harrypotterfan
Active Member
So today is the 4th of July, and I thought what the hell! I decided to start my shield following Valor's forum.
View attachment 204562 I started out with this simple Steel Saucer Sled that I ordered from Target for about $23. Funny enough I bought the last one!
View attachment 204564
I thought that cutting the sled to the shield shape was going to be the easiest. It was the HARDEST PART! I tried to find bowl or bucket that would fit the diameter. I ended up using a makeshift compass from a nail and some string. After 30 attempts (Not joking) I got the shape I wanted. I used a Jigsaw with a metal blade and it cut through beautifully! Make sure to drill a pilot hole to put the blade through because i couldn't get through the rolled edge. Then I grinded down the sharp edges with my Dremel.
View attachment 204565
Next, I used a cheap can of paint stripper that I had lying around the garage. It worked like a charm! It took some super solider muscle to scrape all the paint off but my friend and I finally got it! We made our own scrappers out of some plastic that we cut with a utility knife.
View attachment 204566
We kept getting this problem where smudges from fingerprints would show up on the shield in a dirt brown color. Even a sponge and brush couldn't get it off. We learned that using a fine grit sandpaper washed them right away!
![20130704_152600[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22578-672b0488ed4ac0a2717810e88a6cdc68.jpg "20130704_152600[1].jpg")
I wanted to get that cool spun metal effect like Valor's so I put a nail in a paint stick and attached some 40 grit sandpaper and spun it a few times.
![20130704_153012[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22579-d0f07f3c95a689fa7110d3c7d1fa34c6.jpg "20130704_153012[1].jpg")
I don't know if you can tell, But it added a great effect to the steel!
![20130704_160339[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22580-0d4aca0b5d072341936fadf47bdb185c.jpg "20130704_160339[1].jpg")
For the paint, I started out by going to an Auto Parts store in town. I bought these Dupli-Color Metal paints. When you go to the store, the blue can looks like this ugly green. Its actually the Blue color but the top must have worn away. I cover the whole shield in masking tape. I then took some pots and pans and used them as the circle designs. I got the middle ring perfect, but the outer ring took lots of time. I ended up using a laundry basket as my stencil! I tried a garbage can and many other pots but nothing else worked. The picture below was not the final stencil. As you can see, the bottom one was a little disfigured.
![20130704_174359[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22581-8a39a2ed0a4e4494b0525fcd9d37de22.jpg "20130704_174359[1].jpg")
As you can see above, it looked good from a distance. But up close, it aggravated the HELL out of me! (I try to be very authentic)
![20130704_191930[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22582-a5c6efc2cd2a728096fd541d205c96e0.jpg "20130704_191930[1].jpg")
My first coat of paint was a bit of a failure... the can sprays out in a line rather than a funnel. After reading up all over The RPF, I finally found out that you have to apply the paint kind of thick. The second attempt came out 100 times better!
![20130704_212154[1].jpg](https://therpf-f28a.kxcdn.com/forums/data/attachments/22/22583-194baa65a0ebb73abb6d531d359536dc.jpg "20130704_212154[1].jpg")
After the second coat, I took off the masking tape. I think it looks pretty damn good! I'm going to let it dry overnight and ill touch it up in the morning. Tomorrow I'm going to paint the blue and attempt at making the straps. In the meantime, I'm going to make the star from an Aluminum sheet that i got at Menards. Hopefully I'll get it up tonight. Wish me luck!
View attachment 204562 I started out with this simple Steel Saucer Sled that I ordered from Target for about $23. Funny enough I bought the last one!
View attachment 204564
I thought that cutting the sled to the shield shape was going to be the easiest. It was the HARDEST PART! I tried to find bowl or bucket that would fit the diameter. I ended up using a makeshift compass from a nail and some string. After 30 attempts (Not joking) I got the shape I wanted. I used a Jigsaw with a metal blade and it cut through beautifully! Make sure to drill a pilot hole to put the blade through because i couldn't get through the rolled edge. Then I grinded down the sharp edges with my Dremel.
View attachment 204565
Next, I used a cheap can of paint stripper that I had lying around the garage. It worked like a charm! It took some super solider muscle to scrape all the paint off but my friend and I finally got it! We made our own scrappers out of some plastic that we cut with a utility knife.
View attachment 204566
We kept getting this problem where smudges from fingerprints would show up on the shield in a dirt brown color. Even a sponge and brush couldn't get it off. We learned that using a fine grit sandpaper washed them right away!
I wanted to get that cool spun metal effect like Valor's so I put a nail in a paint stick and attached some 40 grit sandpaper and spun it a few times.
I don't know if you can tell, But it added a great effect to the steel!
For the paint, I started out by going to an Auto Parts store in town. I bought these Dupli-Color Metal paints. When you go to the store, the blue can looks like this ugly green. Its actually the Blue color but the top must have worn away. I cover the whole shield in masking tape. I then took some pots and pans and used them as the circle designs. I got the middle ring perfect, but the outer ring took lots of time. I ended up using a laundry basket as my stencil! I tried a garbage can and many other pots but nothing else worked. The picture below was not the final stencil. As you can see, the bottom one was a little disfigured.
As you can see above, it looked good from a distance. But up close, it aggravated the HELL out of me! (I try to be very authentic)
My first coat of paint was a bit of a failure... the can sprays out in a line rather than a funnel. After reading up all over The RPF, I finally found out that you have to apply the paint kind of thick. The second attempt came out 100 times better!
After the second coat, I took off the masking tape. I think it looks pretty damn good! I'm going to let it dry overnight and ill touch it up in the morning. Tomorrow I'm going to paint the blue and attempt at making the straps. In the meantime, I'm going to make the star from an Aluminum sheet that i got at Menards. Hopefully I'll get it up tonight. Wish me luck!
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