i will be getting a new goalie helmet (hockey) soon and im looking to airbrush it in the desert MARPAT. looking at the pattern and trying to figure out how to do it is hurting my head.
Obviously, there is going to be alot of masking and different colors, but my question is what is the best way to do it. im assuming that i would want to go with light colors first.grasping how you would go about masking and painting is killing me when i try to visualize the steps.

any explanations on how to do it would be great. when you respond, act like i know nothign so that i can fully understand it

Go online and look up the pattern.

Decide how large you want the pattern to be. Will the squares be the same size as say a helmet cover or larger?

Buy lots of tape, blue painters tape will be good.

Get a steel ruler or straight edge.

Have a piece of glass or mirror handy for cutting the tape.

Choose your type paint, and the shades you want. Remember, mixing your own is fine if you dont need to touch up anything. Straight from the bottle/can is easier. Will what you want to use be compatible with the helmet? Don't compromise the helmet shell by using too hot of a paint. If it can be taken apart the better, otherwise mask the innards.

Paint light to dark. Decide if you want to cover the whole helmet with the light color or just the areas that will remain light.

Paint, dry, tape, repeat. Paint, dry, tape, repeat. Remember all the tape comes off last. Lay out the tape on the glass and cut with a sharp bladed knife and the straight edge. Digie is just squares on squares.

G

Hey Jesse,

Try here:

DuraCoat Firearm Finishes

They have stencils and paints to replicate just about any commercial cammo pattern you can think of.

HTH,

Jesse,
This is actually very easy to do, and Wayne has explained it pretty well. This is called subtractive masking. Instead of masking around the area to be sprayed, you spray the whole helmet one color, then you put down tape squares where you want that color to stay. Then you spray the next color over the whole helmet and put down tape squares where that color should stay. This also allows you to overlap tape squares, so when you peel them all off the digital squares have a layered 3D effect. Keep going until you've sprayed and taped all of your colors and lastly the background color of the helmet, then peel off all the tape to reveal your digital camo helmet.

been working for quite a while on this and still have a lot to go.




cant really see the masking too well, but this is a 4 color digital camo scheme done with desert marpat. the first color is a dark brown, which you cannot see because it has already been masked and painted over. the second color is a nutmeg color which you can see on the helmet. the back plate has had the next color applied over the nutmeg already which is a camo color tan. the final color will be a rustoleam fossil color which is a light tan than the camo tan.

I happen to find a good picture of actual marpat online. so, i printed a few pages out and used them to cut the patterns which i then used to cut the tape. very long process, but it looks much better than trying to create my own

to give you an idea of the size of the masks

Whoo Hoo!

Go man go!

G

finished the back. i think i will incorporate more borwn and tan. the fossil color just isnt looking as good as i expected.

mate thats looking awesome! can't wait to see them finished

finished

Nice!

Mario

Very Nice!

G