1st Build 3d print helmet visor

Berzzi

New Member
Has anyone tried to make their helmet visor out of a clear PLA? Did it turn out clear enough? Is it worth trying or should I go a different route? What's a good way to make visors?
 
I have seen visors be made 3 ways.
1. Tinted visor sheets
2. Vacuformed plastic
3. Resin printed
The easiest of these is a visor sheet easily sourced from Etsy, but there are others who make the vacformed visors with great results
 
I have seen visors be made 3 ways.
1. Tinted visor sheets
2. Vacuformed plastic
3. Resin printed
The easiest of these is a visor sheet easily sourced from Etsy, but there are others who make the vacformed visors with great results
I wanna do the chiefs halo 3 helmet or the EVA, but getting the visor details on the halo 3 one would probably require vacuum sealing a clear PETG sheet. But it's pretty expensive to get a vacuum formed visor off Etsy, and it's not guaranteed that it'll be the right scale for my helmet.
 
PLA prints don't come out translucent enough to see through.

Any visors I've done have just hand curved sheets of acrylic/plexiglass that I then put a mirror tint on. You don't get the very small details like the little indented lines, but it's a lot more financially friendly as all you need is a sheet of acrylic and a heat gun.

1000011639.jpg

1000011638.jpg
 
PLA prints don't come out translucent enough to see through.

Any visors I've done have just hand curved sheets of acrylic/plexiglass that I then put a mirror tint on. You don't get the very small details like the little indented lines, but it's a lot more financially friendly as all you need is a sheet of acrylic and a heat gun.

View attachment 345025
View attachment 345027
Yea that works great for smaller visors. Is there anyone that I can commission a vacuum formed EVA visor? I'm hesitant to get it off someone on Etsy cause idk if it'll fit my scale of the helmet unless I'm able to send them the template for the visor
 
Yea that works great for smaller visors. Is there anyone that I can commission a vacuum formed EVA visor? I'm hesitant to get it off someone on Etsy cause idk if it'll fit my scale of the helmet unless I'm able to send them the template for the visor
It does work for Chief's helmet from Halo 4, as that's how I built the visor for VonSnake visor. There may be a way about getting a commissioned visor, I'm just not sure as I don't do vacuum forming myself.

20190424_202839.jpg
 
Has anyone tried to make their helmet visor out of a clear PLA? Did it turn out clear enough? Is it worth trying or should I go a different route? What's a good way to make visors?
Recently tried. didn't work. It's the internal walls that can't be sanded down that cause the problem. IF. IF you could get a super wide nozzle and only print 1 or 2 layers thick and very tall, maybe you could make a visor after plenty of polishing and doing a resin dip. At least that is the conclusion I came too.

Great for making light covers though! the layer lines help defuse/refract the light.
 
As far as vacuum forming, you can check you local area for manufacturers that vacuum form and do part prototyping. Thats how I got my 1st version of my Strider helmet's visor, which is also like domed like the EVA. You can print out the shape of the buck you need and then work with them to get done. You may need to cast it in a heat resistant plaster like Ultracal 30 gypsum cement.
 
As far as vacuum forming, you can check you local area for manufacturers that vacuum form and do part prototyping. Thats how I got my 1st version of my Strider helmet's visor, which is also like domed like the EVA. You can print out the shape of the buck you need and then work with them to get done. You may need to cast it in a heat resistant plaster like Ultracal 30 gypsum cement.
True, I didn't think about that
 
I've  heard of visors being printed that way, but it took alot of testing and the print had to be printed at a certain angle to get the optimal results. I wish I remembered who it was or where I heard it
 

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