Rave
New Member
Hi all,
Another T45d build here! Had been working on it on-and-off for 3 years but then gave myself a month to finish it for the Platforms Expo in Hull recently. It's un-weathered / no weapon due to time constraints so I'm saying it's a pre-war build, hence the flag.
(Yes - I know the flag isn't quite the right one!)
As there are many step-by-step WIP threads around about this build, from paper-to-con, I thought I'd just post the few tips and tricks I figured out whilst building mine. Please excuse me if these are obvious / well known.
Baking the helm resin - Workbench and box + epoxy (CFS)
I used the more expensive epoxy (West System) as opposed to standard fibreglass resin for smell reasons with the results being so close to my head. Having mixed and coated a thin layer (best done quickly whilst still very 'wet', to get it to soak into the paper) I placed the helm on top of an open work bench with newspaper - I tried it on top of a wide tube mount supporting the crown, but found this deformed the helm until a few layers had set. Put an oil radiator underneath (pro-tip: cover the radiator with a rag!) with a large storage box on top to concentrate the heat. The result was an accelerated and very solid cure.
Reinforcing the helm inside - Balloon method + urethane (CFS)
No fibreglass used here. Opted for a 2 part non-expanding urethane resin, again more expensive but not so intense smelling as Rondo inside the helm.
Bottom inside edges were fairly well rounded so that there would be good contact with and no bursting of the balloon. Prepped the balloon by blowing it up and deflating it once or twice, so easy to blow up once resin in there.
Used multiple layerings of smaller amounts of urethane to prevent it getting too hot through curing (still ended up with a little of that where I pooled it) Poured urethane mix into helm, inserted balloon and inflated, then shook the whole thing to spread the resin everywhere. Take balloon out as resin starts to cure.
Any excess that didn't contribute to the coat was deliberately pooled into the rear protrusion, front vent, earpieces, front tube mounts, and the points where the mini vent detailing (see below) was to go - basically anywhere requiring drilling Futher material was pooled at the crown and the front ridge, as I anticipated much sanding in those areas.
Process repeated to lay down multiple layers, followed by additional batches of urethane to completely fill the pooling areas mentioned above. End result was a very tough and workable finish.
Front mini vents - Radiator lock valve cover (ebay)
One of those moments of inspiration one has whilst answering 'nature's call'and looking down at the radiator... I first thought the item itself would make the perfect insert but it turned out that filling them with resin and removing the resulting slug produced the desired item.
Cut and sanded flat, inserted and epoxied into holes drilled in the thick urethane resin I had deposited at those points inside the helm, they give the perfect look.
I resused the lock valve covers and moulds for the tiny wired detailing on top of the right earpiece eyepiece thing - near perfect size and shape. O-rings and disposable camera lenses provided the detailing here.
Helmet front vent - cast and mesh
With the success of the casting of the lock valve covers, I found that the lids from B&Q's expanding urethane foam made perfect moulds for an insert for the front vent. I made several thicknesses of discs and found the thinnest at maybe 3-4 mm to be sufficient.
This was marked up and trimmed by hand with a rotary tool to give the vent look. The disc was mounted onto a lip that had been sanded in the front vent resin - a hole having been cut all the way through into helm with a circular cutter. I later backed the vent with copper gauze (pic) that had received several fine coats of matt black spray.
Helm handles - Brass and O-rings
Brass is one of my favourite materials to work with - it's relatively easy to bend, cut, drill and join, and it's pretty sturdy. For the front helm handles I simply bent some brass held in a G-clamp (a vice would be better) and cut to size before roughening with sandpaper and epoxying (on the inner protrusions on the inside) into holes drilled in the helm. Small O-rings make the perfect detailing where the brass meets the helm. In hindsight, I should have roughened the whole of the rod as paint has started to flake off it, but it'll need some work before it's wearable again anyway.
Front handle - Drawer handles + brass (B&Q)
This was constructed from two drawer handles of approximately the correct shape (bought from B&Q) cut down, drilled and joined with brass rod in the centre. Bent rods used at the ends to fix to torso in much the same way as the helm handles. Epoxy putty (Milliput superfine white) was used to fill the joint with the bent brass and cover the centre support rod, prior to sanding down and painting matt black.
