etsy is your next go to place for anything costume related, some people sell Sith costumes, sabers, lekku, blasters, armour parts and helmets and masks here. There is a never ending list of things that are sold on this website. If you want something cheaper look up Ebay there are always things on there as well that can come in handy.
