NEMES1S's build. including second build 3d printed

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The vacuum forming box is done, just need to make up the frame to hold the petg sheet while i heat it and form it.

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Base chest has finally been assembled, and collar printed. i've started printing the ua tac assault attachment and the gaskets for the arm holes, though it is starting to get weighty so will have to see how heavy it all feels.

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I have started assembling the vacuum forming box so i can do the visor, was off to a bad start, i didn't use a guide and the sides ended up not being square, so even after clamping there were still gaps. but i have filled them with wood filler and sealed with pva glue. once i get the top on i fill do the outside part as well and it should be all air tight and ready for vacuum forming.

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I must admit, I've been thinking of a way to do a visor either via a resin cast (I have a lot of resin to use) or buy some pre-done plastic and form it by hand but didn't think to make a vaccum forming chamber, love to see the end result!
 
I must admit, I've been thinking of a way to do a visor either via a resin cast (I have a lot of resin to use) or buy some pre-done plastic and form it by hand but didn't think to make a vaccum forming chamber, love to see the end result!
on my first helmet i just used a sheet of tinted plexi glass, heated it up with heat gun and then pushed it into the hole for the visor. luckily the warrior helmet visor is small and doesn't have any complex shapes. but for the pilot helmet it was never going to be achievable with that method.
 
on my first helmet i just used a sheet of tinted plexi glass, heated it up with heat gun and then pushed it into the hole for the visor. luckily the warrior helmet visor is small and doesn't have any complex shapes. but for the pilot helmet it was never going to be achievable with that method.
Tinted Plexi glass, I'm going to keep an eye out for that, bloody genius idea
 
had 3 attempts at the visor so far all failed. main issue is getting it to the right temp to properly form, on the last attempt i hit is with the heat gun after i got it on the buck. it did form but i used too much heat. bubbled parts of the plastic teared it in some parts, i melted to top layer of the print and caused to interior build lines to show through to the surface of the visor. and it also liquified the primer and fiberglass resin i had coated the buck with. then it was a nightmare getting it back off the buck. so going to have another go. i'm going to refill the build lines with wood filer which i'm hoping shouldn't melt or distort under heat. and might look at some sort of mold release like silicone spray to help get it back off the form. i'm also going to try a thinner sheet of petg, i've been using 1mm but going to get some 0.75 and 0.5mm sheets to try out.
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had 3 attempts at the visor so far all failed. main issue is getting it to the right temp to properly form, on the last attempt i hit is with the heat gun after i got it on the buck. it did form but i used too much heat. bubbled parts of the plastic teared it in some parts, i melted to top layer of the print and caused to interior build lines to show through to the surface of the visor. and it also liquified the primer and fiberglass resin i had coated the buck with. then it was a nightmare getting it back off the buck. so going to have another go. i'm going to refill the build lines with wood filer which i'm hoping shouldn't melt or distort under heat. and might look at some sort of mold release like silicone spray to help get it back off the form. i'm also going to try a thinner sheet of petg, i've been using 1mm but going to get some 0.75 and 0.5mm sheets to try out.
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How's the ambient temp? I Think if there is too much air flow and it's colder than the lamp, could create issues with the clear plastic malforming?
 
it's pretty hot where i live. one of the other issues is the toaster oven i'm using to heat the plastic is not deep enough to fit the whole sheet in so i have been rotating the plastic to try evenly heat it and using the heat gun as well. i'm hoping for better results with slitly thinner plastic.

i'm still re surfacing the buck for another try at the visor so have one side of the chest gasket done. after a bit of wiggling i managed to get it to fit in snug
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it's pretty hot where i live. one of the other issues is the toaster oven i'm using to heat the plastic is not deep enough to fit the whole sheet in so i have been rotating the plastic to try evenly heat it and using the heat gun as well. i'm hoping for better results with slitly thinner plastic.

i'm still re surfacing the buck for another try at the visor so have one side of the chest gasket done. after a bit of wiggling i managed to get it to fit in snug
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What Materials did you use for the under armour, was it a Printable stl? (I've been told tpu was a good idea 90% hardness) or did you carve Eva foam? I was thinking of using eva foam
 
What Materials did you use for the under armour, was it a Printable stl? (I've been told tpu was a good idea 90% hardness) or did you carve Eva foam? I was thinking of using eva foam
you mean the gasket? it was a print able file. i just did it in pla. i have some other under armour files for the stomach and back but not sure i';; use them. i have seen people recommend tpu, though thinking about it it will still have layer lines and may not glue together well after being sliced into smaller pieces to print. not sure how well it would sand, then you'd probably have to spray it with plasti dip to bring back a decent finish on it.

i'm going to base my under suit on motor cross riding gear again, then i've found some nice larger and smaller hex pattern fabric at spotlight that i'll either sew in or foam back and then glue it. but it's still undecided. eva foam is still a good flexible option
 
I'll be interested to see more updates on the visor. I'll probably be giving visor vacuforming a try on my next build, I'm sure it's going to be a big learning curve.

Nice work on the chest piece, it's looking clean!
 
progress has slowed down a bit, due to um playing infinite. got the attachments printed for the chest just need to print the combat knife

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I'll be interested to see more updates on the visor. I'll probably be giving visor vacuforming a try on my next build, I'm sure it's going to be a big learning curve.

