Custom lower face mask construction

[AlexBisnett]

Hey there so I've been digging around for a little while trying to find a lower face mask that actually fits nicely while still offering good protection and allows you to aim down your sights comfortably but unfortunately all I seem to found was wire mesh, hakkotsu iron face and more wire mesh.

So I decided to try making a custom molded lower face mask of my own. It was pretty easy and still not quite finished but I thought I'd share it with you guys.

Step 1 was making a plaster mold of my face
Step 2 was trimming the face mold and fiberglassing
Step 3 was final fiberglassing and adding extra resin to sand down smooth as possible.

Now I've still got some things left to do like to fill the inside with some material and add some inner padding, adding a nice paintjob and figuring out some kind of straps to secure it to my head. It's going to be made to fit flush with my set of revisions so its going to be trimmed quite a bit but I had to leave the upper eye portion so that the fiberglassing lays properly around the nose area.

So here's some photo's of the build so far, feel free to ask any questions you like or even provide some input on finishing touches etc.

[ebfud]

That looks pretty good! Id make more than one so that you can test how well it will withstand impact. Wouldnt want to assume its indestructable and end up loosing teeth anyways.

[AlexBisnett]

Thanks man and honestly this thing is super solid I doubt a bb fired close range at 500fps will even do anything although I have yet to test it, I've got about 3 layers of the fiberglass cloth on there. Now that I've got the fiberglass mold you can easily just mold another one around that and make as many as you want.

[ebfud]

I doubt it either, my own sanity would drive me nuts without testing it lol.

[Slodin]

wouldn't it still be a bit hard to ads? just because you still can't press your face on the stock because of the hard surface?...

this lower mask stuff is driving me nuts..the wire mesh doesn't fit my face because of my cheek bones, so modified it. Then I realized it doesn't fit well with the goggles I have...I think I will just get a Dye I4..

that mask of yours reminds me of serial killer movies lol............just imagine a night game having you popping up from no where with that mask on...nice job tho

[AlexBisnett]

I don't think ads will be too much of a problem because its not that thick of a material since it fits formed around the face and also once the padding and stuff is on the inside you should be able to put your gun rested comfortable up against it.

But I've yet to test it so I was also thinking if that happened I could possibly sand down the sides or cut it alot narrower down the middle so it protects the nose and teeth but cheeks are still uncovered

I used to have a dye i4 as well but found I still couldn't get that good of an aim but those are still awesome goggles too, using them in the hottest conditions without the slightest amount of fog.

[Apathy]

how're you going to talk

[AlexBisnett]

It shouldn't be too hard to talk through, I plan on cutting some grooves or holes into it to help with fogging aswell as talking through. What exactly I'm going to do is still to be determined though..

[ThunderCactus]

You'd need mesh over the mouth to vent, but even then you'll still fog like crazy from the heat off your face.

[AlexBisnett]

Il probably end up going with some type of metal mesh for breathing as well as some nose holes sealed up with some mesh aswell. Plus like I said il be putting some vents along the bottom and side. Although I might trim it down so all it protects is your nose and mouth which wouldn't trap very much heat if there's a mouth vent

[AlexBisnett]

So I cut off the excess edges with a dremel sanded all the edges smooth, cut some notches to breath through the mouth and nose. I don't think fogging will be that much of an issue although aiming down your sights is a little bit more difficult but still easier than with wire mesh.

Just have to attach the strap on the back, add some padding on the inside and give it a nice paintjob. Shot a whole mag of bbs at it from about 5 feet away and it didn't leave a mark or affect the mask or cutouts.

My p90 is 370fps with .2 bbs and it would be able to probably take quite a beating, plus I think a shot to the center would distribute the force amongst both sides which wouldn't be nearly as bad as direct contact with that slot.

[daishi]

[AlexBisnett]

Haha its very similar to the Hannibal mask.. Think I just got a callsign

[Blitzed]

Originally Posted by AlexBisnett

Haha its very similar to the Hannibal mask.. Think I just got a callsign

You CANNOT wear that WITHOUT having the callsign Hannibal. Haha, that's unreal work man! Nicely done.

[AlexBisnett]

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback!