iconoclasta_88

Just to share some pictures of the sanded helmet before painting... and of the scratches and cracks before finishing them... Some some updates soon...

Yep, thats what I will do. Have already painted the frown and vocoder of 3 other helmets by hand. And the traps and vents only in one. But this will be my first time with the tube stripes. I just need to get the right blue paint, gray and black I already have. Thx for your kind words bro... and for your support! Saludos

THX Bro... The paint was cured alright. I waited for about 52 hours before starting to sand. Every coat was already dry. Thx for the warning... I was able to read it before starting. So I sand it. Sand it with a fine writ sandpaper until it was smooth... Then I painted it, this time with very thin layers with the remaining paint until it looked fine. And it worked!!! At least on the dome, it worked... Some parts I did not dare to sand too much, and some parts I actually wanted to live them as they were cause they were just cracked and not really scaled so it gave the helmet an aged look. I also pealed some latex that was supposed to be covered with a light coat of white before painting it again. Here it is: And then, after the paint settled in for about 1 hour, I painted over the exposed khaki plastic and then, started peeling the rest of the latex too. This gave it the cool aged, repaired damaged look of the real prop. Here it is: And this is just a preview of how it will look when finished: Side by side: So far turned alright I think... and the scaling that was left add it some character, and doesn't even show that much I think. I will just let it cure for about 24 to 48 hours... and then start the hand painted details... Im really excited with the results. What do you guys think? Saludos....

Thats bad!! I will be sanding tonite and will then make a decide if I should paint or not. Thx for your help bro. Saludos

THX bro! Very usefull... So far, the best option I can come up with is sanding and repainting... But not the entire bucket. Just the damaged areas. This reaction appeared in areas where I tried to make the dripping by spraying lots of paint. Big mistake. I do think that using a small brush would be a lot better... too bad its already done. In my first painted bucket the dripping appeared on its own, and was no big deal, so I though I could do it the same way. I was mistaken. No latex was under the damages areas, so, it wont help much. Too bad. Now, I guess I will sand those areas, and depending on how it turns out, I will proceed with recoating, repainting or just some damage control with the paint leftover... The paint instructions say that its safe to apply a new layer after 48 hours. Thats tonite. So, hopefully I wont need to do it, but if it is a matter of just a very very lihght coat, I guess I can do it tonite. Will put the can bottom on some warm water first. Thx for all your help bro... Does anyone else have another idea or tip? THX a lot. Saludos

Update... I painted with liquid latex-like paint all the details on the bucket that I wanted to show the original HDPE color like cracks and all that. It was lots of fun and not very difficult. I was very exited at this stage. Planning where would look like what and all that. I planned two different approaches: For places were the khaki color will completely be shown, and... For this, I will finish the paint jobe and just remove completely thye latex afterwards, exposing the paint under the white coat. For places were you can tell there was a crack, but then was repaired, showing the khaki color under a light layer of white and sometimes a real crack on the plastic. For this, I will remove the latex from the places I want to show as repaired cracks, and then give it a light white coat over all. Therefore, allowing the khaki to show a bit. So this is how the bucket looked with latex applied: Then, I used Rustoleum Professional High Performance Enamel Gloss White, followed all the instructions, knowing that this is not the easiest paint to work with. Shaking it for almost 3 minutes non stop. Then applying light coats instead of a thick one... etc... So, ears attached, lets go paint: But something went WRONG!! Mos Eisley, we have a problem... To form the drops of paint to copy those on the original helmet, I think I applied to much paint at once in the same place. So the drops appeared, but also some sort of "fish scales" on it. I guess you can unerstand when I say I was completely frustrated with it, to say the less: Here is how it looks: This happened in a few places. Like 6 or 7 places all around. Different sizes and shapes. So, for me, there are two ways to go now: 1. Ignore this and pretend it was on purpose to give it more character and make it looks older, or 2. Sand this places and paint again. The thing is, I had this paint broght from the USA cause they dont sell it here, and its not possible to buy it on line and have it send here. And I just have less that 15% of the can left. So... I am affraid to make another mistake and completely ruin the bucket. At least the paint job... This is how it looks now anyway: Not so bad huh? So.. Has anyobody worked with this paint before and had this happened? Does anybody knows a better solution for this. Is sanding it a good option... or even more: Does anyone really think this scaling gives the bucket character and looks "accurate-ish" considering this is supposed to be a replica and not for trooping??? Big THX for any help, feedback or comments! Saludos.