Breather hose release lever - More brass and other metals
This was simply a hole drilled into the appropriate point on the helm and rounded out to size with a rotary tool. Insert of a steel tube, aluminium rod with a small hole drilled gave the basis for the lever. Lever was constructed from more bent brass rod, with a piece of flat brass bar drilled and then, cut and rounded to shape with a rotary tool. This was soldered onto the brass rod and epoxied into the hole in the aluminium.
Eyepieces - Blackout spray (ebay)
Think this is well known as I'm sure I've read it on a forum before, but it bears repeating. I used templates generated accidentally when I duct-taped the eyes from the inside for priming, to prevent paint getting in. The pieces of duct tape recorded the exact outline for the eyepieces.
I clear laquered these so they wouldn't stick to the plastic and used standard food packaging (pizza box) window material, cut slightly over-sized to fit. In a very clean, dust free environment, sprayed with the black-out spray you can buy for tinting brake lights. Just a light coat was enough, but it takes a while to dry. I may end up replacing with the smokes plastic I recovered from a commercial Clone Trooper helmet I intended to take the voice electronics from if time had allowed. Still the current solution is effective, if not very tolerant of sunlight (blurred vision!) and condensation (must fit a cooling fan in the helm!)
Backpack scratch build (Go Outdoors + kitchen drawer diving!)
There are many little bits to this: I capped the cylinders with vitamin containers, joined with copper tubing and a block of wood with three 'pins' of steel rod extending through the whole assembly. The more novel bit (I feel) is the cylinders themselves...
I used a couple of cheap aluminium camping water bottles (HiGear from Go Outdoors) and drilled 3 holes in the base of each to fit screws for support. A 3/4-cup measuring cup turned out to be a near perfect fit for the base to give a spherical bottom. This was coated on the inside with cling-film (saran wrap?) and filled with body filler. The base of the aluminium bottle was inserted into this, straightened and the mix was allowed to cure - excess squeezed out removed whilst rubbery.
A layer of thicker ratio Rondo was added to the cast, post removal from the cup mould to smooth out the surface prior to sanding and painting. The finish isn't perfect but the cylinders really look the part.
To be continued shortly...
Another T45d build here! Had been working on it on-and-off for 3 years but then gave myself a month to finish it for the Platforms Expo in Hull recently. It's un-weathered / no weapon due to time constraints so I'm saying it's a pre-war build, hence the flag.
(Yes - I know the flag isn't quite the right one!)
As there are many step-by-step WIP threads around about this build, from paper-to-con, I thought I'd just post the few tips and tricks I figured out whilst building mine. Please excuse me if these are obvious / well known.
Baking the helm resin - Workbench and box + epoxy (CFS)
I used the more expensive epoxy (West System) as opposed to standard fibreglass resin for smell reasons with the results being so close to my head. Having mixed and coated a thin layer (best done quickly whilst still very 'wet', to get it to soak into the paper) I placed the helm on top of an open work bench with newspaper - I tried it on top of a wide tube mount supporting the crown, but found this deformed the helm until a few layers had set. Put an oil radiator underneath (pro-tip: cover the radiator with a rag!) with a large storage box on top to concentrate the heat. The result was an accelerated and very solid cure.
Reinforcing the helm inside - Balloon method + urethane (CFS)
No fibreglass used here. Opted for a 2 part non-expanding urethane resin, again more expensive but not so intense smelling as Rondo inside the helm.
Bottom inside edges were fairly well rounded so that there would be good contact with and no bursting of the balloon. Prepped the balloon by blowing it up and deflating it once or twice, so easy to blow up once resin in there.
Used multiple layerings of smaller amounts of urethane to prevent it getting too hot through curing (still ended up with a little of that where I pooled it) Poured urethane mix into helm, inserted balloon and inflated, then shook the whole thing to spread the resin everywhere. Take balloon out as resin starts to cure.
Any excess that didn't contribute to the coat was deliberately pooled into the rear protrusion, front vent, earpieces, front tube mounts, and the points where the mini vent detailing (see below) was to go - basically anywhere requiring drilling Futher material was pooled at the crown and the front ridge, as I anticipated much sanding in those areas.
Process repeated to lay down multiple layers, followed by additional batches of urethane to completely fill the pooling areas mentioned above. End result was a very tough and workable finish.
