Casting In Clear Resin?

[Boba Fett]

Just wondering, I'm a long way from molding, but is it possible to cast a helmet in clear? That would make the visor situation much easier... especially for an EVA helmet of the like. Just wondering. Thanks!

 

[rockthewarrior]

I think most of the time the resin you use for casting wouldn't be completely clear. So it would be hard to see through.

 

[AceHigh]

I am currently trying to do some research on this myself by pestering various resin suppliers, mostly in the UK though as I live in Sweden and the few Swedish internet shops around are way more expensive. Most of them said that casting a thin product would result in the visor being far to brittle for practical use. The only resin I've found so far that has been said to probably be useful is a Water Clear Epoxy Resin 2:1. It says on the web page that it can be cast in 2mm thickness, and when asking I got the reply that it could work, but that the shop had no experience doing so. I have been thinking about ordering some for testing, but that shop doesn't really carry any other material that I am interested in at the moment, and combined with the freight cost which is set to a minimum of £30 (about $55 I think) for orders to Sweden it would set me back almost $100 just to try it out, and I'm not really ready to spend that kind of money on just a test (yet).



What I think is the biggest problem though is that even if it would work, there is still the matter of tinting the visor. So far the best idea I've had is to use different transparent pigments for clear resin, but it wouldn't really produce the two way mirror effect, and the surface wouldn't be shiny either. Using tint film for car windows is another idea I had, but from what I read it is hard or impossible to apply to plastic, even if smooth, and if the visor is bowl shaped it would certainly be impossible.



Hope this gives you a little bit of help at least.

 

[dung0beetle]

Your best bet for a visor is to vac-form it. www.estreetplastics.com may be a good source for colored plexiglass to vac-form. They also have mirrored acrylic.



I was reading this and a thought just popped into my head. You know those plastic suncatcher window decorations? The paint that comes with those might work well to tint a visor. Some experimenting would be needed, but that stuff is like colored glass when applied. I think I'll try it and see if it works.

 

[noName]

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[Squid Squires]

Why yes, you can cet Crystal Clear Casting Resin, stinky, alot thicker and looooves airbubbles much more than Plastic resins, a sharp hit would crack or chip it unless its put in a vacuum chamber when curing. I wont make anything bigger than bulb casings for a Mark V or VI helmet from the stuff. Oh yes, it likes to be strange when it comes to curing times. You can Get it in a 1:1 ratio or a more complex one for bigger castings, the hardner depends on amount and thickness of the cast.

 

[noName]

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[Squid Squires]

so you would only recommend using it for smaller pieces and only if you had the right environment for it to be casted and cured? also do you know how easy it is to see through. like is your vision distorted

I'd only do small pieces, and you need a toatally inclosed mold due to its long cure time, you cant slush it, and yes you can see through it, but how well is going to depend on the curves of the visor, how smooth it is, it need to be like glass, highly polished to get the clearist cure. You could use it to make a visor, I've toyed with the idea for awhile, but vacuform is alot easier and cleaner.

 

[Boba Fett]

Thanks for all the replies. It really helped! (btw: nice idea with the window stain!)

 

[SchizophrenicMC]

I'd only do small pieces, and you need a toatally inclosed mold due to its long cure time, you cant slush it, and yes you can see through it, but how well is going to depend on the curves of the visor, how smooth it is, it need to be like glass, highly polished to get the clearist cure. You could use it to make a visor, I've toyed with the idea for awhile, but vacuform is alot easier and cleaner.

Agreed. The best bet would probably to be making your EVA, or what have you, sans visor, then vacuum form a clear one to attach to it. Then, you can tint it, one way or another. Bolt it to your helmet, and you'll have an EVA. (Does anyone on 405th actually have an EVA, or has no one attempted it?)

 

[Boba Fett]

Someone had a visor... I don't think it's too hard though. I was planning on vac-forming it anyway, but was just thinkng for the sake of others... I've never seen a full EVA helmet though. Why is everyone so afraid of it?

 

[Squid Squires]

I just think its ugly...

 

[Cadet]

Someone had a visor... I don't think it's too hard though. I was planning on vac-forming it anyway, but was just thinkng for the sake of others... I've never seen a full EVA helmet though. Why is everyone so afraid of it?

Vac-forming the visor to the correct shape will not be hard at all. It is the process of getting it tinted to reflective gold around all those curves, while maintaining visibility out of the bucket that will be/is the primary problem. NZ-TK made an EVA bucket with a vac-formed visor, however the picture links in his thread are now dead, and while he had painted it, I do no believe it was a paint you could see through.



It would be possible to use Redshirt's tutorial on making and painting your own visor with a reflective paint that is visible through:

http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18292&st=0&p=292152&#entry292152



Vision is slightly blurred through it, however.

 

[Boba Fett]

I plan on using redshirt's tut. Got a Paschee VL, a lot better than the Aztec brush he had to work with. I can take a bit of blur, it really doesn't bother me.

 

[SchizophrenicMC]

Vac-forming the visor to the correct shape will not be hard at all. It is the process of getting it tinted to reflective gold around all those curves, while maintaining visibility out of the bucket that will be/is the primary problem. NZ-TK made an EVA bucket with a vac-formed visor, however the picture links in his thread are now dead, and while he had painted it, I do no believe it was a paint you could see through.



It would be possible to use Redshirt's tutorial on making and painting your own visor with a reflective paint that is visible through:

http://405th.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18292&st=0&p=292152&#entry292152



Vision is slightly blurred through it, however.

And that's exactly what I was thinking of. The beauty of the EVA is that it's a nice, smooth curve. Easy to Vacform. Admittedly, it's harder to tint, but with that tutorial, it should be much more possible, now.

 

[GremlinLord]

I'm on the other end of the spectrum atm. I got the gold/semi transparent spray on mixture down pack but alas I'm out of luck for a vacuum former (it's really freaking cold this time of year). For anything like a curved lense you will need to pull hard and fast it also helps to heat up your buck to prevent getting "steps" as your plastic cools.



My advice is to follow Redshirts tut with a few tweaks. First don't use Model Master Metalizer, it is a polish type metalizer. This means to get a shine you need to polish it (not easily done without ruining it). Replace the Model Master with a lacquer metalizer like Alclad 2 chrome (NOT CHROME 4 LEXAN) or any other high end chrome lacquer (doesn't need to be polished and shines way brighter). Personally I like Alclad 2 because it is probably the best chrome you can spray out of a airbrush and I did test... a lot. The clears that Redshirt uses are spot on and will give you the perfect color if you mix them in the right ratio. Beware Acrylic paint has relatively large pigment compare to lacquer paints and they go on much thicker to too much here will dull vision and the chrome. Lastly for pure win and protection Tamyia makes a clear gloss that is known for being one of the most glossy gloss clears. It is also the only one that doesn't dull the chrome (tested future floor wax, Tamyia clear, testors high-gloss clear, and a bunch others that I can't seem to remember their names).



Other than the paint swap follow Redshirt's tut.



PS: a microfiber cloth in between steps will help keep the haze at bay since even the best airbrush will deposit over spray.

 

[Boba Fett]

Yeah, I've seen alclad finishes, and it's almost perfect. Problem: mother has a very sensitive nose. I have aluminum plate in a rattle can, that may work. Vallejo makes nice acrylic metallics, so it's possible.