Dan Laws ESB TK Bucket

[BobasBounty]

Just about finished with this helmet. Just need to work on the hovi mic tips. Decided to post a couple comparison photos to see what everyone thinks so far. I based this off one of the ESB buckets auctioned off by Christies in 2003. I wasn't going for an exact replication but more of an interpretation.


This is one of Dan's tan HDPE helmet kits. I really like these kits. The details are really sharp and the kits are great to work with. I used Dupli-Color Adhesion Promoter as a base layer after sanding the entire helmet with "3M Between Coats Finishing Pads." I then sprayed it with Krylon Fusion "gloss" white. The Krylon finish was less desirable so I gave it a couple coats of gloss white Rustoleum Automotive Paint. It was a vast improvement especially when wet sanded with 2000 grit wet/dry sandpaper followed up by rubbing compound. I used Testors enamel paint (gloss gray #1138 and and semi-gloss black #1139) for the details. I find Testors easier to work with. The stripes, teardrops and polygons are from the ESB decal set sold by Trooper Bay.

 

[mugatu]

This looks real good! I wish there was a way to mimick the lighting used in the auction shots on the right. Regardless, the paint work you've done is very impressive.

 

[BobasBounty]

Yeah the lighting in my tiny apartment is terrible. I will try to get some better photos taken.

 

[mugatu]

I have found that my photos tend to turn out the best in sunlight. For some reason all of the lights in my house give off a yellowish light.

How long would you say the whole paint job takes, including drying time, all of the sanding, etc.? It really turned out fantastic!

 

[banthapoodoo]

Very nice work. A lesson for the rest of us is a great paint job is a combination of choosing the right paint and using the right techniques.

 

[kev1969]

Fantastic job on the lid, always love a ESB bucket :thumbsup

 

[thd9791]

Yea, awesome work! Rustoleum's automotive line always seem to give great results