Mau5 Guide

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 1 Thank you for choosing Fearlock’s guide to create your new Mau5head replica! This guide will help lead you through a simple step-by-step procedure to create an accurate Mau5head replica that is cost effective, sturdy, and looks great! I have personally created multiple replicas using this exact method. The process is very easy to follow and perfect for people new to costume replicat ing crafts. I created my first Mau5head early Decembe r of 2010 as a gift for a Mau5fan. It was a big hit! I continued making them for people until I had perfected a method that was easy and yielded sturdy accurate mau5heads every time. Since then I have taught several people how to create their own. Every person that I taught created a mau5head that was amazing in scale and looked great in less than 6 hours! All on their own! My goal in this guide is to supply those that want to try to make their own Mau5 with my simple “poor mans” way of doing so. I say “poor man” not because my end product is cheap, but because I am a college student with very little funding and no crafting experience prior to my first mau5head. This guide doesn’t ask you to own an extensive collection of crazy tools or have loads of crafting experience; it is a very home friendly project for people that want to own an accurate replica without hiring someone else to do it for them. Okay, let’s get started!  First we will make a list of all tools, materials and prices for Mau5head construction!

Transcript of Mau5 Guide

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    Thank you for choosing Fearlocks guide to create your new Mau5head replica! This guide will help lead

    you through a simple step-by-step procedure to create an accurate Mau5head replica that is cost

    effective, sturdy, and looks great! I have personally created multiple replicas using this exact method.

    The process is very easy to follow and perfect for people new to costume replicating crafts.

    I created my first Mau5head early December of 2010 as a gift for a Mau5fan. It was a big hit! I continued

    making them for people until I had perfected a method that was easy and yielded sturdy accurate

    mau5heads every time.

    Since then I have taught several people how to create their own. Every person that I taught created a

    mau5head that was amazing in scale and looked great in less than 6 hours! All on their own!

    My goal in this guide is to supply those that want to try to make their own Mau5 with my simple poor

    mans way of doing so. I say poor man not because my end product is cheap, but because I am a

    college student with very little funding and no crafting experience prior to my first mau5head. This guide

    doesnt ask you to own an extensive collection of crazy tools or have loads of crafting experience; it is a

    very home friendly project for people that want to own an accurate replica without hiring someone else

    to do it for them.

    Okay, lets get started!

    First we will make a list of all tools, materials and prices for Mau5head construction!

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    Tools:

    **It is convenient to already own or be able to borrow all of the tools listed. One of our

    objectives is to keep this project cost effective. Having to buy these tools retail could easily add

    up to >$100. **

    1. A Dremmel or similar handheld cutting tool (You want the tool to have a thin blade as well as

    maneuverability)

    2. Fabric Scissors (Sharp!)

    3. Small Phillips head screwdriver

    4. A Protractor

    5. 20 piece of string (String that can stretch a bit is easier to work with)

    6. Glue Gun (Any will do; I prefer a larger one because I use a lot of glue for durability)

    ** Make sure that the glue you buy fits your gun**

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    Materials:

    1. 13 Hamster ball $30

    2. Two 5 Hamster Balls $6 ea.

    3. a yard of any Spandex based material (This will be the eye fabric, pick your colors wisely!)

    Price varies based on type/location

    4. 2 yards of fabric (The more it stretches the better! This piece will be cut up to cover the

    main spherical part of the head. Color and texture is your choice.)

    Price varies based type/location

    5. 1 yard of fabric to cover ears

    Price varies based type/location

    6. 1 inch thick polystyrene foam (aka Styrofoam) sheet. At least 12 wide and 28 long $10

    7. 1 sheet of 8mm thick crafting foam (If you cant find 8mm thickness, its not a big deal. We

    can stack this foam later. We dont need much of it, 1 sheet will leave plenty of extra. Color

    doesnt matter here) $.99

    8. Electrical Tape (Optional) (This is for the eye Xs. Most people would use black here, but

    its your projectYou decide!) $2

    9. 1 adjustable fit Hard Hat (I recommend one with a twist knob inside for quick size

    adjustment. If you dont know what that means dont worry, you will recognize it the second

    you go hard hat shopping) $8.99

    10. 1 large roll of Gorilla Brand Duct Tape (This tape will be responsible for adding a lot of

    durability to your ears. Technically any tape will do; but I highly recommend not skimping on

    this part. Anyone that has used Gorilla Tape before knows how amazingly tough it is.)

