As a life-long Dredd fan, it was hard to decide on what helmet to build. In the end, I always liked how the Brit-Cit helmets paralleled the American Judges in concept but had their own unique style.
For me, Dredd 3D is the best possible version of JD (second being the Bolland run in the comic) so I wanted to make my helmet in the style of the film. I kept the basic shape closer to the Dredd movie, but made the dome a bit aller as a nod to the comic's Bobby helmet look. The details were cobbled together from many different artists, but I was able to reach enough of a consensus that I could start building.
I cut front and side profiles out of 1/4" MDF, cut slots in each and glued the together.
I cut layers of pink insulation foam and glued them into the voids. Using blades, rasps and sandpaper, I shaped the basic structure of the helmet.
Next I sealed the foam with acrylic paint and coated the surface with Bondo. First, I corrected any symmetry issues and then I moved on to sculpt the details.
Many, Many hours of sanding later, the sculpt was done!
To make the eyes, I vacformed the recesses in thin styrene.
I cut rough holes in the lion's face and slid the plastic into them. The excess was trimmed off once the glue dried. This method gives me nice smooth interior surfaces where it would be otherwise hard to sand and putty.
Looking at the comic, I couldn't tell if the stripes were painted raised or recessed. I opted to make them slightly raised by using electrical tape. The rubbery tape wraps perfectly over the compound curves of the helmet's dome.
The final sculpt, ready for molding!
Right now the helmet is under the first few layers of brush-on silicone. I hope to have the rubber done by Friday so I can apply a Plasti-paste mother mold and make my first pull!
For me, Dredd 3D is the best possible version of JD (second being the Bolland run in the comic) so I wanted to make my helmet in the style of the film. I kept the basic shape closer to the Dredd movie, but made the dome a bit aller as a nod to the comic's Bobby helmet look. The details were cobbled together from many different artists, but I was able to reach enough of a consensus that I could start building.
I cut front and side profiles out of 1/4" MDF, cut slots in each and glued the together.
I cut layers of pink insulation foam and glued them into the voids. Using blades, rasps and sandpaper, I shaped the basic structure of the helmet.
Next I sealed the foam with acrylic paint and coated the surface with Bondo. First, I corrected any symmetry issues and then I moved on to sculpt the details.
Many, Many hours of sanding later, the sculpt was done!
To make the eyes, I vacformed the recesses in thin styrene.
I cut rough holes in the lion's face and slid the plastic into them. The excess was trimmed off once the glue dried. This method gives me nice smooth interior surfaces where it would be otherwise hard to sand and putty.
Looking at the comic, I couldn't tell if the stripes were painted raised or recessed. I opted to make them slightly raised by using electrical tape. The rubbery tape wraps perfectly over the compound curves of the helmet's dome.
The final sculpt, ready for molding!
Right now the helmet is under the first few layers of brush-on silicone. I hope to have the rubber done by Friday so I can apply a Plasti-paste mother mold and make my first pull!
