Casting a metal helmet (Or: Help me decide NOT to do this!)

[Lutso]

Hey guys.

I've worked on countless Star Wars helmets over the years, and all of them were, naturally, made of some sort of plastic, resin, or fiberglass.

As much as I have enjoyed these mediums, since I was a child I felt somewhat cheated if you will, by not having the opprotunity to make or acquire a "real" armor helmet.

I really want to make a metal helmet for myself. Just because...I can.

I've started working on another Mandalorian sculpt, and this time I'm making it to measure for my head size and shape exactly. So in that regard I've already started constructing my "personal" helmet. When it's done, I want to cast it. Whether it be aluminum, steel, whatever. It doesn't have to be bulletproof, but something strong that won't warp when it's dropped and won't shatter when it's smacked.

I used to know guys on TDH that did cold-cast aluminum Jango buckets but I never really bothered to get involved in that scene, seeing as most of them sold for a small fortune. But I know it is possible.

I've looked up some info already but I would rather hear it from my friends here face to face. So lay it on me. What do I have to do to get this off the ground and make it a reality? How much should I expect to spend? And what level of equipment/experience will I need?

And most importantly - HOW crazy am I for wanting to attempt this?

 

[STEALTH]

Why is that so crazy? Nothing wrong with casting a metal version.

Who wouldn't want that? Seems pretty bad ass to me.

I'd like to hear this as well.

 

[sabergirl]

Cold cast aluminum is just resin with aluminum powder in it. If you're going full-blown cast metal, it will cost you significantly more. I don't know how much, but casting non-ferrous metals is costly.

 

[milehighavenger]

I Like the idea... be sure you get the right molding to handle high temp casting.

 

[EricHart]

Metal helmets are usually sheet or plate metal which is bent and hammered into shape. In many cases, you can do an entire helmet cold, without even needing a forge. Some more complicated shapes may require some welding, but that is still far cheaper than what is needed for metal casting. It's also extremely labor intensive; this video should give you an idea of how much hammering is needed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb22jMGYmJQ

As a side note, this method will also yield a stronger piece. The hammering and shaping aligns the metal molecularly along the plate (similar in theory to how wood is strong along the grain). A cast piece has no such alignment and can crack in any direction.

That being said, there seems to be quite a bit of information about backyard metal casting online. The one time I cast a piece in iron (this was in school in the early 90s), I used green sand as the mold.

 

[abaddon1974]

I don't think that casting is the way to go. Unless you die cast which will cost tens of thousands and result in a brittle casting.
Using ordinary casting the wall thickness will be to thick resulting in a far too heavy helmet.
In my honest opinion the way to go is by dishing or raising the dome and cold forming the sides and back then weld the parts together before grinding the welds off.

Craig

 

[Darth Lars]

There is a member here who worked (works?) in a foundry who did cast a small series of Fett helmets out of aluminum a few years ago. Not cold-cast -- He poured melted metal into a mold. The ultimate Fett helmet. Very expensive.

Ahhh.. I can't remember his username right now. Sorry.

 

[Goffcorp]

The member's screen name was Hand-Schaub.

He also made bronze cast Webley's as well back then.

The quality on both was suberb. I still have my HS Webley.

Goff

 

[Compressor Man]

A lot of the helmet could likely be made by using thin plate, (perhaps 1/16) and assembling it using a pep pattern. The pieces could be welded together easily. The dome at the top may take some extra work but I think that a lot of the helmet could be assembled using the above manner.

Just my opinion,
Chris

 

[tim]

As others have mentioned, using drawing or swaging might be a better way to go than casting. Cast metal is also fairly brittle (think of those cast iron street lamps that crack open like ceramic when hit by a car).

 

[BGHUNTER]

Go Cold cast as metal helmet as cool as the idea is ,it would almost be unwear able
you can make one using moto helmet grade fiber glass and laminate resins with cold cast powder in the mix glass and if you want to go that exrta put a layer of kevlar carbon weave as well (I used kevlar in one of mine it yurned out ok but it was lost under gell coat so ity was point less)

 

[Loess]

Do some googling on "ceramic-shell investment casting"

You begin with a wax sculpt (or wax cast from a silicone mold), dip it in a liquid ceramic slip, sift fine sand over it and let it dry. Repeat this until the shell is thick enough, melt the wax out in a burn-out oven, fire the mold in a ceramics kiln, and pour the molten metal into the still-hot mold.

