Original 1977 ANH Stormtrooper Armor and Helmet

[wannab]

If I missed this I apologize, was there a eta on when the full suit will be available?

While I'd really prefer a kit, I'm in for a helmet based on outcome of details, accuracy of assembly and price of course.


Doug

 

[gonk27]

i would also really like a styrene one so i don't have to worry about paint flaking off out of my control.

..but.. but Keith, that's the whole beauty of stormtroopers! :$

I think there is a chance it was Polypropelene as well.

For three good reasons the first being that is a very common colour in Polypropelene.

Second Polypropelene is a material suitable for vac forming and Andrew Ainsworths business was vac forming. HDPE is guff for forming.

Third Polypropelene is much cheaper than HDPE.

Oh and there is a fourth Reason - it was Andrew Ainsworth who said he used HDPE and he seems to have a lot of memory problems when it comes to anything relating to 1976. He must have been concentrating too hard on sculpting and prop making. Oh and he is also a compulsive liar.

Cheers Chris

Good points Chris! It would be great if a kharki polypropelene could be investigated.

 

[firebladejedi]

Fantastic!

Will these be offered in styrene also? As much as i would like one in the correct plastic, i would also really like a styrene one so i don't have to worry about paint flaking off out of my control.

Keith.

+1 :thumbsup

 

[Treadwell]

I certainly share others' hesitation in believing a word of anything AA has ever said, but there would have been no reason for him to lie about HDPE. There would be nothing to gain from establishing that, especially since this was before he was going to be offering helmets, IIRC. And since his main business concerned things other than movie helmets, I would think he would accurately remember the material he used for years on end for ponds and such. Just a thought.

 

[geordietrooper]

they were probably made of cheese to go with his grater

 

[voice in the crowd]

I certainly share others' hesitation in believing a word of anything AA has ever said, but there would have been no reason for him to lie about HDPE. There would be nothing to gain from establishing that, especially since this was before he was going to be offering helmets, IIRC. And since his main business concerned things other than movie helmets, I would think he would accurately remember the material he used for years on end for ponds and such. Just a thought.

Hi Jay,

I know what you are saying exactly. On that point I wouldn't have thought he would have intentionally lied but I think he may have not remembered correctly and then said HDPE to bolster his knowledge on the manufacture of the helmets. He came out with a few other clangers pre helmet making if I remember correctly - like only a couple of HDPE helmets were made as test pulls the rest where ABS.

The biggest thing that always puzzled me was he formed the armour in huge sheets of ABS and made the helmets from a material that he says was not for vac forming then wasted time primering and painting them.

Why did he not just make the helmets the same white ABS?

Cheers Chris

 

[Zenwalker]

Hi Jay,

I know what you are saying exactly. On that point I wouldn't have thought he would have intentionally lied but I think he may have not remembered correctly and then said HDPE to bolster his knowledge on the manufacture of the helmets. He came out with a few other clangers pre helmet making if I remember correctly - like only a couple of HDPE helmets were made as test pulls the rest where ABS.

The biggest thing that always puzzled me was he formed the armour in huge sheets of ABS and made the helmets from a material that he says was not for vac forming then wasted time primering and painting them.

Why did he not just make the helmets the same white ABS?

Cheers Chris

AA said he didn't do the helmets in ABS because he had problems getting the helmets off the mould because of the deep undercuts on the helmet IIRC.

 

[OldKen]

I could see it either way. Maybe he remembered it wrong, or maybe his dumb ass made the call to use paint resistant oily arsed HDPE because he had it laying around?

Maybe LFL supplied him with ABS and he wanted to gank as much as he could for other projects. And used HDPE he had lying around? Maybe from scraps not big enough for the torso etc?

Who knows?

I really think a correctly colored, incorrect type of plastic would make sense for these buckets. I know I would love to have a helmet with some khaki showing through... Yet not worrying everytime someone touched it. HDPE is NOT the plastic for that LOL!

 

[KaanE]

AA said he didn't do the helmets in ABS because he had problems getting the helmets off the mould because of the deep undercuts on the helmet IIRC.

Exactly, that's how the Hero helmet was worn IIRC. He had to modify the stunt mould to be more vaccumforming friendly with the ABS.

 

[voice in the crowd]

Hi guys,

Ahh ok that makes sense that he had problems with the ABS and undercuts. I know guys vac form helmets with undercuts in ABS and styrene nowadays but I am sure plastics have come on quite a bit since the stuff available in the 1970s.

The hero helmets still have some undercuts. I always thought the moulds were cleaned up for the hero helmets purely for aesthetics or possibly damage on the moulds from making the background helmets. The bumpy eye is one thing that was fixed and I wouldn't say that was for helping with forming the helmet.

Cheers Chris

 

[KaanE]

SWHelmets webpage says after the Stunt stormies were done, AA was called because they needed some Top Notch stormie helmets for closeups under the light, because the painted ones were not good enought so he had to modify the moulds so he could be able do to the helmets with ABS. Surely as he was asked to do some "Hero" helmets for closeups he sanitized them a bit.

 

[Zenwalker]

My understanding was they needed some better looking close-up helmets. The mould was already 'beat up' a bit from pulling the stunt helmets so AA fixed the mould and modified it at the same time for the 'Heroes'.

 

[sskunky]

He told me that he was given a very short notice to form the helmets and had to form them in the plastic he used for the ponds he was making at the time. When he got the job done LFL gave him the OK to pull the suits and that's when he ordered the white ABS.....

 

[GINO]

That's funny.
I (and others) remember when he was shown the original Brian R helmet photos, that he maintained that it was one of only 6 or 7 that he made in hdpe and they were prototypes, while the rest of the film's helmets were made in abs.
I also remember for a long time, a lot of his supporters were always hoping for one of those (non-existent) screen used stunt helmets in abs to show up that would validate the abs replicas they got from him.
We used to fight about it. Hard.


.

 

[E-Wan]

Just finished reading through this - cracking thread!

Can't wait to see how these helmets turn out!

 

[Keith]

Yup, i remember it was TE who posted here that AA had just told him that his original HDPE (or whatever plastic it really is) was a prototype helmet and that all the other original helmets were made from white ABS.
I remember TE seemed to be pleased by this info, as he thought his original helmet was not only screen used, but a very rare prototype screen used helmet.

It soon became clear to people that the reason AA said the originals were ABS was because he wanted to make his replicas in white ABS and not green HDPE that he probably could not match anymore and that had to be painted white.

Keith.

 

[sskunky]

The yarn spins.......he also told me that he made about 27 in HDPE and the rest were ABS. he reckons that thd ABS ones must have cracked and got too damaged to have survived! That's why you only see thd more flexible HDPE still around.
I'm pretty much convinced that he makes it up as hd goes along, not realising that there are people out there that know better. :lol

 

[Brian Muir]

Post removed

 

[voice in the crowd]

All good points Gino and Keith.

Great info Brian :thumbsup

I don't want to tell anyone what to do, but possibly keeping Andrew Ainsworth out of this thread wouldn't be a bad idea?

I know separating AA from the manufacturing process of the originals is hard but just his name is like dragging a black cloud into a thread. We all know he is a total dick who for a time tore this forum apart with his lies. So far this thread has promised an awful lot for the community.

Ainsworth isn't particularly relevant to this thread in any way.

This thread has so much going for it and I know there are lots of big lulls in the thread but possibly we shouldn't be filling the gaps with AA stuff - no matter how laughable he and his reputation has become.

Just a thought.

Cheers Chris

 

[Keith]

I agree with you 100% Chris.

Keith.