Although probably not one of the more exciting Bat-Gadgets of all time, the Bat-Phone has always been an essential tool in Batman's arsenal, helping to relay critical information to Batman and his aides in a timely manner for the purposes of crimefighting.
The Bat-Phone has evolved much over the decades, starting from the big red pulse-dial clunker in 1966, to the more recent incarnations of a high-tech mobile cellular device in the Nolan films, capable of performing many cool detective tricks like sonar imaging and all kinds of smart phone stuff.
Be it as it may, the TV and film incarnations of the Bat-Phone have always seemed to focus on the tactile, handheld device. With technology the way it is these days, you'd think that Batman would simply hide a bluetooth earpiece inside his headset, and set a speed dial on his oh-so-trusty iPh... erm... I mean Bat-Phone, so that he could call Alfred when he's in serious trouble.
Plantronics Explorer 210 Bluetooth Headset
Which, is why I've secured myself a new Plantronics Explorer 210 Bluetooth headset, to hide under the cowl. A very ridgid body with a slim profile, comfortable in-ear speaker with a contoured ear-tip delivers decent enough sound (you have to turn it all the way up if there's a lot of road noise, but otherwise it's fine on medium), and I'd say decent battery life (8 hours talk time, 8 days standby), all packaged in only 11.5 grams of weight.
Cool part is, it only cost me $21.99, and I earned $0.44 maCashback for getting it through SHOP.COM. Hey Nolan, time to get Christian Bale one of these, don't you think?
Reliability and durability is an issue that I've grappled with for years, even before taking on this project. Coming from an engineering background means that sometimes you tend to overthink certain things in a design process. The common train of thought is that even if you cannot make something to be perfect, the goal should be in getting it to the point where it is close enough, that it is virtually unrecognizeable from being so.
So naturally, the question of "how well can this suit take a hit?" entered my brain as soon as I set down to the planning process. Multiple things (like protective gear for hockey and soccer, metal plating, and flexi glass for example) have been sourced out and compared initially in a physical thought experiment.
While all of those might be great things to use and try, pre-made sports protective gear doesn't offer the customization that I wanted, and working with rigid stamped/casted sheet material is just too cumbersome and time consuming.
Enter James Bruton from xRobots.co.uk. I accidentally came across this gentleman's video on plastic casting a foam item. Lights went off and I said, "This is perfect!" I can shape the foam easily to create the armor pieces I want, and then cast each piece in plastic, and voila! I have plastic armor, without having to worry about the possibility of someone punching ol' bats in the chest and denting the foam.
After watching his video tutorial, I decided to contact James, and he was kind enough to give me some tips on how to make the whole process work within the specifications of my project. That was very awesome of him to do, so here I would like to share his video for all of you as well.
The keen-eyed will notice that in the previous post, I've already included the Smooth-Cast 65D Roto Liquid Plastic Compound in the shopping list, which is actually a semi-rigid polyurethane plastic. Perhaps in the future I will experiment with a rigid plastic compound also.
"We order the main part of this cowl from Singapore."
"Via a dummy corporation."
"Indeed . And then, quite separately we place an order to a Chinese company for these."
– Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne
Every would-be hero needs to start somewhere. Some wear their pajama pants or their swimsuits to fight crime. Others wear a brown paper bag over their head. Some... Well, we won't go there.
As an obsessive-compulsive would-be-billionaire playboy vigilante with no special powers other than my own force of will and martial arts training, it helps to have some forethought and preplanning as to what to use to make a functional costume.
And, it certainly doesn't hurt to budget it all out and buy everything through a site that saves you money. One like SHOP.COM, for example.
What is SHOP.COM?
SHOP.COM is a new kind of shopping comparison site that offers the most comprehensive shopping experience on the web. SHOP.COM's shopping experts have drawn on their industry experience and insider connections to bring you the best collection of the stores you can't live without, and the brands and products you love – all in one place.
As of this writing, SHOP.COM is currently ranked #61 on the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, and have been named the most improved by ForeSee Results.
Not only that... But they get me the best deals to save me money, and even give me money back for shopping through their site. If only every retailer was so customer oriented...
Note: Idiot me did not check SHOP.COM partners thoroughly for the above items... I could've saved about 50% off the cost of these (and got maCashback too). Unfortunately fabric materials are not refundable... Lesson learned :(
Note: Unfortunately, glue manufacturers in North America are not very keen on telling you what their adhesives are made out of. I had to actually be ask in a Home Depot to get an answer. And while I was at it, I purchased these three times since they were most likely "available in store only".
Project: Dark Knight started as an idea. A symbol, an incorruptible, everlasting dedication to principle. Much like many other comic and hero fanboys out there, I grew up thinking how cool it would be to live a day in my favorite hero's shoes – along with the rest of the outfit.
Some of the officially licensed products out there, like the Grand Heritage Collection Dark Knight costume are actually pretty decent. That is, if you are willing to throw down a handful of money for a one-size-fit-none, cookie cutter item that's exactly the same as the next billionaire playboy wannabe's plaything.
So, instead of dishing out large amounts of money for a costume that may or may not fit me right, and looks the same as the next guy's, my obsessive-compulsive personality took over and I decided to take matters into my own hand somewhat.
Project: Dark Knight is an attempt to create a unique, form fitting, and semi-protective batsuit that is (for the most part) accurate to props and concepts from recent movies and game titles, for a lower cost than the licensed product.
