WWII Outfits and Gear

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 5:17 am

Actually, German officers have a chain around their hats, not the black plastic chin straps. It is an East German Army enlisted hat. If you want it to look similar to the nazi setup, I suggest printing out a nazi hat emblem and sticking it on the upper section of the hat. I have a couple photos of nazi hat insignia that I've saved off the web over the years, if you want them.

One more thing, ww2 era canteens are made of metal and are of a silver color. I know, enough with the historical accuracy!

The snapshots look great. I can foresee you having much fun in making your upcoming film. How many actors are going to be in it?

foxwood · Post by **foxwood** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 5:43 am

Well I missed the canteen, but was going to point out the hat, also I think German hats were that silvish green color, the muzzle flashes look a bit strange, but other then that for being on a budget, not bad, somthing is bugging me about that German sniper, but I can't pin it down from the picture, I keep looking at his helment, is that a painted American one? I think thats what is bugging me.

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 5:43 am

Well, everyone I know wants to be in the movie, they know I'm awesome!

And yeah, I thought about putting the emblem on the upper-portion of the hat, but I never got around to it, and the swastika (at least I think there's one there) might offend people anyway. As for the canteens- Good point. I'll have to spray paint them with a metallic silver color.

Foxwood, I think it's that the picture is low quality, so you cant see the trademark "flap" parts of the helmet. It's there, and although it's not an actual helmet, it looks like one on camera.

foxwood · Post by **foxwood** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 5:45 am

Very few people are offended to see swastika on a german outfit seeing as it is supost to be there, also I'll bet you'll take more flack for it not being there, its just a good luck charm remember.

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 5:52 am

Right, well, that was my half-assed excuse for it not being there. *SIGH* Now I suppose I HAVE to make one!

Yeah, the muzzle flashes are messed up because I was using crappy equipment for that particular film, so it's like two frames of the movie are blending together, thats why the flashes look weird.

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 4:43 pm

Well, it's not the same movie that I was talking about back in September and whatnot... That was the D-Day movie, which didnt get done for a number of reasons. I needed a new camera, which I bought about a week ago (you can see that the video frames are much less quality then the equipment shots, since the movie frames were done a month ago with my old and crappy camera). There was a major time constraint, since on weekdays filming is impossible, and I only had about 6 weekends left until the winter weather would really kick in here... And I WAS just really unprepared, there were so many things I still needed to get done, and when my firends didnt show up for a big meeting I had planned, I said to myself "Screw it, if they're not going to at leat sit here and TALK about the movie, then like hell am I going to work my a** off to turn out a crappy production."

This movie will be much better, since I have plenty of time (the end of march) and I have much more equipment than before, and new and better camera, the locations are already picked out, and the only special effects are explosions and possibly one or two quick sequences with a tank, which I will use a miniature and greenscreen.

*Phwew* Okay, that sorta covered it. I'll try to get more pics... Oh, and btw, that heavy MG looks pretty crappy from close up, I made the mistake of making it outta cardboard and plastic, so it's flimsy. I made another MG for close ups, so thats my backup in case I wanna have more than one in a shot.

thewarmovie · Post by **thewarmovie** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 6:48 pm

nice uniforms! on a budget? you've got like, tompsons and BAR's, did you make them your self, if so, tell me. if not, were they cheap?

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Sat Jan 17, 2004 7:19 pm

I made them myself. Yes, I'm on a tight budget! Well, you can make one yourself, it's quite easy. There's really no way to tell you how to do it... You just get a pic of a Thompson, you cut the chape out of a board about 1 1/2 inches thick, and you cut out the hand grip seperately out a a lightly thicker board. Also, use a dowel for the barrel.

Yep, I'd say that the uniforms look pretty good considering the collateral cost of each is around 20 dollars (I didnt buy all this stuff at once, I've been collecting it for a while, so no, I didnt go and spend 200$ on my uniforms all at once.)

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Tue Jan 20, 2004 9:31 pm

No, the web gear hasnt arrived yet! I was waiting all friday for it to come! A UPS truck came down the street and stopped right next to my house, but then he left after just sitting there. I was so dissapointed. No one's come to my house when I'm not home either, since there's none of those sticky-notes on any of my doors. How long will it take UPS to get it from California to the East Coast?

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Wed Jan 21, 2004 5:40 am

I would have thought no more than a week. But then again, I got a package from the Eastern US yesterday. That took 3 weeks to come in. I think UPS is getting lazy. No wait, I have a better theory. Maybe ever since 9-11, the postal services are searching anything that looks military/terroist related.

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Sat Jan 24, 2004 12:48 am

Yeah, rushed movies tend to look rushed. Because the footage isn't correctly or whatever the case becomes. But still, some pressure to keep a movie under go is required. Making a film with no time constraints would be strange. There is always that factor of striving for the ideal time, loaction, etc, but never quite there. I think that is what makes films fun!

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 12:23 am

Okay, those helmets from the set of "Saints and Soldiers" just came in! Take a look!

The four in the back are the ones I just got, the other two in the front are ones I already had.

Here's a close up of one of the new ones. Not too pretty, but paint would fix it up.

Here's the best of the two I already had, for some comparison.

Yeah, the inside of one of them is really nasty and rusted, but all the others are pretty clean inside.

All of the new ones in a row.

Needless to say, they're not in great condition, but for 5$ apeice, I think it was worth it. I was expecting the overall cosmetic look of it to be cleaner since it was used in a movie, but it's nothing paint wont fix. Should I use CLR or something to get the rust off?

Anyways, the helmets are sturdy and intact, and besides one medium dent in one of them, they're fine structurally.

What does everyone think?

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 3:25 am

Very nice. I am thinking that the light rust will give it that "been there, done that" look. Newly painted will look a bit too conformed. War is dirty!

Now you have to get liners for them. I tend to use the method where you cut between shots and move the props back and forth to give the appearance of more than there is. But then you are restricted from using wide shots. So in that case I simply have the characters lose their stuff!

So what are you going to do with all these steel pots after the filming?

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 4:24 am

Well, i guess I'll take both your guy's word for it and not re-paint them. I WOULD like you clean off some of the rust though... Anything you guys can think of that's good for the job? Also, I do not plane to get liners anytime soon for these helmets. Skihats worn folded up around the top of the head secure the helnet nicely. I'll take the best one of them, and use it for a big role, but essentially the rest are going towards extras. There's only going to be maybe 6 or 7 people in a scene at any given time, so the 6 real helmets plus 4 plaster molds I made will be enough. Yeah, the plaster molds arent the greatest stuff around, I just went out and bought plaster-cloth material and then made a mold of one of my helments, but it looks okay. I'll post a pic if I get the chance.

Also, It's a bit late for this, but my German costumes are sort of hodgepodge... It's consisted of 2 camo jackets, 2 camo ponchos, and assorted grey jackets and shirts... Any tips? I know they used white smocks for camo but I just dont have any lying around, so the wooded camo will have to do.

Okay, any more tips for me? Does a paintball gun make a good bullet-hit effect in the ground? I'm sort of counting on it... No I dont have compressed air...

Okay! Please for the love of god just post any feedback you guys on this forum possibly can! Even if you dont care, well, post anyway!

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 5:07 am

Pretty much, any fired projectile should uplift the dirt nicely. I would use hard ground with plenty of fine dust on top to fly up when struck. Personally I would keep any form of fireable ballistics away from a film set. But if it is required, take extreme caution!

For German costuming, I use old US army cotton nylon rain coats. They are lighter than OD, plus I have a pouch that matches. Then just black pants underneath, boots, A thick black belt, and another black leather strap strapped around one shoulder. It looks fairly like a nazi uniform. For the officers, I just use my East German Border Guard uniforms.

Also, I have found that inverting modern army helmet camo covers double nicely as German camo.

Helmet liners aren't very expensive. I see them for sale all the time at flea markets and swap meets for a couple bucks.

For removing rust, maybe you might want to try fine sandpaper. Chemicals, if you are not sure of the effects, may react with the exixting paint or even damage the metal. There are several brands of polisher and cleaning agents just for rust removal, you would have to look into it. I have a bottle of Flitz Metal Polish. Great for cleaning tarnishes, rusts, and shining up silvers and other metals. Not supposed to harm painted surfaces, but I have yet to try it out on painted areas. Maybe you could try Flitz, it's not too expensive.

I hope I have answered your questions!

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 6:26 am

Hear is a photo of me in one of the rain coats.

MOD's COMPLAINT:

It's HERE, not HEAR! HEAR is the thing you do with your ears, HERE is a place that you are referring to, often by pointing.

For God's sake, can't people grasp a basic command of English????

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Tue Jan 27, 2004 6:53 am

Thats cool... I wish I had some of those, but I've spent enough money for now (something like 150$) and I think I have enough as it is...

