Could I get some help from some of the experts here

[Cruzer]

I bought this on ebay 3 weeks ago. Guy claimed it was a DP deluxe. I've got it back up for sale there, but I'm hesitant in its validity. Does this look like a real DP deluxe to those of you that would know for sure? All the earpieces are aluminum, but one thing I have noticed is that they're not painted. Any help would be appreciated. If it's not a DP deluxe then I'll pull the auction and will begin taking steps to get my $$$ back.

Thanks,
Cruzer

 

[micke]

It looks like a repainted DP Deluxe to me.

 

[Ronin677]

i'd agree. the bucket looks like a DP Deluxe but the paint job looks different to the others i have seen.

 

[Cruzer]

Thanks guys, someone else has also mentioned that it may be a SFP helmet. I've ended the auction and have contacted the original seller to begin the steps of returning the item. Hopefully it won't go as far as filing disputes with ebay and Paypal.

Thanks,
Cruzer

 

[pghfett]

Also the black cloth interior is missing

 

[lorenreale]

First, go here and scroll down to see what a real one does
look like:

http://web.ukonline.co.uk/bingo275/helmets.htm

The 'heads up' that it's some kind of copy is the very
rough interior of your helmet. Yet, that seems to be due
to the liner being removed.

Also, the rangefinder and stalk is not right for the Don Post Deluxe's
I have seen. You'll see it in the photo on the above webpage too.
This could be 'overthinking' on my part as they may have had diffrent
'runs' on this part and they could vary.

Lastly, the visor area doesn't look quite right. But i'm not
an expert on that. Having dealt with couple of fraudulent items
before in ebay purchases, paypal has always refunded my money.
Paypal seems more aggressive in helping than ebay (though I think
ebay owns paypal now).

While perhaps not a Don Post Deluxe ( if it is a Deluxe, I have no idea why
anyone would repaint it as this one is not an improvment on the original
paint), it does appear to be a nicely made, perhaps fan made, helmet. If it
is a Don Post, they really needed to inform you that it had been heavily modified from the original. You could expect to get $100-200 in a competitive auction. My guess is the closer to Halloween, the better the price may be.

 

[texasfett]

Looks like a repaint and the black interior indeed is missing inside.The little plack should on the lower right side of the helmet.I think that the visor is completly cut out on the real dp deluxe.

 

[fettpride]

It is indeed, without a shadow of a doubt, a REAL DP Deluxe. The metal cast ear pieces, metal stalk, plaque, and visor area from the inside is "Dead On". The finish on the inside is rough, as were all of them, hence the black fetlt/velvet lining that was used on them. The tell tale on the RF ear cap is the hole right in the middle of the cap. The holes all went all the way through, and were puttied with bondo before they were painted "gold". These have been stripped and left the natural cast metal color. The bolts were always the way you see them in the pics, but were covered with the lining ect (6/32 or 4/32). I've had one of these apart in intimate detail, it's definately the real thing. It has been repainted and screwed with granted, but it's real. Pop off the top of the RF topper and show us a pic of the little circuit board? The LED's that were used on those werent the standard 5mm that we all use. The LED's meet the holes in the lid by just standing up by their own legs inside. They were smaller in circumfrence. The little circuit board takes a pancake battery if it's real. Chances are, they wouldn't have replaced it with another type so it's probably still the DP version. However, even if it's not, everything else is dead ringer.

FP

 

[lorenreale]

The bottom line is does that helmet, structurally, match this helmet:

 

[Cruzer]

Wow, lots of good info. The buyer has refused a return and insist that it is real because he worked for Don Post. I'll check the rf right now, and lorenreale I recognize your name...weren't you the one who questioned it genuinity via ebay and I told you I'd check...small world...well I'm checking.

Thanks FP for chiming in, I totally trust your opinion and knowledge without a doubt.

let me check
Cruzer

 

[lorenreale]

Well, if he worked for Don Post this could be explained that he got an unfinished one, or whatever other story adds up. The fact remains, if you were not told it was an 'altered' or 'not a retail version' of the helmet then you're due your money. After all, I could work for Ford years ago, have gotten the shell of 1967 Mustang as an employeee; it would not allow me to sell it as a genuine andcomplete car no matter how nice a job I did on it..

