yet another hasbro clone rebuild

like so many others, i was inspired to get one of the hasbro voice changer clone helmets and rebuild it.

when i first saw it, i thought it had great potential. one of the local guys took pics of it beside his clone6 helmet, and the overall size/shape is similar enough in my eyes to call it a good bucket:




after chatting a bit with some other folks, i decided to build a new face plate out of thin plastic (for sale signs), and laminate that onto the front of the helmet, rather than building up filler to close the visor slit.

here it is in all of its red and white glory!



the reason for this strategy is simple. the extra thickness is minimal, but it gives you a 100% perfect front surface.

i then built up the back of the sign with epoxy putty to get my lip back to the proper thickness.

from there it was just many passes of filler / primer / sand, filler / primer / sand until i had it smooth enough to be happy.



next i built up the lip around the bottom edge a bit. i wanted it to scoop in a bit more under my chin. only to notice later that the animated style clones (what i'm going for) don't really have a lip under the edge of the helmets. ah well. it looks better in the real world this way.



now fast forward through the molding / casting part of the process, and we come to where we have a reasonably movie like clone helmet.



but that's just the beginning. i made the resin copy so that i'd have an easier material to work with, since there was more tweaking to do.

i thinned out the central fin to look more like the animated style, and completely removed the brow trim.

a couple coats of primer white, some black wash, a bit of grey acrylic and some 501st blue paint brings me here:



more weathering to do, the kill stripes, ear details... there's quite a way yet before this thing is done. but it's coming along nicely.

Very nice work. great looking bucket.

Originally Posted by Bobby Fett UK

Very nice work. great looking bucket.

I agree Rob...
Your a machine bruv! excellent build up

Very impressive! Looks a million times better.

Awesome helmet Brian!

more work last night... i finished the weathering on the helmet and added the kill stripes:



i also build up the RF topper. i started off with a Fett and reshaped it to look like the clone ones.



that's getting a rubber bath tonight, so if any other clones/arcs/whatever are looking for one, let me know.

Will your RF topper be solid or hollow? Good info to note for those that might wish to add electronics or just want a light weight topper.

Originally Posted by stormtrooperguy

That's getting a rubber bath tonight, so if any other clones/arcs/whatever are looking for one, let me know.

Nice little touch for those customs Brian...

Originally Posted by Jango72

Will your RF topper be solid or hollow? Good info to note for those that might wish to add electronics or just want a light weight topper.

it will be solid, but made from a light weight resin. it would be a pain to make that shape hollow...

i might try slush casting one to see if i could make it lighter though. i'll let you know how that goes

That would be sweet. I'll keep this topper and you in mind once I've started my Rex helmet build.

i put the detail bits on the ears, and mounted the RF stalk.



you'll note that i cut the top of the RF stalk down. technically rex's is round at the top and square at the bottom. i wasn't feeling like grinding that much metal, so i figured i'd let it be square. but it definitely doesn't have that fett-like T on the top.



i might fill in the head of the screw on the RF stalk. not sure yet. no plans to make it movable, so i can do whatever. it's glued into place already.

and while i'm at it, here are a couple of shots of me test fitting the whole suit.



there's a LOT yet to do... thighs aren't attached, ankles need to be trimmed, shoulders need padding, needs a belt, etc...

but, this is my first time putting it all on at one time, and i'm pretty happy with how it's looking!

side shot:


back:

looks fantastic

Awesome!

Awesome Brian! The weathering looks great!

Dude! That is so awesome!!!! Great job!


G-Fett

did the last bit of detailing on the helmet tonight.

RF is installed, screen and black nylon are in the various openings (frown, side vents, and mouth)

Dude, that helmet is nothing but awesomeness!:thumbup
Your whole suit is going to rock!

That's freakin' awesome! It turned out perfect!

!!!REPRESENT!!!

Awesome work

That is a very nice helmet build. It looks agressive and matches the armor well.

Welcome to the clone ranks; happy trooping.

that's so sweet. I want to go out and buy one of those helmets now. haha

here's the latest tweak on my road to toon-dom... the visorfrown!



the clone wars style helmets have no frown vents... or frowns at all! it's all visor. and let me tell you, shaping that plastic was FUN! i'm just glad that whatever plastic that grinding shield was made from heats up well. gets nice and flexible but not bubbly, and stays that way for a few seconds.

here's the inside view:

Awesome Brian!