    $8.99

    11. Bolts, washers and Wing-nuts to build and attach ears. You can play around with sizes and

    threading as you see fit, but this is what I use:

    a. x6 fully threaded bolts x 4

    b. 8 metal washers (Same size as bolts)

    c. 4 Wing nuts (Same size as bolts) < $2.50

    12. 1 Large bottle of fabric glue and a small bottle of rubbing alcohol (Fabric glue mistakes can

    be thinned out with alcohol; it is nice to have around in case, but you might not need it.)

    **Also: Most craft stores require you to be 18+ to buy fabric glue due to harmful fumes.

    Dont forget your I.D. at home and cost yourself another trip to the store**

    $9

    13. Multi-Purpose Glue Sticks (The size and amount of glue sticks you need will be determined

    more by yourself than the guide. We use the glue to attach eyes to the head, and a hard hat

    to the inside. With that said, More glue = more sturdy and less glue = less sturdy. No hot

    glue will be seen from the outside so you are basically dealing with the question of: how

    clean looking do I want the inside of my helmet to be? I personally use about 5-6 sticks of

    10 long, thick glue with a heavy duty gun for application.

    $5.99

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    Ch. 1 The First Steps: Cutting and Shaping the Ear

    The first few chapters in our project will be focus on creating the complete mau5head Skeleton. The

    Skeleton will be defined as the entire structure (Head, ears, and eyes) without any fabric application.

    **Ears are a mau5heads most prominent feature. A good pair of balanced, well-shaped ears can make

    or break a great Mau5. Anyone that has browsed the internet looking at replicas has probably seen their

    fair share of off-balanced, crooked ears**

    1. Separate and Cut the last 3 pages of this guide to make a template for the ear. Paste (or

    tape) these figures together to make your outline.

    ** The template papers are illustrated with 6 points labeled either A, B or C. The

    paper should be arranged in such a way that the As, Bs and Cs are all in matching

    pairs. The end result should look similar to what is illustrated in Fig 1.1**

    Fig 1.1

    2. Cut the paper template shape out and trace the shape on to a sturdier piece of cardboard

    (A, B and C should be face up while tracing *Fig 1.1). This will be your base template used to

    trace your ear shapes onto foam.

    **Note: This cut-out is only a basic template for ears. Notice that it isnt completely

    smooth or perfectly proportioned. This is nothing to worry about; we will be shaping

    the foam to perfection later! **

    3. With a pen, make the same A, B and C markings on your cardboard shape. Write Left

    Front in the center of the shape. Flip the cardboard over and write Right Front in the

    center of the opposite side. This will be used as reference for finding out the front and back

    of the ears later. (Fig 1.2)

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    **Your cardboard shape should look similar to figure 1.2 below. This figure is looking at the shape for the front side of our left ear. It would be helpful to write Left Front on this side of the cardboard and Right Front on the reverse side. We will be tracing the cardboard on to the foam to make our left ear; then reversing the cardboard to trace our right ear. Reversing the cardboard ensures that the base of each ear is symmetrical to the other. **

    Fig 1.2

    4. On a flat surface, set your cardboard shape on the Styrofoam sheet with Left Front face up. Trace this shape on to the foam with a sharpie; write Left Front again on the face of the Styrofoam.

    **Make sure that you have enough Styrofoam to comfortably trace this cardboard shape twice! **

    5. With a knife, carefully cut out the shape. Cut the shape away clean and save all extra pieces

    of foam; they are important and not yet trash!

    6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 using the Right Front side of the cardboard face up. Label accordingly.

    **After completing step 6 you should have 2 basic ear shapes made from your foam. If done correctly, these shapes should be perfect mirror images of each other. To test this, put the sides labeled Left Front and Right Front against each other. Both shapes should match up perfectly. If you flip these sides around and match up their back sides, you will notice that they no longer match up as closely. Only the fronts need to match to create identical ears when completed. **

    Next we will shape our ears to look more smooth and ready for fabric!

    7. The extra foam you have shares the same shape as the outer edge of your ears. Use these pieces to your advantage to shape the ear. Lightly drag the extra pieces around the ears edge like sandpaper. You will notice that both the extra piece and the ear itself wear down as you sand it away. Shape and round the edges of each ear until they are no longer jagged.

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    **Careful when sanding. You want to be firm, but not so firm that you are shaving away too much foam. The more you sand, the further away you move from the original shape. Try your best to sand the left and right ears evenly to maintain symmetry. **

    8. You now have your ears completely cut and shaped! It is recommended to put the ears face to face (Right Front touching Left Front) to check their likeness again. After sanding, the ears should still be perfect or close to perfect mirrors of each other. If they arent close enough to satisfy your expectations, go back and continue shaping the parts of each ear that stick out.

    ** In the next chapter we will continue the production of our ear. By the end of Ch.2, the ears will be ready for fabric! **

    Ch. 2 Bolting and Wrapping the Ears

    In this chapter we will complete the ear Skeleton. Adding bolts to make the ear fasten to the head is our goal in ch.2. We will also wrap the ear to add strength and resilience.

    1. Start with your ears facing up. Align your bolts so that they are parallel and 1.5- 2 apart from one another. The bolts should stick out from the bottom curved edge an inch or so (the side that should attach to the head). Carefully press the bolts into the foam slightly.

    2. Once you have made an impression on the foam, remove the bolts. Flip the bolts around and use the threading to carve at the impressions and turn them into parallel channels.

    3. Press the bolts back into the channels; make sure they fit and are set completely in the foam. 4. Once you have created two channels and make sure that each bolt fits snug. Carefully hot glue

    the bolts into position. **Glue lightly into the channel first, set the bolt into the glue, let dry and apply more glue over the top of the bolt to add sturdiness**

    5. After you have set the bolts in each ear, wrap the entire ear structure in Gorilla Tape. ** It is recommended to use short, thin pieces of tape around the ears instead of large strips. Using large strips creates creases around the edges. The smaller each piece is, the less likely it is to bunch up. **

    6. Once you have completely wrapped both ears, make sure to label them one more time as Right Front and Left Front.

    Your ears are now ready for fabric!!

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    Ch.3 Eyes and Head: Measure, Mark and Cut

    In this chapter we will be preparing the head and eyes for fabric. Your emphasis in this chapter should be maintaining symmetry and marking accurately for cutting.

    Mouth: Draw

    1. Tape each end of your string half way around the equator line for your Hamster Ball. Use the predetermined lines on the globe to help measure. Make sure the string is taut. It should be covering exactly half of the globes circumference.

    2. Remove one of the two lids from the hamster ball and place the globe with the lidless side down.

    3. Find the middle of your taped equator string and gently push the string up (away from the lidless side) until it is .5 above the equator line.

    4. Tape the middle portion of the string in place so that it does not move. Use a flat ruler or flat edge to straighten out your string. The string should now be anchored in 3 places: both ends of the equator, and .5 above the equator at the strings halfway point.

    5. With a sharpie, trace along the string. This new line represents the upper lip of your mouth. 6. Now, remove the piece of tape that is in the middle of the string. With your finger, move the

    middle of the string down to trace the lower lip. **NOTE: To correctly position the lower lip, slide the string down until both mouth corners create 55 angles (use your protractor to make sure the angles are perfect!)**

    7. Once the mouth is drawn onto the globe, remove the string and tape.

    Neck: Drawing the Hole

    The key to the neck hole is recognizing that it is not actually cut at the bottom of the head. The Neck is actually off-set toward the back of the head.

