I decided to try my hand at building my own version of McCree’s belt buckle from Overwatch! I used references from the game in order to create a comprehensive digital model which I then 3D printed, smoothed, molded, cast, mounted to a buckle blank, painted, and weathered. Start to finish (and with lots of breaks in-between!), this entire process took me a little over three years to complete.
Posts
- Part 1: Creating the 3D Model
- Part 2: Building the Master Prop
- Part 3: Molding and Casting
- Part 4: Mounting and Paint
- Part 5: Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Parts List
Per usual, I’ve linked to various supplies throughout each post as they’re mentioned. Because it’s convenient to have things all in one place, here’s a (hopefully) comprehensive list:
3D Printed Master
- Hatchbox 1.75 mm Black ABS Filament
- Loctite Heavy Duty 5-Minute Epoxy, for attaching the body halves together
- Bob Smith Insta-Cure Cyanoacrylate Glue, for attaching the letters to the body
- Bondo Body Filler
- Bondo Spot Putty
- Dap Plaster of Paris (for the letter curving form)
- Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Multi Purpose Spray Paint – Flat Gray Primer
- Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Multi Purpose Spray Paint – Red Primer
- Rust-Oleum Automotive Filler Primer Spray Paint
- Krylon Crystal Clear Acrylic Coating
Molding and Casting
- Smooth-On Oomoo 30 Silicone Trial Unit (2x)
- Smooth-On Smooth-Cast 325 Urethane Plastic Trial Unit
- Sargent Art Gray Plasticine Clay
- Elmers Foam Board, ½” Thickness
- Tradespro Metric Hex Nut Assortment, for alignment keys
- Ease Release 200 Mold Release Spray
- ½” Wooden dowel rod, for pour spout
- ⅛ Bamboo skewers, for vent holes
- White Apoxie Sculpt, for patching the vent holes on the casting
Buckle Mount
- Tandy Leather Large Rectangular Buckle Blank
- JB Weld Quick-Setting Epoxy
- ½” MDF Board, for buckle bending forms
- ½” Plywood, for buckle bending forms
- Titebond Original Wood Glue, for buckle bending forms
Paint
- Jacquard “True Gold” Lumiere Metallic Acrylic Paint
- Vallejo Airbrush Thinner
- Reeves “Raw Umber” Oil Paint, for weathering
- Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Multi Purpose Spray Paint – Flat Gray Primer
- Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Multi Purpose Spray Paint – Rustoleum 2x Flat Red Primer
- Rust-Oleum Automotive Filler Primer Spray Paint
- Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Multi Purpose Spray Paint – Rustoleum 2x Semi-Gloss Acrylic Clear
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I didn’t buy a dedicated belt for this since it’s just going to be sitting on my shelf. The belt used for the photoshoot was an old “rich brown” bridle leather belt from Orion Leather Company, who are now apparently out of business.
