Don't like ads? Help support the Mercs by becoming a Supporter or Auxiliary Member today! (You will need to be logged into the store)
Official Members also get to use the forum ad-free - so kit up and join us!


 J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)

  • 10 Replies
  • 1989 Views

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« on: Jan 04, 2021, 01:36 PM »
Apparently I was sufficiently nice this year, wife and kids got me The Foundation bucket from Stein Custom Designs https://www.etsy.com/shop/STEINcustomdesigns?ref=usf_2020 this is a super nice cast, highly recommend! I liked that you can choose the back vent and ear piece style.

Helmet Concept


Raw Bucket


Got the front visor and vent slots removed


Cleaned up the previous cuts with precision files and removed a section from the back plate to allow air flow through the vent into the helmet


Not sure what the next logical order should be. I know I need to:


Finish Sanding
Attach Ear Pieces and Vent Cover
Paint
Add the Visor
Add Internals (helmet band, padding, USB powered fans, and potentially a mic to voicebox


Is there a commonly accepted order that works best to not mess up the previous step's work?



Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #1 on: Jan 04, 2021, 01:38 PM »
Realized I had two faceshields in my garage, disassembled one to make an adjustable headband for the helmet:



Will definitely need some work to get it mounted, but it is super comfortable

Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

The Bearded Mando


    *
  • 635
  • Run if you must, but you will only die tired.
  • Awards Award for 10 official invasions. 15+ clan level invasions 11+ Invasion Report Appearances Clan with the most recorded invasions in 2016/2017 Clan with the largest number of new OM's in 12 months
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #2 on: Jan 04, 2021, 02:39 PM »
I would recommend templating the visor now. With the T portion removed the helmet is prone to a bit of bowing ( the bottom part may open up and the top of the vertical might sag in).

Logged

slyski


    *
  • 26
  • no, that's just my face. I promise
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #3 on: Jan 04, 2021, 03:01 PM »
The adjustable headband seems great! I’ve been tossing around the idea of doing something like that too, how are you planning to mount it?

Logged

Celtkhan


    *
  • 370
  • Want some soup?
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #4 on: Jan 04, 2021, 05:52 PM »
The issue I’m going to point out with that headband is the knob on the back is going to take up a fair bit of room, push your head forward, and smoosh your nose against the visor. I had the leave the rear section of my helmet effectively unpadded just to make sure my face had enough room.

As for order of operations, sanding and filling of the helmet always comes first, and electronics installation will almost always come last (although the microphones might need to be installed earlier, if you’re adding audio). Visor installation also comes last, although as TBM already said, you should install a template visor first.

As for the order of painting and full assembly, that’s individual preference. I wanted to paint my earcaps separately and install afterward, but my helmet refused to cooperate. I ended up having to install them semi-permanently and paint after.

Logged

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #5 on: Jan 05, 2021, 03:38 PM »
I would recommend templating the visor now. With the T portion removed the helmet is prone to a bit of bowing ( the bottom part may open up and the top of the vertical might sag in).

Thanks for that advice. I need to sand down the inside where the visor goes, the resin is more built up at the bottom. In hindsight I should have left a bar there but removing the visor was a stressful process for a first timer ;)

In terms of visor attachment, I've seen a wide variety of methods. Any work better for a resin helmet vs other styles? Currently leaning toward velcro as an easy option to implement and easier to replace if I don't like it.

Would welcome insights!

Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #6 on: Jan 05, 2021, 03:41 PM »
The issue I’m going to point out with that headband is the knob on the back is going to take up a fair bit of room, push your head forward, and smoosh your nose against the visor. I had the leave the rear section of my helmet effectively unpadded just to make sure my face had enough room.

As for order of operations, sanding and filling of the helmet always comes first, and electronics installation will almost always come last (although the microphones might need to be installed earlier, if you’re adding audio). Visor installation also comes last, although as TBM already said, you should install a template visor first.

As for the order of painting and full assembly, that’s individual preference. I wanted to paint my earcaps separately and install afterward, but my helmet refused to cooperate. I ended up having to install them semi-permanently and paint after.


With this bucket the rear vent has space that I "think" will accommodate the adjustment knob. Sounds like my best bet would be to install the visor template then fiddle with the helmet band to see how it will fit.

Sincere thanks for the insights and advice, trying to take my time and do it right rather than rush through any step.

Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

The Bearded Mando


    *
  • 635
  • Run if you must, but you will only die tired.
  • Awards Award for 10 official invasions. 15+ clan level invasions 11+ Invasion Report Appearances Clan with the most recorded invasions in 2016/2017 Clan with the largest number of new OM's in 12 months
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #7 on: Jan 05, 2021, 06:22 PM »
I have only used chicago screws or T-nuts for removable visors, so I can't speak to how well velcro works.

Logged

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #8 on: Jan 10, 2021, 03:30 PM »
Work continues on my bucket.

Helmet is coming along, removed the excess resin from the inside bottom of the helmet and attached the ear pieces and rear vent. (slightly missed my marks on the rear vent, will have to do some patching with JB Plasticweld).

Used an old face shield to cut out a test run for my visor. I know there are a number of ways to mount the visor into the helmet, I think I am going to attach T-Bolts to the interior and screw it into place allowing me to remove/replace it as necessary.





Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #9 on: Feb 07, 2021, 10:23 AM »
Work continues

Decided to go with chicago screws to hold the visor in place. I wanted to create a small indention for the screw to set into to make the connection more sturdy, but getting a drill into the helmet was going to be a challenge. Home Depot to the rescue with a 45 degree angle bit holder.






Screws were attached with 2 part epoxy and seem to be holding firm






Moved onto painting

Its pretty cold here right now, so I created a quick and dirty paint booth in the garage. Have a heater going nearby to maintain temperature. Set the helmet on a $8 lazy susan from Bed Bath & Beyond so that I can turn it without having to touch the helmet. Box fan draws the overspray and fumes out of the garage while I'm spraying.





After the initial coat of filler/primer I noted the earcaps had a slight gap, used bondo fill putty to fill those and then primed again. Between each coat of primer I smoothed it out with steel wool instead of sandpaper.




Rustoleum Aluminum for my base coat, again hit it with steel wool between coats to cut down some of the shine. Hoping for more of a brushed metal look.

Then taped off the visor and rear vent to start with colors. Doing minimal weathering, but do want some carbon buildup around the edges and crevices








Pretty much ready for a clear coat and then onto the internals!

Celtkhan, you were correct, that headband did not fit. Looking at other concepts now ;)















Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0

DirkSteele


    *
  • *
  • 352
  • We're an idea. And you can't kill ideas
  • Awards 6 or more Education Points in a single year. Donated four quarters of 2023. Award for 10 official invasions. Shock Infantry Brigade Member
Re: J'Quon Keresik - First Helmet WIP (Pic heavy)
« Reply #10 on: Feb 14, 2021, 10:40 AM »
Went back over the weathering and then hit it with a matte clear coat to protect the acrylic paint.




Fitted the final visor in place, needs a bit of trimming at the bottom (leaving the protective wrap on until the helmet is 100% done.

The chicago screw attachment worked really well, it is really easy to install/remove the visor as necessary.



Working on my interior padding and electronics




Logged
Gar taldin ni jaonyc; gar sa buir, ori'wadaas'la
"Nobody cares who your father was, only the father you’ll be."

Brigade Kit WIP - http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=211252.0
 


Don't like ads? Help support the Mercs by becoming a Supporter or Auxiliary Member today! (You will need to be logged into the store)
Official Members also get to use the forum ad-free - so kit up and join us!



Powered by EzPortal
SMF spam blocked by CleanTalk