Electroplating 3D Prints | Helmets Tutorial 1

[@UncleJessy]

This was such a wild video! You absolutely killed it!

[@Cyberdactyl]

Indeed. A wild ride.

[@TheHoody999]

Agreed Uncle Jessy. Would love to know the cost !

[@limebulls]

@@TheHoody999 i too

[@blootooth00]

​@TheHoody999 Well, the best I can find Copper Electrolite online is about $120/gallon, and I think that tote he used is about 12 gallons.... so ouch. In addition, the powersupply is probably about $90, the helmet is about $5 in materials, the paints are around $25 (definitely more in the long run), the palladium is about $30, an airbrush is about $40, the clamps/brushes are about $40, and the rotary setup probably cost about $25 for wire servos and switches, and the copper sheets about $20. I'm thinking for the base setup, with a gallon of copper sulfate, it's about $300 to get everything you need (not including the 3D printer). But for this video, we are probably looking at about $1,500 investment, unless he has a better chemical supplier, which I certainly hope so. Source: I'm thinking about investing in a small electroplating setup.

[@TechArtAlex]

I would love to see a video covering the different metals options, example finishes they offer and other characteristics like durability to help choose materials for projects. You have the best results I've seen from those attempting this.

[@hen3drik]

Good idea

[@DimensionMachine]

Looks like a crazy amount of work. The end result looks equally amazing. Nice work, you clearly have a ton of skill, and patience as well!

[@glennedward2201]

He would easily get $1200 for a helmet like that. Had he wanted he could have kicked out 20 in the same time with a little assembly process. Considering he made a one of kind theres far more value.

[@TheSupertecnology]

I would protect the finish with either some lacquer, or even better, ceramic coat the 💩 out of such a nicely done metal finish.

[@butterfinger4393]

I'm not even sure how lacquer would adhere to the smooth surface

[@TheSupertecnology]

@@butterfinger4393 Did some testing over stainless steel with automotive ceramic coating. It works wonders. Nevermind the lacquer, it would most likely peel off.

[@nazaxprime]

Actually, depending on what you're doing, I'd suggest waxes. There is a ton of color control that goes into in producing a patina on sculptures.

[@WestBerlinCustoms]

Großen Respekt für die im gesamten Prozess steckende Arbeit - speziell das Schleifen und Polieren! 👍 Das Ergebnis spricht aber für sich! 🤘

[@hen3drik]

Vielen Dank!

[@hcpookie]

One thing I have done in the past to reduce the volume inside the bigger tank is to use empty glass jars which takes up space in the tank so you don't need as much solution. I used pickle jars, and the tank was low enough that the mouths of the jars were above the surface of the liquid.

[@glennedward2201]

You could just fill them with concrete

[@filgiupo4853]

@@glennedward2201 concrete is brittle, could ruin the liquid and it may not be usable again.

[@SimoWill75]

He means fill the jars with concrete.....

[@jbischof71]

My god. What a beautiful process to watch. Props to anyone out there that actually attempts this

[@hen3drik]

Thanks!

[@nicbahn]

Ich suche seit Jahren noch genau so einem Video. Die Videos die ich bis jetzt über das Thema gesehen habe hatten immer keine schönen Ergebnisse oder Ergebnisse wo man sagen würde, da sollte man sich eher einfach doch metallerne Sprühfarbe holen, aber das hier wirklich fantastische Arbeit, vielen Dank!

[@HawkWorley]

Most epoxy resins are way safer than polyester resins, and they work just as well. Whenever I fibermat or reinforce a print, I use a 2 part epoxy (normally SmoothOn 300) and have great results. Great outcome! They helmet looks great!

[@hen3drik]

Thanks for the info! I‘ll try this next time.

[@Hellsong89]

@@hen3drik Try you local shipmaker/shipwright/guy who works on smaller wood and composite boats. They usually buy it in 200liter drums as non UV protected variant, so its dirt cheap comparing to say Total Boat products. I got mine from local guy for 30€/liter of ready product, where total boat seems to be 90€/liter plus taxes and imports over here. Since you will be putting paint on top anyways its irrelevant how well it handles UV. Been doing this on my own crafts and it seems just layer or urethane lacquer is giving good protection. Hell just CA glue layer does the work based on objects that have been in sunlight in north for a year so far. Next to no off gassing compared to polyester resin so way pleasant to work with.

