kBlam Props
New Member
Hello guys,
For a while now I've been in the process of building a set of RAM era Daft Punk helmets, and so far it's been great. However of late, as I'm approaching the final shaping and finish sanding for casting, I've hit a bit of a roadblock, to the point where all I seem to be doing is filling, sanding, sealing and repeat.
Earlier in the build, I felt pretty confident in the evenness of the surfaces (so that the cast versions would chrome nice and even, no ripples or warping, see pic 1)
At present however, as I've been sanding and trying to get the shape more refined, I'm beginning to feel that I'm going more backwards than forwards. The models seen here are foam filled, fibreglassed pepakura models, with the final coating being Plaster of Paris (A decision I now regret a fair bit, I should've used Bondo) and a mix of primer and filler/spray putty sealing coats.
I've taken to using spot putty to fill the minor cracks and imperfections, sealing each pass with some filler primer, but it seems that I've sanded back so far that I'm either beginning to burn through (Which is not so much a problem as overall things are becoming more even across the surface) but in particular I keep finding myself burning through to the plaster, which then either tears out in powdery chunks or burns through creating a sort of divot, which I then have to fill, seal and sand again. Either that or in the current Aussie summer, things begin to dry, peel and crack, which I can manage for the most part. I worry most of all that in some areas I'm ruining shapes and curves which otherwise would've been great, and it's getting pretty costly. Here's how they look at present. While some areas have definitely improved, others seem to be going backwards.
I plan to have these finished by early April for a convention so my questions for you guys are "What is the most efficient way of finishing these helmets without ruining my current progress? Is there a method/technique/material I should be using that will help make steady progress?" I'm honestly thinking of making them as good as they can be for now, casting them and fixing the little details in the plastic cast versions, but if I can get them perfect here, that will be all the better. Any and all tips welcome. Cheers mates
:thumbsup P.S. Don't worry about Guy Man's inner ear detail, I'm having them 3D Printed.
For a while now I've been in the process of building a set of RAM era Daft Punk helmets, and so far it's been great. However of late, as I'm approaching the final shaping and finish sanding for casting, I've hit a bit of a roadblock, to the point where all I seem to be doing is filling, sanding, sealing and repeat.
Earlier in the build, I felt pretty confident in the evenness of the surfaces (so that the cast versions would chrome nice and even, no ripples or warping, see pic 1)
At present however, as I've been sanding and trying to get the shape more refined, I'm beginning to feel that I'm going more backwards than forwards. The models seen here are foam filled, fibreglassed pepakura models, with the final coating being Plaster of Paris (A decision I now regret a fair bit, I should've used Bondo) and a mix of primer and filler/spray putty sealing coats.
I've taken to using spot putty to fill the minor cracks and imperfections, sealing each pass with some filler primer, but it seems that I've sanded back so far that I'm either beginning to burn through (Which is not so much a problem as overall things are becoming more even across the surface) but in particular I keep finding myself burning through to the plaster, which then either tears out in powdery chunks or burns through creating a sort of divot, which I then have to fill, seal and sand again. Either that or in the current Aussie summer, things begin to dry, peel and crack, which I can manage for the most part. I worry most of all that in some areas I'm ruining shapes and curves which otherwise would've been great, and it's getting pretty costly. Here's how they look at present. While some areas have definitely improved, others seem to be going backwards.
I plan to have these finished by early April for a convention so my questions for you guys are "What is the most efficient way of finishing these helmets without ruining my current progress? Is there a method/technique/material I should be using that will help make steady progress?" I'm honestly thinking of making them as good as they can be for now, casting them and fixing the little details in the plastic cast versions, but if I can get them perfect here, that will be all the better. Any and all tips welcome. Cheers mates
:thumbsup P.S. Don't worry about Guy Man's inner ear detail, I'm having them 3D Printed.
