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Sunnybrook1 — Realistic Wing Tutorial - P.2
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Published: 2010-08-16 06:11:20 +0000 UTC; Views: 116919; Favourites: 841; Downloads: 1792
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Please let me know if you need this transcribed, and I will do so...
9/21/16: If alligator clips are too pricey and/or you won't need to adjust the feathers much after you've placed them, just leave on 2.5" - 3.5" inches of extra wire to bend around the elastic. It's not as pretty or easy to adjust, but it's cheap & it works!
Also, some pro-tips from Imagi-Nethat :
- Old bedsheets are a much cheaper alternative if you don't want to buy fabric off the roll.
- While using fusable web instead of paint seems like a good idea, I do NOT recommend it. The web doesn't stick to the wire and you end up having to go through extra steps to correct it.
- For the wire, I cut it to the length of the feather and then folded and squashed one end down about an inch. It keeps the fabric on well.
- If you live in America, Menards had reasonably priced alligator clips. It cost about $9 for two people's (36) clips.
- While it's entirely possible to spray paint your feathers after the fabric has stuck together, be careful about it, as it can leave a mottled look if you don't spray evenly.
3/22/10: My first video showing wing-movement.
12/3/13: My second video with two wings~
8/5/17: Disney animator describes the Mechanics of Bird Flight - watch for the useful description of how wings are built from 8:40 - 11:31.
3/6/2018: Correct #1 Primary feather wrapping example
Part 0 - MATERIALS
Part 0.5 - TOOLS
Part 1 - CONCEPT
Part 2 - FEATHERS
YOU ARE HERE Part 3 - HARNESS
Part 4 - ASSEMBLY
Part 5 - COVERTS
Part 6 - ARM-COVER WIP
EXTRA - RESULTS : See what OTHER people have made following this tutorial~
The Feather Atlas
Slater Museum of Natural History
Already finished your wings? Please fill out this questionnaire , I'd love to hear about it!
Wing Design/Tutorial © Sunnybrook1
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Comments: 267
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Hello! Thanks for the awesome tutorial! I am attempting to make a set for myself but have been unable to find the right gauge wire at my local hardware stores. They only seem to have 8 gauge and up or 16 and below 
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Hi, thank you for all you super nice tutorials. Sorry if my question already has been asked, I was not able to find the answer in the picture or text on the material, and I am not able to charge the comments at the moment...
What kind of Gorilla glue do you use ? (my store has like 10 differents kind of Gorilla Glue :'D) Thank you!
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Thank you for your answer!
By the time, I re-read the tutorial and read the comments (with a good wifi connection lol), and then I realized you used paint as glue. It looks that the particular paint you are using is discontinued or not available in my wallmart. Well I then opt to Mod Podge, because I am lazy. The results are so so for the moment, but as long as the feathers don't fall appart, it will be suffisant for my LARP :'D.
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I bought wire which is used for keeping wired fences in place (in english it's tension wire I think?). You can buy it per 100 meters, and it's quite cheap. Also saves on fiddling with wirehangers. Though you still need to kinda straighten the wire.
Example: https://www.giga-gaas.nl/spandraad/verzinkt/spandraad-25mm-100m-verzinkt-staaldraad">www.giga-gaas.nl/spandraad/ver…
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I’ve tested this method of feather making quite a bit. The front looks relatively good with pressing and smoothing the paint and fabric, however the back seems to always have air bubbles left. How can you fix that or prevent it from happening?
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I just ordered 3 large sheets of 1mm craft foam from eBay so I’ll try that. Though I tested it with 2mm foam, easier to put together, but the thickness was a tad too thick.
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I tried doing that but sometimes they don’t want to stick. I’ll keep trying though.
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About what size are the alligator clips for the secondary feathers? I'm ordering online so it's hard to judge...
Thanks so much for the tutorial
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No worries - 1-inch or 2-inch alligator clips will work fine~
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Do you think something like mod podge would work instead of the paint? I haven't worked with thick wire like the coat hangers so I'm not sure if it would stick well. Thanks!