[@sos.gamers]

why not just use a iron solder and melt the plastic or just drop melted plastic to solder both parts? i always do that cuz is easy, fast and provides a strong bond

[@owuzuwo]

I never thought that you could electroplating a 3d printed object,thanks for the ideas bro... It's a long process but worth trying 😄

[@BrodieFairhall]

Plating something so large is extremely challenging and you absolutely nailed it! Incredible surface finish! If only I knew you could buy galvanic pens a few years ago 😅

[@hen3drik]

Still mean, you have to have four hands to work as fast as lightning. Electrolyte is acidic and copper oxidizes and so on and so.. thanks Brodie

[@BrodieFairhall]

@@hen3drik yeah there is definitely a reason I don't pen plate or brush plate often at all (and I stick to cheap(ish) electrolytes that I can fill a 20L tub with).

[@CaptnChardonnay]

What a brilliant result. I love this. Well done!

[@coregeek]

This is so awesome. Loving this series of electroplating props!

[@Damjanhd]

great man. I love to see people creative

[@speckbar1660]

Krasser Effekt, hätte nicht gedacht, dass es so toll wird. Tolles Video, einen Like und mein Abo haste.

[@LBCAndrew]

You can save a ton of time by using bondo, applied with a flexible plastic/rubber scraper in small sections since it hardens fast. If you put it on too thick, use a very sharp tool like a good chisel to shave the bondo once it hardens enough where it's not sticky. You gotta movce quick to remove excess before it fully hardens, otherwise you'll be doing a lot of sanding.

[@jaimemartinez8533]

Bro, you're a master! Congrats!!

[@jamesg2382]

Wow this is a really great result. I tried electroplating my sculptures and never got close to the quality shown here. The palladium pen coating is a great alternative to Nickel. Well done. Very well explained/documented and really impressive outcome.

[@hen3drik]

Thank you for your kind words!

[@PCPointerDE]

Yes because the surface on sculpts can be difficult to rework with sandpaper. So it will be not so glossy

[@thorjohnson5237]

Much more expensive... but I suppose much less bio-reactive? Nickel plating bath is easy to make and not very toxic... I used it on my water-cooled rig because a liquid-metal heatsink compound will just eat copper over time...

[@thorjohnson5237]

@@PCPointerDE I'd be tempted to try ABS with an acetone vapor polish. Sanding my car took wayy too long...

[@Jonathan-ex3sl]

Wow amazing work!!!

[@kurtlindner]

Great job! It looks amazing! You're one of my favorite channels to see a new upload from. Great way to end the year!

[@hen3drik]

Thank you, happy new year!

[@olafbreuer8129]

Well, seems the risk, the money and the time was absolutely worth it! Congratiulations from a maker.

[@jayziiDE]

In Northern Germany we say Moin and i think its beautyful 😂👌 FIRE Video!

[@felipecarl1415]

That’s absolutely 10/10!!

[@SchwartzMonster]

Looks fantastic. I recently did a boba fett helmet and found pre tinted visor and air soft helmet pads worked great

[@hen3drik]

Where‘d you found that pre tinted visor?

[@elijahhudgins7579]

I’ve used Hobart face shields before for my Mandalorian helmets, they have a nice tint to them, and don’t have a dark green tint like a lot of other tinted face shields

[@Ast3rixMusic]

Wow that was cool!! Alot of work but amazing!!!

[@emildimofte6538]

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🧢💫🧢💫🧢💫🧢🏆🧢🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🎓🎓🎓🎓🎓🙏👍🙏👍🙏👍🙏👍🙏💯💯💯💯💯💎🛸💡🛸💡🛸💡🛸💡🌐🌐🥏🎧🧢🎧🧢🎧🧢🎧👏💫👏💫👏🎓🏆🎓🏆🎓🏆💯👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍💯🏆📢🏆💯🏆

[@diklongley01]

wow!! Thank you for going through the process. Very clear and well produced.

[@chemicalvamp]

very well done brother!

[@nodrug2]

Really nice job and finish. Congratulations!

[@Seagull425]

I plan on doing this to sell high quality cosplay props, thanks for the indepth tutorial.

[@smellslikeupdog80]

man that looked great.

[@artmellowsculpts]

Wow ! Did we have to learn electroplating after just managing to learn resin printing ? 😢

[@bschwand]

Use a scraper instead of sanding. It gives a very slick, fine finish and removes material much quicker than sandpaper. It also does not heat the surface like sandpaper.

[@hen3drik]

I‘ll try. Do you have a link, I’m not sure if I got what you meant exactly.

[@billdberger7407]

Try those fingernail file boards for sanding, the foam blocks can be useful as well. They're cheap and gentle enough that it's not so easy to make a big mistake.

