Halo 3 Legendary Edition Helmet (wearable!) pics and story

idk if this should be in the "prop" section since it WAS a prop but is now a costume, kind of.

so this was one of my first ever projects about 5 years ago, i think, i dont really remember when i started tearing this apart. i got the helmet with legendary ed halo from best buy many years ago for $35. they had a bunch left over from (whenever 3 came out) and the product floor manager guy just wanted to get rid of them, i was poor then and threw my last 35 bucks to buy it, knowing they were still going $100+, so i couldnt afford to buy them all even though this was the greatest sale price ever.

im the kind of person that if i dont like something, i have to change it. im sort of a collector, i have a bunch of clone trooper figures and hot wheels, but i didnt really care about the "super rare yet everybody and their mom has one" halo helmet. needless to say im the only one in my neighborhood, probably state, that freely felt the need to rip apart a $100 piece of plastic, tossing out every ounce of value and collectability.

i know there has been others, youtube i think once, 405th i know there was a guy, that also made their helmets wearable, but heres mine. i painted it white cuz all my halo in-game models i always made white, and black visor because i didnt like the orange gold and wanted to be different, but now i feel better about making it black because you can have black visors in halo Reach, so it almost makes sense these years later.

i painted the detail pieces (nose, light things, things on the side of the visors) grey because i had no color coordination back then, but it does make it look like a stormtrooper and also back then i was stupid and didnt even put on any primer so the white would flake off in places, as you can see by the visible stack metallic green they used. so i thought no big deal, ill just paint those silver and have like battle damage, but i never got around to it, and threw this in the closet.

why im posting this now? after i finish my stormtrooper armor ill get back to this project. resand, lay some primer, actual good paint, battle damage, all the skills ive gained while this sat in the dust. anyway...

heres it on my head


i used a clear acrylic half-dome shaped display top from a star wars die cast AT-AT thing for the center visor, just a matter of measurements and lots of dremel cutting wheels with this whole project.



you can see better in person, the camera is blurring out my tv and kinect..

the clear part left for illustration purposes. when i wear this i tint the see through part so you cant see my eyes and from the outside the entire visor looks black. to do this i use "removable window tint" from walmart. this is more of a "static cling", as it is a transparent window tint-like vinyl with no adhesive backing. it is usually found in walmart automotive section next to the other window tints, in a box as opposed to a blister, for about 12 dollars. i use the majority on the windows of my apartment and the parts that i trimmed off i used one section to cover my visor, just measure and apply to the OUTSIDE of the clear acrylic. this is because if you put in on the inside, the fog from your breath will make it peel off, and also you will see air bubbles from the outside, so if you put it on the outside it looks cleaner, more flush, and you dont see air bubbles. here is what the inside looks like with the static clingtint on the outside like i have when i wear it:

"will it fit me?" you ask. well i am 5'9" and my head is 22 1/2 inches. this helmet is advertised "at 3/4th scale" to MC's helmet. but hes like 7ft tall right? anyway the helmet fits my head like it was designed for people my size. however the bottom of the helmet just grazes my chin, so if i talk with the helmet on you can see my jaw stick out the bottom, this wont be as much a problem with a balaclava on since it hides better, you really wont be paying attention to someones chin sticking out.

here is a shot so you can see the scale. i have my mouth open slightly so you can see what its like if you are talking. take note that it looks high from my shoulders because you have to factor in the shoulders and neck/chest/back pieces also add some height so the completed armor looks correct on my body.


looking up is not a problem with the chin


"does it hurt your ears putting on/taking off?" not really a problem for me. but i take off the black back/neck seal part because you cant get your head through with it on. i snap it back in place when its on.


here is where i take off the back neck seal part when putting on and taking off:


not much room but it is fairly comfortable, does not rub or pinch against my hair or skin. here is the back part on. i dremelled out the neck part, i just used a balaclava to cover my skin and hair from showing when im in costume.

here is the bottom neck part dremelled out of the back piece, you cant wear this without making this modification!


heres more detail of the inside. the foam is cheap walmart "air conditioning sealing foam" or something. its squishy enough where your face is comfortable, the pieces are hot glued in. the "roof" of the head is cut out completely, the way these are put together there is a initial shell, then a roof piece with the intricate vent details that snaps to the top of the shell. i cut the shell open to clear another 1/2" of space, the roof detail part is glued in. see those 2 circle things? that is the bottom of the roof detail part. screws from the shell bolt to those. they are dremelled down as well. not really a comfort problem but i put 1/8" piece of foam to cover those against my head, but my hair is long enough to cushion it.



in conclusion, i dont remember how long it took me to make it wearable, but it isnt TOO hard if you find all the screws and tabs holding the pieces together. this is ABS so i used PVC pipe glue to hold all the pieces together, this is because PVC glue "melts" PVC pipe to make a bond, but the ABS is harder so it creates a firm bond when the glue hardens and wont deform from melting.

thats all i can think of for now, but like i said ill be getting back to re-doing the paint and foam. just wanted to show everyone some of my early work.

That is amazing and truly awesome. Dam i love the white paint on Spartans. Great work