hollowbodies' first build : ANH Stunt TK (AP)

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looks pretty good to me, you could try the lenses up to the eye sockets and see how the fit, I used a small block of wood and sandpaper to get the top and bottom of the eyes level so the lens sat better, but then some like to have a gap there.

 

 

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Looks pretty good to me, you could try the lenses up to the eye sockets and see how the fit, I used a small block of wood and sandpaper to get the top and bottom of the eyes level so the lens sat better, but then some like to have a gap there.

 

Oh really, so it looks like I could start painting some stuff already!? (Guess I should be starting with teeth and vocoder) ^^

 

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[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

1 minute ago, hollowbodies said:

Oh really, so it looks like I could start painting some stuff already !? ^^

Personally I would put the helmet together first before painting, paint can get damaged in assembly.

 

Besides paint take a while to dry, you want to do light coats as applying too thick and it can wrinkle, nothing worse than waiting for paint to dry  

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Personally I would put the helmet together first before painting, paint can get damaged in assembly.
 
Besides paint take a while to dry, you want to do light coats as applying too thick and it can wrinkle, nothing worse than waiting for paint to dry  

Oh really? I put it together earlier and then disassembled it again because I felt it would be easier to paint the vocoder if the parts were not together (like a better access to the bottom part) !?

Thanks, I'll put it back together and see how it feels!

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[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

2 minutes ago, hollowbodies said:

Oh really? I put it together earlier and then disassembled it again because I felt it would be easier to paint the vocoder if the parts were not together (like a better access to the bottom part) !?

Hey if you feel like it won't get damaged paint it now, everyone does things a little different  

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Another paint-related question : I've got these brand new brushes at home (didn't buy them specifically for that)... Is there a specific kind of brush I should be using to apply that kind of paint and all, or would these brushes do the job? Honestly, I know painting can is a pretty complex art and I've never really painted, so I have like zero knowledge in that. Anyone has any insight? 8-)

 

[wook1138[TK]]

These were my go to brushes. The one on the left is awesome for lines ( it is longer and will hold more paint).

The #6 round was recommended for the vocoder but I didn’t use it much myself.




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[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I used a square flat brush, found it nice to use on the vocoder and for lines but I think like most things it's just how you use it.

[ABS80]

I do one heavy coat and work fast so the paint will self level and dry to a nice smooth finish with no brush marks, but for that the paint has to have a certain concistancy and not too liquidy, my vocoders people think its masked and airbrushed on its so smooth looking, I guess my many years of model building experience paid off lol!

 

Mark (AP)

Edited February 17, 2018 by ABS80

[Suspend]

Hey Hollowbodies, I see one of your photos is showing a "gloss" black tin.  I thought the vocoder was supposed to be "satin"?

 

 

I'd like to get this straight because I'm probably just a few weeks away from starting my AP build.

 

Thanks,

Mark

 

[CableGuy[TK]]

Hi David,

I bought a set of various brushes from Amazon. Of the ones in the set, I found that A and B useful for the frown and any finer detailing. C was great for the vocoder and D was good for filling the traps and tears with grey.



Not sure if you’ve read this before but, for the traps and tears, some people recommend painting the black outlines before the grey. I found this much easier and gave a nicer end result.

Here’s an example of what I mean:



I tried the other method (grey then fine black pinstripe) and, for me personally, the former option gave a better result.

Btw, +1 for satin black on the vocoder. I find it looks a little more “off the set”.

And, if you’re going for the ‘hand painted’ Dave M style templates, just make sure they are applied as intended. They are specific for left tube and right tube. See reference pics of the Dave M helmet for confirmation. 


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Edited February 17, 2018 by CableGuy

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Oh damn, I bought the gloss black because I initially read it there : https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?/topic/31404-Supply-list-for-your-TK-build....

Thanks for the brushes suggestions, I'll look into all of that!

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[CableGuy[TK]]

Never fear - Gloss black is still good for the pinstripes - ie the bits around the traps and tears. 

Satin (Humbrol #85) is also good for the hovi tips if they need painting. :-)

Edited February 17, 2018 by CableGuy

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Never fear - Gloss black is still good for the pinstripes - ie the bits around the traps and tears. 

Okay, the black borders only but not the vertical black lines that go into the traps?

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[CableGuy[TK]]

1 minute ago, hollowbodies said:

 

 

Okay, the black borders only but not the vertical black lines that go into the traps?

Sent from my LG-M470 using Tapatalk
 

 

 

Good point. Personally, I also used the gloss for the stripes and the rank bar on the ears. Just the vocoder and mic tips with the satin. The visible difference on those thin lines will be marginal. 

 

However, another source linked below suggests Satin for all of the black parts of the lid.

 

 

As as far as I’m aware, this is more of a ‘guide’ than a requirement. The satin just gives a slightly more used look. 

[ABS80]

Yes satin black for the vocoder and mic tips

 

 

Mark (AP)

[hollowbodies[501st]]

I already corrected that and went buy the good paint - satin black.  

 

[hollowbodies[501st]]

I had some spare time this afternoon so I assembled and disassembled the helmet many times. However, I'm sure there must be something I'm doing wrong, because I always end up with huge gaps (well, seems huge to me) around the ears. I tighten the bolts by hand and I try to no go too hard on it not to damage it... But would I need t tighten them a lot? I try to line up all the holes as good as I can and I always end up with something like that...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know some people sand them to remove the gaps as much as possible, but I feel that, on most pictures I've seen, even before sanding the ears, gaps were not that huge!?

 

EDIT : Want me to tell you a secret? The helmet scares the hell out of me!!!  8-)

Edited February 17, 2018 by hollowbodies

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

The gaps aren't that bad, personally I like the gaps as small as possible but some are ok with gaps.

 

Most of the time it's just a case of fine tuning, you can see in some of the photos just where the ears are touching in one spot. Also a lot cut a step into the top of the ear as it sits over the join better, the back overlaps the front and leaves a small gap with ear on top. Most of your issue is you see the back top of your ear is touching and the front isn't, to fix this you need to trim a step. Here is a great thread, sadly it is missing some photos but it will give you the idea.

 

 

[hollowbodies[501st]]

While I'm working at making a few adjustments on the bucket, here are a few pictures of some stuff I did yesterday on my TD. I got an hacksaw to cut the tube to the good length, and it went pretty well :

 

 

Then I sanded the ends of the tube and tried it with the caps. With the caps, I'm now at 7" 3/8, which is right in the required dimensions (between 7.25" and 7.5") !

 

 

After that, I marked the areas where the control plate and the clips would go to cover them with tape before I paint (following ukswrath's Anovos build thread).

 

 

Tape on the central plate (centered right in the middle of the tube) and the end caps :

 

 

I've done some paint tests on a piece of scrap before I actually do it on the tube for real. I put one coat of primer and one coat of paint and it looks pretty nice so far, so I'm probably gonna go and paint the tube soon!

Edited February 18, 2018 by hollowbodies

[hollowbodies[501st]]

I think I managed to make the ears sit better on the sides of the bucket. Mainly for the "upper" section of the ear, as I know the originals had some gaps in the "lower" sections of their ears and so I don't mind if mine have some too. Anyways, I think it's way better than this afternoon! Here are some comparison pictures :

 

 

 

And here is a picture of the helmet from the front. I also put the brow and, to my surprise, I kind of like it when it's not too too high. Maybe I could leave it like this? Or just make it a bit higher? How would it fit for Centurion?

 

 

And here are some pictures of the sides, just for if anyone has any more comments to give...

 

 

 

So... any comments or suggestions? Thanks a lot! ^^

[wook1138[TK]]

Very nicely done!

[hollowbodies[501st]]

Just now, wook1138 said:

Very nicely done!

Woah, thanks! :))

[TheSwede[TK]]

Hardly any gaps at all and the brow is just as nice - Centurion is a go 

[CableGuy[TK]]

Great job on the ears. Brow looks very stunty, too. 

Edited February 18, 2018 by CableGuy