Methods for manufacturing topsheets for absorbent articles are disclosed. The methods may include: providing a cycling forming belt that includes an air-permeable substrate and an ordered arrangement of airflow blocking structures thereon; directing air flow with entrained fibers and/or filaments to a working location through which the belt cycles; drawing the air flow through airflow permeable regions of the belt as they cycle through the working location, and thereby drawing the fibers/filaments to the belt such that they accumulate thereon to form a batt having an arrangement of built-up regions and attenuated regions corresponding with the arrangement of blocking structures, wherein the structures are arranged in individualized single-topsheet configurations that repeat along the machine direction, each configuration being adapted to form a section of web material for a topsheet and to impart a desired formation thereto including channel portions, hinge portions and/or pattern(s) of discrete low bulk portions.