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In your first post you said:
>although they mentioned it was radio controlled in the final versions.

I assumed you wanted to know how to emulate that with modern electronics.

It looks like for the passive movements they went for passive spring action.

You might think about starting with an alice pack frame. Cheap milsurp frame for a pack, but they're excellent for attaching any kind of load bearing apparatus to yourself comfortably because they're intended to distribute the weight.

Find a way to attach the support members for the head and the tail to the frame.

Since the tail is thick I'll bet you could use a flexible metal rod going through the middle of the foam, and with a cable at the end tied to somewhere higher up on your back. That would make it cantilever so that it would swing back and forth at a level height.

The neck is going to be tricky if you're going to make it like theirs. Kind of looked like they used a urethrae or some other kind of stiff rubber honeycomb. You might be able to 3d print something like that.

You also may be able to use the same trick for the head as the tail, only with a rigid beam and a ball-and-socket joint, or something like that.

Those are just thoughts.

As already mentioned, digitigrade stilts will give you the foot angle you're looking for. They're tricky to build, but it can be done with just a drill press, a vice, a flat bastard-file, and a hacksaw.

They'll also make you taller. The longer they are, the harder they tend to be to balance on. I've played around with using passive pneumatic springs on a set I've got about half-built. The foot piece is still a crude prototype, but the upper components are pretty much where I want them. Here's a quick video of one of them

These have a pretty long metatarsal member, I stand roughly 7'6" in them resting, and if I lean forward I can get up to 7'8" when I lean forwards. So it would definitely make for a more impressive costume.

I'll redownload Telegram and check that out, thanks!

This is clearly going to take a little bit more research than I expected - my thinking was along the lines of those older LED strips for home use that are basically just plug and play. My experience seems to be pretty outdated!

For the sake of my own curiousity, what's the benefit to going with something like a Neopixel setup over something more like an LED party light like this or this? Assuming solid color and only needing on/off function.

Based on reviews, I'd seen that these are noisy/have coil issues, so is it a safety/longevity thing? Brightness?

I'm all for putting in the work to get a more polished end result that will last longer, I'm just curious from an effort/payoff standpoint. How far down the rabbit hole should I go before I've gone too far for this?

I hope that doesn't come off snarky at all, especially since I'm actually excited to learn how to do this correctly. I'd love to get some crazy Arduino shit going, if not for this suit than for another in the future.

Aha, no worries, all of this was super helpful and useful! Thank you for taking the time to write it all out!! :>

The head is definitely the part I get stuck on, as everything else depends on whether I want to build off of a mask, or just buy a larger headpiece and modify it. I've seen others wear those <a href=https://www.amazon.com/elope-Black-Panther-Costume-Adults/dp/B014EG2TUY/ref=sr_1_14?keywords=mouth+moving+mask&qid=1562638056&s=gateway&sr=8-14\>mouth-moving</a> ones from Amazon-- not the best, but good enough to start out with? The pro is that I wouldn't have to buy a set of ears, but the cons depend on how easy it would be to replace the eyes, fur, and possibly adjust the facial structure. Either way I'd use yarn to simulate the hair around it for my OC.
Of course I could just start from scratch with a costume mask! Decisions, decisions :')

Anyways, thank you again for your help!!

I've used dive skins - similar idea as the motorcycle undersuit, may not cost as much either. They're made to go under a scuba suit, and do a pretty good job at keeping the bodysuit of the fursuit relatively protected from sweat, and they did keep me a little cooler because they wick very well.

They have these on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/NeoSport-Full-Body-Sports-Skins/dp/B003554F0I?ref_=Oct_BSellerC_2259067011_4&pf_rd_p=85239682-fc34-546b-b634-e602f072a596&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=2259067011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=R1KXDDHA29ASERHK9AMB&pf_rd_r=R1KXDDHA29ASERHK9AMB&pf_rd_p=85239682-fc34-546b-b634-e602f072a596

But... I would strongly recommend if there's a dive shop near you, visit them and check out what they have. Some may be thicker than they appear in the images and that you don't want. I seem to recall spending about 60 bucks for mine. Mine is 87% nylon, 13% spandex, and dries very very quickly. Easy to hand wash. The brand of mine is Pinnacle.