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I've never used modge podge myself, but I know what it's usually used for - sounds promising. Make a single test feather first to see if it will - if it works with one, it'll work with all of them~
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For the crow wing template, are the primaries #1 through #14?
I am trying to figure out which of the feathers I need to make the wires that have the loop in order to to put them on the hex bolt.
I currently have 1-7 made.
Thank you!
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Yup, that's right, feather #1 should be the first feather on the bolt that you grab to open the wing~
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So I followed all of these steps but for some reason while the paint dries it isn't drying together. I am unsure what to do or how to proceed. It doesn't seem to be sticking at all 
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That's not good!
And does it stick together while wet, only separating once it's dry?
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Not yet, but when I do I'll add a link to the description~
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The paint (even though it is almost the same color as the fabric) is seeping through a lot
I am really confused as if I am expected to spray paint everything afterwards to hide the random blotches of seeping through...In that case, what was the point of finding cloth of the right color? Helpppp! lol
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The right color cloth makes spray-painting it afterwards a LOT faster, since you'll only need 1-2 layers sprayed and dried rather than 3-5 layers.
I turned white-fabric wings into black ones, and it took SO long, I wish I'd known and just used black from the start. Darker colors tend to be more forgiving/hide the paint splotches better than lighter ones, as well, and thicker fabric might be heavier but it will also decrease the chances of the paint soaking through to the outside.
Hang in there!
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Thank you for the quick response! I’ve been cutting out and painting these feathers together for days, lol, but I’m excited for the results! I’m probably going to spray paint it regardless. I’ve kind of accepted the blotches as a work in progress at this point xD
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Good luck, take pictures! I'd love to see how they look finished~
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The 1st. Primary Feather Shaft will be thicker, right? Since it's the mostly used, more hanger wire needs to be added. Is this shaft large once the glue dries on the fabric?
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Yup, the 1st Primary feather is usually strengthened with a few doubled-up wires wrapped up tightly together. It is much larger than the other shafts, but as long as the edges are wide enough - imagine a seam allowance on a fabric garment, or the melted plastic edges on a sealed product - the fabric tends to stay glued in place.
The extra thickness needs to be on side of the shaft, on a different side for each wing, so that it hangs out of the feather fan. There's a good close-up picture that demonstrates this in part 4 of the tutorial 
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I have a random question. How long did it take you to make these? Sorry for bothering ya with this
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No problem - kind of a difficult question to answer, since they weren't made in one sitting, but I'd estimate I put about 45-50 hours of actual construction time into these (maybe but probably not including design & paint-drying time).
Does that answer your question?
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Yes!! Thank you very much for taking your time to answer that!
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I'm sorry, this may be a stupid question, but my brain just can't seem to wrap around it...........Are the feathers cardboard or fabric? Or both?...I think I need to sleep more before I start this project, so that maybe I can actually understand what I am doing heh... OTL
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No worries! The final feathers are made out of fabric, BUT the instructions describe making cardboard feathers first so that you (a) get a better idea of how large they'll be, (b) easily adjust and change the "feathers" now so you can get the wing-shape you want, and (c) so that you have a read-made pattern for each feather to use when figuring out how much fabric you'll need to buy, mark, and cut out*.
*Note: though saying it now, don't cut out your feathers to the exact size of your pattern, leave a little bit of space around each so that when you paint them you don't have to go all the way to the edges, just enough that once they've dried you can cut off the excess and have a nice, clean edge to start with.
I always suggest reading the entire tutorial before starting in on it, so that you understand what each part is for and can make the best design decision regarding your own wings. Maybe I should put that advice somewhere more visible...
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hey! so if anyone was like me, and was limited on supplies/the talent to craft stuff like this, here's a few tips. of course, they're more just a list of "oh shit I shoulda done that"
- Hot glue is your friend. I had a problem with the fabric sticking to the wire, but a bit of hot glue along the wire when painting works like a charm.
