Halo ODST Armor: Helmet - Part 1 of 5 of ODST Armor Build

^{This is PART 1 of a 5 part series on a full ODST Armor you can wear.}

Hi,

So you really want to do this? This is a big project. Build time will be from several months to over a year depending on level of detail and how determined you are. Along the way, we will be printing out 3D models unfolded into Pepakura files; doing origami on steroids; working with hazardous materials; using power tools; you may end up glueing your fingers together, your shoes to the floor or the cat to the couch. And we will end up spending money, ball park estimates on the low end around $300 for the entire suit. More likely you will spend $400 - $500. Although this instructable is specifically for the ODST, the instructable can be applied to any armor build - e.g. Halo 1-3 Spartan permutations, ODST permutations, Halo Reach permutations, Iron Man permutations, samurai, etc.

The project is so large that I decided to break it down into five(5) Instructables:
1. Helmet
2. Torso
3. Arms
4. Legs
5. Weapons

To help unify all the instructables I also published a Table Of Contents (TOC) instructable for the Halo ODST Armor Build.

Part 1 of the Halo 3 ODST Armor Project is the Helmet. Most who embark on armor building never get past this stage. Hell, many never finish this stage. But we will not be one of those. We will perservere and one day walk with head held up high covered from head to toe in HALO Armor goodness.

Everything we learn in Part 1 will be applied to Parts 2-5.  The rest of the armor creation process build upon the techniques used in PART 1. So it is best to pay close attention to how the helmet is built. While building the rest of the armor, make frequent visits to The Helmet build to refresh your memory on how to do things.

This project was inspired by the talented people in the 405th. Much of the source materials came from http://www.405th.com/forum.php.

On to the instructions...

** 3D model CREDIT used for the helmet base goes to ForgedReclaimer. Unfold credit goes to SoullessSin.**

Step 1: Software and 3D Files

First thing needed is to get the Pepakura software. Pepakura comes in two flavors - Designer and Viewer.  Designer is the editing tool for our 3D files. Viewer is just that, a read-only viewing tool.  Both have their uses.

The software is available here:
http://www.tamasoft.co.jp/pepakura-en/

Designer is Free-to-Try but the save feature is disabled. Cost for a full version is $38.
Viewer is Free.

Once the software is installed on your computer it's time to start downloading 3D pepakura files for us to print out and build into a helmet. So where are the files?  Go here first.

http://halocostuming.wikia.com/wiki/Pepakura_File_Index

Also go to 405th Halo costuming website - http://www.405th.com/

Look through the 405th forum. There are tons of armor files in there. Make a note on who the modeler is and give them credit when showing off your work. Don't ask stupid questions and use the search function.

Comments

[stevie.p64]

very good and very detailed, the very best one i've seen. i've learned more from this than i have from from all the other sites i've been on altogether. good job, thanks

[frost360]

AWSOME!!!, but im not bothered making it gonna go buy it instdead(helmet) and i dont get how paper can turn into that. Any way thanks, its AWSOME!!!!

[ThePyroManiac]

If you coat the card in a layer of petroleum jelly, leave overnight and wipe off, you have waterproof card you could coat with PVA glue/woodworker's glue and the card won't absorb any of the water. When I first started on my helmet two years ago, I assembled it with undiluted PVA glue instead of nitrocellulose glue and it warped. Nitrocellulose isn't the best solution either, when I applied too much, it would bead on the outside of the helmet and leave a hard residue that can't be removed until detailing. But it dries faster than PVA glue so I went with that.

I found that rubber cement worked the best for this. Glue every tab, leave dry, then press together. It's not permanent but it can be repositioned until you glue it together with PVA glue.

Hope this helps!

[MrTinkerer]

I like the rubber cement idea.

[ThePyroManiac]

I'm glad this helps.

According to the bottle, if you let dry and press together, it's a temporary bond, but if you used it like regular glue and pressed tabs together while wet it's a permanent bond.

Also: excess glue and residue can be erased off the card with a regular eraser.

[tbonds]

If you use the wood glue and let it dry, will it still warp if you put another coat on?

[MrTinkerer]

no

[tbonds]

What's the pudding for?

[MrTinkerer]

it is explained in the painting section

[ssleeper]

Awesome job. Thanks for the info. I will be able to use this on some other projects of mine.
One piece of advice. With all that work you have done take in one step further and make it a real helmet. Look at Helicopter helmets. They are nothing more that what you have made. Your helmets could be much more comfortable and functional with a little more work. Heli helmets are a shell with a suspension system. You could adapt that to your shell and add a chin strap and have a ventilation and a real fit.
If you could design the top of the helmet with the visor cover seperate you could have a functioning visor also.
check out this website for parts http://www.flighthelmetsltd.com/helmetparts3.html
Great work and keep it up. Keep learning always.

[MrTinkerer]

Thanks for the "advice". My helmet is comfortable. The visor works just fine.

[firesirt]

Could you use this for the whole helmet? Such as make a mold from the paper model, and fill it with this?

[MrTinkerer]

Making a mold is another topic and is easier said than done. It should be noted that many 405th veterans started this way first to make the master cop of the helmet. A mold was then created out of that master copy and then "mass produced" using casting resin.

[firesirt]

That was kind of what I had in mind. Make one of these, make a mold from it and use it to cast the resin.

[MrTinkerer]

i'm not at that level of technical knowledge yet.

[firesirt]

You could also use a stencil and paint them on.

[MrTinkerer]

A stencil is actually more work than making a sticker.

[illotrevnollid]

if you spray wd-40 on a paper towel (small small misting) and wipe it on the lens, you wont have to worry about it fogging up, the oil based liquid keeps fog from forming.

[obax17]

You can also use a 50/50 mix of shampoo and water. You can either wipe it on with a cloth, let it sit a second or two, then wipe it off again with a dry cloth, or put it in a little sprayer, like the kind hairspray or body spray comes in, spray it on then wipe it off (I use a scrap of flannel as my cloth because it's nice and soft and won't scratch my mask, but anything soft and lint-free would work). If you're reusing a spray bottle, rinse it well (obviously), or just buy a little travel-sized one from the drug store for a couple of bucks.

I use this for my plastic hockey mask, and it works great. You can also buy anti-fog sprays from sports stores or places that sell eye glasses. I've used that too, and it works just as well; the guy at the sports store told me about the shampoo method as a money saver, which I appreciated because the little bottle of anti-fog spray cost more than my huge bottle of shampoo. It has the added advantage of smelling better than WD-40 too.

[MrTinkerer]

Thanks. I will keep that in mind. I may still install a small fan. It gets hot inside the helmet.

[slawrence2]

is it necessary to use white paint

cause i want to put gears of war symbols on my helmet but can't i use black paint?

[MrTinkerer]

You want to use what ever color paint that is NOT the same as the item you are sticking the sticker on. On the example stickers I made pictured above all the white areas are the parts that the printer did not put ink on. So the white areas actually clear. The clear part I can then spray paint red or blue or silver, or gold or white or yellow or what ever. Once painted then what I have is a color (or white) image on a BLACK background. Use black spray paint and your have a BLACK image on a BLACK background - which makes little sense to me.

If you want a black image, then just draw your design in black (reverse from mine where I colored the background black and drew my images white) and print it out. Skip the spray paint. I dont know what color your helmet is, but if the color is black or very dark consider that a black sticker on a dark background will not show very well.

[slawrence2]

so where can i get transpency film

hobby lobby

office max

walmart

home depot?

does it matter if i want the stickers to be big, not big but medium

i want my gears of war symbols to be black for example:

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/1171/gow3fi8.png

so, after i print it i have to use i have to use a color spray paint like red instead of black

and my helmet is RED AND CHEST ARMOR IS RED AS WELL


and for color stickers, can't I use black spray paint, cause i want this symbol to be red

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090602124448/gearsofwar/images/d/df/Locust_symbol.png

and the other symbol blue

http://www.clker.com/clipart-cog-cogwheel-gear-zahnrad.html

also does it matter if i use satin color: colonial red?

i hope i'm not asking too much

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I'M MISSING

[slawrence2]

so where can i get transpency film

hobby lobby

office max

walmart

home depot?

does it matter if i want the stickers to be big, not big but medium

i want my gears of war symbols to be black for example:

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/1171/gow3fi8.png

so, after i print it i have to use i have to use a color spray paint like red instead of black

and my helmet is RED AND CHEST ARMOR IS RED AS WELL


and for color stickers, can't I use black spray paint, cause i want this symbol to be red

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090602124448/gearsofwar/images/d/df/Locust_symbol.png

and the other symbol blue

http://www.clker.com/clipart-cog-cogwheel-gear-zahnrad.html

also does it matter if i use satin color: colonial red?

i hope i'm not asking too much

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I'M MISSING

[MrTinkerer]

Yeah, walmart, office depot, etc. Just make sure the transperancy is made for your printer type- inkjet or laser. Looking at the images you provided above, just use an inkjet printer and forget the spray paint. just print it in color and stick the double-sided sticky on the printed side.