[@emildimofte6538]

BRAVOOOO MAESTRO!!!!!!!👏🎓👏🎓👏🎓👏🎓👏🎧🧢💫👏🙏💎🙏🛸🛸💡🎓📢📢💯🌐🥏🏆💯🏆💯🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

[@DenisWilsonSouzaRosa]

That was pretty good! I'm struggling right now with the conductive paint getting stuck on the airbrush. Looks like mine thinner isn't reacting with the paint. I will try this one that you are using.

[@Wayne_Nero]

Amazing work! Looks great, i would like to try this…

[@CMDRBlueeagle66]

Not for mere mortals, but that is some amazing work 👌

[@devilmay]

can i just say though, the copper helmet was sexy!

[@jehuty3285]

Wow ein überragendes Ergebnis und Hut ab!

[@glennedward2201]

Ahaaha this guys my hero 😮😂

[@Ataraxia_Atom]

You would need less electrolyte solution if you used something inert to take up volume inside the tank. I don't know enough about electroplating to say what could be used but we do the same thing in our sinker edms, maybe filled water bottles? Anything that takes up volume will not need to be filled with the solution.

[@edwarde1898]

You are right, although a bit difficult to insert bottles in this setup. Following the Archimedes principle, the volume of the fluid displaced is equal to the volume of the object immersed. In my case, I want to plate sculptures that are closed, so although the surface area may be large, and comparable to Hendrik’s helmet, the volume of my sculptures would require considerably less electrolyte.

[@starshinewindlord2716]

There's definitely a place in this where we can see you had to work fast. What sort of other projects did you work on where you practiced to become fast enough to manage this? In any case I am super impressed and I've happily subscribed, I'm going to love seeing your other videos.

[@hen3drik]

Thank you!

[@bonarhya25146]

wow!! that is amazing

[@rhymecypha]

This is the way

[@KreatifJunior17]

I love this Progress, i want it !! Please make some Daft Punk helmets sir

[@sundance2005]

Looks easy in a video but I am sure there is a lot of time put into it, especially the sanding part.

[@3dhelpdesk]

Wow! Insane!

[@neilus]

Amazing...nice to have $10k worth of toys in your workshop, but still, very impressive!

[@alf3071]

wow this looks amazing

[@JeffAntonucci]

Very impressive - thank you for sharing this. I want to try it some day.

[@richardsurey6167]

@CNCKitchen needs to do some strength tests on this

[@extendoduck]

If you brush a thin layer of resin on the workpiece before applying the fiberglass cloth, it's easier to avoid bubbles and fully saturate the cloth for the best adhesion. Excellent work.

[@petriepretorius4085]

AWESOME!!! you make plastic look like baskar steel...i want to build my nephew one like it!

[@DNomer]

Pretty impressive. Lotsa work!

[@JLikesStarWars]

Not sure where you got this helmet file, but the finish is something I have never seen on a 3d print. Well done!

[@olafb.2929]

It looks awesome. A really nice project. How many hours did you spend sanding the helmet? Btw. the copper already looks awesome!

[@hen3drik]

The copper layer is actually the best :-). Took 6-8 hrs, I guess. Listened to podcast that time, so that was fine..

[@olafb.2929]

@@hen3drik Good idea. I suppose you made a break in between? The result is mind blowing!

[@rum28]

Wow! What a great video and helmet!

[@pangrac1]

Amazing and so inspiring. Now I want 3D printer even more! 👍

[@legionjames1822]

my advice would be either go CHEAP just to get familar, see if you actually use it and what not. Or if you KNOW you will spend the 600 to get something that will at least print petg when your ready to step up to a harder to print material than PLA

[@Crcvmbdfl]

Amazing, can you do Monster Hunter Rise Shields tutorials?

[@TheCharlesChen]

I came looking for instructions but I draw the line at electroplating.

[@zedabyu]

I've always wondered about the process of electroplating and now I am sure I will never attempt it LOL. Thanks for sharing your process anyway 😆

[@tarotakeru9995]

Hallo! Dies ist das erste Video von Dir was ich mir angesehen habe und es hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Da Du ganz offensichtlich ein Nordlicht zu sein scheinst und Deutsch sprichst, würde ich mich freuen auch etwas deutschsprachigen Content von Dir zu sehen, da mein Englisch nicht gerade das Beste ist ;-). Ich bin mir natürlich bewusst, dass die dahinterstehende Absicht mehr Reichweite/Abo's sein wird ... aber Leute denen es "sprachlich schlechter" geht müssen auf Deine Videos dann verzichten ;-) . Wie dem auch sei - mach weiter so, ich werde mir sicher noch mehr von Dir anschauen. Gruß vom Rhein!

[@BOTmaster15]

when connecting 3d printed parts, just use 3D pen. It's like welding but with plastic. Most of the time you will get much stronger connection than the part itself.

[@afrakes4510]

Dude, u are awesome! Love the personality! I'm not sure I'm ready to get into chemicals yet. I would have to kit the whole " I have poisons in my hobby space" thing. But man, I want to get into this! I NEED a Mandalorian suit for emergencies!! Also, this can have huge implications for my 3D prints and their marketability. Do you have thoughts on First Surface Mirroring?

[@nikushim6665]

As cool as electroplating is, its really overkill for this. Movie prop wise mirror finishes are done with chemical silver plating. Which is a two part spray on version of tollens reagent, which is then followed with a clear coat to prevent oxidation. For example Phasma's suit was done in exactly this method. While things such as Din Djarin suit were not plated at all, it was just resin cast and air gunned with Alumaluster (Bit pricy for a hobbyist though)

[@djknucklez1]

Amazing work but for all that I rather spend the $131 the Black Series Hasbro helmet.

[@hen3drik]

Legit!

[@NateThurlow]

You know a Copper Mandalorian helmet goes kinda hard

[@jublywubly]

That looks incredible! :o

[@Alex-zw7fc]

Wie krass aufwendig aber das Ergebnis ist super.

[@traumhobby]

Das hast Du aber mal nice gemacht 🤙ich kleb' Dir mal nen Abo an. Gruss René

[@MadeBySloan]

Absolutely amazing. Looks like I need a bigger benchtop power supply ;p

[@druNkwriter]

Buddy, you're a frigging mad genius. That was some hardcore makery but the finished piece: holy smokes! You can't cheat perfection. WOW. The final finish was jaw dropping. Thanks so much!

[@bzakie2]

Glue it with acetone and it will stay stuck forever.

[@creative-stuff]

A lot of work! Great job and thanks for sharing. I’ll be adding your channel to my My Channel’s Featured Channels list. Cheers!

[@pepepimpon]

I loose it at the palladium part, cant you point where to know more about it? Amazing work btw

[@UnclePhil]

Erstmal bei tifoo die Bude leer gekauft

[@ДмитрийФролов-г7ш]

Amazing job!!!

[@PeterKNoone]

Amazing work! I want one!

[@willieow3298]

Amazing !!!!

[@AlphAndroiD]

Fire 🔥

[@HobbyBench]

This is great, Amazing job! Although I wonder if it would be cheaper with a similar effect to use something like Born Chrome finish or AlClad with similar results. Either way, Amazing job

[@PeterTremonti]

We definitely need you to make a pet bottle recycler. No one explains how the thickness or height of the strip changes the output of the hot end. Does it even matter? This was on the list of things I'd like to build next as I have spare printer parts and lots of plastic bottles.

[@PCPointerDE]

Linking to the different products which were used would be nice. I don't mean the sandpaper ;)

[@ARManiaxd]

awsome work

[@hen3drik]

Thanks!

[@extectic]

You really needed a bigger print plate, would have simplified the start of the project to just push print and out comes a helmet. But I'm still in awe of the end result here.

[@hen3drik]

Yes, you‘re right

[@KenzoAkihiro]

OMG!👏👏👏👏👏

[@mohammedkhesroh6999]

With this type electro plating, does the printing become resistant to heat and to some degree water? I wonder if this allows protection for the interior that one can make a daily wearable object like a necklace for example? Truly wonderful work

[@hen3drik]

Yes, it basically a metal coating with all its physical properties. A delicate coat of 200um to be precise.

[@Captain_Maeve]

Looks fantastic. I'm making my own helmet of samus from metroid prime. It won't look as nice and shiny as this but I've found for comfort creating a crown like tpu headband like inside builders helmets helps to stop it spinning about and place my eyes in the right place.

[@hen3drik]

Good idea, I had worn the leftovers from the face shield on top of my head 😅

[@hawaiianrobot]

what acidified copper sulfate solution were you using? you could probably just buy it as a powder, add acid to the solution until you get the desired pH. if I can get ahold of an SDS sheet or something, could ghetto up a recipe for you, see if we can't get the production costs down for you. edit: should also say it's looking very very nice, all the prep work you do definitely makes a difference! just whenever anyone is doing electroplating stuff, my brain switches straight into electrochemistry research lab mode

[@zRedPlays]

probably how they made the actual one in the movie

[@skywardsoul1178]

Just a heads up that there's something called "spray putty" that's even thicker than high build auto primer. It requires a normal primer afterwards, but I've found it to be quite excellent. I only needed 2 coats when printing at 0.1layer heights to get a nice smooth finish. When printing a helmet with 0.3 layer height, I found smearing flexible auto body filler thinly across the layer lines was better, as the auto filler primer just didn't have the mass to fill even after many, many coats and tens of hours of hand sanding. Amazing helmet, looks fabulous.

