The Rocketeer cosplay project

bummer6

Well-Known Member
So I'm starting a project that I've considered for a looong time. I loved The Rocketeer as a kid and the design of the jetpack and helmet have stuck with me ever since, so I always wanted to make my own.
I've started by 3D modelling the helmet in Autodesk Maya using reference photos of the real prop from the movie that was sold on Prop Store a while ago. The plan is to 3D print the helmet on my Ender 3 and make the jetpack using a mix of foam, 3D printed parts, worbla and a bunch of stuff from the hardware store probably. As for the outfit itself, I don't really know! I've never done any leather work, so I believe the best course of action would be to buy a somewhat accurate leather jacket second hand and then modify it to be more screen accurate... As for the rest of the outfit, I'm a bit less concerned since I feel like as long as you get the jetpack, helmet and jacket right, you'll pull off the character rather well.
Anyway. that's enough waffling from me. Here are some pictures of the 3D model I made!
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EDIT:
Grand reveal!
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SO, I found this jacket made by a company in England which is supposedly a perfect replica of the one from the film. Does anyone have any experience with this company? It looks really good, and considering the materials involved, it's very fairly priced.
 
SO, I found this jacket made by a company in England which is supposedly a perfect replica of the one from the film. Does anyone have any experience with this company? It looks really good, and considering the materials involved, it's very fairly priced.
It's Wested, they made Ford's jackets for the Indy films and jackets for other films. I have one of their Raiders and it's top shelf.
 
got some of the first parts for the helmet 3D printed now. I'm not a hundred percent sure about the size though. I'm worried it might be a bit too big. If someone has an "accurately" sized helmet, could you do me a massive favor and tell me the dimensions of the bridge between the eyes? I marked the spot on the attached picture. I figure if that measures about the same as the real one then the rest of the helmet should be fairly accurate as well... Assuming I didn't completely mess up the proportions.
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According to a quick google conversion that should be 4.4 cm? Mine is about 4 cm, so it's certainly not too big. Should be fine though since I have a small noggin'
Yep, that should do it...lucky for you having a small head; mine is huge (we should do a contest on the RPF: who has the biggest noggin`:lol:)
 
Long time no see! I've been hard at work trying to finish up the helmet. I plan to cast the helmet since 3D printed stuff is rather fragile, so what you're seeing so far is just the "master". I'm going to make a bunch of castings, so if someone's interested I could probably sell them relatively cheap to recoup some of the cost and help fund the rest of the project.

Anyway, pictures! In chronological order, here you can see the process from putting all the 3D printed pieces together, filling, sanding, priming until everything was real smooth, then I sculpted welds along the seams using Milliput. While I was at it I also sculpted a more defined "chin dimple" since the one in the 3D print wasn't nearly defined enough.
Right now I'm working on a vacuum former for the eye lenses. I've already 3D printed the vacuum forming bucks and the PETG sheets are on order. I built a small box out of MDF which is going to become the vacuum former itself, and it's currently sitting behind me with a bunch of glue drying. Stay tuned, more progress to come!

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Definitely excitedly watching this build. It's one of my fav movies and I'm fortunate enough to own a MIM pack. Thank you for sharing your progress
 
Progress has been made!
The helmet master is pretty much done at this point. I keep fiddling with it, sanding imperfections when I find them... But at this point the difference it makes is mostly placebo on my part. Basically, it's as good as it's gonna get! So I started seriously working on the eye lenses.
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Here you can see the finished vacuum former I built. It's janky as heck, but it works! I made some 3D printed vacuum forming bucks and after a lot of filling and sanding I gave it a test run and it worked great first try.
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Only problem was that I could immediately tell that the high temperatures would eventually deform the bucks. Even after a single go I could already see the internal support structure of the 3D print showing through the surface ever so slightly. So my new plan was to create a mold of the vacuum forming bucks using alginate and cast some plaster copies!
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As you can see on the pictures, I managed to do it. I haven't tried vacuum forming using the plaster bucks yet (I'm waiting for the polyester dye I ordered to arrive), but I see no reason why they wouldn't work. I also made an extra set as spares since the mold was still good after the first ones were done.

Now I'm just waiting on the dye to arrive so I can start dying the lenses, then I will start the casting process of the helmet itself using smooth-on silicone for the main mold and a jacket mold of fiberglass.
Wish me luck!
 
Well, I'm glad you've experimented with 3-D printing bucks...It's nice to see others trying new ideas and their results.
The plaster bucks look very good and, as you said, shouldn't give you any problems(y)
 
Well, I'm glad you've experimented with 3-D printing bucks...It's nice to see others trying new ideas and their results.
The plaster bucks look very good and, as you said, shouldn't give you any problems(y)
I think if the plastic I use wasn't so thick (it's 1mm PETG) it might have actually been okay... They had 0.5mm PETG as well, but I went with the thicker stuff. Frankly if/when I need to buy more, I'll probably switch to the thinner sheets since this thickness is a bit overkill and is kinda hard to cut with scissors.
 
Just a small update this time! I'm waiting for some stuff to be delivered, so meanwhile I worked a little bit on the rocket pack buckles, starting with the smaller one. I'm still tweaking the design, but as it is now, it works. It CAN be opened if you just try to force it without pushing the buttons, but generally you'll want to push the buttons to open it. Considering I'm working with a simple FDM printer and not resin, I know I will have to make some sacrifices to functionality, so for now I'd call it "acceptable". I'll keep fiddling with it, but I'm happy the buckles will at least be functional and not just for display. I'll see about making these available somehow after I finalize the design. stay tuned
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According to a quick google conversion that should be 4.4 cm? Mine is about 4 cm, so it's certainly not too big. Should be fine though since I have a small noggin'
I made mine as small as it could be and still fit on my head, to avoid the "bobble-head" look. Mine came in at about 38mm at the point you're measuring. It might be that my helmet is smaller than yours, or perhaps my eye-holes are a little wider.
 

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