This topic has been split from a previous thread.

I mention on page 5 and after that when I say clearcoat it is the wrong term as I am British and it should be lacquer. I have picked up the American way of saying things but the 2 things are different although similar.




I If you look in another thread in which this one was prompted, it was myself who clearly said the ESB domes, Could not be considered the same as the ROTJ domes, as the Jedi domes have been cleaned up, so they are obviously unique in their own right, an ESB dome does feature in Jedi however but it is too brief for consistancy..

It was NOT just a glossy paint job seperating the two. In Fact, the ROTJ dome sees less clear coat than ESB. Clearcoat only exsists on a few scenes but the majority of the ROTJ dome is NOT clear coated throughout the movie. The ESB, much to some people's surprises IS clearcoated. An unknown fact that most dont know, many just think it is polished and painted gloss black. The ESB Stunt is painted in the same fashion and if people think there are scenes which are not clearcoated in the duel, it is simply down to light. If anyone went to the exhibit and saw the PA stunt they would know this. Please do the research to confirm if doubtful.

And naturally the position the dome sits is very different to ROTJ.

I then asked Mac to start a thread with a few comparisons as his photoshop skills are superior to my own.

If there was agreement all along this would of been a short thread, so I believe a difference between others have surfaced.

Paul, none of the props used clearcoat in the OT.

The stunt has clearcoat

Agree to disagree.

Well I personally examined it hands on and there is no doubt about it.

Thats not to say the heros...or some of the heros did or did not have it, but if one helmet in the OT had it then you have to wonder which of the others had it.

So not to start an argument, but I'm just saying....

Gino, I could show you plain as day with just simple screen caps. Please recheck ESB. If you know what paint was used and how it was achieved it is obvious.

Additionally, I have used the paint and it is far harder to achieve the high gloss of ESB without using clear. You can get a close match but I have studied the look in depth and done the research. Unfortunately I am not able to share further but it's there. The dagobah helmet is the only ESB to not have clear as far as I know. The hero's and stunt do.

You can even catch the clear in the much darker carbon freeze.

There are a few screen caps, such as Vader talking to Luke on the SD, that look dull. That is an illusion. I can take some pictures of my own Vader and a few shots look like it has no clear. I put the work in figuring this out and as Mike said he has handled the prop and if he was able to share it is crystal clear.

The Clapperboard dome and other promotional/screen stuff are often looking dull and not clearcoated by way of pictures I can not comment on those other than taking an educational guess of wear/tear, lights etc. I'm focusing mainly on 1978-79 and what we see on screen.

All the OT helmets were polished gloss paint. The only time you see a less glossy dome is when it had dulling spray on it, which is easily removed.

Nothing I say is going to convince, and I don't want to argue, just to note my position which I feel extremely confident about.
Again, agree to disagree.

Gino were not arguing as far as I know, so dont worry. We can either agree to disagree. Or Each of us could prove what we believe without exposing information which is entrusted with us.

I'm all for having a civil, informative thread to clear this up.

You can even see it in my avatar .

We can grind gears for post after post, but nothing is going to come of it.
People can decide what to believe and when they make their stuff, one will look correct and one won't, just like with everything else.

I disagree. Debating often gives knowledge to others. This is not a fight or anything, more of an education on our hobby. That is not meant to sound patronising BTW, just my view.

Not that this is going to prove or solve anything, but here is a pic of the Jeff ESB helmet that I sold to JB.
No clearcoat, but glossy as hell.

Yes, in pictures mine looked the same when I did not use clear as well but there is a difference. Not to say you are a causal observer, but a similar look can be achieved and most wont notice. I didn't just say this on a whim. It took a massively long time to paint 2 different ways and research the whole thing which was very tedious.

Again, even though different paint has been used on yours, my avatar ESB is a different look. Even the smallest picture shows this.

Just the quickest of examples. A different look than yours. Even the behind the scenes pictures from ESB show the same shine. So it's not just all the lights, camera action etc..

The main difference is the richness in the black under the clear comes out more and you can see yourself in the dome (for example) far better than you can without clear. Which will look similar without,but the richness of black, although can be achieved to almost the same level is not as prominant. as seen in the example I just posted. Even in the Black and white pic with Vader and Kersh, you can see the shine.

Wouldn't you say the stunt looks like the Hero in terms of colour?

I don't mean to come across like a Moderator in crying "Off Topic", but Carsten once said that if I began a thread and people were going off topic, I had the right to say so.

So with all due respect, this is getting way off topic. The thread (as well as the previous, original thread) was about brow gaps and was established to help fans achieve the right look without adding length to their rear flanges.

Moderators, can we split this topic to a new "ESB Helmet Paint Finish" thread? Thanks.

Seeing as your the thread starter, That seems fair I'm sure, although I woud like to consult the other mods out of respect.