 

[Cruzer]

Yeah, lorenreale you MAY be right when it comes to dealing with Paypal and ebay disputes and trying to get my $$$ back...but I just took of the all aluminum ear pieces and MAN are they IMPRESSIVE. I'm thinking I should just cut out the visor area for a full visor, and find someone to give this thing a kick butt paint job. There are no LEDs in the RF and the top cap seems to be glued on. But it seems to be the original due to the stalk matching the ear pieces. It doesn't seem to have a repaint job...so I wonder what happened there?

I don't really need my $$$ back, so maybe this would make for a nice project.

Cruzer

 

[fettpride]

They probobly either got greedie and kept the RF guts (they're pretty nice, I used tehm in one of my helmets for a long time) or this could have simply been a prototype DP ROTJ paintup if it doesn't appear to be a repaint. But if that's the case, the paque doesn't go with this helmet, because I've seen #600 + that were the same cheesy ESB paint jobs. But for them to get to the ears to remove them for stripping paint, they would have had to rip up the lining and the plaque. Hence the seperate plaque.

Dude, It's a DP DLX bone structure without a doubt. Wether it was a proto, or a production, it doesn't matter, it's still a DP DLX core. The casting of the helmet, bondo filler here and there, metal ears with holes, visor "T" inside like the DP vinyl helmets, the front monted visorect. ect Can't stress it enough. This isn't an opinion ... If you want PROOF POSITIVE, rip the t-visor out. If you're going to redo it anyway. You will find that the plastic visor is actually embedded under some filler in "tabbed" areas on each side of the red portions of the helmet on each side. That cannot lie.

FP

 

[lorenreale]

Rock 'n roll. Well, you were only selling it because you felt that painting it
was going to ruin the collectibility. Well, that was already done, taking you back to square one and if $ 250 that you paid seems sensible (and that's always a personal choice), go make an incredible Fett.

Looks like it all turned out great and as far as ebay, noone inadvertently bought yours for $ 250 thinking they had something worth $ 600 or more.

Now this is over, go have fun.

 

[Cruzer]

The rf is solid resin. The rf stalk appears to be glued in with CA glue and then the whole rf painted with black paint. However, the rf stalk has the same texture as the ear pieces so I'm concluding it is the original.

I wonder how this thing would look with a kick butt paint job? Man I wish I knew how to paint Boba buckets!:cry

Cruzer

 

[lorenreale]

There are artists you can contract the work to. Just review these pages. As always, great work costs money.

 

[Cruzer]

You're right FP about the visor, it's riveted underneath filler in 4 different areas. Too bad the rf isn't the original, that would have been way cool to have.
Well now I'll have to figure out what to do with it.
Thanks guys,
Cruzer

 

[fettpride]

Whoa, that changes some things. If the stalk is resin ... then it could be from a Don Post Boba Statue There were many DP Statues that were released with resin stalks The problem with that theory though, is there would be a gigantic plug recepticle in the helmet aroung the dome area, the shape of a pyrimid that's had the top chopped off if that makes sense

Nevertheless ... if you're going to repaint it, lay this puppy to rest, and remove the visor. It will chip your mandibles because as I said above, the visor is monted with tabs, and in the tabbed areas, they put bondo on top to act as an acnhor. The edges of the visor at the squint are also recessed behind filler ... pretty much as shown in the following pic ...

If it's like this, it is a REAL DP without a shadow of a doubt


FP

 

[lorenreale]

Well, that could take us back to an employee assembled helmet from various parts they had handy:

"Hey, can I make a Fett helmet from this pile of parts ?"

"Sure go ahead."

And years later, here we are.

 

[Cruzer]

Man Lorenreale...this theory of yours kills me. LOL!

Yep FP, that's the exact layout of the visor tabs. As for the rf, it's solid resin, but the stalk is aluminum that matches in texture to the ear pieces.

That still doesn't explain the paint job. It's doesn't look like a repaint what so ever. I'll have to ask the original owner what happened.

Now I'm wondering if I shouldn't mess with it

Cruzer