bwattsup

Yep. Here's some pictures to look at from the BSN Gallery: http://forum.bikerscout.net/index.php?app=gallery&image=570 http://forum.bikerscout.net/index.php?app=gallery&image=571 http://forum.bikerscout.net/index.php?app=gallery&image=572 http://forum.bikerscout.net/index.php?app=gallery&image=756

I wouldn't think so. Jeff is pretty easy to work with. Are you going to be able to use the existing top? You might have to order that too if you can't get them apart. FYI: The screen in the ears isn't accurate. I'd think about putting black fabric in the ears the next time

Awesome! Good luck with your build

The SC and KS are two different sized buckets. If you're looking to replace just the back shell, then make sure its the same as what you already have Steven. It looks like you already have an SC. Is that right? How did you melt it if you don't mind me asking?

Nice job! What helmet are you using Ian? I've never seen that kind.

Awesome! I can't wait til these are a mainstay in all our homes. Thanks for sharing Terry

Thanks Jim! I just looked at all of those "Stormtrooper Ted" photos. Good stuff

You know it! Lancer is on the agenda for 2013. The only things I'm planning on taking the extra mile like this are my helmet and boots. The MC armor is going to be assembled "as is".

Thanks Chris! I know it seems like I'm nitpicking the SC helmet to death, but that was never my intention. I really do like the way it looks naturally too. I can't wait to see it finished as well. Feels like it's going to be forever before it's done.

Every time I look at reference pictures, I seem to find something else to modify. I made a defined line on the top of the lens area. Small detail, but not one that required much time. The top pics also show the new layer I put on the bottom of the top under eye line. I’ve since sanded them again. They still are not “rightâ€. It’s a work in progress. This section of the project did require some time. The brow on the SC has a continuous slanted brow. The screen used helmets have a flattened section that merges into the slanted section. In order to keep weight off the faceplate, I used as much plastic and empty space as possible. I only used Apoxie Sculpt in limited areas. These are wedges that I made out of ABS strips. I staggered the lengths by ¼â€™, and then stacked and glued them. I also sanded them to give me more surface to glue to. I continued using the staggered concept across the center. I glued the pieces together before mounting them on the helmet, but found it was too hard to bend. I pulled them apart and then remounted each one at a time across the brow. After mounting the wedges, I cut out a new brow plate. I purposely left excess material on both the sides and top. I want these areas to sit flush against the inside visor. I flex-bent the brow plate into a curve. This keeps the plate from being stressed when mounted to the wedges. After I glued the top in place, I cut a couple of strips for the bottom of the brow. After gluing them in, I sanded them just a touch. These are the before and after pictures from both front and side view. I cut away some of the side and top of the brow in order to mount the visor. The line of Apoxie Sculpt on top of the brow plate flushes the top to the visor. I still have to add a touch more. I was just using up some material that had already been kneaded together. This is the next phase of the project: The “cheeksâ€. Just thought I’d give everyone a quick peek.

Love it Patrik!

Thanks for the kind words and painting advice Patrik Do you have any recommendations for specific brands of paint you've used in the past?

If I had it to do all over again, I wouldn’t have heated/back filled the top. It would have been much easier to fill the inside with Apoxie Sculpt, and then sand the outside flat. I filled the dimples with a couple of layers of Apoxie Sculpt. The different looking filler is Squadron White. I’m not really a fan of it too much. Yes…it’s easy to sand, and quick to dry: but didn’t hold up when I rinsed it in the sink. I need to do a little more research on fillers. The Apoxie Sculpt works well as filler, but takes forever to dry. I’m open for suggestions. Overall, I’m still pretty happy with the results. It took forever to sand though. Really hard feathering everything out. I’m sure that I’ll see more that needs to be fixed once it’s painted. Wanting to have a better understanding of how the lines flowed, I traced them around the face. During that process, I started observing what needed to be more defined on the face. The snout and nose vent/bridge needed to be more defined as well. The facial lines have been the hardest portion of this project. They are pretty tricky to understand by looking at 2 dimensional images. I’m going to be working them out all the way to the end of this project. Here are some general shots of the face prior to sanding. Here’s my before/ after sanding pictures. I forgot to snap one before I started on the next phase of the project. Here’s a list of all that I defined: I sharpened the top rounded portion of the snout. I flattened the snout face. I beveled the inside walls where the greeblie sits. I sharpened the bridge/vent face and transition point I defined the arc across the round/upper portion of the snout. I lightly sanded the facial lines. It may be hard to see in the pics, but I feel like everything is much crisper now. These are my pics of both sets of lines. They are not finalized. Again, paint will need to be applied in order to see if I got it right. I’m still playing around with them as I go along. After I made the first line, I felt like I was looking at a tauntaun. lol |

I'm not in your area Eric, but I can vouche for the helmet being small. I went off the measurements that Pandatrooper provided in the SC thread, and found them helpful. When you do find one to try on, wear your balaclava. Since I started modifying mine, my ears clip the bottom edges without the balaclava.

A belated thanks Jim.

Wow! That's awesome! Great job!

Glad you're enjoying it BJ! More pics to come

I've been jumping around on the helmet to keep things fresh. Lately, I've moved to the top and face. The top flattening is nearly complete. I still have to paint, fill and sand. But for the most part, it's close to being finished. I have to finish it up in order to complete the side mounts and brow rim. I need attachment points. As for the face, It's been "calling me" to do some work on it. It's not finished by any means. Still lots of work to go I'll show more progress pics in the new year. I just wanted to share a couple with everyone. Flat Top: Face Lines: Happy Holidays to everyone! Cheers

6 or 7 are both acceptable Alex. There's a thread on the BSN where it was debated in the past. If you're a thinner scout, 5 ribs/6 lines looks a little better. Go with what looks right with your pouches on.

WOW!!!! That's a wealth of info UK Scout!!! Much appreciated!!! Thanks for the compliments on the build. As for the SC helmet, Yes...It does have tons of soft pull issues. Warping in some spots as well. Every SC helmet has soft pulls. Since I'm modding mine, the pull issues aren't really "issues" to me. I can work around that. It's just going to be more work in the long run. As for the warping, the biggest thing is symmetry issues in the pull process. The right front side of the shell is crisp. The left front side is really warped. Every picture I've seen of an SC also has issues on the visor. The right top (at the mount) pulls towards the inside. That then causes the visor not to sit squarely over the face plate. The face plate also has lots of issues that need to be addressed in the mod process. It's pretty uneven from right side to left side. The snout angles don't match up. The bottom "flare" also occurs in 2 different spots. I'm going to eventually make my snout a touch longer by adding the bottom V-plate. It's all just work though. If I wasn't enjoying this, I would have thrown in the towel a long time ago. I definitely feel like I'm learning something every day. And truthfully, that's what I wanted out of this project. When I saw how much work there was in a Boba Fett costume, I decided to learn about prop building/modding on the Scout. The Scout has always been my favorite of the armored ranks. Hopefully, Lonewolf will make some helmets available in the future. I'd love to have one of those for "everyday" use.

I need some advice on primer painting my helmet. What kind of paint should I be looking for? Do high build primers conceal scratches more? Do I need to sand out every scratch? Painting is not my forte. That's one aspect I haven't really looked into yet. I'm not ready to paint the whole helmet, but I am ready to see what still needs to be worked on.

Next up…the paint stick and vise method. I really like this one, because you are able to bend really straight lines without warping the plastic. I think the sealing iron is advantageous for certain bends, but this method is easier to work with. I taped a couple of 1/16th ABS scraps between the ends of 2 paint sticks. The sticks easily slide around a sheet, and serve 2 purposes. The first is to protect the areas that you don’t want heated. The second is to give you a base/handle/edge for making bends. During this project, I’ve been extremely fortunate to have a Harbor Freight store close by. Nearly every tool I’ve used has been from Harbor Freight. Now some things I wouldn’t buy from them, but most tools work just as well as expensive brand names. The heat gun and nozzle accessories cost me less than $20 total. The articulated vise was $15, and is great for working with small/lightweight pieces. The first piece I bent with this method was for the front brow strip. I spaced the paint sticks slightly apart and focused my heat on the tiny strip of exposed plastic between the sticks. Once it was evenly heated, I made the bend until I reached approximately 90 degrees. I marked off a half inch, and cut the remaining material away. I then made marks a ½â€™ apart down the length of the piece. Using my scissors, I cut notches while bending to the desired shape. After completing the bend, I cut out a strip that matched the shape and glued it to the bottom. It didn’t retain the exact arc I wanted after gluing. I eventually glued another strip to the top side. It’s now pretty close to the shape I want. The bend is pretty stressed though. Hopefully it will end up working. If not, I’ll just try something else. I remade the chin strap strips using the paint stick bend method. Much crisper lines overall. In the corners, I cut thinner strips. Before bending the corners, I clamped a quarter on to help me keep the curved bend uniform. I made a couple of rectangular pieces for the areas above the chin strap strips. I kept the measurements really vague in order to have some material to play around with. This project is kind of like a jig saw. I’m still trying to figure out how to mount all of these pieces. It’s a good thing that I like puzzles! The next three collage shots give you a general idea of the process. I kept making changes, and cutting excess material out along the way. These are the pieces as of now. The bends on the long strip of the lower sections serve to kick the strap strips out to the necessary angle. I was having a hard time closing the faceplate, until I made this modification. I’m probably going to remake these pieces again. It’s a learning process…but one that I’m really enjoying!

I just got my Redkaps in yesterday. They weren't that baggy at all. Maybe a little bit in the legs, but he entire upper portion was pretty snug. I have a 40" chest. I ordered the 40 Regular. Pretty perfect fit.

Do you remember what brand you used Jim? I might need something like this once I make my boots.

Nice tutorial. Much appreciated