Satchmo III
Well-Known Member
Greetings four-oh-fivers! This build thread will contain information and updates related to a JFO helmet currently being constructed by me and my younger brother (call-sign: ionHighlander (XBL), not currently listed in the 405th roster).
As a brief introduction: My brother and I live about 300 miles from one another. Since January 2011 we've been playing Reach together which allows us to hang out often despite that we're not even in the same state. Near the time we started gaming together I happened upon these forums and began a Noble Six build (http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/30987-Noble-six-build-%28Satchmo-III%29). I've been discussing what I've been learning and making with him for the last six months. About a week ago he began a two week stay with me (totally cool) and we decided we would work up his in-game helmet (JFO) while together.
We're already on the path to completing the helmet before his departure. The general plan was to harden and detail pepakura and (hopefully) mold/cast. Progress entries begin below. Thank you to IroniumCostuming for the excellent model. I couldn't find an original thread with the model so have uploaded a copy of the file to my 4shared should anyone wish to check it out (http://www.4shared.com/file/40WJtHRk/Reach_helmet_JFO__Ironium_.html).
WEEK #1 PROGRESS SUMMARY...
01) Printed out and assembled helmet pepakura
02) Applied resin to helmet's exterior
03) Applied thin rondo layer to helmet's interior
04) Applied fiberglass to helmet's interior
05) Cut face-plate opening
06) Rough-detailed with bondo and rondo
WEEK #1 PROGRESS DETAIL...
"Jump for oddball."
ionHighlander put together the pepakura in about six hours. He scored the folds, cut the pieces, and assembled them with hot glue. It's his first paper model and he's taken to it quite well...he's been working on a Halo pistol he found that I printed out some time ago.
We applied resin to the outside and rondo to the inside. Rondo was selected to give the helmet a bit more structure prior to fiberglass as well as to fill in any tight spaces (which for the JFO were minimal).
Since I live in a third-floor apartment I work outdoors, and I don't always have a non-public outdoor area to leave resin and rondo pieces to cure. In the past when I couldn't maintain a safe area for pieces to cure I either waited outside (sometimes annoying) with them or brought them in and opened a window and wore a respirator at home for a couple of days (always annoying).
Thanks to ionHighlander a solution to these issues was presented. When we had a piece curing but were otherwise done working for the day and wanted to go home (resin and rondo stages) we placed the curing piece outside a window on a small sill. This way with the window closed a barrier was maintained between ourselves and the potentially still harmful curing piece. As a note, when we had a curing piece we were going to continue on we passed the time honing our ultimate frisbee skills.
After resin and rondo we applied fiberglass to the helmet's interior and prime-painted the piece to see what it looked like. This was both of our first time glassing a helmet...it was relatively easy and not too time-intensive to complete one layer of cut-up matting. Having done a couple of rondo-only helmets I'd have to say I feel more confident about avoiding break issues with the fiberglass installed.
After glassing we removed the face-plate material to make the opening and applied preliminary bondo to work on some shaping issues with the pepakura.
With the general shape achieved we considered reference images for the in-game model and sketched out a plan on the helmet for detailing. This gave us a good idea of what we needed to complete and how it might look.
We raised some surfaces by using thick foamy (poster) tape to create a barrier into which small amounts of rondo was poured. We decided we wanted the ear areas to stick out more so we followed the same general process but used painters tape to create a higher barrier and allow for a deeper rondo pour. We also trimmed some of the face-plate opening.
Finally we added the knobs to the ear areas by using a ring-shaped form we created from a plastic end cap we found laying around. The helmet was turned on one side, the ring form was placed where desired, and rondo was poured into the form. Just as the rondo began to cure (we threw in quite a bit of hardener to expedite the process) we applied pressure to the rondo to hold it down and removed the form by pulling up...worked like a charm. With the knobs and other raised surfaces installed and rough sanded the piece was prime-painted again to assess aesthetics.
As the sun was getting low in the west today (Sunday) we snapped a few photos wherein the helmet looks blue (which happens to be the primary color intended for it...though a bit darker).
And that's where we sit after a week. Sorry for the lengthy initial post but we completed much this week and I wanted to log it in. With a pressing time-frame to complete I am expecting pace to continue. We are hoping to paint and then mold (would be each of our first time molding) near the end of next week before ionHighlander heads back to the motherland (Wisconsin).
Thanks for your interest. Any and all input, criticisms, or suggestions will be welcomed and appreciated.