So, after puting together 5 buckets, I finally got the courage to start this project I've been dreaming about for years now: Building a replica helmet. This will actually be just like a rehearsal to learn how to work some new techniques and to study all the details in the painting and detailing process of a replica helmet. I will try to emulate all the leaks and tears and scratches and mistakes that ANH helmets have. Trying to make it look like if it was a production helmet 33 years old. Having said this, I must add that this helmet was not trimmed by me, only put together and now in the process of painting it. So many details as the dreamy eye, the size of teeth and the actual shaping of ears and all is not THAT accurate. Already tried to fix it but, well.. it was trimmed in an not so cool way. And one more thing juast to prevent any debate, I cant confirm if this bucket is an original sculp, or a recast. It was given to me as a gift, and I think it is a great helmet for what it is. Like it a lot and as mentioned, will be a rehearsal to maybe next making a replica out of a TE2 or a TM... hopefully. So. Lets get started: Fisrt, This is what I want to achieve (picture from SW helmets of course): And this is the bucket before it was painted (next to my TE2): I first had to paint it with the HDPE color of the original material used to make buckets in 1976. So I got a very close color match from "rustoleum specialty for plastic" color Taupe. So just prepared the bucket, light sanding, cleaning and paint. No primer this time cause the paint instructions claim it didnt need it. Direct to plastic paint, it says. The results were very cool I think. Check this picture. Next, I will use a liquid latex paint to mask the scratches and all... And then paint it white. What do you think? Saludos to be continued...

THX a lot bro. And thx for those great parts and all your help! Im very happy with the result!! Saludos...

Thx a lot bro! It was a lot more work that I expected and that I planned to do, but at the end I just kept finding new stuff to mod. I like how it turned out. Not perfect but pretty good I think. I love making props from scratch, or from toy blasters... LOL!! The more I work on them, they more I value them at the end. Thx a lot bro! Saludos

Finally, my Mod Hasbro E11 Blaster is done. Here are a few pictures... I am very happy with the results. I think it looks like if it had seen lots of action, it looks like the weapon of a Sandtrooper! Enjoy: Please let me know what do you think? Saludos...

Yep Bro! I was about to PM you... Got my T track just today and already working on it! This will fit my E11 just perfect! It will soon be finished. Thx a lot for all your help and for those awesome parts! Saludos

I was able to work a bit on my lunch break, so here it is: Almost there! SAludos

Just a small update here... Did some work on the main paint scheme last night. Pretty much just removed the remaining latex masks and exposed all the silver paint. Then, sprayed a bit with a dark redish drown to simulate old oil on the main shaft and in some other parts. And then sprayed it all just a thin mist of flat black.' Still to come the real weathering and aging. Here are some picts showing these details and comparing it with my other hasbro mod. I specially like how the gold color on the scope shows under the black covering (not the masked areas but the color under black pain on the last pict), and the textures that makes it look kindof old and industrial instead of clean and modern. What do you think?

Im a little late, but If its of any help... Trooper1 pouldrons not are only the best of the best, but now they are the "bestests" LOL... he did some upgrades a few weeks ago and this last model (the one on the pictures) is just awesome and even more accurate than before. You wont get a better pauldron anywhere at the moment. More expensive, yes. Worth the money, for sure. I own an orange one from the previous run and its awesome. Still cant wait to upgrade to this new one and get all 3 models. Saludos

Ok, today I finished the first stage of the paint job. The main painting has been done and even some details can already be seen. Still need to wait for the paint to dry and then weathering... Here are some pictures that already show a bit of how will the finished blaster will look like... This is the paint pattern, but I will weather it later on. What do you think... Saludos

Thx a lot Karin. Saludos.

