DarthBiscuit

Thanks to those of you who sent me some input. I'm still open to ideas, especially for the material to form my snaps around! I finished taping up everything non-gray. Sprayed white over them to fill any edges and got started with gray! I used a folder with a center cutout to focus spray on just a small area. It seemed to be going well! I kept my distance and applied light coats without getting impatient. After applying for over an hour with 5 minutes between coats, I waited 30 minutes and then peeled off the tape. I'm 95% satisfied! I taped pretty well, didn't miss much, and not much bled through. It looks a little dark in the pics, but it's lighter in person. I'll be able to cover the blended edges when I apply the black outline with a thin paint market (hopefully). Currently under the impression that the ear bars are NOT outlined...

They look great! Are they 5/8" snaps? I'm worried that webbing will be too thick. How do they fit with the plastic?

Actually, I would LOVE to see some snaps. What material are you forming them around?

So here's what I'm thinking, and my proposed supplies list. I'm fully open to suggestions, please feel free! This is also my way of making sure I have a plan for each piece; let me know if I forgot some connections or parts. Fiberglass resin for reinforcement of most pieces and to reduce itching Satin white spray inside 5/8" black snaps to attach nearly every piece, allowing easy detaching Black 1.75" nylon belt I saw some pics in showing that he attached the thighs, cod, and butt to the abdomen/kidney armor, so no need for a separate belt 1" black polypropylene webbing Cutout 1"x1" squares, use a soldering iron to punch/cauterize a hole in the middle (might prevent fraying) and install snaps. Any input if the snaps will work with this webbing? I see others use ABS or HIPS scraps, but I don't have any of that. I'm hoping the webbing won't be too thick for the snaps. Suspenders to shoulder bells Shoulder bells to biceps Hang thighs from the "underbelt" abdomen/kidney with webbing strips (either snapped on, or looped through) Hang cod and buttplate from the underbelt abdomen/kidney with webbing strips (either snapped on, or looped through) E6000 Attach snap/webbing squares to armor Permanent assemblies (biceps, forearms, sniper knee, thigh ammo belt, anything else?) Adhere ammo boxes to belt? 2" black elastic Across the abdomen's rear, holding it tight but allowing flex Hold front of shin halves together, allowing flex and preventing cracks (hopefully) Attach hanging drop boxes to belt Run elastic loop inside shins to under foot, keeping shins down and facing forward Docker's black suspenders: hold up the barrel (clips will grab webbing squares glued/snapped to barrel) 2" black velcro strips Attach suspenders to shoulder straps Hold chest/back in place (weave suspenders through slits, allowing stretch and positioning adjustment) and keeps suspenders out-of-sight 2" white velcro strips Shins Thighs Shoulder straps Hand plates Belt front and back pieces Adhesive magnetic sheets Attach trauma plate to kidneys? Would make for simple attachment, but possibly too easy to fall off Low Density Foam strips Help fight armor bite and keep pieces steady. There are so many high density options, but I figured I'd want a squishy, low density foam, right? Rust-Oleum gloss black spray Paint the back armor's side strip and the abdomen's 70* seam Clamps Magnets Thermal detonator: no idea how I'll attach that yet. Any simple suggestions? I was thinking white velcro... I might not prime, since I'm using Rustoleum gloss white Paint+Primer

Do you already have the strapping and stuff done? If so, I'd love to see pics/walkthrough.

Haha glad someone could learn from my "process"! PlastiDip might work out, but you might need to peel off the tape for every coat, and sand it rough beforehand to get the best application. Probably best to skip it. Hopefully my vocoder PlastiDip won't peel off... So what will you use for the black?

Pro tip @gmrhodes13!!! Thanks dude!!

I know that anyone that's tracking my thread is just waiting for me to move on, and I've got good news: I think I'm done with white (again)!! This has been a huge learning experience for me that will hopefully payoff big when I paint the armor. After fully sanding to 400 and cleaning yesterday, I wiped it down and left it in the sun for a little bit today. I sprayed light coats, quickly swiping back and forth while keeping my distance. I set a repeating timer for 5 minutes, and kept applying until I no longer spots that needed white. There is one spot with minor wrinkling under the chin, but I don't think it'll need fixing. I'm not doing clear over this gloss white, so it should be done! When I apply the black and gray, I'll tape them off, spray, and remove the tape to hopefully prevent bleeding over. Then I'll wait 20-30, so it's semi-dry, and retape to apply another coat. This should get me crisp lines. PLEASE let me know if anyone has a better method! I think this is how I need to do Rustoleum spray: all in one sitting, applying coats within an hour. Much easier than trying to apply more after a day, or two, or three, and then fixing the bad chemical reactions.

