HDPE helmet

The second helmet replica I ever attempted was a TE HDPE kit.
At the time TE was well known for what he was, but many people couldnt resist trying a real HDPE helmet kit.
Sure it wasnt the right color and the origin of it was dubious (the SFS helmet which was scanned but never cast as he claimed), but at the time nobody had yet offered a helmet for sale in that material.

Here it is unpainted next to my first helmet, a TE2

If any of you reading have worked on an HDPE kit, you know getting paint to stick to it is a huge problem. You have to get the trick right.
I certainly didnt the first time I painted the white on.

Here is a horror show for you. Not for the weak stomached!



The paint I had used (I dont remember the brand now) had cracked and peeled off in large sheets every time the helmet was flexed. Now even a properly painted HDPE helmet can have the paint scratched off of it, just like the originals, but this was too out of control.
In the picture I had already started to scrape it off with my fingernails so I could start new.

Yeah, I got one of TE's HDPE SFS helmets too. I was so disappointed with the softness of it and the poorly trimmed ears... and hearing all these horror stories about painting one of these, I gave it away soon after.

My honest belief is that only the face was from the SFS and the back and cap was the Brian R one, just sharpened here and there, but still soft on mine, as the face was always looking too big for the rest, which comes from forming on a mold that wasn't taken from the inside of a helmet.

Did you get it painted up fully after the first failed attempt?

Too Much Garlic wrote:

Did you get it painted up fully after the first failed attempt?

I was wondering the same thing a bit of a cliff hanger.Great storys on the HDPE .I also have a TE HDPE (Boy he shifted a few of these helmets back in the day ) I used Krylon Fusion for mine with no primmer ,then poped it on a shelf,been there ever since.

Yeah sorry about the cliff hanger. I was going to finish out the story but I got sidetracked by other hobby related things mid-post if you can believe it!

The story does have a happy ending. Well, I wouldnt go that far maybe... But it has a better ending than leaving it all in pieces.

I did get a paint to stick to it reasonably well in the end after one more failed attempt. I believe I used an Auto paint called an acrylic enamel. Not really sure what that means...

Here it is all painted up.
I am not really proud of the paintjob. It was only my second time building a helmet and I didnt get to the level I wanted.

Plus I didnt paint the teardrop areas large enough. The odd ghost lines you get with the HDPE threw me off a bit.



As much as I hated the HDPE stuff to paint, it was fun to be able to take the ears off and have the right effect.


Like firebladejedi I wanted to do an accurate interior, something unheard of then and not common even now.
I thought it was pretty cool but when I first showed it off, nobody commented on it.

And now the natural conclusion of the story.
The TE HDPE helmet just didnt suit me.

The paint still easily cracked, the pull still wasnt great, the plastic still not the right color.
I was happy to get it out of my hair and not worry about more paint coming off every time a friend picked it up to look at it.

Here are some of the problems areas it developed before the end.






This concludes the varied history of my experience with HDPE in the past.
Up next, its a bright new future with my Gino V3.
The Gino helmet is a much better pull, much less flimsy, and I have gotten much better at making paint stick to it.

Cool story. I did up 3 of these and got rid of all of them. The whole recast and badly warped
parts didn't cut it for me. They just look bad no matter how good they were made. Your interior shots are nice btw. I've nearly finished my v3 as well. While still not perfect they are 110% better than Matts efforts. Nice finish job you've done though.

Look forward to seeing your v3 Keegan and yours Ben , i have preety much completed my HDPE v3 hopefully get some pics posted up tonight , i used the same paint as Pete the krylon fusion with no primer needed and Pete tiped me to lightly wet and dry the surface of the hdpe and make sure it was completley clean and dry before spray painting and i must say the paint has stuck really well and i have just chipped it where i want it . do like your TE HDPE keegan , luv the intrior.

Turned out nice. But HDPE certainly isn't for me.