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Tube stripe masking templates


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Here's some tube strip masking templates if you want to cut your own. I made these in Adobe Illustrator from scratch, they are not based on any specific trooper or design. Print them out to size, then place them on top of sign vinyl, etc. Cut through the paper and vinyl (ideally without cutting through the vinyl backing paper) and simply weed out (remove) the inner bits on the vinyl to create the template.

 

You can use sign vinyl, masking tape or airbrush frisket. Use a sharp Exacto / hobby blade.

 

Here's how I paint them:

 

http://whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=14806&view=findpost&p=179529

 

When printing these out, they should be 13/16" (@16mm) tall.

 

Aih9arM.png&key=54e68739e89d87f33bc861a4

 

Modified version, front stripes fall forward

Aih9arM.png

 

mDDsy4w.jpg

 

Paint options

 

http://whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=8117

Edited by gmrhodes13
photo updated
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Awesome! I always wondered how they did it in the 70s?

 

They've always said they were "hand painted" but looking at the various photos I think they at least used masking tape to keep the top and bottom of the lines sharp, then just used a 1/8" flat brush or the like and "hand painted" the stripes, then peel the tape off. That's what makes them look irregular and uneven.

 

Templates like this just make it a little easier and less chance of screwing up your lid or making the lines TOO crooked, etc. :)

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Hi again Panda,

 

 

-------

 

 

the question i am trying to find the answer for is this...

 

going with the your photo how long should the tube stripes be from one end to the other and how wide or tall should the stripes be?

 

i am supposed to get an ATA (yeah!) helmet so you may know roughly the proper size for the measurements of the tube stripes. i can resize them in gimp after...

 

thanks for your patience...

Edited by gmrhodes13
link not working, removed gmrhodes13 2020
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Width is approx 4 3/8" for these stripes, but keep in mind that there are more stripes on this strip than required. It will depend on if you're trying to replicate a specific helmet (specific number of stripes) and the amount of space between the ears and the end of the cheek tube that can help you determine how many stripes you need.

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Might your "idealized" stripes work for a clonetrooper helmet? I'm not sure how many striped clones have but this is an excellent starting point. Can anyone chime in? Thank you!

 

No, clone stripes are not curved, like Stormtroopers, they're straight, at an angle. Most Clones have 9 tube stripes.

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No, clone stripes are not curved, like Stormtroopers, they're straight, at an angle. Most Clones have 9 tube stripes.

 

Thanks Christian... my eyes couldn't tell the difference really. I thought the Stormtrooper stripes curved because of the shape of the helmet, but after looking at some side by side pics now I see what you mean.

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  • 4 weeks later...

These are amazing and I can not believe that I did not know about these before. These are 100% invaluable!

 

This may seem very stupid to everyone but how should I print these? Do i just right click and select "print picture" or should I save the picture and then print it into a certain format

 

i.e. 5"x7" , 4"x6" etc. etc.

 

Any help would be great!

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  • 5 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...

Panda, you're the bomb. I just used your guide, made it a little bigger in word and cut mine into my blue masking tape, put it on the helmet, pressed it down good to stop leaks and painted, worked like a charm. Waiting for a second coat right now.

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  • 6 months later...

I don't even have my bucket in hand yet, but still trying to get everything lined up. I have to repeat what others have said and thank Pandatrooper for this. I know this post is old, but since its pinned, I thought it might be okay to still comment on it (no necroposting here). As with the others who have commented in the past, I'm trying to figure out exactly how to reproduce these files at the right size. Without a bucket, I cannot be sure. However, Panda notes that the stripes should be 13/16" high. So I messed around with pasting these into Word and came up with this: BkZc2gQ.jpg

 

The picture is a bit off, but this was about as close to 13/16" as I could make it. I'm also attaching the word document with the scaled templates. If anyone has the opportunity, let me know if these come out to about the right size.

Tube Stripes.pdf

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I've perused the how to's, tutorials and ran a search for it but I can't find what type of paint is the best to use. I've seen Humbrol being mentioned and I see they have a few US stores where you can buy, but I'd like to spray paint the entire helmet, even though I have decals and I just want to know if there is specific color of gray, black and blue. Figured this topic was as good as any to post this under.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 11/2/2013 at 7:54 AM, Force95B said:

I've perused the how to's, tutorials and ran a search for it but I can't find what type of paint is the best to use. I've seen Humbrol being mentioned and I see they have a few US stores where you can buy, but I'd like to spray paint the entire helmet, even though I have decals and I just want to know if there is specific color of gray, black and blue. Figured this topic was as good as any to post this under.

There's a guide right here. -----------

Edited by gmrhodes13
link not working, removed gmrhodes13 2020
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