So, Monday I sanded and Tuesday I sprayed. It was my worst coat yet! Lots of wrinkles, everywhere. It always seems to be my second coat that gets messed up, and it seems like the most likely cause is that the first coat isn't dry enough. Even though I've waited 2 days, maybe it just isn't drying in my garage. I'll start moving it outside into the sun, at least after the first hour so stuff doesn't get stuck in it. Today I wet sanded the whole thing to 400. Then washed and cleaned, then sanded a few more spots, washed and cleaned again. I wiped it down with my new microfiber cloths and I'll leave it until Friday. I went through 2 cans already and I'm not even done with the helmet!? I ordered more and they get in Friday. My new plan for painting: keep applying light coats until it's done, without letting an hour go by. Hopefully that way I won't have to worry about waiting 2-3 days to apply another coat. I have some ideas for how I'll do my strapping, once Jim's armor gets here. I'll post my potential process soon and ask for input. It'd be nice if I could meet up with TKs nearby to physically see some methods, but that's just not gonna work right now...

Thanks! That's probably what I'll do. I had wiped it down, but perhaps it wasn't completely dry when I started spraying.

I taped up the inside to decrease the amount of clean-up later. Sprayed a couple coats of white with a few minutes between each side. It's nice to have a white helmet again! Some cracks started developing immediately. It's insane! I sanded the whole thing to 220 and know for a fact that I got these spots well. I had scrubbed it down too so oils shouldn't have been a problem. I guess it's just a sacrifice of using Rustoleum. I guess tomorrow I'll sand these spots to 800, then wait another day as recommended and spray another coat. I had to order more white since this can is feeling light and I def want to finish the helmet ASAP.

I really appreciate the support, but I don't have a choice lol. I already put the down payment on Jim's armor... And if I don't finish this, then my wife can say "I told you not to buy it"! Can't let that happen haha!

So I modified my workspace, sanded to 220, added some putty to pinholes that I planned on ignoring when I thought I was done painting, sanded again, and washed it off. Taking tape off from the openings left a lot of residual paint sticking out. I think, instead of taping inside the openings next time, I might just stick a bunch of tape around inside the bucket, like a backdrop. We'll see if it helps. Changing gears, I cut a strip of blue fabric from my wife's old sweater. I cut a hole out of velcro and stuck the fabric onto the hard side. This process worked out pretty much how I had hoped! I planned on adhering the soft velcro around the vents, then the fabric backing would be removable! I held it up to the inside to test it out, but it's not visible enough (top). The fabric is 2 layers of velcro away from the openings, which is just too far. I tried flipping it over so the fabric is against the helmet (bottom). You can't tell from the pic, but it's much better. I'll probably just hot glue the fabric in when I'm done painting. It won't be easily removable, but it should look pretty good. Oh well. Spraying white tomorrow! Again.

And here it is without the tape. I'm glad I pulled it out, since I taped off too much from the rear traps. I'm pretty sure the black outline should be inside, and not around the outside.

Thanks @gmrhodes13. PlastiDip did NOT work for me. It came up while peeling the tape, I even tried using an X-acto knife to cut the seams, but it was difficult and time-consuming to cut through. My buddy recommended peeling the tape off immediately after spraying, which could have helped, but would require retaping several times. I decided to just pull all the tape off. It stayed on most of the areas I sprayed, but the edges were disgusting. I gave in and just peeled it all off, which was really easy and helps me decide that PlastiDip wasn't the right choice. This setback helped me decide a few things: - I ordered a Rustoleum satin black for the brow and neck trim - I ordered a Rustoleum satin granite, since the primer color is definitely not right, and I realized the smoke gray I already bought is gloss. - I'm going the sand the whole thing down to 220 and start again with white. The clear just isn't glossy enough. - I'm going to pull off all the tape and spray the whole thing to cut down on missed spots due to taping.

