"Help!" for: Fiberglassing, Resin, & Bondo

[Aerdan]

I got all my stuff for the resin stage. How am I going to do it? I bought: Fiberglass Repair Kit, 2 packs of Fiberglass Cloth 3M, and all my brushes. Do I put the cloth on the whole thing or in the inside? cause I see poepl only resin the outside and sometimes use the cloth on the inside..

 

[NightHawk]

Okay so I got my helmet going. Did fiber glass resin on the outside looks nice and pretty and solid. Have yet to do the inside since I just let the helmet sit and cure today. My Fiancé and I are wondering how should we do the inside. We have witnessed videos and advice on several options. These options include; #1 Resin and fiber glass mat/fiber on inside, #2 Resin and Fiber glass mat/fiber let it settle then Bondo the inside, #3 Use the body filler bondo and resin mix it to get a pudding like texture and poor into the interior of helmet and spread it... Me and my Fiancé like the Rondo (body filler / resin mixture) to create a smoothish interior and work with it from there versus the resin.

Also im wanting some advice on the interior of the helmet. There are tags ofc where the helmet is attached I was wondering should I trims / remove them to it allows me more room to add things inside the helmet such as padding or electronics. This will be don't mostly the top half of the helmet (ODST HELMET) or should I just leave them as such and work around it?

 

[RagnarConture]

Hello, I am a long time reader, first time poster. Once upon a time i started an EOD build but was never able to finish it as i was in the armed forces over seas. I am thinking about starting over, and have read and watched different tuts using the carbon fiber, but i was wondering would it be possible to use kydex as well? for those that dont know waht kydex is, it is a thermoplastic acrylic polyvinyl that can be used to make knife sheaths and firearm holsters.Would it be possible to use this to make the outside if the armor, and use carbon fiber for the inside?

 

[Oxide]

Hey there, thought I would post here with a few questions I've got as I've run into a few problems with my current piece.

Right now I'm working on a fully enclosed weapon, I've got a few cardboard support struts that I built into it along with two layers of resin on the surface. Now its been impossibly cold lately and the resin is taking its time to harden, if it ever will due to me not wanting to wait for it to get warm and I'm trying to decide the best way to go about hardening the piece further. The only two idea's that would make sense would be rondo and expanding foam, but I'm not sure which would be better suited to the task, as I've never used rondo or expanding foam.

is one more advantageous then the other? should I bring my piece into my house and do another coat of resin to harden the outside that much more?

 

[RobTC]

Rondo would naturally get quite warm of its own accord, which could help cure the external resin, but if your outside shell isn't hard, then putting anything inside is going to deform the piece. Patience is imperative for good results; just find a way to cure the hard shell first. If you can set your oven to a very low temperature like 100F (and you're using VOC-free epoxy resin, not thinned or polyester), you could use that, or build a cheap insulation foam enclosure that you blow warm air into from a heat gun, which can also be used to accelerate paint drying. There are always ways of circumventing the weather!

 

[ErMaC]

Hey there, thought I would post here with a few questions I've got as I've run into a few problems with my current piece.

Right now I'm working on a fully enclosed weapon, I've got a few cardboard support struts that I built into it along with two layers of resin on the surface. Now its been impossibly cold lately and the resin is taking its time to harden, if it ever will due to me not wanting to wait for it to get warm and I'm trying to decide the best way to go about hardening the piece further. The only two idea's that would make sense would be rondo and expanding foam, but I'm not sure which would be better suited to the task, as I've never used rondo or expanding foam.

is one more advantageous then the other? should I bring my piece into my house and do another coat of resin to harden the outside that much more?

can you post a picture of your build. I have a solution for a fully enclosed item to that needs to be hardened on the inside so I can tell you exactly what to do.

 

[Turse]

Hey, I am new to doing this and I have started to make my first helmet (halo warrior helmet) and I want to know how people make their helmet a smooth grey colour. I have done the resin an bondo layer and sanded it down but all it looks like is a reddish brown colour. I see all the videos but they don't show how the grey colour comes along. Should I use a primer or is there something else that I should do?

Some help please?

 

[RobotChicken]

Grey primer.

 

[shadow001]

Hey there 23Magnum. I happen to know a good DIY website called instructables.They have a huge range of projects that people have done already. All you have to do is type in the search bar "how to..." and then finish it off with what is your looking for. The link is posted below. Hope this helps you. www.instructables.com

 

[Brax Lel]

I havent used this in a while and the cap is stuck. I used a monkey wrench to get it open once before when I had the same problem but now the cap will barely budge. How do I get this cap off?

 

[cyberdemon35]

View attachment 12177
I havent used this in a while and the cap is stuck. I used a monkey wrench to get it open once before when I had the same problem but now the cap will barely budge. How do I get this cap off?