    1. Based on the size of your head, cut a piece of string that will serve as the radius of the neck hole. 2. Replace the bottom lid of the large globe temporarily to help create your neck 3. Tape one end of the string down in the middle of where your necks hole should be. Begin

    making marks at the other end of the string with a sharpie 4. Move the string inch by inch in a circle until you have marks 360 around the strings base. 5. Connect the dots with your pen. The circle made by these marks will be the hole that your head

    will fit in. 6. Remove the lid on the bottom again and set aside. You wont need it again.

    Eyes: Cut & Mark

    1. With your Dremmel tool, cut the small hamster balls in half along the equator. Save the sides that have no removable lid. The sides with the lids can be discarded.

    **If you have a sanding bit for your Dremmel tool, it is recommended that you smooth out the cut edge of the hamster ball. If not, use a serrated knife to cut away any excess plastic that may remain. **

    2. Find the middle point of the upper lip and draw a line straight up.

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    3. Use a pen and ruler to mark the basic locations for each eye on the main head. Use the straight line you draw as a reference point to help measure the eye location.

    4. Place the cut mini globes in position and trace the circles onto the head. ** This is your project; trace the eyes where you think they look good! If you are going for a perfect replica, it is easy to find the dimensions on the internet. Try searching mau5head dimensions from any popular search engine**

    Ear Placement: Measure & Mark

    Creating marks for ear placement is similar in process to creating the upper lip line on the head.

    1. Relocate the points where the string was taped in Step 1 of the Mouth: Draw section. 2. From these points, measure and mark 1 in the direction opposite of the mouth (along the

    equator). 3. Tape each end of the string to the new points. (similar to the mouth process) 4. Locate the string at its midpoint and slowly push it up towards the top of the head. Keep going

    until the angles created by the string and the equator at both ends are equal to 75. (Facing the rear of the head).

    5. Straighten out the string and trace along this line. This is the basic path both ears will be set on. **As we discussed in the first chapter, good ears can make or break a mau5head!! Make sure this line is as accurate and straight as possible! **

    6. Start at the points where the line drawn in step 5 and the equator meet, measure/mark upward along the line on both sides; these points will mark the start of the ears.

    7. Hold one of the ears along the line so that the bottom edge starts at the point made in step 6. Make sure the Right and Left ears are on the correct side and have proper orientation.

    8. Measure and mark the location that the bolts meet the main head while the ear is in position from step 7.

    9. Repeat steps 7 and 8 on the other side of the head using the other ear. 10. With a drill or hot glue gun (If you dont have a drill), Drill/melt holes at the 4 locations

    marked in step 8. ** If you mess up the placement of a hole you can measure again and drill another. If you are only slightly off, use a hot glue gun to melt the hole slowly in the direction you need to adjust**

    11. Once the holes are created, attach the ears to the head through these holes. Fasten the ear from the inside with a washer and wing nut. **Do not over tighten**

    12. Wrap up the rest of this chapter by cutting out the mouth, neck and eyes with your Dremmel Tool. Make sure to remove any screws in the Globe that might get in the way of cutting.

    **Save the mouth piece that comes out after cutting! **

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    Ch.4 Preparing for Fabric

    This short chapter will focus on creating the lip and readying our structure for fabric.

    1. With your Dremmel tool and a sanding bit, grind away any bumps or bad edges around the mouth, eye and neck cuts.

    **The inside of the globe is not smooth; there are normally ridges and edges from pre-manufactured cuts. Grind these away ONLY around your cut edges**

    2. Once the inside is smooth around the mouth, glue a single layer of 8mm crafting foam strips to the inner edge of the upper and lower mouth cuts.

    3. With thin strips of Gorilla Tape, tape around the mouths edge and over the foam. 4. Flatten out the mouth piece that was removed at the end of ch.3. Trace the shape onto

    cardboard. This will serve as your template shape for the mouth.

    *Optional: Tape around the edges of the eye and neck cuts as well, it makes the edges more smooth and forgiving*

    5. Trace the mouth template on to your thin wire mesh. Cut the wire shape out and set aside.

    Ready for fabric!

    Ch.5 Fabric

    There are several different ways to cover your head in fabric. There are so many different methods to covering that I will only briefly describe a few. Fabric application should be approached slowly and cautiously.

