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Replica AT-AT Driver Helmet's |
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As you may have already read
elsewhere on this site, StarWarsHelmets made a BIG discovery a few years back
when we managed to get hold of an original screen-used AT-AT Driver Helmet from
The Empire Strikes Back.
The All Terrain Armored Transport (AT-AT) or
"Walker" Driver helmets are very similar to the TIE helmets and were
seen in ESB during the Imperial assault on the Rebel Alliance Hoth base. |
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| See the
review in this section but the
biggest discovery was that these helmets were in fact painted Grey and not
white - the key reason for fan-error being a series of overexposed
photographs where the helmet/armour looked white - and so for years a glut
of replica toy's (like the Kenner figures) all showed white. |
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| Here's a comparison against an old
work in progress white AT-AT helmet and you can see that the difference is absolutely
HUGE. So check out this new page for lots more shots of the
Original AT-AT Helmet |
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| Below are some shots of my WIP
AT-AT Helmet, now re-painted in a light grey as opposed to white. |
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| I've added a number of shots taken
in different lighting conditions as well as exposure settings on the camera
to try and give you an idea of how the light grey colour reacts. |
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| Above and below were both taken
inside under spotlights, with the exposure cracked back -4 stops above and
-2 below - i.e. they're both underexposed. |
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| Finally for now the final photo
where the exposure hasn't been adjusted and as you can see the helmet now
looks almost white. Whether Lucas actually intended the helmet to be
perceived as white on-screen - and merely used grey as a contrasting
colour in a brightly lit cock-pit scene, is not clear. |
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| Note that this particular replica is
an SDS TIE which I've resprayed, and used parts from a number of sources
including Dan Laws (who's also kindly sending me a better Mohawk). Its a
work in progress so still needs some work on it but I'm really pleased with
the overall colour. |
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Laws Archive AT-AT
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| These next batch of photos are all
from Sergiu - who by all accounts is an AT-AT obsessive with multiple Walker
Driver helmets, armour parts and assorted memorabilia - as demonstrated in
the following photo |
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| Covering his bases on the left he
has an all-white (as they appeared to many on-screen) Laws helmet and full
armour set, while on the right and below, a grey (as they really were) Laws
Helmet. In our opinion the grey version really looks exceptional and
captures the look of the original helmet really well. A review of the
Original screen-used AT-AT Helmet can
be found here, with
YouTube
video review here. |
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| Both helmet have been completed to
the same exacting standards with forehead clock parts/greeblies, tape
buttons, machined metal tusks and side hangers. |
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| Both helmets are the new Laws AT-AT
Driver kids which feature a more accurate faceplate and improved clock
greeblies. For his bust he used one of the TIE busts produced by
Shepperton Design Studios. |
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| The Laws kit is great as it now
comes with the half moons that sit under the tusks, and also much improved
BOC holder interiors - the black side hangers originally found parts
that were used to screw CO2 bulbs into household Soda Water makers (my Mum
used to have one - they were a 60's/70's thing!). |
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| Looking at the rear armour panel
you can see all the really detailed stuff that comes with the Laws kit - and
Sergiu has also gone that extra mile by adding the magnifier box to the top
right centre on the panel (the circle) |
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| In order to make this bust as
accurate as possible, Sergiu also upgraded his hoses with ones produced by
MonCal. |
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| Above a great close up of the face
showing the detailing and below a side show showing canister detail as well
as the wring inside the black side hangers. |
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| ..and a close up of one of the rear
canisters and pill box. Superb detailing! |
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| Below, as you probably already
know, for the original costumes the two screen-used AT-AT Driver's were
really just reworked TIE Pilots. The TIE helmet and armour parts were
sprayed grey (scratch the surface and the original TIE black shows through)
and a few extra parts were added like shoulder bells and additional helmet
and chest box detailing. |
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| What Sergiu has done with his
though is excellent. As we've said before the Laws AT-AT is excellent, but
what makes Sergiu's so special are those little extra things that further
ramp up the accuracy. Of course to us the big issue is the colour, but we
understand why so many still opt for white since (thanks to Kenner) that's
the colour moat people still see an AT-AT Driver as. |
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| Below a great shot of Sergiu's
Shepperton Design Studios TIE Pilot on the
left, with his Laws AT-AT Driver on the right. |
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Below, this is a 2006 made Helmet and
Armor combo from the "Laws Archive" stable. Like the TIE Pilot its a
remarkable reproduction of the ESB prop.
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| These two photos above and below are
slightly updated 2006 versions, I'll be adding more again soon. |
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| Below, shots of the previous 2004
versions. Note that these were previously referred to as the "Anon" AT-AT
and TIE. |
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The detailing both on the Helmet, Chest Box and Armor is
fabulous |
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These three pictures above and below are courtesy of
Lord Sandy. A somewhat fortunate fellow as he amongst his extensive
collection has both the "Laws Archive" ATAT and TIE Helmets/Armor |
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Above Original ESB Prop |
"LA" copy |
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| A great amount of time and effort
goes into these, but its the detailing that makes it look so darn
impressive. The face plate looks to be a standard Stormtrooper
"Stunt" face, with the top and back based on the US Navy APH-6 (someone
please correct me on this if I'm wrong) |
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| Finally a couple of shots showing
the helmet and chestbox, along with the front and rear chest Armor
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Jason's sent us some shots of his new prize possession,
another excellent LA AT-AT Driver helmet |
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| These photos are really good at
showing off the detail in the Helmet and Chest box. We really do like those
shoulder bells too! |
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| This really is excellent and one
helmet we would certainly love to have. We think we need to start saving up! |
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Goldenarmor ATAT |
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Goldenarmor seems
to be in the habit of producing some very nice kits and his AT-AT Walker
Pilot seems to be another great example of this. Build 1:1 scale to the
original its HUUUUGE! |
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Richies Armor ATAT
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| Rigormortis from the RPF sent us
this pic of his AT-AT Helmet. This one made for a Richies Armor kit, who are
well known for their excellent Rebel Pilot Helmet - Nice job! |
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Others |
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Above, three excellent helmets (AT-AT, Tusken and Tie)
all built by Hannon |
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Back to
Fans/Custom made Helmets
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