Id just stick the cap in a vice and twist the can gives you more leverage.

 

[ColdAdamantium]

Hey all!

So i'm almost at the resin stage on my H4 Soldier helmet, and i'm curious about something..
Im going to leave the visor portion blank (as in not pepping and res-ing it just to cut it out after), and I've heard that people are using smaller pieces of materials as splints to keep the helmet from drooping/sagging where the visor will go.... My question here is, if i taped some splints on the inside of the helm to keep the proper shape, will the resin soak through and loosen/remove the tape?

 

[OT7OM4N]

Hey all!

So i'm almost at the resin stage on my H4 Soldier helmet, and i'm curious about something..
Im going to leave the visor portion blank (as in not pepping and res-ing it just to cut it out after), and I've heard that people are using smaller pieces of materials as splints to keep the helmet from drooping/sagging where the visor will go.... My question here is, if i taped some splints on the inside of the helm to keep the proper shape, will the resin soak through and loosen/remove the tape?

I've recently finished the fibreglassing on my H4 Chief helmet. I went about it by including the visor in the pep work then fibreglass the whole thing and used a dremel to cut it out afterwards. Worked out well for me and meant I didn't have to work around problems with splints. My advice, if you do go down that route, is to make sure to spread the resin thinly rather than slapping it on. Good luck!

 

[ColdAdamantium]

I've recently finished the fibreglassing on my H4 Chief helmet. I went about it by including the visor in the pep work then fibreglass the whole thing and used a dremel to cut it out afterwards. Worked out well for me and meant I didn't have to work around problems with splints. My advice, if you do go down that route, is to make sure to spread the resin thinly rather than slapping it on. Good luck!

Maybe i'll just do it this way. Better to get it right the first time lol
Thanks for the feedback OT7OM4N

 

[Brax Lel]

Does anyone have any experience with this resin spray stuff? Is it any more efficient than liquid resin? Id imagine it would knowing you dont need to mix resin with hardener in a cup and all that prep work, but how would you rondo/fiberglass the inside with the resin spray?

 

[FlyinPhil]

View attachment 17418
Does anyone have any experience with this resin spray stuff? Is it any more efficient than liquid resin? Id imagine it would knowing you dont need to mix resin with hardener in a cup and all that prep work, but how would you rondo/fiberglass the inside with the resin spray?

I don't have any experience with the stuff, but it seems like more of a strong clear coat than what we need to harden pep models. I can for sure say that this wouldn't be thick enough to absorb into any fiberglass cloth or mat, and it's hard to say if it would even be sufficient for the first layer to harden a pep model. It the stuff is cheap, it wouldnt hurt to test it out on some cardstock!

As for the efficiency part of it though, think in terms of spray paint. I guarantee you I go through a lot more spray paint than I would brushing on paint, due to overspray, clearing the nozzle after painting, and the fact that 1/2-2/3 of my paint ends up on my masking tape or the surface my model is sitting on.

 

[Jason 078]

"Resin Spray, is a fast drying, clear gloss finish/sealer. Ideal for fixing small blemishes in cured resin pieces. It adds luster and shine to resin pieces created in a mold that may appear dull when removed. Its best to apply several light coats for most applications. Resin Spray is ideal for sealing paints, inks, gel markers, metallic pastes, paper, fabric, dried flowers and other items you wish to embed in resin. Its works great to clean up cast resin pieces which may have been lightly sanded and its a fabulous top coat for polymer clay projects."

This is what the "official description" says about it. It might be interesting to try it out as an initial hardener. It would save some time having to go through with a razor blade to fix pools of brush-on.

 

[Dracosfire83]

I can picture a few people welding their project to the table with the spray.

 

[Squirtle12]

I'm planning on making a scout helmet/gear and making it using resin. I don't know what product I need to make the resin plz help

 

[FlyinPhil]

I'm planning on making a scout helmet/gear and making it using resin. I don't know what product I need to make the resin plz help

It sounds like you need to do a little more reading, friend! But let me say, welcome to the forums! Keep in mind that pretty much all questions you might have have already been answered in different threads on the forum, you just have to take lots of time to read through and find out the info you need.

That being said, let me help you get on track. So there are two main types of resin that are popular for hardening pep builds. The first, which is what I use, is polyester resin. It is often called fiberglass resin, amd is relatively cheap to purchase (in North America anyway) and can be found at most big hardware stores and autobody supply stores. The downfall is that it is quite toxic in liquid form, and you can only use it in a well ventilated area with proper protective gear on.

The other good option is epoxy resin. It is a little harder to find, though is readily available online. It is more expensive than fiberglass resin, but is generally non toxic and can be used without a respirator.