[Pdub92]

hey dude! If you use fiberglass resin, how long will it take for the fumes to go away? its just that I have a dog, and I don't want him becoming fatally ill. I'm in a different part of my yard fenced away, but AI know the fumes can go anywhere. Should I just keep fido inside while I fiberglass?

Thanks
pdub92

[MrTinkerer]

a couple of hours

[Shadow Of Intent]

Can you resin/glue it in several stages? This would surely stop it from warping or collapsing, so is it just to save time that people do it all in one go?

[MrTinkerer]

many resin in stages. it all depends on how rigid the pep is. Some pieces I resin in stages (torso), some I resin all at once (shoulders). It is also about preference and comfort level when working with resins.

[Shadow Of Intent]

Ahh okay... I meant more along the lines of doing each piece in several stages: For example, resining the visor, allowing to dry, resining the upper helmet, allowing to dry, then the mouth guard, etc.

It seems that would reduce the weight on it, and as most of it would still be dry while the other has resin on, that it would not bow under its own weight.

Best ODST helmet I've seen by the way =D

[MrTinkerer]

thanks. Yeah thats what I meant. For the helmet I resined all at once since the paper form was very regid already. The torso I had to resin in sections - i turned it upside down and resined the shoulder first, waited several hours then resined the rest of it. I did the torso that way because the paper was very floppy when the pep was done. but some parts of the armor are very rigid after the pep is complete and can take a lot of weight.

[IdealL]

Here's a little info on AquaResin. It is only available online for around $60 for a 2.2 pound liquid and a 4.4 pound solid but, it's very strong. It has no odor. The only thing to mix is a non-toxic powder and a non-toxic liquid.The only issue is that you need to know is that it is water based so adding thin layers the first few times is a must. The helmet becomes waterproof once dry.

[Gunnar120]

ODST is the best Helmet by far in any HALO game, I believe. Thank you. I may try this... however... I was going to make a Boba Fett helmet... ran out of cardstock when the computer tried to print out the dome first. (I wasn't actually going to use it anyway)

[wimpiam]

you might try touching up around the visor with some spray paint, maybe make it seem less out of place... By the way this guide has been the best i have seen, i might do this but if i do i will go with the MJOLNER (or however you spell it... you get the idea... (I also think i might try the halo 1 version cause i like the more blocky rigid look...

[DHeigh]

Thanks for the info on epoxy resin. Can I ask your opinion on something I have found:
fiberglas is dangerous and troublesome to work with. The strips I cut tended to fray and unweave when I applied them, and the never seemed to lay flat enough, so I had to sand them after they hardened. The sanding led to toxic glass fibers floating in the air - BAD all around!

So I think I found a solution: Denim. While not as strong and light as fiberglas, it's close. It wicks the resins up just as well, ans no tiny glass fibers to worry about. And it's available in any fabric supply store.

What is your opinion?

[MrTinkerer]

I agree about the fiberglass "dust" being a health hazard. This is why I strongly recommend a respirator. Sanding Bondo and cured resin is also just as dangerous.

Demin sounds like a great idea. People have also mentioned burlap, canvas, and hemp fibers. Please let us know how it turns out.

[Caleastro]

If you don't mind me asking what is the cocktail for mixing the rondo? I'm trying to make some master molds from pepakura and then vacc-form it because I want to make more than one armor . This seems the simplest way to make molds.

[MrTinkerer]

I mix 50/50. But it really depends on what I am trying to do. If I am trying to make a smooth, level surface, then I mix 60% resin 40% bondo. If I am trying to build up an area but need my bondo thinner than peanut butter I do 90% bondo. good luck.

[odivalq]

By far one of the best instructables on Halo Costumes yet.

[MrTinkerer]

Thank you. I should have the torso complete in a few weeks and the arms done a few weeks after that. I have a few "extra features" I am adding to the armor too.