Dtrasler
Sr Member
I'm now worried that the stormtrooper bucket is going to be the highpoint of my efforts. I had thought that it would be simple to adapt some of the techniques to build a back half for the Clone Trooper Voice-changer helmet I had, so I began work when our last set of visitors left in July...
Exhibit One: On the far left of the picture, a standard "face only" voice changer Clone Trooper mask. The visor is too wide and will be the last part of the adaptation. First I have to make the back half of the helmet.
I started by building a framework for the back half out of cardboard, as I had used for the Atlanthia-method Stormtrooper Bucket.
Easily falling back into bad habits, I failed to do any measuring. I just kind of hoped that it would be about right. There's also a fair amount more duct tape in evidence with this piece - finding the angle to glue in the cardboard strips was tricky, and with only half a helmet, it wasn't possible to use a stand. I needed three arms. I do not have three arms.
This angle shows the more slapdash nature of the framework. It's not as neat and organised as it was for the previous helmet. And that's saying something.
Skip on a couple of days, and I've got the paper mache out again. Well, that's not strictly true. My Eldest daughter is modifying the Time Lord Headpiece I built her two years ago, and SHE has got the paper mache out. I just pinched it.
Things to note at this point - I'm not looking at any reference pics yet. Also, the reference pics I've found are not matching up well. There's a huge variety of Clone Trooper Helmet designs, and the back area isn't pictured that often. I'm not sure which version this helmet is based on, so I'm looking at two or three different designs and I'm going to make the one that is least complex.
Of course, the biggest concern is the transition point between the plastic helmet/faceplate and the new material added to the back. I decided to push ahead with filler and see how smooth I could get that transition before building the more detailed rear areas.
First, podge on that filler. Over fill, if you will.
The first round of sanding left some obvious dents and deficiencies, plus it showed I'm going to need some very fine-grain paper to restore the surface of the plastic after the rough sanding scratches it up.
If you look really close you can see a little impression where the two surfaces meet, but it's not bad. I'm pretty sure that some more gentle sanding and a few more coats of paint, then some lacquer will reduce even that.
The next part of the plan is to get the rest of the filler smoothed out to a similar standard, then decide on a pattern for the back, and build that over the smooth surface. That should make things easier, rather than trying to smooth a base surface after the other stuff goes on top. Here's the latest front view:
Exhibit One: On the far left of the picture, a standard "face only" voice changer Clone Trooper mask. The visor is too wide and will be the last part of the adaptation. First I have to make the back half of the helmet.
I started by building a framework for the back half out of cardboard, as I had used for the Atlanthia-method Stormtrooper Bucket.
Easily falling back into bad habits, I failed to do any measuring. I just kind of hoped that it would be about right. There's also a fair amount more duct tape in evidence with this piece - finding the angle to glue in the cardboard strips was tricky, and with only half a helmet, it wasn't possible to use a stand. I needed three arms. I do not have three arms.
This angle shows the more slapdash nature of the framework. It's not as neat and organised as it was for the previous helmet. And that's saying something.
Skip on a couple of days, and I've got the paper mache out again. Well, that's not strictly true. My Eldest daughter is modifying the Time Lord Headpiece I built her two years ago, and SHE has got the paper mache out. I just pinched it.
Things to note at this point - I'm not looking at any reference pics yet. Also, the reference pics I've found are not matching up well. There's a huge variety of Clone Trooper Helmet designs, and the back area isn't pictured that often. I'm not sure which version this helmet is based on, so I'm looking at two or three different designs and I'm going to make the one that is least complex.
Of course, the biggest concern is the transition point between the plastic helmet/faceplate and the new material added to the back. I decided to push ahead with filler and see how smooth I could get that transition before building the more detailed rear areas.
First, podge on that filler. Over fill, if you will.
The first round of sanding left some obvious dents and deficiencies, plus it showed I'm going to need some very fine-grain paper to restore the surface of the plastic after the rough sanding scratches it up.
If you look really close you can see a little impression where the two surfaces meet, but it's not bad. I'm pretty sure that some more gentle sanding and a few more coats of paint, then some lacquer will reduce even that.
The next part of the plan is to get the rest of the filler smoothed out to a similar standard, then decide on a pattern for the back, and build that over the smooth surface. That should make things easier, rather than trying to smooth a base surface after the other stuff goes on top. Here's the latest front view: