Blue Bantha's 3D Printed MCM Death Trooper

[bluebantha]

Hey guys! My name is Carter, and this is my second thread on the SpecOps forums. I tried a shadow trooper a few years back, but it ended up not being approvable, as it was too small, despite being built correctly. I was recently approved into the 501st legion as an A New Hope Stunt Stormtrooper, and I'm super excited about getting involved! While being denied approval the first time around was disappointing, it opened me up to new costumes that I hadn't considered much prior. Deathtroopers captivated me from the moment I first saw them. Being that I am 6'2", I figured it would be a fun costume to tackle!

Ive worked with resin costumes, fiberglass, and vac formed costumes in the past, but 3D printing is my bread and butter. I started a small business over covid, starting with 1 printer, and now I have 8. It's been incredibly rewarding, and I've learned a TON along the way. While I understand 3D printing certainly has its downsides, I also believe it has many benefits which are often overlooked. While this build will likely be a slow burn, I want it to serve as a tutorial of sorts. I'll go in depth on the slicing and printing processes, as well as all of the work that goes into finishing prints, in an attempt to demystify the work that goes into this. I feel like I don't see too many 3D builds, so perhaps this will inspire others to give it a go.

One of the things I love most about 3D printing is that if you are able and willing to put in the manual labor with post processing, you can save yourself quite a bit of money in the long run. Assuming you have a printer, it can be much more cost effective to print a kit as opposed to buying one. I want to stress the fact that I in no way am I downplaying the incredible  detail of the resin and fiberglass kits on the market and the talent of the individuals offering them. With that said, you can achieve wonderful results with $100 into the files, less than $100 on filament (Elegoo filament is roughly $13.99 a roll), and about $100 towards black paint and SprayMax 2K clear coat.

Enough rambling though. I just purchased the helmet files from MCM, as I feel that that's a good place to start. Ive already began printing the finer helmet pieces in resin on my Phrozen Sonic Mega 8K, and plan to print the rest on my Bambu P1S. Because the P1S is enclosed, ill be using ABS for my kit. It is WILDLY easier to finish than PLA, and will withstand wear and tear, as well as heat, much more effectively. PLA is still a totally viable option, however, if you do not have an enclosure, ABS will be a PITA to print, so keep that in mind if you decide to print a kit of your own. Due to the size of the build plate, I will need to print some of the larger parts in multiple pieces. The forearms, biceps, shoulders, belt pieces will be no problem.

Hopefully some of you feel compelled enough to follow along, id love to meet some cool people on here! Im excited to begin, and am hoping to have some updates on the helmet before the end of the week! May the force be with you all!

 

 

[Chaos[CMD-DCA]]

@bluebantha Carter! Welcome back. I remembered your Shadow Trooper thread and did not realize you were never approved. I look forward to helping you "GML bomb proof" your Death Trooper. As you build it, I recommend that you build to Level 2 standards and get approved at L1 and then turn around and request an L2 look. The Detachment makes that decision. Best of luck and please reach out if you have any questioned.

[DoggyDoc[CMD-DCA]]

Welcome back Carter. 
I enjoyed following your build thread for your TK on FISD and will look forward to following your Death trooper as well. 

[bluebantha]

8 hours ago, Chaos said:

@bluebantha Carter! Welcome back. I remembered your Shadow Trooper thread and did not realize you were never approved. I look forward to helping you "GML bomb proof" your Death Trooper. As you build it, I recommend that you build to Level 2 standards and get approved at L1 and then turn around and request an L2 look. The Detachment makes that decision. Best of luck and please reach out if you have any questioned.

Thanks for rallying behind me, im super excited, and will likely have a lot of questions lol

4 hours ago, DoggyDoc said:

Welcome back Carter. 
I enjoyed following your build thread for your TK on FISD and will look forward to following your Death trooper as well. 

You helped a ton, and it was much appreciated. Thanks for following along!

[bluebantha]

FIrst update-

Happy to report that the first plate printed without any issues! The second plate of greeblies is currently printing. Here's a look at the results:

 

While I have my resin printer going, I also started up my P1S to print the first plate of ABS parts. here's a look at that:

Im printing the ABS parts at a .28 layer height. While for PLA this would be quite high, for ABS it works just fine. It sands quite easily, and printing at a higher layer heigh will allow me to print through the pieces much faster.

Im also going to do my best to accurately calculate how much money is going into this kit, as I mentioned before that it can be more cost effective than purchasing a kit. If you take a look at this image, it's saying that this plate costs $1.64. However, I recalculated it with the accurate filament price, and it nets out to $1.48.