I have a hard enough time trying to set and shape a Fett visor, I can't imagine trying to shape a clone. Let alone a Clone Wars clone!! Ugh...


Great job!!

Originally Posted by suspect86

I have a hard enough time trying to set and shape a Fett visor, I can't imagine trying to shape a clone. Let alone a Clone Wars clone!! Ugh...


Great job!!

thanks! it was awesome... first i heated it up and bent it around a 1 gallon bucket to get a general curve. then i heated up one side of the frown, fit it back in, pressed it in until it was solid. repeat for the other side. then heat other bits and go back and forth until it's all sorted out.

HOLY COW! That is AWESOME!!! Really man, that is like crazy talent!!! :thumbup

Totally cool Brian...

Yeah, totally cool looking! I like that visor/frown look. Nice idea with the fan too.

I love this thread! So much so that yesterday I purchased one of these with the intention of modding it.

Great work Brian!

Y'know, when I saw that helmet sitting in Zellers, I considered buying one, but thought that it'd look ****** plasticy. But what you've been able to do... that looks pretty good. Even with just the slight modification to the visor, it looks awesome. I may have to pick one up now

Originally Posted by The Duck

Well, you have all inspired me and frightened me at the same time! However, I have now started the design of my "bounty hunter" using the Hasbro Clone Helmet as my base. When you see my initial picture, most of you will know where I got my ispiration from. I even have a back story as to why the helmet will look like it will. I do plan on adding accoutrements to it, but am as of yet, undecided as to what and where.

Secondly, the armor will be a hybrid as well, much like the helmet.

So, let me know what you think and I will GLADLY take any suggestions. Keep in mind, it is just the initial planning stage and I have yet to come up with a color scheme etc.

That being said, I also want to thank everyone for just being open to let those of us out here try something non-canon. It really has made all the difference in me finally wanting to try something new!

Originally Posted by The Duck

OK, I have finally come up with a color scheme. Complete with distressing... Though as you all know, that could change as things progress. Still have yet to decide on the accoutrements though.

Let me know what you think!

I like your color scheme so much that I think it warrants it's own thread. I'd suggest you start your own thread and post your pics there so that you don't accidentially hijack the focus of this thread...that being stormtrooperguy's clone build.

I apologize to Stormtrooperguy and have since created a new thread. I shall not post here except to otherwise comment on his SPECTACULAR build!

Sorry for the inconvenience...

dang i wish i was that talented

lol wish i had the time to do this

bumping this back up...

i've been working on converting this to a clone wars style helmet... here's where i'm at:



i added the other side of the lip in. i still need to make the lip along the bottom more symmetrical... the right side is still a bit big. it's not as bad as it looks in the pic though... there's bondo hanging over the edge on that side, which makes it look all sorts of off... a bit of sanding is needed, but it's minor.

while doing this, i reshaped the mouth area a lot. still more to go there, but it's getting closer!

in studying the pics more, i noticed that the aotc helmet has a flat area on the mouth/chin, where the clone wars one doesn't so i got rid of said flat part.

i also shortened up the mouth. when i was adding on, i brought the lower edge down way too far. i took the front edge up by a bit over 1/4".

after all of the putty, i coated liberally with bondo.

another change i made was to make the curve at the back of the fin more dramatic.

next up i'll rough sand it all, then start building up the back. there's no point sanding it all out smooth when it's going to be getting tossed around and having more bondo on it.

the back should be pretty easy... not a whole lot of detail back there at all.

wow the work you've done on the hasbro helmet is amazing! Looking at the final product, one would never know how it started its life... Great job!

Words cannot express how impressed I am! Would you be willing to produce more of that helm?

tonight i did more bondo, and shortened the chin. i still need to clean up the edges along the bottom of the helmet... the lines are a bit wavy right now. that's tomorrow.







i also fixed up some asymmetry issues in the face, and shaped the mouth properly (no detail piece, indented further)\

as far as reproducing... once this one is done, i think it will be more than mine enough to feel ok making a few. not sure how that will work out, but i'll make sure to post about it if i do

I'll be watching out for any news.