Front mini vents - Radiator lock valve cover (ebay)
One of those moments of inspiration one has whilst answering 'nature's call'and looking down at the radiator... I first thought the item itself would make the perfect insert but it turned out that filling them with resin and removing the resulting slug produced the desired item.
Cut and sanded flat, inserted and epoxied into holes drilled in the thick urethane resin I had deposited at those points inside the helm, they give the perfect look.
I resused the lock valve covers and moulds for the tiny wired detailing on top of the right earpiece eyepiece thing - near perfect size and shape. O-rings and disposable camera lenses provided the detailing here.
Helmet front vent - cast and mesh
With the success of the casting of the lock valve covers, I found that the lids from B&Q's expanding urethane foam made perfect moulds for an insert for the front vent. I made several thicknesses of discs and found the thinnest at maybe 3-4 mm to be sufficient.
This was marked up and trimmed by hand with a rotary tool to give the vent look. The disc was mounted onto a lip that had been sanded in the front vent resin - a hole having been cut all the way through into helm with a circular cutter. I later backed the vent with copper gauze (pic) that had received several fine coats of matt black spray.
Helm handles - Brass and O-rings
Brass is one of my favourite materials to work with - it's relatively easy to bend, cut, drill and join, and it's pretty sturdy. For the front helm handles I simply bent some brass held in a G-clamp (a vice would be better) and cut to size before roughening with sandpaper and epoxying (on the inner protrusions on the inside) into holes drilled in the helm. Small O-rings make the perfect detailing where the brass meets the helm. In hindsight, I should have roughened the whole of the rod as paint has started to flake off it, but it'll need some work before it's wearable again anyway.
Front handle - Drawer handles + brass (B&Q)
This was constructed from two drawer handles of approximately the correct shape (bought from B&Q) cut down, drilled and joined with brass rod in the centre. Bent rods used at the ends to fix to torso in much the same way as the helm handles. Epoxy putty (Milliput superfine white) was used to fill the joint with the bent brass and cover the centre support rod, prior to sanding down and painting matt black.
Breather hose release lever - More brass and other metals
This was simply a hole drilled into the appropriate point on the helm and rounded out to size with a rotary tool. Insert of a steel tube, aluminium rod with a small hole drilled gave the basis for the lever. Lever was constructed from more bent brass rod, with a piece of flat brass bar drilled and then, cut and rounded to shape with a rotary tool. This was soldered onto the brass rod and epoxied into the hole in the aluminium.
Eyepieces - Blackout spray (ebay)
Think this is well known as I'm sure I've read it on a forum before, but it bears repeating. I used templates generated accidentally when I duct-taped the eyes from the inside for priming, to prevent paint getting in. The pieces of duct tape recorded the exact outline for the eyepieces.
I clear laquered these so they wouldn't stick to the plastic and used standard food packaging (pizza box) window material, cut slightly over-sized to fit. In a very clean, dust free environment, sprayed with the black-out spray you can buy for tinting brake lights. Just a light coat was enough, but it takes a while to dry. I may end up replacing with the smokes plastic I recovered from a commercial Clone Trooper helmet I intended to take the voice electronics from if time had allowed. Still the current solution is effective, if not very tolerant of sunlight (blurred vision!) and condensation (must fit a cooling fan in the helm!)
Backpack scratch build (Go Outdoors + kitchen drawer diving!)
There are many little bits to this: I capped the cylinders with vitamin containers, joined with copper tubing and a block of wood with three 'pins' of steel rod extending through the whole assembly. The more novel bit (I feel) is the cylinders themselves...
I used a couple of cheap aluminium camping water bottles (HiGear from Go Outdoors) and drilled 3 holes in the base of each to fit screws for support. A 3/4-cup measuring cup turned out to be a near perfect fit for the base to give a spherical bottom. This was coated on the inside with cling-film (saran wrap?) and filled with body filler. The base of the aluminium bottle was inserted into this, straightened and the mix was allowed to cure - excess squeezed out removed whilst rubbery.
A layer of thicker ratio Rondo was added to the cast, post removal from the cup mould to smooth out the surface prior to sanding and painting. The finish isn't perfect but the cylinders really look the part.
To be continued shortly...