I pulled off the tape from the brow and neck seal. There were so many coats that some strips were hard to come off, it even chipped the white in a few places. I tried cutting along the tape so it would come away from the paint easier, but ended up cutting a little into white that I shouldn't have... I'll probably have to touch up some spots later... The white bled into the tape in other spots, which is fine since those are non-white areas anyways. I think the gray primer is going to be too dark, so I'll have to paint them. I'll post pics when I take all the tape off and see how it looks. The gray I have is gloss, so I'd have to sand the sheen off, hopefully without screwing it up. Taped off the brow and neck seal and wrapped the rest in plastic to prep for PlastiDip. For the most part, it went well. I waited over 30 minutes between coats, of which I did 4. The last one I went a little heavy in the front, so I'll have to see if it's going to look right or if it's chunky. Will the tape peal off well, or will the PlastiDip all come up together? I'm wondering if I need to cut the seam so it stays adhered to the helmet. I also started looking into gloves at EndorFinders, but I'll wait until their next sale (probably July 4th), and boots at ImperialBoots, but their one week open per month isn't until July 3rd.

Today went alright. I think it's safe to say I'm moving on! I taped off below the bucket, then sanded to 400 and washed to dome. 30 minutes later I peeled the tape off and found crisp lines...nothing a little 1,000 couldn't blend. I also took 1,000 to a few pieces of debris that stuck to the paint. Then, I sprayed clear! I waited 3 minutes between sprays, alternating to opposite sides. It seemed to go on problem-free, except for a small run in the back underside (hardly noticeable). I think the white parts are finally acceptable. Not the perfection I was striving for, but it looks good! Tomorrow I'll pull tape off the brow and neck seal to spray black PlastiDip. Hopefully no issues with that, but the vocoder went smoothly so I'm optimistic. After a couple coats of that, I'll check the gray areas and see if the primer's color works. Otherwise, that'll be next!

I've thought about it...but I haven't quite given up yet. If this problem were everywhere, then I'd relent. I think I just need to be more patient, and maybe sand to 400 instead so the paint may stick better.

I just can't catch a break... I sanded the bucket to 1,000 in hopes that it would help the clear coat stick best. I washed it off, wiped it down, and let it air dry for a few hours. I looked it over and everything seemed good and still clean, so I sprayed a coat of clear. Then I noticed cracks on the chin and dome! I don't know what happened, but maybe there's just too many layers right there, or I didn't sand down enough. I learned from previous mistakes and STOPPED. I'll give it some time and then try to sand those spots down to 800. Hopefully the white will be unaffected and I can try clear again. Otherwise, it's white, wait for 3 days, and then clear. I think I've almost got my supplies list together for the rest of the armor! I might order it soon and work on attaching some snaps to webbing squares, so they're ready to be glued onto armor pieces.

Today got messed up too! After spraying a coat of clear I noticed a big piece of dander above the upper lip. I should've waited until the clear was dry, but I tried to grab it and smudged the clear a lot. I stepped back and gave it some time to dry, then I tried to spray white over the spot but it went on too thick and ran. Again, I should've waited until that dried, but I tried to wipe it off. Turned out HORRIBLE. I stepped back again to let it dry and came back to wet sand 800 and 1,000 until it was fixed. Then I tried spraying white again and ended up with a run on the tube! Finally learning my lesson, I walked away. Tomorrow I'll sand the run and then try again with a few coats of clear. Fingers crossed I can move on after that!

So I sprayed a light coat of white. I think I lucked out since some sprays seemed pretty heavy, but I didn't notice any runs or cracks. I was worried about if the paint sticks to the clear coat, even after sanding most to 1,000. Fingers crossed! I gave it a little time and sprayed clear on top, cuz the can said it'd be fine within an hour. I checked on it later and saw a LOT of debris. I think it was blown in when I was moving stuff around the garage. I was able to brush most off, so hopefully I can get the rest off but I want to wait until it's really dry. So I'll sand a little to 1,000 tomorrow and add the last coat of clear!

Thanks for asking. I was curious too!

Looking good! Looks like you should ask 11b30b4 to add you to the R1TK roster!

Thanks man! That's all I wanted ;-) Any lessons learned or words of wisdom? I'm re-reviewing your build still...