[@hen3drik]

Alright, i‘ll try that stuff next! Thanks!

[@skywardsoul1178]

@@hen3drik Forgot to mention, the brand I've used is called Motip. I think it's a European company, so should be available.

[@hen3drik]

@@skywardsoul1178 i just looked it up. It says spritzspachtel and that’s exactly what my stuff say as well. I have to say that it also builds up a big layer.

[@demonkinglamb636]

I would have used a smooth cast to reinforce the seams. Instead of fiberglass and resin. It's also less toxic. Doesn't have much of a smell either. Oh yeah don't poor chems down any drain. The city waterworks can trace it exactly to which drain it came from. Someone at my job didn't think pouring 15% concentrate Hydrochloride acid was a big deal. Until the business was fined $2 mill and the city had to replace 3+ miles of piping. Just in case anyone wanted to know why you can't pour chems down drains.

[@tobias-lars.hoeher]

wow, it is so amazing and very cool what you do.

[@Jpanic00]

dieses trockene MOIN :D :D D i love it

[@noviceartisan]

Wow, that's incredible dude! ^_^ Came out beautifully xD I've been slowly oversaturating my baths so that I generate an excess of solution, then removing and diluting it back to stable, in order to generate enough solution to do huge builds like that ^_^ I dare not ask how many litres you bought to fill that haha :) I just joined the FDM club (after 4 years of resin printing) so I'l finally be making your rotating jog (forgot the name lol) once i've got the neccessary basic upgrades all installed and calibrated Happy New Year dude!

[@hen3drik]

Oh, I need to dilute on of my baths, too. How do you do it?

[@noviceartisan]

@@hen3drik I have a primary bath that's got around 20l in it now(i keep track badly lol really should monitor it better, but my goal is making more so it's no worry). When I drive it to oversaturation (i do an inverse method, and starve the pieces been plated, only use approx 1/10th of the surface area submerged at once and very constantly adjust it once it's dissolved into the bath, this has the effect of working well, but also eventually oversaturating it) I just remove approx half of it to another container, then add the same volume of deionised water to each. That gives me double the total solution. I then test the PH of the solution and add some sulphuirc acid, leave stirring for 10 mins, then measure. Once it gets to around 0.4-0.7ph then I just add a few capfulls of the leveling agents and brighteners. They don't cost that much when bought in bulk, I use Gateros Plating here in the UK for my supplies, but I think Tiffoo have similar agents to add to baths to maintain them. I've experimented with various methods of making the solution, and to try develop brightening agents of my own. No remarkable successes to report as of yet, but I'll keep playing with stuff I find in academic papers and patents till I get a solution that I can share. I'm aiming to find something that's both cheap and effective, but also with stuff that's easily sourced. Will share freely if/when I do suceed.

[@philipp594]

I wish it was lighter and could have a proper mirror polish. Maybe by reducing the wall thickness and adding more foam.

[@MW-ZUCKER]

Klingt wie nen Deutscher, mach doch deutsche Videos. Brichst dir nicht so die Zunge bei.😁

[@1gadi]

solltest sowas auch auf deutsch machen ^^ , obwohl ich der meinung bin das die meisten nicht so eine werkstatt haben wie du :-)

[@rochesterjudo4330]

This is incredible, I've been trying and failing at this for a few months. I'm curious what electrolyte brand you're using and how you avoided makes from the wires, aka "rack marks"

[@hen3drik]

I mostly use tifoos stuff. Ahh, the rack marks, I have these, a lot! I try to avoid these by constantly moving the wires. Then I usually sand away these marks. I got rid of the vertical lines when a lot of copper is deposited by constantly moving the parts. I will set up an air bubble system to get even more motion in the bath.

[@rochesterjudo4330]

@@hen3drik thanks, I'm using a bubbler and have also tried a magnetic stirrer. Really not sure at this point what I'm missing. I'm getting a lot of artifacts on the prints, even though they are sanded super smooth, and th deposition is not consistent, especially near the wires (though I'm using one big copper wire and not lots of small ones so maybe thats a big part of the problem. been using MG chemicals nickle conductive paint. Back to the drawing board I suppose.

[@hen3drik]

@@rochesterjudo4330 i get copper crystal at sharp edges and points. „Shield“ these with copper wire.