lonewolf

Excellent find Neil, just think what other great pictures are yet to be discovered! The concept history is ib the Art of Return of the Jedi but if you haven't got that book the Propstore of London guys repeated most of it on this video,

Looks great Lou, glad you are happy.

Good job Thomas, any probs pm me

The glue is going "off" in 10 minutes but 24 hours is reasonable for a super strong hold, what is the rush? Avoid heat guns if you can on this plastic, it is thin and will warp before you know it. I used the glue and clamps, a bit of time to get a nice fit using sandpaper is best. If you paint the back you paint everything! This is the only way to get a perfect match.

The ABS glue I use has a handy wee brush on the lid, a fine coat on both surfaces, clamp the two parts together and give it 24 hours to fully work. Yes bondo is fine, any car body repair stuff , easy sand stuff is good but the gap should be really tiny. Use plastic primer on the lid, finelt sand the whole lid, avoid coarse sandpapers, 240 wet and dry is as rough as you should go, take it back to 600 maybe to get a decent key for the paint. Regarding the KS I added a piece of plastic down the inner sides ot the helmet part to strengthen it up.

I used ABS plastic weld glue, very cheap if you go to a plumbing suppliers, there are a few brands, but if you look out for ABS/PVC/UPVC stuff it should be fine. Clamps and tape to hold it all together. I was definately going to be painting mine[ filling the seam lines] when I started the build so was not worried if I got the glue onto a finish surface. I used a bit of super glue as well to keep things in place quickly. If you ever use superglue I suggest you buy Zip Kicker as well, it activates the superglue immediately but may be banned in some states! For the ear openings a dremel is best, cut from the back once you get a small opening made in the front. A good idea is to draw an outline of the hole to cut to. My holes in the above pics are a bit too big at the top of them. Take a good look at the originals when you draw the shape. A wee sanding around the ear hole is all it needs to finish it. With the KS try not to take too much away on the inner side of the ear opening, it shows too much from a side angle! Regarding the mesh behind the ears, well the originals didn't have anything behind the opening, only a piece of black material stuck to the inner sides of the helmet. I am happy to answer any questions, I don't have a three question rule

Yes anything sharp will do, mark the square centrally, and parallel[super fussy!] to the visor "step" then just slowly cut out the square hole testing the 3M bolt as you do so. You can mark the square then drill a round hole close to the size first although that isn't really necessary. Myabe with a fibreglass helmet this would be a good idea. Do the trimming slowly and carefully, cut away from yourself and/or use the knife from inside to avoid any slice marks on the front face of the visor. You can use a small file to tidy the edges but a sharp scalpel will do.

I posted this up a while back but for the new guys thought it may help slightly, Using 3mm quality masking tape mark out and gauge about half way on the nose face and slowly and carefully apply the tape in one piece if possible right down and ovver the "chin" section. Use a second piece of tape to mark the lower part. Use the gallery here for reference pics. Cover the rest of the helmet in paper, taking it right up to the masked nose section, plenty of newspaper is needed to avoid any overspray on the helmet! Using a plastic primer first so the black will adhere better and also gives the edges a better sharpness,wait until dry then spray the nose section in black matt, shiney is not so nice imo, remove the newspaper after the paint is dried, Remove the tape carefully to avoid removing any paint with it, Fit the nose detail and backplate, The end result should look sharp and clean, The most diffficult part is trying to get a nice even curve on the top part, try not to stretch the masking tape either, or touch the sticky side of the tape with your greasy fingers. It is a good idea to wipe the nose section with panel wipe prior to taping and spraying as well. Good luck.

I made this a few years ago, they can look great finished. Ear holes cut, being careful not to cut too much due to the lack of actual depth, Back seam fillered and painted, Visor shaped, try to remove up to the return edge and keep the inside corners slightly rounded, not squared, 3M Speedglas bolts fitted, square easily cut with a scalpel, Face plate painted and eye area cut out, try to check with the original pics for accurate shape,

Looks fine but if you plan to cut out the ears then the decals are upside down, not a big difference tbh but the wider part is to the down position. Also as you have a thin body type and a longish neck maybe ensure the top of the helmet has little or no padding to keep your chin inside the lid.

I am making some in the same grey with a grey back nut , longer threads and thicker shank, should be ready in a week or two. Exactly like the originals only a bit more troopable.

Yes Lou, repeat posts like this are great, I watch it every time! Thanks Alex!

A great wee video, try here for some other great images, http://www.starwarshelmets.com/real_Biker_Scouts.htm Our gallery on here is great as well!

Yes KS recast in fibreglass, an Ebay seller , now he has a newer version I think.

The originals were like this so I like this way best.

Cut out the warped stuff, I think it is past saving, use abs glue and glue some abs to the sides. Then you can fix the shape with some bondo, abs paste or "American glue?" Sand it all nice and spray the helmet with plastic undercoat and then two pack white.All salvagable.

The best costume part? Good question. As costumers we all want the best , first time round, especially if we have built costumes before and continually upgraded, costing more in the long run. Accuracy/fit/quality/price/reputable seller/waiting times etc, this all has to be weighed up in you own personal decision as to what is "best". I trooped in SC gear and MC gear, various makers of helmets and various versions of my own soft parts. Nobody, neither the public nor the troopers around me knew the differences I constantly made. If you are after the most accurate armour then MC,then Robs stuff, SC next, KS and another version last[both good and bad points] all my opinion at the minute. No matter what you troop in it will be a lot of fun!

Well done Hideki San

Happy if it helps Marcel, I better say here that the big red decal is not correct [only seen on Magic of Myth Biker Scout display], I added it to this back hump as that area looked very sparce

Looks great Rob, they are a real nightmare to join Very nice pulls

Here are some pics that may help, my KS, after a lot of work, Seam filled, primered Visor straightened, granted it was not as bad as your version, Beside an early version of my lid[centre]

A nice pic to show just how high the drop boxes sit, pic thanks to Troopermaster,

Some of you guys ask which is "best" for particular body sizes so I tried to get a side by side pic of the most important part as the rest is not so linked to body size. This post is not to show the differences in accuracy of the various kits. The KS is the widest, I haven't got the MC pics with the other two kits but it is a slightly bit neater than the SC width. Hope this can help.

So sorry to see we have to put up with this sub standard costuming, now if you were getting the stuff cheap because it is a poor pull it is almost understandable. This particular helmet [in the pics] can be improved a lot, but it is a fair bit of work.

Pm sent. The drop boxes are quite high, as an average measurement the webbing length should be no more than 3" either side of the quick clip both front and back. Distance from main plastic belt to top of dropbox 2" -3" approx. However this will depend on your waist, hips and actual size. The variances in the screen shots is minimal. Check out the gallery.