 

[IcyTrooper[CMD-DL]]

Glad you are back again!  

It was a damn shame that your shadow stormtrooper was never approved. I personally didn't find anything wrong with it, but alas I'm just a DL (the GML in me was pissed about that).

[bluebantha]

2 hours ago, IcyTrooper said:

Glad you are back again!  

It was a damn shame that your shadow stormtrooper was never approved. I personally didn't find anything wrong with it, but alas I'm just a DL (the GML in me was pissed about that).

As was I, but it's ok lol. I ended up selling it to help pay for the MTK kit. The shadow trooper was a WTF kit, and I found that MTK fit much nicer. They were acquired by Imperial Surplus, and now pull in black ABS, so im currently saving for a kit!

[bluebantha]

Second update of the day, and I've made good progress!

The rest of the greeblies have finished printing, and here's the second plate:

First two ABS pieces finished printing:

I started the 3rd, here's the plate and the results:

Here's a loose fitting of the 3 pieces:

Finally, I began printing the 3rd plate, which includes half of the back:

Classes finish up on Friday, so Im trying to get as much of this printed as quickly as possible, so I have a project to work on next week! Thanks for looking!

[bluebantha]

Hey friends, a bit of an update, but not the one I was hoping.

 

I had the vast majority of the helmet printed, and took some photos of the glueing process, and even began making some ABS slurry to fill in the gaps. I decided to try fit the rest of the parts together, and see how it fit on me. I have a big ass head, and it was a bit too small. Why I didn't think to check before hand, I'm not sure. Perhaps I was a bit too trigger happy. I learned my lesson. Pro tip- DON'T be like me. Scale the armor before you print it.

I began printing it again at 107% scale. For reference, I have a 24.5 inch circumference head. This scaling will allow it to fit, along with some wiggle room for electronics and padding. 

I began reprinting the greeblies, and reoriented them, so the prints came out a bit nicer:

While the setback sucks, it may have been good timing. While I've been using resin printers for about 5 years now, I never invested in a wash/cure station. Id always wash the pieces by hand, and set them out to cure in the sun. It worked, for the most part, but would sometimes deliver inconsistent results. Last week I purchased a wash/cure station, and it arrived this morning:

Its a bit small, but works for what I need it to do right now.

I started the first print in ABS, which consisted of half of the dome:

I won't be counting my first attempt at the helmet in my price breakdown, however, I will include failed prints, as they are inevitable. The current running total for the ABS parts is $3.65 USD. The second resin plate has started printing, and I will be printing the rest of the dome tonight. Thanks for following along!

[bluebantha]

Hey guys! I finally have an update for the build. The helmet is officially completely printed, and this time, it fits my massive head, so all is well! In addition, I also printed the biceps and hand plates in ABS, both were scaled up to 103%. Here's a peek at the GCODES for the rest of the helmet:

Ok, so, at this point, the grand total in ABS filament for the helmet is $16.60. Here is a photo of all the pieces printed out: 

I began to assemble the helmet, and ran into an issue with the dome. Despite glue on the build plate, an enclosure, and proper support, each of the pieces warped quite a bit. This wasn't evident when they were sitting there, but they did not line up when I went to glue them. Because I couldn't fit the dome in 1 piece on my print bed, I had to use my CR10 to print the dome in PLA. I was reluctant to do this, but I really didnt have many other options. Here is a photo of that: 

This put the total at $23.45, and I am happy to say, it printed correctly!:

Here is a photo of the helmet roughly assembled. This doesn't include the face and greeblies, as these will be finished and painted separately:

I began the post processing work just a bit tonight, and started out with Bondo Body Filler. This is a material used primarily for automotive purposes, and filling dents in vehicles. In 3D printing, we use this to level out rough surfaces, and filling large gaps in the print. It comes in a tub, and includes a tube of blue hardener. The more hardener you mix in, the quicker it sets up. It takes some time to get used to the curing time of Bondo:

I use gloves and a respirator, as it smells quite bad. I use popsicle sticks to mix and apply it to the helmet. I added it to the rough surface on the dome, as well as the joints between the printed pieces. In addition to this, I plan to go back later and reinforce the inside with fiberglass to ensure a sturdy connection:

I really really hate this stuff, but it is often necessary to use. I try to use as little as possible, as it takes a lot of time to sand. With that said, I often go overboard, as Id rather have to sand more than go back and reapply. Im allowing this to dry overnight, and will go onto sanding tomorrow morning. 

 

To those of you who may have worked with these files before, what is used to fill the vents in the back? In the images on the MCM page on cults, they appear to be gilled in, however, the files do not include anything to back them up, aside from a vent greebie for the center. Any guidance would be appreciated!

 

[DoggyDoc[CMD-DCA]]

7 hours ago, bluebantha said:

To those of you who may have worked with these files before, what is used to fill the vents in the back? In the images on the MCM page on cults, they appear to be gilled in, however, the files do not include anything to back them up, aside from a vent greebie for the center. Any guidance would be appreciated!

Great progress so far Carter. 
Anything flat can be used to fill the vents, such as a piece of ABS, or you could print plates to fill them.  If you use something like the subtract feature on blender, you could create a flat plate and use the helmet piece to clip the contacting surface, so it will fit exactly. 

[bluebantha]

Hey all! here's todays update. I started off by sanding the Bondo body filler that I applied last night:

I used a 80 grit sanding pad on my electric mouse sander. This cuts the sanding down QUITE a bit, as opposed to doing it by hand. That said, you need to be careful not to sand one area for too long, as it can cause the plastic to melt. This is more of an issue with PLA though, so if you're using ABS, you should be fine. Just be careful. I then, by hand, used 120 grit sandpaper to knock down any burrs or rough areas left from the 80 grit paper. 

The next two steps can be done in any order, and will likely need to be done multiple times. I used 3 HEAVY coats of filler primer. This is essentially a thickened spray paint. It fills in the layer lines, and helps even out the surface. There are a variety of brands that sell a similar product, but I find the Rustoleum 2 in 1 Filler and Sandable to be the best. It is RELATIVELY affordable, and I find it has a good consistency. Ive worked with other brands, and they seem to be too thin. Here is a photo of the can:

Don't be worried about paint drips during this step, as we are FAR from being done with sanding. Be liberal with your application. Here is the helmet after the primer is applied:

This dries relatively quickly. I left it for about an hour, in the cold at that, and it was plenty dry. I followed up these coats with Bondo Spot Putty. This comes in a tube, and is similar to the consistency of toothpaste. It is sort of a middle ground between the body filler and filler primer, and aims at filling in smaller gouges and seams, as opposed to bigger ones remedied by the body filler:

Old me would have covered the entire helmet in this, but now having done this for a number of years, I find it isn't completely necessary. Going overboard with the spot putty will mean more sanding in the end, and it's a PITA to file this out of detailed parts of the helmet. Once again though, I applied this liberally to the spots that I deemed it necessary to apply. Namely, the top of the dome, the bottom rim of the helmet, and the seams between the 3D printed parts:

The thicker you apply this, the longer it will take to set. If you try to sand it too early, it will become gummy, and mess with your sandpaper, so I'm letting it sit overnight. Thinner layers and warmer environments will speed up this process. Something that has become popular lately is to mix acetone with spot putty in a cup, and brush it onto the helmet with a disposable paint brush. Giving it a runny consistency will allow it to seep into harder to reach lines and areas. Although I haven't attempted it, I would advise against using this method on an ABS helmet, as when ABS is exposed to acetone, it will begin to melt. While the layers of paint on top of the plastic would probably prevent this, id still not try it if I were you.

The plan for tomorrow is to sand down the spot putty and filler primer with wet 220 grit paper. Wet sanding prevents dust, keeps the sand paper from getting gunked up as bad, and in my opinion, creates a smoother and cleaner finish. I wouldn't try went sanding with anything coarser than 220 though, as it is relatively ineffective at that point. Once again, thank you to those who are following along!

[bluebantha]

17 hours ago, DoggyDoc said:

Great progress so far Carter. 
Anything flat can be used to fill the vents, such as a piece of ABS, or you could print plates to fill them.  If you use something like the subtract feature on blender, you could create a flat plate and use the helmet piece to clip the contacting surface, so it will fit exactly. 

I appreciate the advice! I have a bunch of leftover ABS sheets from my TK build, so I will likely use those.

[bluebantha]

First update of the day! As I said last night, today I began wet sanding the spot putty with 220 grit sand paper:

I did this in the sink to prevent a mess outside In the garage. When you're doing this, you want to apply pretty consistent pressure throughout, assuring an even and level surface. The end result will look something like this:

The goal is not to remove ALL of the red putty, rather to get the surface to be even and smooth. Wherever you see leftover putty, there are gouges, scratches, and holes that it has filled. If you zoom into the areas, you can see the seams, layer lines, and some swirly areas from the electric sander. I patted the helmet down with a towel, and let it air dry. Once I was satisfied, I hit the helmet with a layer of gray rustoleum primer:

Once this dries fully, I will go ahead and apply more spot putty to areas that need it, as well as tackle the detail areas with a small file, to help preserve the sharp lines and detail.