mark Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 (edited) Hey everyone... Here's a concept drawing that I made to get feedback from you guys. I noticed that most people who put fans in their lids usually have them installed faily sloppy, and they look out of place. Here's my "brainstorm" solution. Let me know what you think. The idea is to give the fan a base, that conforms to the shape of a particular area inside the helmet. The fan itself would have to be around 40mm. ---------- I would sculpt/mold/manufacture these using resin or heavy latex to prevent vibrations. Thanks for you opinions! Edited December 1, 2021 by gmrhodes13 link not working removed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Trooper Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 it sounds and looks like a cool idea but with limited space the base would have to be flat so it doesn't take up too much of the bucket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattastic13[TK] Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 That is pretty niffty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted April 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 Thanks for comments fellas...I'm going to sculp an example over the weekend, and perhaps make a prototype to see if my brain-fart works...lol. I'll keep everyone up to date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daetrin[Admin] Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 Neat idea - can't wait to see how it develops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TK1491 Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 cool idea...look forward to the test! In my bucket I mounted my fans with four dots of HD velcro on the corners. that itself lifts the fan up a good 3/16" from the surface which allows good air circ and the velcro eliminates vibration... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThayNerd[TK] Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 I'll be keeping my eye on this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RevLoki[TK] Posted April 18, 2008 Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 I was thinking about something like this.. but my idea kinda involves ducting to pull air from outside beneath the edge of the helmet. Think two little ducts on the sides of your unit that conform to the helmet that run down to the edge trim between the neck seal and bucket rim. Not to give my idea away, but it'll probably never get made by me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted April 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2008 I was thinking about something like this.. but my idea kinda involves ducting to pull air from outside beneath the edge of the helmet. Think two little ducts on the sides of your unit that conform to the helmet that run down to the edge trim between the neck seal and bucket rim. Not to give my idea away, but it'll probably never get made by me. That's not a bad idea... I'd like it to fit in a wide range of lids, so having it mountable between the aerators seems to be the most logical place for it. I am going to TAP Plastics after work to get the resin and supplies... I may tweak it a bit to include some form of Loki's idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted April 20, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2008 UPDATE: First prototype failed miserably. I am already working on modifying the design, and will use styrene instead of resin. The resin was too brittle... More updates soon! (and photos) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigturc Posted April 20, 2008 Report Share Posted April 20, 2008 I also like the idea .. my fan (only one since the other side os the RomFX), is holding in the bucket with 2 strips of velcro along the upper edge, and the lower edge. Like it was said above, make sure to make this as thin as possible to prevent getting in the way when the fan is on. Also, being able to make that out of rubber would be the most awesome solution!!! Anything hard will transmit vibrations and be a pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted April 22, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2008 I finished the first workable prototype tonight. The prototype that I finished tonight will only fit in the FX lids, but I will modify this design to fit inside smaller buckets too. Photos are coming, I just can't find my memory card reader...damn. Look for photos tomorrow, hopefully I will find it by then! Description: It's made of 1 piece styrene, semi-vac formed, with a small amount of lift so air can be drawn from under the fan, and exhaled onto your face. A 40mm fan will need to be attached using small zip ties, not screws, limiting vibrations. Attached to two ends of the unit is strips of velcro; no part of the TK-Cooler will touch the helmet, also limiting vibrations. I will have the first prototype on Ebay soon, so if anyone is interested, I'll post a link to it. This whole project has left me a broke man, and considering how simple the final product appears to be, it's unfortunately a pain to make. I'll most likely ask $10 for the unit without a fan, plus 3.00 shipping. Hope you all like what you see. Again, a whole new design will need to be tested for the smaller buckets. Photos soon!!! (Where's that damn card reader?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psychotropic Posted April 22, 2008 Report Share Posted April 22, 2008 thats a realy cool idea cause my mic is right near my fan and sometimes putting it in it hits the fan. not to mention they look awesome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted April 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2008 thats a realy cool idea cause my mic is right near my fan and sometimes putting it in it hits the fan. not to mention they look awesome Thanks!.... EDITED: New post below. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted May 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 (edited) Ok, here's the final version. The TK-COOLER is finally born. Hope you guys like this one.... 40mm fan. Minimize vibration, better airflow over face and neck and can be mounted virtually anywhere in helmets. ---------- Edited December 1, 2021 by gmrhodes13 link not working removed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooperstormy Posted May 4, 2008 Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 sweet man. looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted May 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 Thanks...it was a long hard winding road to completion. I tried SO many different things to get this off the drawing board. Originally I tried to use resin, and poured it into a mold that I made. It was a very expensive effort...but the resin was too brittle and cracked when I drilled into it. (probably old resin?) I then moved to a 2-part putty method, and pushed the 2 part putty into the same mold, and it didn't work really well, and it broke my mold. Then, I made about 10 prototypes with Styrene/ABS and after a couple weeks, I finally got it. If anyone wants one, let me know. Thanks! toonman@msn.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooperstormy Posted May 4, 2008 Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 (edited) just cool man. make much noise? --------- Edited December 1, 2021 by gmrhodes13 link not working removed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timjim Posted May 4, 2008 Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 Looks pretty nice, could we get it with the fan separate so I could spray it black? Then stick the fan in ourselves? Or does the fan come off easily? Would also be very cool if the fan had an imperial logo on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted May 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2008 Looks pretty nice, could we get it with the fan separate so I could spray it black? Then stick the fan in ourselves? Or does the fan come off easily? Would also be very cool if the fan had an imperial logo on That's not a problem...as a matter of fact, I would spray it for you, and include the mini-zip ties and fan with the unit... I'm SO relieved that some of you like this, and I figure it's been an on-going issue with trooping...heat. The fan is a 12CFM fan, which blows really good, and the noise level is at a MINIMUM due to the Cooler Mount. PM me if anyone would like one or two...I'd probably let them go for $13.00 each plus shipping... They include the fan, which is pretty expensive on it's own. Also, I will be cutting some Empire logos for the fans, which I agree, would look kick-an impolite person! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironclaw Posted May 26, 2008 Report Share Posted May 26, 2008 The fan arrived today, it looks great!. Can't wait to install it, thanks . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted May 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2008 The fan arrived today, it looks great!. Can't wait to install it, thanks . EXCELLENT! I am very happy it arrived....did the package hold up well? It didn't arrive crushed right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironclaw Posted May 27, 2008 Report Share Posted May 27, 2008 EXCELLENT! I am very happy it arrived....did the package hold up well? It didn't arrive crushed right? Nope, all in good condition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted May 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2008 Nope, all in good condition. Excellent...let me know how it works for you...what kind of bucket are you using? On a MRCE Stunt, it fits the best between the aerators, just under the frown. On a FX, it fits anywhere...lol. Share some photos if you get a chance! I'm surprised it showed up so fast! Glad it arrived safely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironclaw Posted May 30, 2008 Report Share Posted May 30, 2008 Excellent...let me know how it works for you...what kind of bucket are you using? On a MRCE Stunt, it fits the best between the aerators, just under the frown. On a FX, it fits anywhere...lol. Share some photos if you get a chance! I'm surprised it showed up so fast! Glad it arrived safely. Yeah, it works, spins fast and quiet... nice blow . Will try it when I get my helmet which is on its way to Mike atm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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