Large crack on chin of FOTK helmet

[BOOKOF]

 

This was one of the Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 75 suits and apparently most if not all of the helmets from this line had this structural problem on the chin.

 

I have no DIY experience so what would you suggest I do to fix this? I will look into getting a replacement in time as I heard ANOVOS is offering that. But their turnaround is painfully slow.

 

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[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Lots of options depending on experience.

 

You could glue a piece of plastic behind then fill the crack with a white silicon, if you use a water based silicon you could wet wipe off the excess.

 

A little more adventurous would be fill behind with fiberglass mat and resin, then fill the crack with auto filler (bondo), sand and paint, but then you would really need to paint the whole helmet to match properly.

[BOOKOF]

 

 

Lots of options depending on experience.

 

You could glue a piece of plastic behind then fill the crack with a white silicon, if you use a water based silicon you could wet wipe off the excess.

I have zero experience so I'd probably go with this option. As far as a piece of plastic goes, any suggestions for a certain kind or where to get it? It's not like I have leftover shavings from a project or anything.

 

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[dejango[TK]]

If you're looking for a sturdy fix, here is a site that sells abs strips

 

https://trooperbay.com/abs-plastic-extension-strips

 

You may also find this useful for in the future repairs to armor or something like that

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I have zero experience so I'd probably go with this option. As far as a piece of plastic goes, any suggestions for a certain kind or where to get it? It's not like I have leftover shavings from a project or anything.

All you are doing is trying to stop the crack from opening again, ABS would be best but any tough plastic should do the same, plastic container or plastic sign may work. I would glue with either E6000 or a two part epoxy glue, rough up both areas before applying the glue will help it bond.

[BOOKOF]

You guys are awesome, thank you!

 

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[Daetrin[Admin]]

I cut a support ticket to ANOVOS and they replaced my helmet.

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

Probably wouldn't hurt to get a quote from an auto body shop. Probably would be a fun project for them and they should be able to paint match it. If it's fiberglass, ABS paste isn't going to look right. I don't know a lot about FO TK but from my understanding, most guys used spray paint to paint their kits, whereas some more ambitious troopers like ukswrath, had a auto body shop paint theirs. 

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Option #1 Helmet replacement

 

Option #2 (while you wait for helmet replacement) Do nothing or .... Plastic welder, ABS strips and white caulking. Any novice can do it.

 

You're dealing with fiberglass here so unless you want to deal with that mess a quick solution is to buy a tube of Devcon Plastic Welder. Mix and generously apply the plastic welder to the helmet on each side of the crack, Using some thick but flexible ABS plastic (cover strip material works great) cover the crack extending 1" on each side. Clamp and let set. Plastic welder will bond plastic, steel and fiber glass pretty well. If mixed correctly the glue is fully cured in about 1 hour.

Note: Test it on spare pieces of ABS before applying it to your helmet to check cure times.

 

After it's dried fill the crack with white paintable caulking. Let dry and paint if desired.