Fan Made Iron Man Suit as Good as Real
While most of Iron Man lovers stock up on merchandise related to our favorite super hero, one fan has done the unthinkable. Anthony Le, 25, has been a fan of Iron Man since he was a kid, but when he heard that the comic-book superhero was hitting the big screen in 2008, he was inspired to build his own Iron Man suit. That version was more of a costume, but his new one, finished just in time for the movie’s sequel, edges much closer to the real thing. With its dent-proof exterior, motorized faceplate and spinning mock Gatling gun, his take on the movie’s War Machine suit could easily frighten a supervillain.
Iron Man 2 - Fan Made War Machine Suit
It took him more than one month and over $4000 to build this armor. Complete with a dent-proof exterior, motorized faceplate and spinning mock Gatling gun, this War Machine suit is simply awesome. Le constructed his War Machine armor by studying concept sketches posted on the internet. He has used thin, high-impact urethane for the armor, cutting it into plates and joining them with some 1,500 rivets and washers. He sculpted a clay helmet mold and then used a liquid resin mix to achieve the final look.
But that was just cosmetic work. He also added a small servo motor that opens the faceplate, as in the movie, and built a gun out of pipes and a motor. LEDs in the eyes and chest-plate further add to the illusion. Le built a replica of the machine gun on the suit’s shoulder out of PVC pipes and other materials. He added a small motor and belt drive to make the cylindrical gun spin like the real thing.
Iron Man 2 - Fan Made War Machine Suit
Also, Le built an LED-based replica of Iron Man alter ego Tony Stark’s arc reactor for the chest, but unlike the movie version, it doesn’t actually power the suit. Instead, all the LEDs and the motors that drive the gun and the faceplate have their own batteries hidden within the suit’s large frame.
Le wore one of his suits to the Children’s Hospital in Aurora, Colorado, to cheer up the kids, and the staff was so pleased that they made him his own ID card. The name listed? Iron Man.
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