I rarely use scissors when I'm carving bases. Try super sharp snap-off razor blades. My absolute favorite brand is this. It's gotta be the extra sharp ones and it's gotta be the 18mm. I get them at Home Depot in the paint department, not the razor blade section, go figure. I feel like carving with a razor blade is easier on my wrist and allows me to get smoother shapes, especially when the blade is fresh and new. IMO it's worth the cost of the blades. Watch your fingers, though.

Oh oh and another tip to help get smoother shapes is try to avoid hot glue, and instead use spray adhesive to put your shapes together. It's easier for scissors to cut through or glide a razor blade through than hard hot glue lumps. I like 3M Super 74 and Weldwood spray contact cement. Though my most recent base I used almost exclusively hot glue because it's been raining non-stop and it turned out fine.

Sorry for the wall of text, my coffee is kicking in.

I had concerns about this going into my first build, so I bought one of these hot knife cutters. There is a bit of a learning curve and more potential for disaster, but overall I'm really happy with my selection of tool. It cuts through just about anything foam or plastic that can be melted. I even cut my eyes and teeth fromf an old 5-gallon bucket with it. You can also hollow out things that might not be possible with scissors. I've yet to try any custom-shaped blades on it for more control but i think it would be feasible. I really like how it tends to fuse together foam and hot glue while you're cutting, the end result is either slightly hardened/darkened with small amounts of glob in places where the knife was a bit too hot, and very clean-looking in places where it was optimal. Adequate ventilation and safety precautions are advised.

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MGC3R8T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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This is my favorite! :)

Schampa CoolSkin Balaclava (Black, One Size) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012TWSSA/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_uGo5wbAW3BCCP

I think it keeps the head nice and cool.

I'm lucky in that my head is very well ventilated, but the stuffiness of breathing in recycled air still gets me, so I understand what you mean. I know some fursuiters who wear a small battery-operated fan like this around their neck and stick it into their muzzle whenever they need a blast of cool air. Is it possible for you to hollow out the snout more and make space to install a fan? Other than that, I'm not really sure what else you could do.

Its referred to as upholstery foam on the link (bottom of post), which is what I heard would be great and since I would be sewing they said this would be best.

link: https://www.amazon.com/upholstery-craft-Padding-Backing-Automotive/dp/B072FPF4YC/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_201_img_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=NJ74BWT7CG6XEYBVD6ZB

I bought a pair of these and they work fabulously. They keep your hands nice and cool, pull the moisture away from them (I get sweaty palms), and provide a nice barrier to the handpaw material.

Get a small fan to shove in your muzzle from time to time. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TQPO3C6 works great. Has a lanyard built-in, so you can hang badges from it too.

General Storage:

Get a big storage box, one of the ones that looks like this. (Not recommending that particular one, just an example of the style I'm talking about.) You'll probably be traveling with this, for furcons and such, so make sure it fits in the trunk of your car and/or meets the requirements for a checked bag on your airline of choice. I also highly recommend getting one with wheels so it doesn't take both hands and brute strength to move it around.

Head Storage:

Get one of these styrofoam heads, and keep your fursuit head on it. I got one for a buck or two from a nearby Ulta. This will keep the inside in shape. If your real-life head is bigger than the styrofoam one, you can bulk it out some with duct tape and scrap cardboard. Wherever you keep your fursuit head, make sure it's not squished at all. If your box is big enough, you can just leave it in there. I keep mine on top of a bookshelf.

Bodysuit Storage:

You want to hang your bodysuit up. If you fold it, the fur can get kinked, and it will never brush out soft and smooth again. I use one of these wetsuit dryers, and I highly recommend them. It's made for holding heavier clothes than a regular coat hanger, the shoulders are rounded such that you won't stretch it the same way a regular coat hanger would, and, most importantly, it has a built-in fan in the top of it, which really helps your suit dry out before it can get funky. Which leads me to suit care...

Drying:

Getting your suit dry after you use it is really really important. Get a cheapo desk fan ( I have one of these ) and put your head on it after you wear it. (Without the styrofoam wig head inserted, of course.) Hang the bodysuit up (ideally using the wetsuit dryer mentioned above) and lay the paws and miscellaneous bits out where they can dry. Never EVER just take the suit off and leave it in a pile, or stuff it in your box. Stuff will grow in it right away, and you will stink to high heaven.

It may be overkill, but I also keep some of these desiccant packs in my box, just to make sure it stays dry.

Sanitizing:

Get a little spray bottle from a drug store and fill it with a 50/50 solution of rubbing alcohol and water. Whenever you take your suit off, spray every surface down with this mixture, especially the inside. This will help keep unpleasant things from growing in it. Don't use undiluted rubbing alcohol, because it will actually evaporate too quick to finish killing everything. Don't use febreeze, perfumes, or other sanitizers. The febreeze and perfumes will just (badly) mask all the nasty smells without killing the source. Other cleaners can leave residue, and most of them you really, really don't want to be breathing in the next time you wear your suit.

Brushing:

You'll want to brush your suit after you wear it, so that the fur doesn't get kinked and you don't look mangy. Get a wire cat brush and run it down the fur with the hooks facing backwards, such that they don't catch. You'll still pull out a little fluff, but it shouldn't be real bad, and you'll end up yanking out a lot more if you let the fur get matted anyway.

Washing:

Washing fursuits is hard, and to be avoided if possible. If your fursuit smells noticeably, you need to wash it, but if you're letting it dry and spraying it with alcohol, you can go a long time before it needs to be washed. Everytime you wash it, you'll inevitably lose a bit of the fluff.

Anything with foam in it is going to be problematic. If parts of your costume are just fur fabric, you can machine-wash them. Washing temperature depends on the fabric your suitbuilder used; consult them, or the store you got the fabric from. Turn the pieces inside-out. To dry, you can machine-dry them on NO HEAT/AIRDRY, or you can hang them up to dry. Never use a dryer with the heat on; it's pretty easy to melt the fur together, ruining the suit. You may be able to get away with the 'low heat' setting, but it's highly dependent on your dryer and the fabric, and I don't suggest risking it.

Pieces that contain foam should be spot-cleaned. (Get a damp washcloth or something and just dab the insides, rinsing the washcloth out repeatedly.) If that's not enough, you can submerge them in your bathtub and do some cleaning there, but don't do so if you don't have to. You run a good chance of messing up your head if you submerge it. Also, it will take a very long time for foam to dry; spray it with the alcohol and use whatever fans you have around to expedite the process. Never machine-dry any foam parts; they'll likely break from the tumbling.

Any recommendations on a good electric knife? Currently I have my eyes on this bad boy but don't know if there's a better one for a bit more.

Im going to second the balaclava that was linked to be a great one to use when suiting. But heres the same one on amazon for cheaper.

http://www.amazon.com/Schampa-CoolSkin-Balaclava-Black-Size/dp/B0012TWSSA/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1457831052&sr=8-7&keywords=cooling+balaclava

Resin heads are easy to work with. You need to be careful about cutting and hinging.
Use hot glue like everyone else. If you screw up with your fur job, grab a blow dryer, you can melt hot glue and remove fur without damaging your blank.

Also grab this stuff if you have not:
https://www.amazon.com/Apoxie-Sculpt-Black-part-product/dp/B005J03Q5W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1497441730&sr=8-1&keywords=apoxy+sculpt+black

Usually having a side and front view is the most you need, but having a top-down view could help too.

Those eyes might be pretty difficult, I've heard of people using these plastic ornaments to make eyes but I've only seen one head that uses them and they don't stick out that much. That person was trying to make them blend in though so maybe if you tried to make them stick out then they would.

I found this cheap bust off Amazon for $25 bucks, have you tried using this before? Is it too difficult to keep it still?: Amazon Head Bust

If it's not sturdy enough, I'll go with the one I found off Ebay, but 80 bucks is quite a lot for just that one armature. I'm hoping to make this for under 300 bucks.

I'm assuming I'll be able to find crafting foam at Michael s when I head out there this weekend. How should I go about making the tail though? How would I make it so it wouldn't just stay limp all the time? Incineroar's tail