Ruined?! What Happened to Adam Savage's Mercury Spacesuit 

Find more of Christine Knobel's work at instagram.com/thestarflower/ Adam's xEMU suit build: ru-vid.com/group/PLJtitKU0CAejUJOkTX4TYXt4mVhFzqS5H Adam's first Mercury spacesuit: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aLOVS5Fl1OY.html

ADAM! These suits aren't ruined, just modify them a little bit, insert a skeleton, and pass them off as the pilot pressure suits from the original "Andromeda Strain"! You wouldn't even have to put the hard parts back on, at least not the rubber bits, because the 'space critter' ate them.

25:10 Fun optical illusion of Adam standing on a little table.

I love that any time anyone brings up G4's revival the reaction is always the same: "Welp!"

When you asked what tea you were using my mind immediately went in Captain Picard's voice "Tea, Earl Gray, Hot!"

The weathering talk reminded me that while I was working on my ghostbusters jumpsuit, I had polished my jumpboots while mostly asleep and did not notice I had left a lot of big gobs of polish on them. When I put the outfit on to see how things worked so far, the polish ended up getting onto the legs and staining it. I tried to clean it out, but it ended up smearing since I didn't know what to do. It ended up getting worse, and worse. By the time I was done, I sat back and realized that it ABSOLUTELY looked better with the smears since they had happened so organically. They literally looked like some rookie had gotten polish on their suit and then panicked trying to clean it off before they got into trouble.

Adam is the Bob Ross of weathering. I want more of this exact kind of thing. 30+ seasons of "the joy of weathering"

How divisive is wanting things weathered. I love the brand new look.

Does anyone else find the following rather soothing; the sound of Adam stomping across that apparently hollow shop floor, it just feels comfortable like an old piece of well-worn in clothing that just fits right every time you pick it up and put it on....

Yup. Figured this would eventually happen when Adam first showed this suit ages ago. I saw the vinyl and thought... "Man, Adam is going to be heartbroken about this one day." My mom used to moonlight as a clothes designer when she went to her second Uni. And she had a few pieces that were still left in her collection. Back in... 1999~2001 ish, she fought with the same thing. The vinyl let go. She was so upset over it too. Luckily, i knew a really good leather shop who dyed some leather with the same weight apparent and did the swap work.

I love how, no matter where you set up a workspace, in every shot there is a wash of items in the background that can evoke a myriad of memories and stories!

Adam's narration while he was brushing tea onto the suit really made me think of Bob Ross, in the best way possible

Does anyone else watch Adam weather things with a paint brush and go "this is like watching Bob Ross doing a cosplay costume. Except Adam is hoping for happy accidents." ? Lol. Keep on Bob Rossing Adam!

Pleathers do the same thing ... I bought a nice bed a few years back, which was advertised as "real leather" headboard, it now looks just like your suit :)

Spectacle has always been hand in hand with science. NASA's budget has often reflected popular interest in what's going on. When the shuttle launches became mundane in popular culture, the budgets were shrinking. Sometimes it takes movies to get people interested again.

Actually.. Now youve got a dystopian space suit with vibes of desolation and struggle... You cant make aging like that look natural.. it just is... I for one dig the rotted aged look...

...and I do grin a little every time I talk into my smart watch to give it a voice command or take a phone call because I saw the Dick Tracy remake in 1990 when I was a kid. There _is_ a virtuous cycle between culture and science.

Love to see a photo showing the eye chart in the capsule.

Nice edit. I've rarely seen editing used as the joke, you did an excellent job!

Wow what a fantastic video , the suit is brilliant , so so well done Adam .

Had the same happen to a replica WW2 sheepskin bomber jacket and overtime the leather look layer just exfoliated itself.

We are not deservig of adam, honestly how did we end up with a tv star thats an actual down to earth person that shows us all the amazing things we would struggle to find elsewhere. You inspire me every video I watch. I dont know how many of these comments adam actually reads but if you read mine, I'd like you to know youve made a big difference in my life and I cant thank you enough

The Kansas cosmosphere has an amazing display of the progression of all the space suits from Mercury on.

Adam's love of things is so fun to experience

Live in North Tarrytown, now Sleepy Hollow in mid '70's. Love your videos!!!!

Will Adam do a look at or a build of the suits from "For All Mankind"?

Variegation, thanks man. That's a good word! and as always I was entertained

Is the new suit upgraded fabric that will last longer?

I was so glad to hear that dressing a mannequin is a PITA to everybody!! I have a couple different costumes I keep on mannequins and I always dread taking them off to wear them and even more so, dread putting them back on the mannequin when I'm done!

Well said as always Adam. Great info

So sorry. You two have been a big part of my evenings. Peaceful videos. Thank you.

Love ya, man. Keep rockin on

Looks pretty nice, some differences from what I remember of the spare suit we had in the building I worked in at WPAFB, I think they finally moved it to the museum about a year after I left. I was always amazed at how small it was, always thought the astronauts were all taller.

Cool peice of kit👍👍

a few years, I remember you starting The Martian, Ares III, Watney space suit and then never posted an update to it.

Great video sir

Adam, do you get to see the UK Repair Shop restoration program at all? The bear ladies, who repair Teddy Bears and Dolls, have a mix of tea chart specially for dying new bear fur to match in with older aged furs… I also think you would love Steve the watchmaker, and Dom the metal worker. (Who has his own you tube channel and book on tools).

Being reminded again of G4 going down the tubes for a second time.

I wish my craving and excitement for knowledge and creating could be rewarded enough I might have a life a fraction of Adam’s

Seeing you and Kevin in the suits for the G4 relaunch was really awesome. Kevin is crazy talented and naturally funny in a special way wish G4 could have come back the way it was. I guess we have to let some things go.

The Right Stuff is my fav telling of the space race - not sure about the historical accuracy but it still holds up as a good movie! Got a stick of Beeman’s? ✈️

Great Video, I love the "dirty" humour.

A spaceship is only fictional until it's built.

Great music slice... Weathering IS Jazz

That's an example of a new favorite term I learned: inherent vice!

Thats a nice zipper, I own a vintage m65 field jacket and the solid brass teeth are very satisfying to use. Thankfully nylon doesnt age like vinyl does otherwise I couldnt appreciate this thing over 50 years after it was made.

6:59 That whole point he's making, ending with, "There's always been a virtuous circle between culture and science," articulates something I find myself saying a lot. It's just that he said it much more eloquently. Every time I see a reveal of some new high tech car, a new humanoid robot, a breakthrough medical advancement, or some other new thing that might have seemed impossible just 10 years ago, I always share it on my social media. Those posts always come with some wording from me about how we are truly living in the science fiction world that we've always imagined we would live in. Science fiction is becoming science fact. I have seen people who work in the field of robotics criticize Tesla's robot Optimus, the Boston Dynamics' robot Atlas, and their new one they just revealed, Atlas 2. They'll say something like, "A humanoid robot is not practical. The most efficient robot is one that is specialized for a specific task. Why are they building a humanoid robot?" And they're right. Most robots doing work today are very specialized like the robotic arms that assemble cars. They do one thing very well and they aren't humanoid. But my response to their question of why build a humanoid robot is always, "Have you seen The Phantom Menace or Star Trek The Next Generation?" Humanoid robots are just what we _want_ to build. Nobody cares if it's the most efficient way to make a robot. Efficient robots will and do exist. But the cultural consciousness has been expecting a humanoid robot to exist for a hundred years. Now that we have the technology, engineering, and material science prowess to do it, we're gonna do it. All of that is a long winded way of saying, "There's always been a virtuous circle between culture and science."

I love how every time Adam goes off screen to grab something, you just hear a bunch of loud clanging noises, and then he comes back into frame with a friggin space suit lol. this man is a real life cartoon and it’s great

Was recently looking for a blanket to have in my car that I can pull out and throw on the grass for the 1yr old to hang out idk why I never thought about a bedroll, just bought the v2 glad I caught that last 30 seconds of video, can’t wait to try it out

just came from the lav mic video, and how you say its more meaningful to connect with the audience via the onboard mic on the iPhone. I can assure you that you are 10000% correct Adam! when you lean into the cam, it does make a world of difference to me feeling like im really there!

