Black Series Darth Vader Helmet Mod Thread!
- Thread starter Jennigirl
- Start date
Saw your post about that! Did you put any other mesh behind it on the mouth?
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Played around with some colors today on the “stand” that was included with the helmet. I think I might have to go with the Duplicolor Gun Metal. With absolutely no primer or adhesion promoter, the durability blew the Tamiya out of the water. Why is that important? Because I don’t want to create a layer thick enough to form a lip at the tape edges. Don’t mind the warmer tone of the Duplicolor in the photo. It was bad lighting.
Duplicolor
Tamiya
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Duplicolor
Tamiya
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Toadmeister
Sr Member
Darn it, I used to have dozens of those things!
A Rogue One Reveal!:cool
Frogfreak
Sr Member
Haha that's a good one!
VaderFan
New Member
@DarkLyte (and every1 else, sup every1), I added the filter mesh to the mouth and chin, but didn't add extra behind it on the mouth since I was going to be wearing it and it gets crazy hot (so much so that condensation sometimes poured out the mouth like old man Vader was drooling *ewww), but if I was going to set it up for a display, I'd def put a 2nd layer of mesh behind it. I would probably go with some denser black screen mesh from a house window's window screen or screened-in-porch screen or speaker grill screen if I could find the right weave-pattern of it out there somewhere, that'd look good behind the metal filter mesh for sure, brother.
1st arrow: On the chin, I put the metal filter grill inside the chin hole from the inside, then on top of that I simply replaced the speaker junk (along with it's molded grill garbage) back behind it b/c I didn't want to scrap that bada$$ opening/closing/breathing sound efx. The extra thickness of the filter grill being added to the chin didn't hurt being able to close the whole neck piece back together either.
2nd arrow: Although no one would ever see this, I went ahead and painted the underside of the neck where it should have been painted silver like the inside neck area, since it meets up with it and is part of the same Vadery wiring-component thingy.
1st arrow: On the chin, I put the metal filter grill inside the chin hole from the inside, then on top of that I simply replaced the speaker junk (along with it's molded grill garbage) back behind it b/c I didn't want to scrap that bada$$ opening/closing/breathing sound efx. The extra thickness of the filter grill being added to the chin didn't hurt being able to close the whole neck piece back together either.
2nd arrow: Although no one would ever see this, I went ahead and painted the underside of the neck where it should have been painted silver like the inside neck area, since it meets up with it and is part of the same Vadery wiring-component thingy.
That looks fantastic! Gonna have to grab a Fram filter this week and make it happen. I have some styrene sheets on the way and am planning on extending the neck and flaring it out a bit. I’m debating on shrinking down the chin triangle for more of a ANH/R1 look as well. Not sure if I’ll go that far or not.
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Ended up making a lot of progress during the week while the site was down!
I will say that spraying the raw black plastic with clear coat completely transforms it! I highly recommend doing it if you do nothing else.
I got a few drips on the mouth but once it cures I'm going to sand them down and fix it up.
I will say that spraying the raw black plastic with clear coat completely transforms it! I highly recommend doing it if you do nothing else.
I got a few drips on the mouth but once it cures I'm going to sand them down and fix it up.
StephenMG
Active Member
Great work so far DarkLyte. I thought about reducing the size of the lower grill myself but decided to just add some stainless steel mesh and metal tusks instead. I have extended my neck though by about 3/4" but didn't bother with any flare. The longer neck has made a huge difference to the overall look I think - it looks much more balanced now. I will have to repaint the lower section though - I used a diffrerent filler to my usual blend in the neck extension and, in the intervening weeks, it seems to have shrunk back a touch which has left a tiny line where the joint is. It only really shows when the light catches it but it's annoying me royally so I'll have to do something about it. I used a graphite colour for the two-tone. It looks a touch darker in real life than in these photos, but is just enough to remove the general 'blackness' that was the problem when filming ANH and which led to the gunmetal being applied in the first place.
My next job is to get some putty in the 'nose' to give it the proper concave curved shape, rather than the square-cornered recess that Hasbro gave it, before getting some silver paint on it.
I'd very much like to redden the eyes too and am experimenting with things at the moment as I'd like to retain the clarity. One method that looks promising on some test perspex is airbrushed Tamiya Red Clear followed by a few coats of Klear (Future) floor polish to restore the clarity.
I'm following your progress with great interest!
My next job is to get some putty in the 'nose' to give it the proper concave curved shape, rather than the square-cornered recess that Hasbro gave it, before getting some silver paint on it.
I'd very much like to redden the eyes too and am experimenting with things at the moment as I'd like to retain the clarity. One method that looks promising on some test perspex is airbrushed Tamiya Red Clear followed by a few coats of Klear (Future) floor polish to restore the clarity.
I'm following your progress with great interest!
Your earlier photos of your next extension are what motivated me to do it on mine. It's crazy how much it adds to the balance of the helmet as you said. Yours looks fantastic! The paint job on yours looks great as well.
Did you use the Fram air filter mesh on yours as well? Where did you get the smaller mesh for the mouth?
StephenMG
Active Member
Yes, it's a shame Hasbro made the neck quite so short - that extra bit makes a massive difference to the overall effect.
I knew about the Fram filter mesh but didn't use it. I got mine from a supplier here in the UK called The Mesh Company (there's a definite lack of imagination with that name!). It's expanded mesh so isn't flat like the Fram stuff but does seem to match the mesh used in at least one Vader helmet I've seen in exhibition photos. The chin mesh is a 16mm x 7mm expanded steel mesh which I cleaned and polished before dipping it in Klear (Future) to stop it from rusting. The mouth mesh is a smaller 10mm x 5mm aluminium mesh. I haven't done much with the mouth yet (other than cut the mesh to size) but I backed the chin mesh with an offcut of steel hex mesh left over from my Rubie's Stormtrooper helmet project. I'll probably do the same with the mouth.
I ended up having an unfortunate mishap with the lenses on my helmet. I tried to clear coat them to shine them up like I did with the mask but the clear did not mesh well with the lens plastic. I have been looking at the ones from Vaderpainter Studios on eBay as a replacement and he confirmed that the size should cover the dimensions of the BS helmet. I have a set on order and will report back once they’re here!
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StephenMG
Active Member
Sorry to hear of your lens problem DarkLyte. I know nothing at all about this supplier but there are replacement lenses available here too it seems - OPLE Props : OPLE Props Linse für Hasbro Black Series Helm Darth Vader Tauschlinsen Linsen Helm Helm
Not a big deal, we all know what it's like to mess up when building props. That's how we learn! I saw the ones from OPLE Props however I'm not a huge fan of the bubble shape of the lenses since the bubble doesn't go edge to edge in the eye hole. In the event that the ones from Vaderpainter Studios don't work out, I'll probably have to fall back on the OPLE option or try and find another helmet on clearance and get the lenses from it.
StephenMG
Active Member
You're absolutely right there dude. I knackered my Black Series Stormtrooper lens by dropping sticky stuff remover on it (which melted the surface!). Then I almost ruined the visor I used for my tarted-up Rubie's First Order Stormtrooper when heating it to bend it (and had to spend hours polishing it). So I haven't got a good track record!!!!!!!
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