Green Ranger Helmet Sculpt

Exanimus · Aug 25, 2014

The helmet is coming along. Did a test coat of primer on the back plate, just to see... Needs more sanding.
When my arm is too tired or I simply can't sand any more for fear of going insane, I switch to other aspects, and thus this first glove was born. It's not too shabby, but unfortunately came out way too small... Back to the hand-tracing board.

The glove patterns from the show are actually fairly complex-looking. As chintzy as some of the actual screen used costumes seem, there's a lot of amazing craftsmanship at work.

Exanimus · Sep 11, 2014

I'm definitely working harder rather than smarter on this project. I fixed magnets inside to make sure the sides were all even and the seams matched up. Everything fits tight and my head can still get in there, so that's all good, but on the surface, no matter how many times I bondo up and sand back down, I still have bumps and dents... Any advice? I've tried sanding with a sponge, by hand, with paper wrapped around wood, and with the oscillating tool.

Crimson490 · Sep 11, 2014

Can you show us a close up pic of the surface? I go from hand sanding with 220 grit on raw bondo to a couple coats of filler primer. I always get little pits (~1mm) in the bondo, but once I start adding the filler primer and higher grit paper, it all evens out. I probably do at least 2 cycles of 2 coats of filler primer then 300ish grit sanding.

Exanimus · Sep 11, 2014

Crimson490 said:
Can you show us a close up pic of the surface? I go from hand sanding with 220 grit on raw bondo to a couple coats of filler primer. I always get little pits (~1mm) in the bondo, but once I start adding the filler primer and higher grit paper, it all evens out. I probably do at least 2 cycles of 2 coats of filler primer then 300ish grit sanding.

I'll throw some pics up after work, but mostly it's just that I can feel the irregularities. I've been starting with, like, 80 grit or something really low to get the crazy surface down, and then moving up to 220 and into 400. It all looks fine, but when I run my hand over it, I can feel dips along the way. Am I just being too picky?

Exanimus · Sep 11, 2014

Basically what happens is that I slip some bondo on to a dent, but then I can't blend the edges and so I sand it down too hard and the original dent is essentially back. You can see in this photo the two top sides where the newest bondo patches are slightly raised above everything else. Then when the regular primer goes on, you can really see those edges.

Crimson490 · Sep 12, 2014

OK. Thanks for the picture. I think the answer is in your feathering technique.

I try to hit the high spots first (with 80 grit, if it's really rough), and as best as I can avoid feathering the edges of the new patch till last. Work your way from the center outwards never touching the smooth areas until the patch is leveled out to where you think it's almost at the same height as the smooth surface. It becomes more difficult if the original helmet material (plastic?) underneath the bondo is not as hard as the bondo. If you're finding this to be the case, then you really need to be extra careful to isolate your sanding pattern to just the new bondo patch first, and then work outwards (shown in the picture below: small red circles first, then larger red circles). When you're ready to feather, focus on the transitions or edges of the patch and work out into big sweeping strokes that cover a large area well beyond the patch. Eventually, you have really large sanding strokes that basically sweep over the whole helmet.

It could also be that the smooth plastic just isn't accepting the bondo. I find that bondo sticks better to surfaces that have been given nothing smoother than 220 grit sanding. Anything smoother, and it'll be tough to keep that new patch down while you're sanding it. In fact, don't use anything finer than 220 until you are pretty sure you're done with the bondo.

Couple other things, that I'm sure you're already doing, but I just gotta say:
When sanding, mix up your method. Sand in circles, sand in different directions.
Make sure your mixing the right ratio of bondo - it should match the pink color on the bondo trowels.
Make sure your surface is free of any dust before applying bondo.

Your sculpt is looking good! I would just hit the areas I circled with the 220, and then filler prime it and see how it looks. You look to almost be at the point where you're just using filler primer and going back and hitting high points with the 220. Then repeat as needed, and only where needed.

Exanimus · Sep 12, 2014

Crimson490 said:
OK. Thanks for the picture. I think the answer is in your feathering technique.

I try to hit the high spots first (with 80 grit, if it's really rough), and as best as I can avoid feathering the edges of the new patch till last. Work your way from the center outwards never touching the smooth areas until the patch is leveled out to where you think it's almost at the same height as the smooth surface. It becomes more difficult if the original helmet material (plastic?) underneath the bondo is not as hard as the bondo. If you're finding this to be the case, then you really need to be extra careful to isolate your sanding pattern to just the new bondo patch first, and then work outwards (shown in the picture below: small red circles first, then larger red circles). When you're ready to feather, focus on the transitions or edges of the patch and work out into big sweeping strokes that cover a large area well beyond the patch. Eventually, you have really large sanding strokes that basically sweep over the whole helmet.