The new pics are stunning! You've got the ear pieces sloping inwards now too eh? The attention to detail is amazing!

Wau man looking good!!!!!!!!!!!

that is awesome , i am so doing this, off to walmart!!!

Originally Posted by Skupilkinson

I'll be watching out for any news.

The new pics are stunning! You've got the ear pieces sloping inwards now too eh? The attention to detail is amazing!

Yeah, the sloped ears came in this week some time... I've printed out a bunch of good clone helmet pics and have them hanging up in my work area. I'll hold the helmet up at the same angles as the pics to see if I'm on the right track. I'm still not 100% done with the bottom edge... I need to take off a bit more material, but that will wait until I have the back on the helmet, and can see how it all joins up. I'd hate to sand it down only to add it back in later.

I'm having a blast working on this. It's great seeing it coming to life.

I can imagine! I felt the same seeing my Mando lid come to life and now seeing my DC-17m.

Though this is much more exciting to watch.

Great progress Brian.

how did you build out the lower jaw line, how did you flare it out? because on the toy helmet , you have to bring out the jaw line to make it like the clone war style.

and i like what you did to the ears., where did you find your reference for the back and sides of the helmet? i googled it and did not come up with much useable material. you mentioned you had alot of photos to go by.

thanks

and we have a helmet back now!



it's 3 layers of no parking sign glued together, with about 1/8" of bondo on the outside and a good 1/2" on the inside for strength.

i've got to sand it out smooth, then start building up the details.

the bottom edge will get shortened up as i go i'm sure, but for now it sits level, which is all i wanted.

Originally Posted by mrbungle

how did you build out the lower jaw line, how did you flare it out? because on the toy helmet , you have to bring out the jaw line to make it like the clone war style.

and i like what you did to the ears., where did you find your reference for the back and sides of the helmet? i googled it and did not come up with much useable material. you mentioned you had alot of photos to go by.

thanks

everything is built up using plumbers epoxy and bondo. the epoxy can be sculpted, sticks to almost anything, and cures very hard, very fast. but it's expensive... i've got about $50 of the stuff in there so far, with more to go i'm sure.

the reference i'm using is mostly screen captures from the clone wars movie. i got a digital copy with the bluray dvd i got, and have taken shots as needed.

i've been putting copies of the good stuff on my web site. both my own caps and things i've found:
http://stormtrooperguy.com/gallery/t....php?album=310

thanks!

Big update today.

This is the first time in while i've been able to spend a lot of time on the helmet in one shot... I was in the basement for about 5 hours today, give or take.



I finally ripped out that piece of PVC I had glued into it for support early on, and stuck my head it in. With all of the spikes of bondo, that wasn't particularly comfortable, but I couldn't resist. There's no padding in it, so it's sitting low on my shoulders. But it gets the idea across!



For a sense of size, here it is on top of a Fett helmet. It's about 1" taller than the Fett, and maybe 1/2" wider (not counting the lip around the bottom... going ear to ear. )



And the obligatory front/side/back shots. Now that the bar is out, I can actually put it on a stand and have it at the level it would be sitting at on a head.







There's still a TON of cleanup to do, and I need to do the details in the back (circle raised up and a rectangle indented) and the vents on the side.

It's getting close to done though... I can taste it. We're heading out to a movie soon, so I decided to stop and clean myself up and relax a bit first.

WOW! That's 5 hrs well spent!! It looks great!

I love what you've been doing with this lid so much that yesterday I started to model it in 3D to create templates for a TCW trooper helmet. I'd prefer to be able to pick up one of yours should you decide to go ahead and "clone" it LOL! Though should life be going against me when/if that time comes, I'd at least want to try and make my own either from scratch or by modding my Hasbro lid.



Keep up the awesome work Brian!!

That 3D model looks pretty sweet too!

Thanks alot buddy. Though I wasn't trying to hijack this thread the work going into this Hasbro mod is amazing!

quick shot with some primer on. still a loooooong way to go, but now i can look at it as one piece, rather than a collection of resin, epoxy and bondo.



i'm hoping to sand more tonight. depends on if we go out or stay home.

Brian you have absolutely set the standard for these clone helmets, its taken me too long to get mine done and although I am going for AOTC you have given me the extra kick I need to get mine done! Thanks for sharing all your progress its great to watch!!

Originally Posted by HeadlessHunter

Brian you have absolutely set the standard for these clone helmets, its taken me too long to get mine done and although I am going for AOTC you have given me the extra kick I need to get mine done! Thanks for sharing all your progress its great to watch!!

The feeling is mutal! You've been giving me great ideas for if/when I build up an AotC version!

This is really great. I may have to run out to Target and buy one of these. Great build job!

Stunning Brian! It may still have some work needed to complete it but it's a thing of beauty!

Big progress tonight! I carved the vent slots and back slot, and added the round detail to the back. And more sanding! I switched to a grey primer tonight so that I could see it a bit closer to how it will look in the end. So far, VERY happy with the results...

Awesome job on both! Guess I'm going to have to get one and have some fun too.

I love what you're doing with this bucket! I think the animated look is great!

Looking awesome Brian! not long now...

And so you should be happy! It's amazing!!! So clean all round and the symmetry is fantastic!

Awesome Work!! Keep up the good job!

After a long day of primer and wet sanding, it's DONE!







Silicone comes some time next week I hope.

And this is a neat little composite of how this whole thing evolved:

Looks great Brian...

Simply awesome!

Stunning!!! Well done Brian!

Sweet!

nice job wow!!

Tonight we finished up the AotC version! Well, it still needs the final sanding, but the main work is complete.

Based on a few factors, we decided to upgrade the helmet a bit. The original was something of a hybrid between AotC style and Clone Wars style. The wide, narrow visor, the lack of any ear indent/bumps, etc... All easily modified, but it was still work.

The next factor was that the Clone Wars sculpt went much faster than we were expecting. Since that's all done, there's no need for a hybrid.

The result of this tweaking?



So what changed?

We narrowed the width of the visor slit, rounded the corners off slightly, cut the ear indents out, and cut the additional vent slots needed on the sides.

It only took an evening's work for us, and it was well worth it! I'm loving the look of it.

It needs a wet sanding and another coat of primer, but otherwise I'm calling it done

Very nice Brian... time well spent! 8)

Just Awsome!

Wow, so nice!

great job........inspire me to get one...........

and jumping back to the other one... i've done the first pull from the clone wars mold!

http://flickr.com/photos/tk7602/sets/72157611197409713/

Would you be willing to do a run of those?

WOW! That's beautiful Brian. You're a master!!

by the time i go to bed tonight, this bad boy should be all painted up!

Wow that looks great!

Very nice!! So clean looking it's incredible! So, is it painted now??

seeing these things get saved is just awesome!

you are a master of your craft

Will you take commissions? Lol. :thumbup

Bro, you are the Clone God!!!!!!!!!!!

i'm hoping tonight to take a shot where i'm not looking at the floor... the helmet looks very different at an angle and straight on. either way it's enormous

Enormous or not, it's one of the best I've seen yet!:thumbup

Originally Posted by Lath Toth

Enormous or not, it's one of the best I've seen yet!:thumbup

Thanks!

The enormity is intentional, it's just a bit odd to see it live. Mmmm, cloney bobbleheads!

A cloney bobblehead that's still droppin' clankers like it's nobody's biddness!

WOW! Looks great bro! The paint just finishes it off a treat.

fantastique!!! that's really some amazing work!!!
You' ve really made an awesome prop bucket that could go straight into the movies with a Hasbro thingy... that's amazing!!

I really love the way you fitted the visor .
Makes it look completely different from the not-animated ones.

here's another shot of the helmet on, this time when i'm not looking down. i realized i was doing the same thing i did at first with boba... tilting my head forward to get a better view of the world.



i also did side-by-side shots of the 2 different versions of the helmet:





and this one i accidentally shot crooked, so i leveled it out in iphoto, hence the background being so wonky:

You should be proud buddy, they both look great!

That's a great mod! Ace looking product there Brian!

super nice work STG. sculpting a helemt is a lot harder than it looks.

and in the other direction, here's the latest on the aotc version of the hasbro rebuild: