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[LordOTheWands]

GearHead - a nickname i gave to a mando that popped into my head a few years ago, and have just started work on! A young, Post-Imp, combat engineer who focuses on solving problems before they arrive. Doesnt always go well, but hey, he tries.

How i plan on making it a reality: 3D print files, make sure they fit right, then cover with fiberglass and epoxy to make a much easier sanding job for the hard armor pieces, and source/commission/sew soft pieces, excluding flight suit and vest.

Currently, all that is done is a very rough job of the helmet, linked here: https://imgur.com/pdzndir. it has not yet been given the fiberglass/resin treatment, nor a file job yet so its not very pretty yet. At this moment, the chestpiece is printing.

Concept from Mando Maker: https://imgur.com/omeYpWb
this concept doesnt quite capture what i want due to the limitations of Mando Maker, but its close enough to get a general idea.
I look forwards to giving you all updates soon!

[Anansi]

The helmet looks pretty solid and will look even better once you've cleaned it up. Is it a 3d print? I've not seen many people apply fiberglass & resin to a print so I can't offer any advice there. Most folks opt for bondo spot putty, XTC3d, filler primer or some combination.

What are you using to make sure you have the right sizing for your prints?

[LordOTheWands]

The helmet looks pretty solid and will look even better once you've cleaned it up. Is it a 3d print? I've not seen many people apply fiberglass & resin to a print so I can't offer any advice there. Most folks opt for bondo spot putty, XTC3d, filler primer or some combination.

What are you using to make sure you have the right sizing for your prints?

Yep! all 3D printed. I was thinking fiberglass because right now its a tad flimsy, but i hadnt considered bondo! i think that'll work a lot better

Sizing is just CAD scaling plus measurements i took of my proportions, but as you can see on the helmet, something must have gone wrong, so i used a 3D pen to fill the gaps as a temporary solution, which is part of the reason i prefer 3D printing prototypes lol. Once im ready to apply Bondo, Itll all be filed smooth.
thanks for the feedback!!

[LordOTheWands]

So after assembling, i realized the chestplate was too small in proportion to everything else, so ill be re-printing it soon. but before i do, in the Post-Imp armor req. it says that there must be an ab plate. i would assume the ab plate is a seperate entity from the rest, and should be able to move independantly of the rest of the chest/torso armor?

while i am re-designing the chest plate, i have begun work on the gauntlets. theyre lookin pretty good so far, cant wait to share once theyre done printing!

have a great day folks!

[Anansi]

It's a little bit more than that. From the CRLs:

The ab plate is optional for the Din Djarin version 1 armor and the Paz Vizsla Heavy Infantry armor.  Din Djarin version 2 armor (Beskar armor) and any custom modified plate designs must be worn with the ab plate.
Ab plate configurations for Din Djarin version 1 armor or the Paz Vizsla Heavy Infantry armor are as follows:

    Din Djarin version 1 armor may be worn with the chest plate only or with the ab plate
    Paz Visla Heavy Infantry variations are, A) Light Infantry: chest plate only, B) Medium Infantry: chest plate and diaphragm plate, C) Heavy Infantry: chest plate, diaphragm plate and ab plate.

So custom designs absolutely need an ab plate. If you go with the first design of Din's armor or Paz, it's optional. For reference, I believe this is considered V1

[LordOTheWands]

It's a little bit more than that. From the CRLs:

So custom designs absolutely need an ab plate. If you go with the first design of Din's armor or Paz, it's optional. For reference, I believe this is considered V1

okay! Thank you for the help!!

[LordOTheWands]

The bondo is done and the first layers of paint are on! I left some pitting in the helmet to weather around and give some character to it, next up is taping off the parts that will stay red and painting the rest black! (Visor is not yet mounted, I just have the sheet sitting in there at the moment lol)

Gearhead V1.5 https://imgur.com/gallery/5dxA58y

[LordOTheWands]

here it is! The second version of Gearhead's helmet. i went for a VERY weathered and battle-weary look,  but its not quite what i wanted. i cant seem to get the bondo smooth and without pits, but im happy with it so far. im going to try and smooth it out some.
https://imgur.com/gallery/6lu4eAg

[Anansi]

It looks heavily corroded, which would make an interesting look. A few things to consider:
1. Weathering has to be consistent across an entire kit. That means all of your armor and your soft parts have to be equally degraded. If that's not the plan, I'd recommend some more sanding to smooth things out further. It's time consuming, but the final product will be worth it.
2. With that much pitting and flaking, some exposed metal, rust spots and blaster bolts will make the texture more believable as intentional. The usual process is to lay down primer, then a metallic coat of your choice, clear coat, mask off "damaged" areas, lay down another color, mask, layer, repeat as desired. Once you remove the masking, the helmet will look like it's been to hell and back and you can enhance the effect with washes and other effects.
3. I highly recommend cleaning up the corners and crannies so that the angles are sharper. You might have to make a sanding stick or use needle files like the ones available at Harbor Freight. Go slow so you don't take off too much material too fast.

All in all, it's a good foundation and I think you can elevate it.

[LordOTheWands]

It looks heavily corroded, which would make an interesting look. A few things to consider:
1. Weathering has to be consistent across an entire kit. That means all of your armor and your soft parts have to be equally degraded. If that's not the plan, I'd recommend some more sanding to smooth things out further. It's time consuming, but the final product will be worth it.
2. With that much pitting and flaking, some exposed metal, rust spots and blaster bolts will make the texture more believable as intentional. The usual process is to lay down primer, then a metallic coat of your choice, clear coat, mask off "damaged" areas, lay down another color, mask, layer, repeat as desired. Once you remove the masking, the helmet will look like it's been to hell and back and you can enhance the effect with washes and other effects.
3. I highly recommend cleaning up the corners and crannies so that the angles are sharper. You might have to make a sanding stick or use needle files like the ones available at Harbor Freight. Go slow so you don't take off too much material too fast.

All in all, it's a good foundation and I think you can elevate it.

thank you as always for the feedback! i realized that it wouldnt really fit in with the story im trying to tell to have a young hotshot in horrifically scarred armor, and as you noted it would be quite a bit more work to keep that amount of weathering consistent, so ive re-done the Bondo to make it smoother and nicer, so sanding will make it look quite nice! (i hope lol)

have a good one!

[LordOTheWands]

about 2 hours into sanding (the lowest grit i have on hand is 150 RIP me) and its already SO much better, im very pleased with it! should look alot nicer 

[LordOTheWands]

Sanding is done! Its very marbled right now, due to layers of bondo and paint intersecting, but it looks AMAZING in person. very pleased with it!
(I dont know why the keyholes are like that in the picture, they look very nice IRL)
I left the occasional dent/scratch to give some character, but the majority is silky smooth. First layer of burgundy is drying now, gonna see how it looks once that is done!

Gearhead final pre-paint https://imgur.com/gallery/uGqfFrQ

[LordOTheWands]

the paint revealed a few trouble spots that have been sanded down and made flush with the rest. take two on the burgandy!

[LordOTheWands]

*sigh*
well, the rain came much earlier than any forcast said it would and ruined the enamel paint i had on there to help resist scratches... so back to sanding i guess.....

[Anansi]

Hey, FYI, be careful to avoid double-posting. If you've posted and then have an update later in the day, just modify the first one to include new content.