Superjedi's MF #6 ESB for Jesster

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Mar 29, 2017

• #1

Hi everyone,
This is it! My 25th ESB commission. :wacko
I've done my share of FPH2's, GMH's, Animefans, and a couple other makers in the past, but this is something pretty unique.
The kit I'll be working on is a Malone Fett (MF) helmet, from the original run of 10. The one that was sent to me is #6.

Not only is it a highly unusual helmet, but Jesster has some killer accessories to round out the kit! These include:
-- A Terminal Fettler RF topper. . . beautiful!
-- A Machinecraft RF stalk. . . again, gorgeous!
-- A complete set of machined metal ears. . . amazing looking!
-- A real MQ-1 circuit board
-- A real Polaroid SX-70 viewfinder
-- A real Borden connector
-- An RF light kit with microswitch
-- A second complete RF with stalk to switch out as Jesster likes. This includes what I believe is a scratchbuilt topper made by Natty15d. It's super nice!

Here are a couple of shots of the helmet and the accessories.





Since the MF and the GMH are "cousins," here are a few shots comparing the two.
Head on:


Left side:


Right side:


Back:


Domes:


So how about that for an intro?? I'm excited to work on this one. Much more to come!

 

Last edited: Jul 11, 2017

Gory

Hunter

• Mar 29, 2017

• #2

Omg... Looks magnificent

 

Jesster

Active Hunter

• Mar 29, 2017

• #3

Wow SJ! You are fast. Very excited to see how this comes out. Thank you so much.

 

Furious

Active Hunter

• Mar 29, 2017

• #4

Whoa!!

 

Refugee

Hunter

• Mar 29, 2017

• #5

Wonderful! Jess that is one sweet helmet and some incredible found parts and premium accessories. You already know Eric's paintjob is going to be superb

 

intwenothor

Well-Known Hunter

• Mar 30, 2017

• #6

Of course. It has to be Jess! Thanks for the comps. Bery interesting.

 

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Mar 30, 2017

• #7

Thanks, guys. I'm getting started on the prep. There are some pinholes, little divots, and a couple of seams that have to be taken care of,
so Bondo to the rescue! The helmet looks like it has measles right now, lol.



I'll sand this once it's dry and re-examine everything to see what needs another coat. There will be some additional clean up around the visor opening
and the keyslots, too. The helmet arrived to me with these areas already cut out, but they need a little fine tuning.

 

Last edited: Jul 11, 2017

Jesster

Active Hunter

• Mar 30, 2017

• #8

Refugee said:

Wonderful! Jess that is one sweet helmet and some incredible found parts and premium accessories. You already know Eric's paintjob is going to be superb

Click to expand...

Thank you Refugee. The helmet SJ did for you looks pretty sweet!

 

craigjohn

New Hunter

• Mar 31, 2017

• #9

Sweet Baby Boba that first post....

 

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 2, 2017

• #10

Thanks, all!
The prep is progressing. I got all the Bondo sanded down, added a bit more where needed, then finally got to shoot some primer.
As I suspected, the primer revealed just a few more spots that needed a little more attention. But that's normal.

I'll sand this round of Bondo shortly, then shoot some more primer and take a look at the results. Hopefully that will do it and
I'll be able to begin adding some color onto this bad boy!

 

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 8, 2017

Jesster

Active Hunter

• Apr 2, 2017

• #11

Thank you for your attention to detail SJ. The prep work is coming along nicely. I knew there were a few parts on the helmet that needed to be cleaned up a little.

 

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 2, 2017

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 2, 2017

• #12

You bet, Jess!
I just came in a minute ago from spraying the second coat of primer. I think everything looks OK now, but I'll double check when it's dry.

 

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 2, 2017

• #13

First color is on.
I airbrushed the Concrete on the rear panels. I'll let it dry until tomorrow evening, then I'll begin stenciling and masking for the dark green.
This is the fun part for me. Prep is boring!

 

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 8, 2017

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 5, 2017

• #14

I've been spending some time doing prep on the metal ears. They had machining marks that had to be removed, and that's taken a while!
But I did manage to throw in some work on the helmet, too. I got the rear panels stenciled and masked for the dark green.


Once the stencils were marked, I used my Winsor & Newton masking fluid to block out the shapes. I don't worry about getting every tiny detail.
I always go back with a fine brush and tweak the edges of the damage areas using reference pictures. The next two shots show the masking fluid.



Next I airbrushed the dark green. First I do a medium/heavy coat, leaving a little of the base Concrete showing through. Then I go back with lighter pressure and finer control and add some variation. I try to match the effect as closely as I can to reference pics.



I'll let this dry for a few hours then remove the masking fluid.

 

Last edited: Jul 11, 2017

Jesster

Active Hunter

• Apr 5, 2017

• #15

Looking awesome! Thank you for fixing those metal ears. I wondered what to do with those markings.:confused

 

intwenothor

Well-Known Hunter

• Apr 6, 2017

• #16

Looking good.
Why are the comps to the original gmh gone?

 

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 6, 2017

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 6, 2017

• #17

Thanks!
Something happened to my Photobucket album and all the pics I uploaded prior to yesterday vanished. I'll have to reload them.

 

intwenothor

Well-Known Hunter

• Apr 6, 2017

• #18

Pity. Some fascinating stuffing those pictures but thanks for putting them up in the first place.

 

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 8, 2017

• #19

OK, still plugging away. I have a busy few days getting ready to go to Celebration, but I'm working on the rear panels when I can.
I got all the masking removed, and now I'm at the stage where I'm tweaking the edges of the damage areas. Just getting all the small curves and shapes as close as I can, and adding some of the finer details.


I'm satisfied with the left panel now and I 'm working on the right panel.

 

Last edited: Jul 11, 2017

superjedi

Sr Hunter

• Apr 8, 2017

• #20

And the right panel is done, too. Now I'm set up to begin the gray and silver, although I'm not sure how much I'll get done in the next couple of days.


Only 3 more days till I leave for Florida! I have to do boring real life stuff to get ready so this may be where I pause until after Celebration.

Hope to see a bunch of TDHers down there.

 

Last edited: Jul 11, 2017