Cruzer
Well-Known Hunter
Hey everyone. I’ve gotten a few inquiries recently about finishing/painting a cc Jango helmet and it’s dawned on me that I’ve never posted my steps/method. So I created this yesterday for a member and thought it might be beneficial to others. Here’s exactly how I do it after the trials of having finished numerous helmets. I’m sure there are other ways but this is the only way I’ve found to work for me every single time.
I’ll edit it and add more detailed info if any questions arise or anything is unclear. I can also add a few pictures after my next helmet paint up. Hope this is helpful.
Thanks,
Cruzer
I’ll edit it and add more detailed info if any questions arise or anything is unclear. I can also add a few pictures after my next helmet paint up. Hope this is helpful.
Thanks,
Cruzer
- Carefully cut off any protruding small spots (due to mold blemishes, flange, etc) with an exacto knife. Sand lower inside edge around opening to knock down thick spots.
- Drill and cut out the keys and clean with small files.
- Install all ears and drill 1/4” hole for rf bolt.
- Polish (0000 steel wool under cool running water) only areas that will be silver: dome, cheeks, back. Remember that CC always looks dark (non shiny) in the shade, but looks very shiny when light hits it especially in the sun.
- Cut out visor area, clean with files, sand down high spots of visor lip on inside, and install temporary visor to reduce risk of breaking/cracking. This is were I then install a removable visor. However anyone doing a glue-in visor application can cover their visor with easy release blue painters tape and temporarily hot glue in their visor.
- Lightly scuff areas to be painted with 320 grit and tape off all polished areas. I use 3M 1/8” blue nylon painters tape for the mandible curves, 3M 1/4” light green painters tape for the straight parts of the mandibles, and whatever brand I happen to have (usually Duck) of 1/2” tan painters tape around the brim. Then I use easy release blue painters tape to cover anything else and attach the newspaper.
- Paint exposed helmet surface with Rustoleum Royal Blue and let dry for 7 days.
- Lightly sand with 320 grit ear pieces and rf (tape off stalk) and lightly mist with Rustoleum Royal Blue (attempting to apply thick coat is likely to create tiny fish eye spots where the paint won’t stick due to oils in casting resin.
- 2-3 days after the first coat on the ears and rf topper, lightly sand with 400 grit and apply a second and thicker coat of Rustoleum Royal Blue to the ear pieces and rf topper, and watch for fish eyes. Some spots can be smoothed out using the tip of a toothpick or the tip of a very tiny paint brush, and then applying more paint to smooth it out. The toothpick and/or paint brush can also be used to push paint into tiny air bubbles exposed during sanding along edges. Don’t fret too much about a few fish eyes because they can always be blended in with the weathering. I’ve even had the wind kick up tiny dust particles that landed on an ear and just brushed off what I could after drying and blended it with my weathering. All of the blemishes only enhances the “beat up” well worn look.
- Return to the helmet after 7 days and carefully/lightly scuff with 400 grit areas to be painted the lighter blue and tape off dark blue lower mandibles and protruding ear base for rf stalk. Paint exposed areas with Krylon Short Cuts Ocean Blue and let dry for 3 days.
- Use exacto knife to carefully trace tape edge on top of brim (only area that paint seem to always want to pull off from) before slowly removing tape along brim edges. I do not use the exacto knife on the mandibles because it’s just too difficult to trace the curves and the 1/8” nylon tape and 1/4” tape usually always gives me clean edges, but I always pull the tape slowly and in an upward direction. You can always touch up and areas that lifted with a tiny soft bristled paint bush and hide it with the weathering. It’ll just add to the weathered look.
- Remove remaining tape.
- Finish polish the silver areas using dry 0000 steel wool, especially where the tape has left indentations. I usually cut the pad in half to better control where it touches so I scratch the paint as little as possible. Remember that CC always looks dark (non shiny) in the shade, but looks very shiny when light hits it especially in the sun.
- Apply black pin stripes. I prefer to use Cal-Stripes 3/32” black striping that I have to order on the internet, but the 1/8” striping is usually more easily obtained at local automotive place. I apply the 1/4" painters tape just above the brim and then trace a very light pencil line above the tape around the entire helmet. I remove the tape and use the pencil line as my guide to apply the lower pin stripe. Then I apply the upper pin stripe by first positioning it correctly at the triangles with plenty of length to go back to the upper ear base, and “eye-ball” it in relationship to the lower stripe to apply it to the helmet. Anyone who doesn’t trust their “eye-balling” skills could apply the 1/4” green tape above the lower pin stripe and create a second pencil line to align off of for the upper stripe (hope that makes sense).
- Weather as desired. I prefer to use Rustoleum dark grey primer sprayed into a small cup, a small brush, and a crumpled up old soft t-shirt to dab here and there. Good thing about the Rustoleum is that it can easily be removed from the painted surfaces with rubbing alcohol soon after applying it if you don’t like what’s there, and can be polished off of the cc surface with the fine steel wool.
Last edited:
