Red Leader and Gold Leader Helmets - "All wings report in!"

Somerset

Sr Member
20180224_174528.jpg

Last summer I bought one of @Walter 's fibreglass X-Wing helmets. I had always wanted a fibreglass version of this helmet since the only other similar versions I was familiar with were the eFX ones which now cost a small fortune. Anyway, since acquiring this I didn't really have a chance to work on it until January. The first thing I had to decide was who to paint it as. My favourite OT character was always Wedge, but, let's face it, he has one of the more mundane helmet designs. So to have something that stood out a little more from the others I opted to go with Red Leader, who I was happy to see get some bonus screen time in Rogue One.

Unfortunately, because I live in a small one bedroom London flat, the only place I can work on this is either on the mini-balcony or right up by the door against it. This meant I could only really work on it at weekends, and only then if it was warm enough to be outside! So it took a little longer than I had hoped!

The kit is really nice - lightweight and durable. It required minimal sanding to prep it. The mohawk and end cap come as separate pieces that you glue on. The only real lack of detail I could find was that the cheek dimples were quite shallow, but that's understandable given that this isn't vac-formed.

Others have already painted this helmet up, so I followed some of their methods - so thanks to all whose threads I looked at!

First stage was to coat the inside with black spray on plasti-dip. This left a nice smoother and rubbery coating on the inside, but caused me a bit of a headache when the missus disapproved of the smell it was leaving as it dried... I then gave it a coat of white primer from a rattle-can that would show through where I would late apply weathering.

For the base coat I took some inspiration from some older threads here and at the Rebel Legion, and used a mix of Tamiya Yellow-Green with Desert Yellow. This was actually my first time using an airbrush, so was a lot of fun getting to grips with how to coat it evenly.

20180113_171819.jpg

Next came masking off the stripes on the forehead. Thanks to @superjedi for giving me some measurements to get started. As advice to anyone making Red Leader in the future, if you're using decals I suggest waiting to paint the stripes until after they arrive. That way you can accurately position them in relation to the size of the sun-bursts. My stripes aren't quite long enough and so they're a bit too close together. It's also important to note that the stripes are asymmetrical between the two sides.

20180115_211551.jpgMasking.jpg

I then used flat black to paint all the stripes around the rams' horns and up the sides. These are probably a bit too thick but they'll do for me.

Next I used Scott DeLuck's vinyl decals - they go on very easily and are top quality

20180205_181821.jpg

Next, weathering!
 

Attachments

  • 20180115_083012.jpg
    20180115_083012.jpg
    1.6 MB · Views: 328
Last edited:
So here it is with the base colours and decals applied.

20180211_114920.jpg20180211_114934.jpg20180211_114944.jpg

First phase was to start applying scratches and scuffs across the helmet. I did this with a combination of sandpaper, files and hobby knife. I tried to follow what little reference there is as well as possible and then embellished some areas, particularly at the rear. This took quite some time!


Once I was happy with the surface damage, it was time to apply a wash of dirty grey acrylic to get a grimy quality to the helmet. It didn't show up particularly well on the yellow-green, but dirtied up the white areas nicely.

Then, in a another tip learned from one of @superjedi's old threads I used pigment powders in grey and black to create more dirt effects. I applied a little powder using a stiff brush to stipple it and then using a piece of kitchen paper to wipe off any excess and push it into the corners. I then used a piece of balled-up masking tape to randomly take powder off creating a random pattern. Overall it creates a really nice effect (the powder I used actually had some metallic quality to it, but a matte clear coat took the shine down).

I bought interior lining and ear cups from Imperial Boots. The quality is really nice. I took the liner to the local repairs and alterations shop, and they sewed some velcro tabs onto it. I put the corresponding hooks on the inside and that keeps the liner firmly in place. Then I added the ear cups, chin strap and visor, and voila!
 

Attachments

  • 20180211_114920.jpg
    20180211_114920.jpg
    1.6 MB · Views: 376
  • 20180211_114934.jpg
    20180211_114934.jpg
    1.3 MB · Views: 368
Last edited:
Well done!!!! Sad to say you are way ahead of me on the two helmets I am making. :)

I was in Richmond-Upon-Thames in November and I should be out there again this year, lets connect the next time I am out.

Best,

Walter
SaveSave
 
Last edited by a moderator:
That looks fabulous. The colours are perfect and the execution too. I never realized Red Leader had so many "V" logos on his helmet either.

Cheers,

K.
 
Thank you all for the kind words. It was my first time doing a helmet paint-up and although the colour scheme is pretty basic I think the end result worked out well.

What I forgot to mention was that I managed to screw up putting the mohawk on. I'd riveted it at base at the rear and then proceeded to epoxy it down. But where the styrene just didn't want to stay down and kept lifting up, and as the epoxy seemed to dry really quickly I was left with a couple of noticeable gaps, which I ended up just plugging with hot glue.
 
Love it, tremendous work! In 1997 I had built my to date only x-wing pilot helmet and chose red leaders design foe inspiration. Your work inspires me even further to pull out that ol helmet kit and start workimg on it...
 
This thread is more than 4 years old.

Your message may be considered spam for the following reasons:

  1. This thread hasn't been active in some time. A new post in this thread might not contribute constructively to this discussion after so long.
If you wish to reply despite these issues, check the box below before replying.
Be aware that malicious compliance may result in more severe penalties.
Back
Top