I may be worthwhile to your viewers to note that the tannins in tea react with sunlight.If you weather something with tea (such as book pages) , and then take it out in the sun, it will darken significantly.

Your 'ruined' Mercury suits could be just weathered from a stranded Adam Astronaut in a cool 1970s Sci-Fi movie! :D

When Adam is in the zone, he attacks - yes, best word - attacks the piece with all the delicate physical subtlety and finesse of a heavy metal roadie rushing in to replace a bad patch cable. Jackson Pollock would be proud. 🤣🤣🤣

I love the knowledge that Adam is agnostic about black tea. Somehow this just tickles me (13:19 to 13:26)

Spectacular color match on that dye. Now I kinda want a space suit. but I'm in a tiny apartment *sigh*

such a fun and informative video. love the suit and the history behind it, you truly know how to tell a story. but, please tell us what material you used to replace the vinyl? I am super curious and thank you for all you do :).

Much of the NASA space suits were made at ILC in Dover, Delaware.

How often do you move the buckles and D-rings, to vary the wear and color on the straps?

If you’re interested in amazing suits to build, the Captain Power series (it was better than the name implies) from the 80’s had amazing suits of armor, and was the first TV show to have actors interact with cgi characters.

2 questions, what was the original OG mercury suit material, and what was the fabric you all settled on as a replacement that is going to hold up instead of sluffing off like the last replica?

Same thing happened with my self-made BSG Viper flightsuit. Unfortunately, like you said, t’is just a thing with vinyls.

Love the suit builds it’s a shame regarding the deterioration of the suit does weathering effect the properties of the suit as your using tea which is a biodegradable liquid?..

Adam When the first Canadians arrived in Afghanistan during te war we were famously ill equipped for the environment. The troops were wearing green CADPAT uniforms but that was workable. The worst part was the fact that they all had a bright white Tilly hat for head wear. The Regimental Sargent Major took one look at the hats and decided that the troops were all walking around with a bright white target on their heads. Before going out on their first patrol he told the cook to get out his biggest pot… a cauldron really. He told him to boil up the biggest nastiest pot of coffee ever created. They boiled the hats for a few hours in the coffee. The result was nicely camouflaged hats with the pleasant odour of coffee. Your tea trick is the genteel version of our combat proven coffee.

Oh, no! I dropped everything to watch this video as soon as I found it!!!

I'm sure Adam takes it into account but didn't mention it. Extra aging should be applied around touch points. Even if your hands are clean, oils are transferred to the fabric. The oils yellows and attracts dirt.

Exactly the same thing happened to a film changing tent I had. Very, very similar outcome. Also happened to a silver bounce panel. Disappointing and costly to replace!

First off.. The Master Stemstress Christine Knobel! I bow to you! Must pay Homage to the Master Stemstress! Also, Adam? I'm surprised you don't have like a Tub for cattle. Those Metal Tin Tubs from Tractor Supply?

That's cool!

My complaint about the Smithsonian collecting an x-wing from the force awakens would be why would they collect non-cannon works

Love it. What was the new material for the new Mercury Suit? Was it the name vinyl-covered material or an alternative longer-lasting fabric?

"50 shades of grime - guidebook to weathering" by A. Savage :D

Thank you Adam. I don't recall if I have recommended a remarkable upload on RU-vid for the spacesuit enthusiast. 'The Spacewalker' - (Time of the First Ones/ Age of Pioneers). Uploaded by Ayush Cinemaxstudio, an account of Alexi Leonov's career, directed by Dmitriy Kiseler et al (2017). Wikipedia is useful for the background story. Unfortunately it was incorrectly titled as 'The Martian Full Movie In HD Quality'. But if you haven't seen it - it is one of the most epic recreation films made on the international circuit. It is so well directed it doesn't need subtitles, and there is no glorification of smoking - except the amazing reentry sequence. -Andrew Mackenna, Christchurch, New Zealand

Adam that looks great, thanks for the tip. Also What ever happen with the Martian Space suit?

The Enterprise space shuttle did fly (well, glided.) It was used for landing tests. It just never went into orbit.

Thank you for the Bob Ross tutorial. 🎨

In some historical shots of Alan wearing his suit there is some type of over layer on the shoulders. Any ideas what they would be for?

Hello Mr Savage, hey do you use dry transfer decals?

Ever time Adam shows or talks about his spacesuits I think of the Robert A Heinlein story "Have Spacesuit Will Travel."

I've seen certain brands of model AFV kits that do the same thing; whatever that stuff is, it doesn't need to be hit with much UV light to deteriorate; the plasticiser can come off the core polymer leaving it brittle and crackly and greasy, and worse, is also a solvent for polystyrene, so it will damage the plastic parts. This has been known to happen to brand new kits in the box.

Serve the tea, Adam!😄

So is the new suit vinyl again or something different that lasts linger?

Wow! The same thing happend to my GI Joe Mercury Spacesuit!!

Will the new suit deteriorate like the old ones or has the fabric improved?

Okay... saying adult doesnt mean anything lol love how you waited for it. Keep up the work love it fans always.

just pausing at 13 mins in to comment as I had a thought. but one of the magic things I've seen with quite a few of these types of "weathered" items. you saying how you will never get every spot weathered. I think adds to the realism. the amount of times I've seen real antique objects pulled from sheds and such with spots on them that look completely untouched by time while the rest of it looks like it's been... well. stored in a regular shed. is kinda crazy. that's just a thing that happens and it makes the whole picture feel more real to me.

I feel you, the same thing happened to my Action Man (GI Joe in the US) Mercury space suit from the 80s.

Beautiful, I watched the real one fly.

How did you do the research to make one of these suits? I really want to make a MC-2 pressure suit but I’m not even sure where to start.

the deteriorated suits will be great for props

Is it weird that I kind of teared up a little when he said “Fictional spaceships are important because they can make real spaceships inspired by them” or something similar, and it just spoke to me because THAT’S THE POINT. Star Trek figured this out. They actually thought out what a spaceship would need to survive as a Space Navy vessel. They based it on naval vessels that were largely self-sufficient. It was brilliant. And a lot of what we have now wouldn’t be possible without that kind of fictional base to jump off of.

I saw a model of the mother ship from Close Encounters at the Smithsonian years ago. I wondered why, but was grateful to be able to see it. I guess I reasoned that SciFi was a driver of science, and so the two are connected. Great Easter egg on that ship... a miniature C-3P0 and R2D2 were attached to the outer rim top side! SciFi congratulating itself!

speaking of space suits did you ever finish the collaboration with frank on the matt damon martian movie space suit

For the tea staining just insert the "There are no mistakes, just happy accidents." Bob Ross quote.

So did you use the same silver material or is the new stuff gonna hold up better?

I used to have a leather bomber jacket. That jacket lasted me over 12 years, and had a lot of character by the end. There was axle grease on one side, chicken grease on the other, plus my own hair oil on the collar. Plus a couple of small rips and tears that happened over those 12 years. Broke my heart when i had to retire that jacket. It eventually just was in too bad a shape to continue to wear. And repairing a leather coat is more expensive than buying a new one. Which is sad, but it is what it is.

Oh well I guess we can add the several *that's another build* references to the gargantuan list we've accumulated of builds that never materialise. One day.

I'm gutted Adam didn't try it on, and then cruise the Mission on the one-wheel.

no weathering beats the real thing, so if the thing im working with can take it i just put it in the most inconvinient spots while im working on other stuff, so when im handling and pushing or kicking it around to get it out of they way it weathers itself to perfection.

Same happens with “faux leather” - great tip Adam!

I love anything to do with the Mercury program. John Glenn spoke at my graduation from high school in 1983 and both Alan Shepard and Charles Duke (Apollo 16) are alumni.