Nice work on the chest piece, it's looking clean!
i'm keen to give it another go i have got a few 5mm and 7mm thick sheets now to try out, i just have to finish sanding the buck smooth again then i'll see if i can get a good pull.
 
Looking fantastic so far! You may have mentioned this earlier in the thread and I may have missed it, but I was wondering how you made those undersuit pieces on the chestpiece? I’m currently working on a 3D printed suit myself and I’d love to incorporate that into my build.
 
Looking fantastic so far! You may have mentioned this earlier in the thread and I may have missed it, but I was wondering how you made those undersuit pieces on the chestpiece? I’m currently working on a 3D printed suit myself and I’d love to incorporate that into my build.
they are 3d printed files. i got them from a seller on cgtrader or etsy. they designed them to fit nerdforg's print files
 
had another 2 go's at the visor today first one failed and tore but second one i managed to get back in the oven and then hit it with my heat gun while it was in the oven. i think my main issue has been not getting it hot enough. i'm just using a toaster oven so the whole frame for the petg sheet doesn't fit in and i have to heat the outside bits with my heat gun to keep the temp even. this one came out clearer then the other one though not as well defined but i had to do quite a bit of sanding with the dremel to get it to fit. i think this is because i printed the helmet and buck in parts and not as one piece, so the added small bits of width added up and created small fitment issues. but i'm overall happy with it. next is to tint the visor in a dye bath and then i'll probably glue small strips of foam around the borders to hide my dodgy uneven sanding.

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starting to do a bit of work on tinting the visor. the dye i was going to use is out of stock so i have had to order some. but in the mean time i have tested an alcohol based ink on one of the failed pulls.

this is the stuff i used with the same brand thinner, it stated it was a clear black

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left hand side is sprayed inside and out which is more matte finish, right is just on the outside witch keeps it gloss

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it did come out grainy and the visibility aint the best. but if i was going to keep the middle of the visor clear and spray around the outsides to give that dirty look post falcon being shot down and being an undead spartan this would be perfect.

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i think the dye method will come out a lot more consistent, and then if i want i can spray some of this around the outsides of the visor for that dirty look. a light spray of chrome paint on the inside would likely pop the black look even more. i might test this out.

this is what it looked like from the inside though there was light behind it which wont be there when its attached to the helmet.
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i put the visors in the dye bath, but unfortunately the heat warped them. i couldn't get them in and out of the dye bath and cold water bucket fast enough. so i will have to vacuform more. i'm thinking of 2 options next either trying to dye the visors in cold dye or getting a can of spray night shade, the spray used to tint car head lights.

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i put the visors in the dye bath, but unfortunately the heat warped them. i couldn't get them in and out of the dye bath and cold water bucket fast enough. so i will have to vacuform more. i'm thinking of 2 options next either trying to dye the visors in cold dye or getting a can of spray night shade, the spray used to tint car head lights.

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I used Krylon "stained glass" spray on my visor, worked OK but it definitely screwed my visibility with orange peel and bubbling. Want to try dye at some point, but it's entirely possible I just messed up the spraying process.
 
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I used Krylon "stained glass" spray on my visor, worked OK but it definitely screwed my visibility with orange peel and bubbling. Want to try dye at some point, but it's entirely possible I just messed up the spraying process.

from where i got to the dye method seemed to be a good result when compared to spraying as it is completely even. it's just the water was too hot despite being under boiling, my cold bath could have been colder, the tap water where i lives basically comes out warm it's so hot here, i had planned to use a bucket of ice water to dip the visor into during the dye process but somebody removed the frozen bottle form the freezer and i didnt find out until i had everything on the go.

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the dye i used was rit dyemore, i did get the regular version but then discovered it wasn't got for synthetic material only the dye more is good for acrylics and similar.

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i picked up a can of duplicolor nightshades at boxing day sale so i have a few options to either try doing a colder dye bath or spraying. as far as the visibility i have kinda gotten used to low visibility i think i lose a lot of it when the petg sheet bends and stretches under heat, i had the same issue when i was using plexi glass sheets for my visors.

if i dont end up using the nightshades for the visor i'll likely repurpose it as a clear black spray like tamiya smoke and put it on my carbon fiber bits to recreate this effect they use on the predator lenses for a smoked carbon look

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after my previous bad luck have turned it around. nailed the new visor of the first try. did and easy pull and demould. you really have to be carful and make it as smooth as possible, at some point a piece of hair got on the buck before i put the hot petg sheet on it and it picked up the detail of the hair now that is accuracy.

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I tried out dyeing a scrap bit in cold dye but it seems you do need the heat to set the dye in the petg. so i sprayed it with the nightshades. i tried it on a scrap bit first of course and at first it looked splotchy like the air brush but then it dried to a good consistency. as far as the gloss i tried spraying it the inside and the outside and both seemed to have a good gloss finish either way , but i went with sprayed on inside on the final.

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i may have gone a bit too dark on it. the vison to the outside is good no problems there but i need to test if my leds are going to be strong enough to allow vision in to see the skull.

also got the shins assembled
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