This is used quite a bit to cast art pieces, so look for an art foundry near you; you might be able to get them to cast a piece for you if you can produce a wax part for them to work with.

It probably won't be cheap, but it shouldn't be unreasonably expensive.

There are also home-brew setups for dipping and firing your own shell molds, but if you don't want to make that many parts, you might be ahead to farm out the actual casting to someone else.

 

[Gator Fett]

Go Cold cast as metal helmet as cool as the idea is ,it would almost be unwear able

Why do you think that a cast metal helmet would almost be unwearable?

Cast Aluminum is not that heavy.

Hand-Schaub's helmet was very cool.

Weighed in at 5 lbs. when he wore his Jango version in the Rose Parade.

 

[Wicked]

I've been doing a lot of research into sand-casting. It would take considerably more finishing work to use that process, but would be dirt cheap. You can build an aluminum foundry in your back yard with some charcoal, a hair dryer, and a coffee can on top of some bricks, carve your rough shape out of a block of foam (or possibly use spray foam in a mold, but I don't know the toxicity of that foam melting so you'd probably want to use a breathing mask), pack it in casting sand, then pour the melted aluminum. You can melt down aluminum cans and skim off all the paint and garbage aside from the metal. If you have any excess you can pour it off into muffin tins to be re-melted later. Seems like it would be pretty perfect for your budget/wants. I was planning to use it for little pieces but I have seen people use it to make large plaques and such with no problems. There are plans for foundries all over the internet, particularly on instructables.com.

 

[micdavis]

Find your local SCA branch, find the blacksmith of the group, have him show you how to make the helmet right.

No casting will make it right.

 

[BGHUNTER]

Why do you think that a cast metal helmet would almost be unwearable?

Cast Aluminum is not that heavy.


More credit to him ,
but your average person wanting a helmet , may think that a metal helmet is the way to go,but in retro spect its much more sensable to go fiber glass or resin , and more cost efective , plus Im yet to see a metal fett helmet that looks acurate

As for 5 lbs well , Ive made cast ali ears that were to heavy to were on my helmet , but a whole helmet made that way would have to be heavy
of cause its do able just unadvisable

 

[terryr]

It depends how thick it is. If you can get a thin mold held perfectly on center, you'd save a bunch of weight.

Another choice is to make it from plate, bent and welded. Meta-Kura. The top would have to be pounded into shape.

 

[Vaderman]

Yeah, like MicDavis said, find an SCA Smith to help you. They make helmets for fighting and this wold be siilar.
Alternatively, find a fabricator who makes metal pieces like motorcycle gas tanks. Using an English wheel or similar, a nice helmet could be crafted from sheet metal.
If it is a Fett helmet you are after anyway, maybe you can reach the fellow who has already made them? Or get one that he made and sold to someone else?

I agree that it sound cool to have a metal helmet, I feel the same way about robot. They should be made of metal.
Of course, that's not always very practical.:unsure

 

[Lutso]

Thanks for the abundant replies everyone. There's lots of good ideas and alternatives brought up here. Loess and Wicked's theories particularly intrigue me. I will research all mentioned points and see if I can come to a conclusion.

While I have you though, here's another question; what would be the best option for making a functional armor helmet? Practicality-wise. If metal is too cumbersome and weak, what's better? Someone here mentioned fibreglass and kevlar weave...

 

[Loess]

While I have you though, here's another question; what would be the best option for making a functional armor helmet? Practicality-wise. If metal is too cumbersome and weak, what's better? Someone here mentioned fibreglass and kevlar weave...

Well, the "best" varies, depending on what you want the helm to look like/ do/ how heavy you are willing to put up with.

For a Fett helm, you'd be well served by finding a SCA'dian armorer. You'd pay a bit, but he could hammer out a steel or aluminum Fett with few problems.

When you get to something like a Halo helm, there's enough small details to make hammering one out of sheet a bit impractical, and makes casting more attractive, at least for a costume helm. (that's why I'm working to build a ceramic-shell investment setup).

I wear a steel helm for SCA fighting, so steel is not so heavy as to be unwearable. (my pep'ed fiberglass and bondo ODST helm is nearly as heavy)