# Custom painting helmets



## jzt (Apr 20, 2004)

hi,

I've got a taiwanese made copy of the 661 full comp and since it didn't cost me top dollar and the graphics are ugly as he!!, I'm planning to custom paint it myself. I was thinking of a camo paint job, but after much deliberation (and experimentation), decided that my homemade camo stencils just wouldn't cut it. So anyway i'll be going for a simple drab olive paint scheme instead. (a'la TLD D2 Tank).

I'll sand the surface over with fine grit (800 - 1200) sandpaper by hand, mask the ventilation holes & lining, then use good ol' spray paint (probably 2-3 layers). Does anyone have any experience painting their own lid? Should I remove the rubber lining or will masking tape do? The lining seems to fixed permanently and I'm afraid I might not be able to get them back on again if I remove them. Any advice?

PS: here's a pic of what my helmet looks like (in terms of shape, that is; the graphics are way uglier than the 661) and what I was originally going for.. I found the second pic on www.dylandeandesigns.com. The final pic is the TLD color scheme I curently have in mind. Feel free to post your own custom lids...


----------



## brado1 (Oct 5, 2004)

*Not mine but Still Cool!*

nice paint job


----------



## biketiger (Mar 25, 2004)

This is my helmet. The logo is a decal. The rest is my first attempt at painting a helmet.


----------



## biketiger (Mar 25, 2004)

My friend trusted me to experiment with his helmet. 2nd helmet I've worked on.


----------



## Morda (Jan 25, 2005)

That site would be just a litlle bit too expensive for me. I played with the idea of what I wanted and it came out to a difference between a Race and a World Cup Boxxer. Im better off with a World Cup than with a Race and and a pimp helmet.


----------



## leddder (Oct 24, 2004)

I heard from some friends that painting your helmet decreases its strength, im not sure if this is correct, does anyone know for sure if it does or doesn't?


----------



## biketiger (Mar 25, 2004)

I know it can itf you don't mask it properly. If the foam comes into contact with some types of paint, it can damage it. I doubt that painting the surface of the helmet would cause any problems. JMO. I can't see how it would. I'm curious if any helmet companies have run any studies on the subject.


----------



## justpayme12 (Jan 21, 2005)

dude, u guys inspired me. I am thinking i might paint my helmet army green or tan, somthing that looks burly. Any way, is ther anyway to get a powdercoated look to a helmet w/ out actualy powdercoating it? Or is ther a simple way to powder coat? like baby powder and spray paint?   thanks


----------



## CREATURE (Jun 2, 2005)

Mad Props To You Guys!!! :d


----------



## Hot Butter Topping (May 5, 2005)

I've painted two helmets before and will soon be painting my full facer once I decide which one I want to buy, sadly no pics of past helmets, but I can tell you that there's a few things I would do again, and a few I wouldn't do....

- Primer, do it. After priming, sand the primer as well, but not enough to go through it obviously.

- When you're sanding, step down in grit til you get to something that basically feels like paper, then wet sand

- Can never use too much clear coat.

- Get matte clear coat if you're going to do the drab look. High gloss just isn't Freeride.

- If you mask out a design, do NOT use yellow masking tape.

- If you mask DO use the blue 3M masking painters tape. It's not cheap but it won't stick to your primer so much that it peals it off when you remove it.

- If you're going to going to try to xacto a masked design right on the helmet, use a brand new single edge razor

- If you do the above, you will always gouge your primer until you get the pressure right, so get used to pulling off all the mask, sanding, and starting over, because those scratches look like hell if you don't

- You might want to use a "hard mask". Here's an idea: print out something on the computer onto either printer paper or heavier card stock and then tape it carefully to the helmet

- If you're going to pinstripe use a "pinstripe brush" as it makes a big difference. Tape sucks. Regular brushes don't work.

- Use water-based paints if you can afford them. Tamiya (the model company) makes good paints that won't ruin the pastic shell (assuming it's plastic). Fiberglass is a little tougher and can probably handle enamels.

Anyways, hope that helps. It's useful to have an airbrush or some sort of sprayer to do helmets. If you get it right though it'll kick lots of ass. Remember to sand between layers of clearcoat just to take any grit and imperfections out.


----------



## biketiger (Mar 25, 2004)

I like to use 3M scotch-brite instead of sandpaper. Just a personal preference, though. I like the way the 3M conforms to the shape of the helmet.


----------



## free-rider_down-hiller (Jun 1, 2005)

sweet paint job biketiger


----------



## biketiger (Mar 25, 2004)

Thanks. 

My buddy hasn't even seen it yet. He knows it's done, but hasn't come to pick it up yet.


----------