It could also be that the smooth plastic just isn't accepting the bondo. I find that bondo sticks better to surfaces that have been given nothing smoother than 220 grit sanding. Anything smoother, and it'll be tough to keep that new patch down while you're sanding it. In fact, don't use anything finer than 220 until you are pretty sure you're done with the bondo.

Couple other things, that I'm sure you're already doing, but I just gotta say:
When sanding, mix up your method. Sand in circles, sand in different directions.
Make sure your mixing the right ratio of bondo - it should match the pink color on the bondo trowels.
Make sure your surface is free of any dust before applying bondo.

Your sculpt is looking good! I would just hit the areas I circled with the 220, and then filler prime it and see how it looks. You look to almost be at the point where you're just using filler primer and going back and hitting high points with the 220. Then repeat as needed, and only where needed.

Thank you, I really appreciate the advice. I've been doing all wide area sanding, but I'll focus down more and try to be more careful. Good tip about the color matching bondo. I had been mixing it really light to slow down the cure.

Crimson490 · Sep 12, 2014

You're welcome! Wide area sanding is good and helps create a uniform surface - just wait to do that till after you've knocked down the patches.

If it's too gray, it just doesn't hold to the surface and can take a really long time before you can sand. If it's too red you don't get a good working time and it doesn't get a chance to bond. If it's just right, you should only have to wait about 30 minutes before sanding again.

Good luck!

Exanimus · Sep 20, 2014

Got a coat of filler primer on today. These look so much better when they're all one uniform color, right? The weeks of staring at a blotchy bondo/resin surface have made me cross-eyed, but now I can see it straight. There are still plenty of areas that need work, and I do need to get into the deeper scratches/pinholes with spot putty, but this is one of those up days where I feel good about the project, as opposed to the down days where I think it looks like a piece of crap, (see previous bondo patchwork comment). I am slowly coming to terms with the fact that it will never be screen perfect or 100% symmetrical, and am happy with how close I managed to get. It does seem that the slight dents that are left will be a lot less visible once it's all painted up. I was worried about the surface needing to be absolutely even, right down to the micron, but I think that's probably not the case.

I also finally finished a glove that fits! Parts of it are still not what one would call "pretty", but I'm closing in on that, too.

Will I finish in time for Halloween/Comikazee, the latter of which so that I can square off with the million other perfect Eric0101/007Halu/Aniki/etc. Green Rangers that will most likely be there?!? Time will tell!

Crimson490 · Sep 21, 2014

Looking really clean! Keep it up!

firion1234 · Sep 28, 2014

I am super jealous of those gloves! I bought my costume from Cosplay House and while mine sort of resembled Sentai gloves, they don't hold a candle to yours! I'd say they're pretty much spot on when it comes to screen accuracy! I intend to make my next suit by hand too, and I may hit you up for some questions when I finally get around to it. If that's ok, of course. I really appreciate the level of dedication you're bringing to this project and if we didn't live on opposite sides of the country, I'd suggest we went into business together! I'm currently sculpting the Red Ranger now that I've finished blue. I really feel like there is a middle ground in the market for helmets. Somewhere between shelling out for an Aniki and settling for a Model for Hobby helmet. I have a follow up thread for my first sculpt here if you're interested.

TigerStoneFX · Sep 29, 2014

Fantastic work! Love the sculpt, great job.

Exanimus · Sep 30, 2014

firion1234 said:
I am super jealous of those gloves! I bought my costume from Cosplay House and while mine sort of resembled Sentai gloves, they don't hold a candle to yours! I'd say they're pretty much spot on when it comes to screen accuracy! I intend to make my next suit by hand too, and I may hit you up for some questions when I finally get around to it. If that's ok, of course. I really appreciate the level of dedication you're bringing to this project and if we didn't live on opposite sides of the country, I'd suggest we went into business together! I'm currently sculpting the Red Ranger now that I've finished blue. I really feel like there is a middle ground in the market for helmets. Somewhere between shelling out for an Aniki and settling for a Model for Hobby helmet. I have a follow up thread for my first sculpt here if you're interested.