    The easiest way to apply fabric is to cut and glue strips to the head similar to a beach ball. Make sure to stretch the fabric slightly around edges so that it appears tight and not wrinkled. The fewer pieces you use, the fewer seams you will have. Beginners might want to start with 6 or 7 pieces; more experienced crafters would use two large pieces and have only 1 seam around the back of the head. The mouth template from Ch. 4 can be used to easily make strips of fabric that will attach nicely to the head.

    Fabric on the eyes is best done by stretching and gluing spandex very tightly around the edges of your half globes. A small piece of spandex should do the trick; any excess can be cut away with scissors.

    Each ear can be covered easily by cutting out fabric shapes using your ear template from ch.1. Glue the edges of the ear shaped fabric to each other. Let dry, and turn inside out. This will create a Sock that can be pulled over the ear leaving a clean seam. Finish the process by stretching and gluing any loose ends around the back side of each ear.

    The key to successful fabric application on the head and ears is taking your time. Plan your cuts ahead and make sure it will be sufficient fabric to cover the entire form.

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    I sometimes even glue fabric onto my wire mesh mouth formation. Fabric on the wire mouth can help hide your face while wearing the helmet or be used to compliment a color scheme. If you decide to glue fabric to the wire form, glue lightly around the edges and avoid getting any in the middle.

    Ch. 6 Putting it all together

    In the last chapter we will take all of our pieces and put them all together to complete the mau5head.

    1. Start by placing you fabric covered eyes into the head. Position them so that they are sticking evenly out of the holes cut for the eyes.

    2. Use hot glue on the inside to glue the eye into this position. Glue lightly at first so that no glue leaks through to the outside of the head. After the small amount of glue has hardened, you can apply more for added durability.

    **If any glue leaks through to the front side DO NOT wipe it. Let it dry and snip it away with scissors or a knife. If you smudge it, dirt and other particles will cause the glue to cloud and be very noticeable. **

    3. After the eyes are dry and in position, reattach your ears. Screw them in securely (Do not over tighten!)

    4. Next, fit your hardhat into the head through the mouth opening. Position the hat so that if you were wearing it, your eyes would look comfortably out of the mouth. Make sure the hardhats shell comes in contact with the inside of the large hamster ball. Take a mental note of the hats position.

    **If the bolts from the ear come in contact with the hardhat, you can use a dremmel tool to cut away large portions of the plastic hardhat shell. A 2-3 strip over the top of the helmet is all the plastic you truly need to attach a helmet on the inside**

    5. Generously cover the top and back of the hardhat with hot glue and press it into the position from step 4. Hold the hardhat in position until glue has hardened. Add more glue as needed for resilience and durability.

    **A good amount of hot glue will easily hold the hardhat inside sturdily. If you plan on dancing at a concert in your mau5head, I recommend covering the top of the hard hat with excessive amounts of glue. If at any time your hardhat comes out and breaks the glue bond. Reheat with a blow-dryer and attach again. **

    6. After the glue hardens, Try the deadmau5 head on; make sure the hardhat is sturdy and you can see out of the mouth well. If the position is off, reheat the glue with a blow-dryer and reposition the hardhat until it is right.

    7. Take the wire mesh piece you are using for your mouth and put it inside of the head. 8. Position and glue the mesh against the inside edge of the mouth. Make sure you have enough

    mesh to cover the entire mouth. a. **Be precise when gluing. Glue from the inside of the head so that no glue can be seen

    from the outside. I recommend gluing the mouth mesh inch by inch while pinching the mesh to the lip foam firmly until it dries. You can use fabric glue or hot glue for this step (Be careful when using hot glue! Dont burn yourself working in tight areas!)

    Your mouse head is now complete!!! Put it on and relish in your glory! You are now an elite Mau5fan!!!

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    Thank you for giving this guide a shot. I hope it was clear and precise enough to enable you to create your replica from start to finish.

    If you find yourself stuck or have any questions about your project, feel free to email questions to me at: [email protected]

    Special thanks to Joel for being the creative genius he is, all of the Mic3 out there that are as diehard fans as I am, and everyone that encouraged me to write a guide you rock!

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