Anyways, no, not all my questions are answered, simply because I'll think of somehting later... So keep on responding people (and you can quit humoring me, Epsilon, you see to be the only one kind enough to post here!).

FEEDBACK

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 3:00 am

Do I humor you, DeadLogic!?

It must be my spiffy avatar!

I have seen those coats for sale on the web for around $40 each. They are Vietnam era, so it's not too pricey. But don't go overkill if you have already enough necessary materials to prop your movie. Much of the time, modern jackets and clothing double nicely for vintage ones. If the viewer isn't an authenticity historian, nobody will know.

So if you drop a plaster helmet, does it break?

Gyro · Post by **Gyro** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 3:27 am

THose uniforms look really good! I actually bought some helmets from "saints and soldiers" too, I got three of them... But I didnt have to ship them, just drive a half an hour. That movie comes out in February by the way. But I think I've got costumes down for the most part on my WWII films (my teaser is almost done!) but the thing I really need help with is the weapons, your Thompson and BAR look REALLY good, and I would like to know how you made them, very impressive. I've got a pretty decent looking MG42 I'd like to show, but I'm unfamilar as to how to do that. Anyway I like the weapons. Advice wise, insignias on the helmets would be good, and can help the history accursy. (My costumes are the same as my reenactment group so we dont have to worry about that)

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 4:41 am

Well, for the thompson and BAR, it's really not too complicated... For both I just cut out a roughly proportionate outline up until the hand grip in a 1 1/2 inch thick peice of wood, and for the hand grip I used a slightly thicker pieve of wood. The barrels are just dowels you can find at any hardware store, and I painted them with the great variety of spray-paint my local hardware store has to offer (something like 5 different colors...)

Also, if you have ANY BB rifles or stuff like that around, you should use it if it LOOKS authentic... I have a few I've borrowed for the film, and basically to make it a M1Carbine, all I had to do was cut out a block of wood and then fasten it to the bottom for a magazine.

I cant wait for your teaser.... I also cant wait for my movie to be done so I can make my own trailer/teaser too...

Aha, by the way, I have a pic of my plaster helmet...

Eh, it doesnt look great, but from over 10 feet away it gets hard to tell what it's made out of, and I only plan to use it for extras... You can see, I need to repaint this one... And no, the helmet is very light, and it's close to being bendy, so when you drop it, it wont break or crack.

-Edit-

Wow, that pic turned out crappy, but you get the idea, so I'm not going to repost it...

Gyro · Post by **Gyro** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 5:23 am

For a movie I tried last year I was really naive and attempted paper mache helmets for extras, and boy were they horrible. The best thing I got out of it was my friend complaining about them and saying. "Sean, My solid steal helmet is blowing away in the wind." GENIUS!

DeadLogic · Post by **DeadLogic** » Wed Jan 28, 2004 5:30 am

Hah, well, yeah, I remember that even setting the plaster helmets in the grass would expose them to enough moisture (the dew) to make them a bit, well, soggy... It doesnt matter, since very few scenes call for any big groups, and all close-ups will have a steel helmet on...

By the way, use a power saw for all that wood cutting, or else your hand will shivel up and die from using a regular hand saw. Be careful though....

What music is going to be in your trailer?

Also.... This just ocurred to me.... Where's GITPF? He was like Epsilon back when I first go here, always responding to my posts and giving me advice and taking a part in all the threads I made, and he was also interested in WWII... I wonder where he is!

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 4:33 am

I posted a website full of weapon schematics, manuals, and blueprints not too long ago. That should give you more than enough reference!

http://www.matthawkins.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2818

Epsilon · Post by **Epsilon** » Sat Jan 31, 2004 2:04 am

For pools of blood, I just use water and food coloring at 20 red to 1 green ratio until it is dark enough. Looks great for me. However, I go through a lot of food coloring that way!

Food coloring will not come out of clothing, or at least none that I have ever worked with. Most times it will even stain your skin. Which is why stage blood is so much more often used. Also because it is a desired texture and thickness. You could use small amounts of gelatin to get water thicker. You can even eat it in that case. Although more people prefer some kind of syrup, then it attracts bugs and can go bad. All depends on what you are doing.

I would use some thin plywood for a replica thompson. I agree with DeadLogic it will be somewhat flimsy, especially after you paint it over.

Grant · Post by **Grant** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 12:03 pm

hey nobody here should mock cardboard!

Tanks A lot