#4922724
Following up on a mod-in-progress to my Spirit trap, I thought I'd take on a simple activity and do some simple things to some Spirit goggles to make them feel like a more authentic prop. The mod here involves:
  • Repainting the main body an olive green
  • Replacing the molded plastic screws with real hex screws
  • Replacing the top strap rivet with a snap button
  • Weathering everything to look dirty and gunky
First the break down - There were two challenges here: first, I needed to separate the black plastic/rubber back face. This involved gently prying the groove between the green case and the black plate. They are glued together but some prying broke them apart.

Second, with the green case now separated, I could access the underside of the rivet holding the fabric strap on the top. I used a 1/4" drill bit to make quick work of the underside connection and the rivet came right off.
Image

I also wanted to replaced the fake plastic screws with real hex screws. Like with my trap, I used a dremel to sand down the plastic - there are 12 locations in all. The result wasn't as perfect as I'd like but I figured that the new screws and some weathering will make any plastic imperfections in these areas blend in.
Image

Next came the paint. I masked off anything on the main case body that wasn't green. The out-of-the-box green of the body is way too saturated and has some cheesy silver weathering on it - clearly done with quick silver dry paint brush strokes. I wanted to give it a drab olive green color.
Image

After painting, I drilled holes for some hex screws. I picked hex screws from the hardware store that were about the same size as the original plastic pieces. I also picked ones long enough so they could be used to attach the back plastic plate. This worked quite well and no need to re-glue anything in the event that I want to break things down again or access the electronics later.

I also installed a snap button connection using some snap buttons I found in the leather aisle at a Michael's craft store. This was a bit tedious to install as I needed to balance the goggles on a corner of my work table and hammer the metal snap assembly together. I also glued on a leather piece to the strap fabric to make the top have a more finished look.
Image

With everything back together, it was time to gunk this thing up. I used a mix of black and dark brown acrylic paint mixed in with some water. I brushed it on to the green case and started wiping down everything with a shop rag. I repeating this a few times until I got to a sufficient "goop level". I also hit the edges of the hex screws and parts of the lens cases with a silver Sharpie marker and rubbed in the marker with my finger to give them a nice weathered look.
Image

And the finished piece (without decals/stickers)...
Image

In all this was a low-cost cosmetic investment on a Saturday afternoon and really gives the Spirit toy a far more authentic look and feel for a GB costume.
jpetrutis81 liked this
#4923127
Here are a few shots of the finished piece on an overcast day on my front deck. I used the standard stickers that came with and scuffed them up a bit to fit in a bit more with the weathered look. I also added some additional foam around the edges since I didn't feel that the stock rubber was comfortable enough. The the extra foam really makes these things fit nice and comfortably.

Image
Image
Image
Kingpin liked this
#4923758
Thanks all - I'll probably not be doing much else to them for accuracy at the point. I'm happy where they ended up with an afternoon's worth of effort with some paint. If I ever go a step up, it'll be with a kit.

For now, they are quite the upgrade from my quick-and-dirty $5 chemical goggles with PVC :)

    Correct, it grants several in fact the Melody's […]

    Are they just newspaper clippings or something? […]

    If you check the post below from reddit, one of […]

    got a link? It appears that some time today[…]