Magneto :: X-Men
During the Covid-19 shut-down of 2020. I was briefly an armor / prop maker.
For a short amount of time, I was making for Rebel Mandalorian helmets and Magneto. The character is a powerful mutant, one of a fictional subspecies of humanity born with superhuman abilities, who has the ability to generate and control magnetic fields.
Armor making is a real process, and it gets expensive. First you 3D Print a helmet, then you Mold it in Silicon Rubber, and make a removable shell for it with fiberglass and resin. Then you remove the original, and then make replicas with urethane and fiberglass. see the workshop for a simplified summary of how mold making works.
I used Duplicolor automotive paint in Red, and Duplicolor engine paint in Purple. I actually made a few of these helmets. maybe 6 total.
You have to make them in pairs because the ONYX liquid plastic comes in trail sized bottle which has enough to do exactly 2 helmets. And the Duplicolor automotive spray paint has enough red paint to do exactly 2 helmets.
For a short amount of time, I was making for Rebel Mandalorian helmets and Magneto. The character is a powerful mutant, one of a fictional subspecies of humanity born with superhuman abilities, who has the ability to generate and control magnetic fields.
Armor making is a real process, and it gets expensive. First you 3D Print a helmet, then you Mold it in Silicon Rubber, and make a removable shell for it with fiberglass and resin. Then you remove the original, and then make replicas with urethane and fiberglass. see the workshop for a simplified summary of how mold making works.
I used Duplicolor automotive paint in Red, and Duplicolor engine paint in Purple. I actually made a few of these helmets. maybe 6 total.
You have to make them in pairs because the ONYX liquid plastic comes in trail sized bottle which has enough to do exactly 2 helmets. And the Duplicolor automotive spray paint has enough red paint to do exactly 2 helmets.
The cost breakdown of helmet making:
The mold is an expensive thing to make. This amount of Rebound25 Silicon Rubber costed about $63, and the fiberglass /resin shell around it costed about $40. And after that, each additional cast has a cost also. 1 trial sized ONYX costs about $40, and the multiple cans of spray paint costs about $30. Plus some fiberglass and resin, about $15 worth. So each helmet might cost about $45 to make, plus a percentage of the mold cost. So if I make 4 helmets each one would need to be sold for about $70 to make up the costs and break even. So let’s hope that these 4 sell for $100each, otherwise I’ll be losing money.
The mold can be used a few dozen times, but it won’t last forever. And its only worth making a dozen helmets IF I am able to sell all of them. Otherwise it’s a waste of money to make them.
It’s an expensive hobby to get into. I was fortunate, a prop maker friend got me into it and covered the first box of supplies. Check out ShenWorks IronHammer Props Garage.
I resisted getting into it at first, and i never got good enough to make real money doing it. I didn’t think anyone would want to buy a helmet like this when a similar (cheaper) one could be made from foam. But apparently “collectors” exist, and they want the solid stuff.
I wasn’t a huge X-men fan. I watched the cartoons when I was a kid, and the first few live action movies, but I never loved the franchise. So doing this costume was mostly about me already having easy access to the helmet.
Black outfit, purple cape with a red triangle. i made the cape.
Photos taken at Fanime2023.
The mold is an expensive thing to make. This amount of Rebound25 Silicon Rubber costed about $63, and the fiberglass /resin shell around it costed about $40. And after that, each additional cast has a cost also. 1 trial sized ONYX costs about $40, and the multiple cans of spray paint costs about $30. Plus some fiberglass and resin, about $15 worth. So each helmet might cost about $45 to make, plus a percentage of the mold cost. So if I make 4 helmets each one would need to be sold for about $70 to make up the costs and break even. So let’s hope that these 4 sell for $100each, otherwise I’ll be losing money.
The mold can be used a few dozen times, but it won’t last forever. And its only worth making a dozen helmets IF I am able to sell all of them. Otherwise it’s a waste of money to make them.
It’s an expensive hobby to get into. I was fortunate, a prop maker friend got me into it and covered the first box of supplies. Check out ShenWorks IronHammer Props Garage.
I resisted getting into it at first, and i never got good enough to make real money doing it. I didn’t think anyone would want to buy a helmet like this when a similar (cheaper) one could be made from foam. But apparently “collectors” exist, and they want the solid stuff.
I wasn’t a huge X-men fan. I watched the cartoons when I was a kid, and the first few live action movies, but I never loved the franchise. So doing this costume was mostly about me already having easy access to the helmet.
Black outfit, purple cape with a red triangle. i made the cape.
Photos taken at Fanime2023.
All photos are copyrighted.
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