Leaderboard

After applying the fossil green, it’s time to start adding the liquid latex mask. I was asked to copy the Set for Stun trooper, so that’s what I aimed for. After this has dried, time to add a white undercoat (same brand as the gloss white the mat will be applied later): Then, Ford Diamond White gloss spray paint. The first coat was a little too satin... So, another can of spray paint purchased and a slightly thicker coat applied to get more sheen... Ooo, lovely. :-) (here’s a little peak at the spray painting) https://youtube.com/shorts/2cSwSZJOIOg?feature=share Once that has fully cured, you can begin to remove the liquid latex, revealing the fossil green undercoat (used to represent HDPE of the original Stunt helmets). Now it’s time to start applying the hand painted details. First up, Humbrol Grey #5: And now we get to today - I spent around 1 hr applying the Humbrol #85 Satin Black for the pinstripes and vocoder: Well, thats all for now. More to come soon.

Hi folks, So, I’m part way through a rather interesting project. When I saw a trooper asking about ways to fix a part-finished RS Prop Masters helmet that he’d purchased on eBay, I offered some suggestions. As the conversation continued, the trooper asked if I’d like to take a look at it in person to see what could be done. I agreed and he sent the helmet over to me. Well, opening the box revealed that it was already spray painted and the weathering had begun: When you look at the famous “lump” on the front of the RS helmet (part of the original helmet that this is cast from), you’ll see that the renovation helmet’s brow has been trimmed quite a lot more than it should have been: At this stage, this didn’t seem too bad. However, I hadn’t seen what was inside at this stage! ;-) After removing the ears, it was clear that the back and cap had been over trimmed: Also, the faceplate had been, once more, over trimmed.. The inside of the helmet had been sprayed black and, bizarrely, had lots of Velcro pads inside. I’ll explain these a little later... The only way this paint was coming off was sanding. So, the sanding begun... Taking apart the faceplate and back&cap, the faceplate was also over trimmed, as well as having various extra holes in unusual places. Although I didn’t know at the time, the Velcro pads inside had been stuck on to cover additional holes, all with ABS paste over the top(!!!); So, to add to the “fun”, I had to knock up some ABS paste and fill the various cracks and holes. After a long, long time trying to align this helmet “correctly”, it just was not possible with the way this was trimmed and the amount of holes in the helmet already. I did the best I could, also having to trim abs apply a new set of ears. Once aligned and assembled, on to the painting. As I’m going for a original look, the first coat was a Fossil Green; More to come in the next post. :-)

I was in the market to upgrade my TK armor from my trusty 12 year old FX, when AMX posted their Old Republic Trooper Havoc Squad bucket, and I knew then that I would have it. Then I needed armor to go with the helmet. So no new TK for me just yet. Anyhoo, here are some piccies of the completed armor. Sorry, no in-work pics, since any documantation went out the window as I became absorbed in my work. Helmet: AMX Armor: TZA Neck seal: FOO Soft goods: Sandeman Blaster pistol: Sandeman Some reference pics: Helmet (out of the box): Trimming: Painting and weathering: Legs and boots: Blaster pistol: Finished bucket: Complete (pre-troop): The real me: Troopin': Still need to add some things, like the Blaster Cannon: And the bandolier with ammo pouch: This suit is a BEAST! Absolutely comfortable, but I can't put on my own shoes.

As far as I can tell it was mostly the Bapty versions (seen below) that had the counter sitting that low, but since it's not too far back or forward and is a great looking blaster I would have no issues passing it at Centurion level. (Hint hint, Cory)...

It’s in about the same spot. Don’t worry, I’d bet money it’s not something that would prevent you from making Centurion. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've figured out a way to mount the battery now, and it all just about fits. The final item is a bit different from the images below as I've added a rear foot to help keep the mount level in the blaster as it was tipping due to the batteries weight. I am considering changing the foot design again to make it easier to print with less support. The battery will be attached to the sled with high strength double sided tape, either a VHB or some gorilla tape I have. Note: no rear foot yet! The sled also has a slotted hole for the screw so it actually ends up clamping the charge board in place as well. The end cap will be mounted via magnets to a plate that will be glued inside. There is a small cut out for the screw that holds the silver bit on, and a recess for the on/off switch to sit in. Today I was looking at a photo of a rank of TLJ F-11Ds from production to replicate the piccatiny rail and mount and noticed 2 extra holes. So clearly I needed these on my blaster. I started out by measuring and marking out based on the images. I measured the existing holes to be 12mm so predrilled with a 3mm pilot drill. Next up was a 12mm forstner bit, so I was about to either have a nice hole or a ruined blaster. Ominous forbidding.... 12mm was too big, it looked HUGE compared to the standard holes. I swapped to 10mm wood spur drill for the front, then stepped up to 11mm with a step drill and looked pretty much spot on. To fix this was a hassle. First I cut a small piece of 1mm styrene, bent it slightly and then super glued this behind the hole. This was then filled with a 2 part filler in 2 passes. I used some masking tape to minimise the area this affected, and removed it whilst the filler was still soft. To sand down the filler I used a sanding stick to ensure that I kept the filler level to the barrel and no big gouges or lumps where left. I then re-marked the hole and re drilled with the 10mm wood drill. The step drill was too long for the rear hole, the front had an opening on the other side, so it only cut about half way through. To finish I used a small round file and a pen wrapped with sand paper to clean it up. To finish the repair I sprayed on a couple of coats of filler primer. Again to minimise the impact I masked off most of the barrel so that I only sprayed the repair area. Once this has dried I will sand out the area again to smooth out the lip left from the tape. There's a small mark visible up close but the end result is pretty good and won't be visible unless you're looking up close.

I did try to put it back exactly where Hellhounds attached it. There was glue residue that I matched up.