Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......RESTORATION *WIP* Nearly finished pics on page 5...

[sskunky]

Hi Guys,

I have bought this damaged VM02 Vader helmet and it has far more damage than I was led to believe cry:cry and could do with a little help from the experts here...... :thumbsup
The Dome has cracks all over it and if anyone here is familiar with the VM02 then they will know how thin and light these things are and I think it is the top gel coat that has cracked. They haven't gone all the way through but I have since been told by the seller that it is just the paint that is cracked? I don't think it is just the paint but I might be wrong?.........
How can I fix this? :confused
I'll show the Dome first then the face which isn't so much of a problem as I think I can get away with some filler, sanding and a repaint.
On with the pix.....

The Face.......

 

[Heatshock]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

phew man - that does a look a little bit more nasty than previous pics suggest
not sure if you can really tell if its just gel coat or paint (I suspect the former, esp.ly in the 1st pic)

but it looks like it will take a complete sand down. filling as necessary. re-paint.
if you need piccies mate - lmk I got a VM02 too.

pm incoming with email addy

Nate

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

wow thanks Nate!
You have email.....
I thought I might get a few more advisories here about this as this forum is full of talanted people.......
does anyone have a tried and tested way of stripping paint from fiberglass?

 

[Chewcy]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

I used to have a vmo2 they are nice lids. It does indeed look like the gelcoat has cracked. What I would do is get in contact with Ojika ( UK based prop maker) he made these for Graham and is still about, so would be able to advise on any repairs, or maybe even a repalcement dome

 

[chefhawk]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Sand it right back to the fiberglass, then paint a re-clear coat.

Probably looking at a weeks worth of sanding by hand, starting of with a course grade paper then finally to a wet sand before painting.

I would offer to do it for you...but its trying to fit it in with other projects.

the hardest part is the starting of the repair...dont be too nervous...


cheers

 

[Nwerke]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Gel coat I reckon. Hold it up to the light and look from the inside, flex it a bit, try various things to see if the cracks go any deeper than that but I really doubt it is just paint.

What works for me with gel coat cracks (disclaimer: motorcycle parts, not Vader lids, but the principle should hold up!) is to open them right up. I don't sand, I Dremel them out into u-shaped valleys. Give the end of each crack a nice rounded termination, that will help prevent them propagating. Opening the cracks up also means that you can flood them with new resin - or even just cyano - to bond any delaminations. And finally it is much easier to get new filler in and bonded; then sand everything flush after that.

As I say, works for me but it may be more work than necessary, perhaps just sanding it as already suggested will be enough.

 

[Too Much Garlic]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

One thing to try is gastrol purple power - it is used to strip resin kits. However, I don't know how it will react to the open edges where you basically have exposed the various layers the mask was built up from - gelcoat and fiberglass. It may attack the bonding between the two.

I used to recommend using brake fluid, but after ruining the surface of a really expensive mask, I have stopped. It worked great on my SPFX and my model kits, ranging from styrene, vinyl & resin, but whatever "resin" or gelcoat the expensive mask was made of... well... let's just say it wasn't pretty. So use at your own risk.

Others have used acetone, but it may attack the resin/gelcoat layer.

The damage looks exactly like what was on my SPFX - my father, who was a professional auto painter said it was a caused by the wrong type of primer being used. But we all know why this VM-V2 has cracked and that's because of a reaction to the silicone when it was recast. I really doubt the damage is gelcoat deep. One way to check is to sand near one of the cracks that are a bit out of sight.

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Some great advice, thanks lads!

I think I'll start with the less aggressive and work up......

I have found a paint stripper that wont effect the fiberglass that I might try...... It's called "peel away 1" and is used on boats etc....

 

[Too Much Garlic]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Remember... the top layer is not fiberglass though...

 

[JMChladek]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Indeed the hole drilling to keep the crack from spreading is a common patch technique used in aircraft (I've seen it done often, it works). So it is worth trying if the cracks are deeper then just the gel coat.

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

if I'm not to use a paint stripper, what should I do with the face? I don't want to sand and soften any features and I don't want to apply more paint over the excisting layers as that will also soften the features?

 

[OdiWan72]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

All the best for you undertaking :thumbsup

IF you had chose to buy my JRX, you could have avoided the mess

Markus

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

hhmmmmmnn..... Thanks Markus! :lol

I still love that JRX! And maybe you are right!

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

OK this is how far I have got so far........

As you can see the cracks seem to go right through the gel coat :cry

So I thought I should give it a quick coat of primer to se how bad they show.....

 

[blipper]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

At risk of adding to your woes sskunky, after seeing the extent of the cracks I'd feel inclined to strip/sand the whole thing to see if there are any more offending areas that haven't shown yet. A slightly less efficient/destructive method might be to use a pin/needle over as much surface as you can bear to give time to and apply light pressure looking for weak spots.

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

I've just found this stuff that is used on boats etc.....Creeping crack cure. It's a capillary action sealant that finds and seals cracks in fiberglass. It's water based, flexable and paintable.
http://www.captaintolley.com/

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

@ Blipper,

I plan on rubbing this thing down to see how bad it is as I did find more cracks.
I hadn't even noticed the ones at the widows peak til I primered it so that was worth doing.

 

[Too Much Garlic]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Hmm... maybe that'll work on my piece as well, even though the damage on mine is very different from this cracking. Would hurt to try it as the pieces are basically near toss-worthy atm.

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Well...... Sanded the dome right back to the gel coat. Now to seal the cracks............

 

[sskunky]

Re: Damaged VM02 Vader helmet......HELP!............HELP!.......

Ok,

Now on with the face.......

I filled in and sanded all the screw holes the stripped all the paint off using NITRO MORS paint and varnish stripper applying it in small areas at a time and watching for the paint to bubble then reaply and scrub with a tooth brush. I then washed it off scrubbing with a brush.
Then I just filled and damage again with Milliput.

I think it's come out quite good. :sunny: :cheers:

BEFORE

AFTER

THE STRIPPER