Summer is moving along quickly and the armor-related coals are building up in the fire. I hope every ones projects are going well. Keep at 'em, 405th! Out.
As a brief introduction: My brother and I live about 300 miles from one another. Since January 2011 we've been playing Reach together which allows us to hang out often despite that we're not even in the same state. Near the time we started gaming together I happened upon these forums and began a Noble Six build (http://www.405th.com/showthread.php/30987-Noble-six-build-%28Satchmo-III%29). I've been discussing what I've been learning and making with him for the last six months. About a week ago he began a two week stay with me (totally cool) and we decided we would work up his in-game helmet (JFO) while together.
We're already on the path to completing the helmet before his departure. The general plan was to harden and detail pepakura and (hopefully) mold/cast. Progress entries begin below. Thank you to IroniumCostuming for the excellent model. I couldn't find an original thread with the model so have uploaded a copy of the file to my 4shared should anyone wish to check it out (http://www.4shared.com/file/40WJtHRk/Reach_helmet_JFO__Ironium_.html).
WEEK #1 PROGRESS SUMMARY...
01) Printed out and assembled helmet pepakura
02) Applied resin to helmet's exterior
03) Applied thin rondo layer to helmet's interior
04) Applied fiberglass to helmet's interior
05) Cut face-plate opening
06) Rough-detailed with bondo and rondo
WEEK #1 PROGRESS DETAIL...
"Jump for oddball."
ionHighlander put together the pepakura in about six hours. He scored the folds, cut the pieces, and assembled them with hot glue. It's his first paper model and he's taken to it quite well...he's been working on a Halo pistol he found that I printed out some time ago.
We applied resin to the outside and rondo to the inside. Rondo was selected to give the helmet a bit more structure prior to fiberglass as well as to fill in any tight spaces (which for the JFO were minimal).
Since I live in a third-floor apartment I work outdoors, and I don't always have a non-public outdoor area to leave resin and rondo pieces to cure. In the past when I couldn't maintain a safe area for pieces to cure I either waited outside (sometimes annoying) with them or brought them in and opened a window and wore a respirator at home for a couple of days (always annoying).
Thanks to ionHighlander a solution to these issues was presented. When we had a piece curing but were otherwise done working for the day and wanted to go home (resin and rondo stages) we placed the curing piece outside a window on a small sill. This way with the window closed a barrier was maintained between ourselves and the potentially still harmful curing piece. As a note, when we had a curing piece we were going to continue on we passed the time honing our ultimate frisbee skills.
After resin and rondo we applied fiberglass to the helmet's interior and prime-painted the piece to see what it looked like. This was both of our first time glassing a helmet...it was relatively easy and not too time-intensive to complete one layer of cut-up matting. Having done a couple of rondo-only helmets I'd have to say I feel more confident about avoiding break issues with the fiberglass installed.
After glassing we removed the face-plate material to make the opening and applied preliminary bondo to work on some shaping issues with the pepakura.
With the general shape achieved we considered reference images for the in-game model and sketched out a plan on the helmet for detailing. This gave us a good idea of what we needed to complete and how it might look.
We raised some surfaces by using thick foamy (poster) tape to create a barrier into which small amounts of rondo was poured. We decided we wanted the ear areas to stick out more so we followed the same general process but used painters tape to create a higher barrier and allow for a deeper rondo pour. We also trimmed some of the face-plate opening.
Finally we added the knobs to the ear areas by using a ring-shaped form we created from a plastic end cap we found laying around. The helmet was turned on one side, the ring form was placed where desired, and rondo was poured into the form. Just as the rondo began to cure (we threw in quite a bit of hardener to expedite the process) we applied pressure to the rondo to hold it down and removed the form by pulling up...worked like a charm. With the knobs and other raised surfaces installed and rough sanded the piece was prime-painted again to assess aesthetics.
As the sun was getting low in the west today (Sunday) we snapped a few photos wherein the helmet looks blue (which happens to be the primary color intended for it...though a bit darker).
And that's where we sit after a week. Sorry for the lengthy initial post but we completed much this week and I wanted to log it in. With a pressing time-frame to complete I am expecting pace to continue. We are hoping to paint and then mold (would be each of our first time molding) near the end of next week before ionHighlander heads back to the motherland (Wisconsin).
Thanks for your interest. Any and all input, criticisms, or suggestions will be welcomed and appreciated.
Summer is moving along quickly and the armor-related coals are building up in the fire. I hope every ones projects are going well. Keep at 'em, 405th! Out.