It looks great, man. I'M jealous of how fast you finished.

firion1234 · Oct 1, 2014

Exanimus said:
It looks great, man. I'M jealous of how fast you finished.

Thank you! I doubt it's a fair comparison though, I've been gainfully unemployed since late February! Progress will be slow on the next one because I am looking into buying a home. As I mentioned in my follow up thread, my father built props professionally and I'd like to parley my current lack of employment into a small time (I emphasize small here) career. Not so much like father like son, since he worked on films and television, I just want to supply fans with affordable replicas of what they love. That decision will of course relegate me to only ever working under the radar, since there is always the looming threat of a C&D, but I'd prefer to be my own boss anyhow!

Exanimus · Oct 22, 2014

I am finally ready to start painting and that is very exciting. The surface is still a tiny bit uneven, but you only notice if you run your hand over it, so that seems like an okay place to be. I've also known for a while that the top of the head is too round, but I kind of like it and it needs to be that high to fit my head, so so be it.

Still experimenting with visor tint. This one is VHT, but it's a bit splotchy and hard to see through. Also trying window tint film, but it's really hard to get all the air bubbles out. Tried boiling in rit dye, but it was like that scene with the candy cane from The Nightmare Before Christmas; when it came out, the once perfectly-formed visor was just a floppy, (nicely tinted), mess.

Yet another obsessive new hurdle: the diamond! Made a ton of these things by sanding down bondo and epoxy putty blobs, but can never get it quite right, or if it comes close I say to myself, "just a little more sanding on this side," and then the whole thing goes to hell.

Using a transparent red resin with a 24 hour cure time. For an impatient guy like me, that is an eternity, but I think the diamond is almost finished as well. (Mixed up too much resin, so pulled out every mold I had. Gonna have a lot of ruby red things that have no business being ruby red).

After so many months of work, it all just sort of comes together at the end with very little fanfare.

Crimson490 · Oct 22, 2014

FANFARE!!!! wohoo!

Amazing job - looks so clean! And good luck with the tint.

firion1234 · Oct 23, 2014

Crimson490 said:
FANFARE!!!! wohoo!

Ditto on this! This is every bit deserving of fanfare! I know exactly what you mean about still being able to feel the uneven surface but it looks pretty flawless to me. I got a good chuckle out of the Nightmare Before Christmas reference. I can picture what must have happened exactly thanks to that analogy. Just a couple questions if you have the time. Do you think you'll finish in time for Halloween? and, Do you think you'll do another one someday? I know that I am addicted to the idea of doing more of them, but then, I'm a huge Super Sentai fan.

Exanimus · Oct 23, 2014

Thank you, sirs. I think there's every chance I will finish the helmet for Halloween, but not the rest of the suit. I haven't even started on the dragon shield, I'm missing a glove, gotta finish two boots, the arm bands, I have a legacy morpher, but it's too heavy, so I need to make one of those, it's exhausting just to think about. Though the day I look in the mirror and see an (admittedly scrawny) Green Ranger staring back at me, it will all be worth it. I think for this Halloween, since I have a failed shirt, failed initial helmet cast, failed glove, and a bunch of scraps, I might try to pull off a zombie Ranger with a busted visor and mouth piece with a zombie face underneath and then a torn and bloody suit. Could be cool.

As far as making another helmet, I'm sure I will. The next time I will try it with a foam base rather than clay and will try to implement the techniques I've learned much earlier in the process. I essentially did the entire sculpture twice, once with clay and again with apoxie sculpt and bondo, so that could be streamlined. That day, however, is far in the future as this has been something like eight months of just pure mmpr suit building and I am so very tired.

TigerStoneFX · Oct 24, 2014

Really great job man, be proud of it! I can't wait to see it done.

Exanimus · Nov 13, 2014

Welp, I in no way finished for Halloween... Added to the list of frustrations: painting is kicking my butt. I have tried masking with tape and latex, and both are flawed. No matter how meticulously I lay the tape down, some paint will still sneak underneath and mess up the other areas. I also can't figure out how long to leave the tape on. If I pull too early, wet paint smudges around everywhere, and if I pull too late I lose paint, as is the case with the teeth, which I now have to repaint for the third time. Any sweet tips about masking successfully, especially around curves?

At least I had enough scraps and failed pieces, (including that first shoddy helmet pull), to make a zombie version, and thus my Halloween was saved!

A homeless man proclaimed him, "One fightin'-ass Power Ranger!"

Green Ranger Helmet Sculpt

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