- Never ever ever leave drying feathers outside, because they will get wet and you'll be sad. (Take it from me)
- Seriously, take Sunnybrook's advice and test your fabric.
- Make sure you have enough fabric.
- Spray paint is also your friend! If you want a wider range of colors, it's easier to just buy white fabric and white paint, and just spraypaint all the feathers once they're initially done drying. It dries fairly quickly, and actually kinda helps make the feathers stiffer.
- Be organized. Make a list of what feathers you've painted/cut out/whatever. It will help you. Trust me.
- Don't be like me. Don't promise to make two pairs of wings before halloween.
- And make sure you have all the materials you need. Believe me. it gets annoying when you have to keep running to and from the walmart that's 30 minutes away because you live in the middle of nowhere.
And, speaking of materials, I have a quick question. For the polypropylene webbing- Does it need to be PW, or can it be something else? Would elastic suffice?
And also- I couldn't find the best fabric, but I bought twill. It's apparently thicker/stiffer than broadcloth/duck. I'm leery about trying it out, because I wouldn't be able to return it then. Any ideas as to how it might end up as? Is the fabric good or bad for feathers?
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The polypropylene webbing can be replaced with whatever you want, as long as it's comfortable for you to wear and holds your wings up and in the right place. So if the elastic is strong enough sure, though I imagine it'll wear out eventually & get loose.
And I've never used twill. As long as it's absorbent it should still work, but if it's thicker than broadcloth you may find the feathers heavier. If you decide to try it, post here with the results!
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So! I didn't finish them fully (coverts and arm cover weren't done) but i did manage to get the primaries and secondaries on the harness (and functional!) (but alas, I didn't have time to praypaint them all to be the color I wanted)
Twill is nice. It's a bit heavier after being painted. I actually used a pretty wide range of fabric types for my feathers. I couldn't tell you what they are, but I did find a kind that worked nicely if I used three layers for each feather (as well as a kind that did well w/ just the original two layers. But it was slightly thin, and bent easily once put on the harness and such.)
Tbh, I wouldn't recommend twill. It curled while drying, so I had to watch it closely. But it did stick together nicely, and was stiff enough to hold, even when I rushed to the finish, it held fairly well.
I did have a problem with attaching the secondaries to the elastic, but that's because I didn't follow your directions. Also, because twill ended up to be heavier, one of my feathers actually "disengaged" several times during the night. So much so that I eventually gave up and just let it dangle. (nobody noticed besides me lmao)
All in all, I really love this tutorial, and I plan to make a new set of wings + tailfeathers (I have a few ideas involving string, a belt, and hooks. I want to be able to open the tailfeathers, so I may try out attaching fishing wire to my wings, so they would pull open when I spread my arms. not sure yet. will test some)
But yeah. Really love how creative the tutorial is.
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Would I be able to glue 2 pieces of poster board together rather than fabric? Would it make the feathers sturdier if I did?
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So sturdy that they'll click & clack together when you move~
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I'm not the person you were looking for an answer from but I'll answer anyway. Yes you would be able to glue 2 pieces of poster board together. They make a bit of noise but work. Someone else did it, here's a video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRRtfY… and here's their DA==> davennashi.deviantart.com/
I'm not sure if it would be sturdier, I would assume so since they would be stiffer.
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Thank you so much for responding! I'm glad the poster board will work and I'm excited to get started.
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No problem! I'm glad I could help 
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A few tips for people:
- Old bedsheets are a much cheaper alternative if you don't want to buy fabric off the roll.
- While using fusable web instead of paint seems like a good idea, I do NOT recommend it. The web doesn't stick to the wire and you end up having to go through extra steps to correct it.
- For the wire, I cut it to the length of the feather and then folded and squashed one end down about an inch. It keeps the fabric on well.
- If you live in America, Menards had reasonably priced alligator clips. It cost about $9 for two people's (36) clips.
- While it's entirely possible to spray paint your feathers after the fabric has stuck together, be careful about it, as it can leave a mottled look if you don't spray evenly.
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I second all of this, though the tip about cheap alligator clips is great news!
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