Still working on this... last night I just re-did the D-ring piece. Not very accurate I think, but it is ok... Doesn't look that great on the picture, but I think it will work fine once attached to the blaster end cap. This is what I based on: And this is mine: And here is a picture of the blaster tip attached and filled with "bondo" before sanding. (you can see how the rest of the bondo is already sanded and almost ready for primer) This is with the sanding almost done and drilling of the holes. A detail for the tip. I broke a part off during drilling, but repaired it with epoxy plaster. Hope it wont show much. Hope to finish the main mods during the weekend. Then its just about a week till the power cylinders and t-track arrive... so, almost there. Saludos.

Thx a lot bro! Planning on dremmeling the tip as soon as the "bondo" is fixed and finished so that the hole is through the tip, the "bondo" and the plastic blaster! Its good to know the resin can be drilled no problem. Gracias Saludos.

So... I got my new resin hengstler counter and cannon tip yesterday. They look pretty cool and will look awesome for sure when finished. Already started working on them, fixing the tip to the blaster with E6000 and then covering it with automotive stuff plaster (still dont know the name for that). Also, sanded most of the plaster to give it shape and correct look. So far looks good, I just think it needs to be painted to know if it will look how it is supposed to. Still ahead is glueing the counter, sanding the shaft and drilling the remaining holes, adding the stock and some more sanding... And then: PAINTJOB!!! Really looking forward to it. Here are some pictures: Some more updates soon. Saludos.

THX a lot bro! I will be adding your parts to complete my mods! I hope it will come out great! Saludos.

Yep... its been a very interesting project! I already want to see how it turns out!!! Lots of sanding ahead of me, hehe. THX Saludos.

Today was a holiday in Mexico, so this morning I got to do one of my favs thing in the world: go to The Home Depot in search of stuff to build props! I got some copper tubing, wires, little aluminiun thingies, a D-ring (one with a lock and barrel), paint, and other stuff! All parts I needed to try and finish my E-11. So... After a couple hours work, this is how it looks now: I have always though that the difference between a good prop and a great one, is the details. So even though this is only a modified Hasbro E11, I tried to go further wih the detailing of parts to make it more real, accurate, cool... So, here are a few tighter shots of the blaster: These are some details on the ammo mag and housing. The magazine was made with aluminum from a soda can, plastic and a little aluminuim piece from Home Depot. I tried to copy the shape and elements of the real magazine and housing. You can also see a little detail on the gun lock. I made it a bit bigger. This is the D-ring. Not exactly accurate, but is a nice look alike. This is the scope rail, I just carved the center from the original Hasbro rail. Kindof works I think. Then the scope. I will finish this with some bondo and detailed it with screws and all... looks good to me so far. Im planning to give it a rusty cooper look. And check out the ammo door, carved the plastic and replaced it with aluminum to make it more real looking. Also cut off part of the handle and the edges around the square located under the back part of the tube. And this is another view of the magazine but you can also see the detail piece on the side of the shaft. It is also a little aluminium piece similar to the one used on the magazine. The blaster is now covered with bondo. Lots of sanding and finishing it is ahead of me. Just waiting for the Counter, magazine tubes and blaster point. Then, drilling the remaining holes on the cannon, primer, texture paint, silver paint, all kinds of black paint, weathering, and ready for trooping! Lots of fun!!! Sooo... What do you think? Saludos.

Hey, I was there too. Played for about 3 hours from around 2 pm and on, on sunday. It was lots of fun. My armor broke in so many places at the end it needed lots of repairs, but I enjoyed it anyway. Saludos.

This makes me want to have a kid! LOL... Saludos.

Hehehe... It could be! Saludos. Juan PS. Im goint to ad a link to this topic at the MEPD... This is turning way interesting...