3D Printed Ancient One... Spider's Trophies

This year I wanted to add something to the giant spider I got a few years back. I decided to create a back story of an ancient spider and its trophies from past battles with fearless champions. I decided that helmets & weapons throughout history would be a great idea on how to convey the age of the spider. And why not add some heads for fun.

3D printer and filament

Various STL files of zombified heads, helmets and weapons.

Super Glue and Gorilla Glue

PVC pipe

Filler Primer

Acrylic Paint

Airbrush and paint brushes

Spray paint

Screws

Software - Illustrator, Fusion 360, Mesh Mixer

Lots of time

I started this project researching Helmets and weapons from past centuries. All of the helmets I was able to find on the free .STL sites on the web. Granted most will need some sort of alteration to work for this type of project. This would include making them solid and scaling them or dividing them to best fit the printer and print with the least amount of waste. I adjust them in Mesh Mixer to print with as little support as possible, since everything will be glued together with the seams filled and the whole part primed with filler primer. If I couldn't find the part needed, I would model it myself in Fusion 360. Then I would distress it in Mesh Mixer. The Greek sword, pole axe and Japanese blunderbuss are available here. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4862042. I added horns to the Viking helmet for fun even though they really didn't have them. For the German helmet I wanted to add goggle lenses so I designed them using Illustrator, then cut and scored it to look like broken glass with my laser cutter. This could be done by hand with thinner plastic using an X-Acto to cut and score it.

I printed all the helmets and weapons and got the bright idea to add a hole lot of time to this project by printing zombified heads for each. I searched for files and found 5 heads to use. After scaling the heads to the correct size for each hero, I used the Boolean Difference function in Mesh Mixer to subtract the helmet shape from the head. This gives me an exact fit and area for gluing since each part is hard plastic. You can see how the Conquistadors head is cut out where the helmet would be. This step is essential to make the helmet look like it fits the head. I also chopped the top of the head off to save material and have a flat surface to print from. All of the heads were printed upside down using this method.

Since some of these helmets are meant to be hundreds of years old, I needed to paint and weather them. Most of the helmets were painted first before the heads. I started with the base cote for each metal that would have been used. Chrome silver for the knight. Gold and bronze for the Spartan and Samurai, and textured steel for the Viking and Conquistador. And olive green for the German soldier. Adding the rust and patina is a multi-step process. For bronze I start with a darker bronze dappled on wherever it would not have been worn by handling and leaving the bright gold color for the highlights. I then spray it down with a very thin mixture of turquoise paint and water. The will take multiple coats to build up in all the recesses. It doesn't matter if it runs since these are meant to be static trophies that drip in the same place over the years. For the rust effect I start with a darker gun metal color dabbing it with a short bristle brush in a larger area than the rust will be. Then I do the same thing with a burnt sienna color leaving a halo of gun metal around the rust. Any texture can be added using wood filler prior to painting. When it is all dry I use a wash of thin sienna paint and let it fill the crevices and drip down the piece. I studied pictures of weathered metal to help but for the most part I just had fun and tried different things. For the German gas mask I used a crackle medium over a light base color. When dried I covered it with a coat of a brown leather color and the cracks formed. The weapons were handled the same way. I used washes of dark brown and black to give them a grungy look or dry brushed silver on the edges for a worn look.

This is the fun part for me. I use an airbrush but it could be done with a paint brush and washes. First I paint the base color for the skin. These are zombie corpses so anything goes. After the base color and shadow color I use a blue and make a squiggly pattern all over the piece, followed by red in a similar pattern. I turn the air pressure way down and using a contrasting colors like green and yellow I splatter the whole piece. Then after that is dry I go back over it with the base color to mute it down. Here are the steps done in photoshop and a head to show what it looks like. Washes of darker colors where added to highlight the wrinkles in the skin and to simulate liquid oozing out of the head. After everything has dried thoroughly I give them a few coats of matte clear spray paint to seal and protect all the hard work. If they haven't been yet, the heads are glued into the helmets and ready for mounting.

I made sure to have a hole through the heads to accommodate the PVC pike used the mount them. I rendered some iron looking hooks to attach to the pipes to secure the weapons. Each head has a small length of 1.5 inch PVC pipe Gorilla glued into it. Then I cut a slot in a 6 inch piece of 1.5 inch pipe so it would curl more and fit inside the first. this was glued with PVC cement with 3 inches extending out the end. This tail piece could then be inserted into the mounting pipes and screwed through both pieces to secure them in place. The 3D printed hooks were screwed in place and the whole thing was painted with black and brown spray paint to simulate wrought Iron.

I made each pipe 6 inched longer than the last to give it a stair step look. The weapons were secured with wire to the hooks and each pike was attached to a metal rod driven into the ground. We have some strong winds this time of year so I wanted them sturdy. After placing the heads and adding some spot lights, this years project is done. I really hope you like it and that it inspires you to make something yourself.