This may have been brought up but when people try to convert masks it’s always said don’t use spray paint or it will crack . Well didnt spray paint get used on the hero? I know paint wore of but don’t really see cracks everyone mentions. So was a different type spray used or maybe spray latex?
Exactly what I’ve been wanting to know. Hopefully some experts will chime in soon
Wasn`t it a latex based spray paint they used ?
It is highly unlikely that latex spray paint was available in the 70s. I have used spray paint on a handful of masks with no cracking issues.
This.
If misted thin and at a distance, spray paint is ok. I’ve seen some use Plasti-Dip on masks, which seems to bond well with masks, but if you’re able, an airbrush with latex mask paint would be best.
Guess if spending 250-400 for a mask you don’t wanna just throw spray paint on but use actual latex paint for masks. The makers of H probably had no idea the cheap mask would become so iconic
Okey thats probably correct, but i believe i`ve read that one of the crew member of Halloween said it was Krylon.
‘Bass Belly White’ is a spray used for taxidermy. As in, you spray dead fish with it.
I suspect it’s more flexible, and probably the modern version of ‘Fish Belly White’.
Can you provide a link to the product you are descrIbing?
They use spray paint on flexible plastic car parts ? (bumpers, rockers ect…)
https://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/FP15-8OZ-P10158.aspx
Never tried it. Just found it in a google search one day for ‘fish belly white’.
are you sure its taxidermy paint? i’ve never heard of this
Nope. I know absolutely nothing about taxidermy either. But this line in the description seemed interesting:
“Elastomers give flexibility to the dried paint, for thicker, glossy layers without cracking.”
An elastomer is a rubber-like solid. Don’t know if they were used in sprays in the 70s, but they were definitely a known thing then.
The Hero doesn’t appear glossy either, so it’s probably not exactly the same product. But the similar color name suggests a link.
EDIT: Another listing: https://www.mckenziesp.com/LT704E-P13228.aspx
So this is a lacquer spray.
EDIT2: Already discovered in an old thread: http://michael-myers.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=112163
Interesting the suggestion of putting a bit of pearl white in the paint. I did that for my TOTS Elrod repaint, just because it seemed like a neat effect to have on the worn down areas. I thought it might make them look more or less solid under different lighting conditions.
I’d just like to throw it out there that I don’t think it was ever mentioned that they used taxidermy paint. They just said that it was “fish belly white spray paint”, which definitely POINTS to a taxidermy spray.
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Also according to DarknessBDJM, “Supposedly it was fish belly or bass belly white (as per Tommy Lee Doyle). The only versions of these I’ve found now are in taxidermy shops and they are more sandy(Lifetone paint) or golden (Polytranspar paint) in appearance than the silvery color of the hero’s paint.”
Also in the blu-ray commentary Tommy stated that they used “Krylon Appliance White”, if I remember correctly. Like some other, I just assumed he sprayed it lightly, so it was never bombed with white spray paint or anything. The natural Kirk color combined with the paint probably gave it that unique color that is so difficult to achieve.
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I advise you to read this thread in its entirety.
https://forum.michael-myers.net/t/h1-stunt-mask-observation-who-made-who/51374/1
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^ From the thread:
The stunt mask didn’t crack because it was more than likely made by DPS with “high quality” paints. Taxidermy paint would definitely be a possibility though.
I think we can safely assess that Bill is confusing Halloween II with the first. I wouldn’t give much weight to the theory that anyone but Wallace painted the masks back in ‘78 until we have any real evidence of that. As someone said recently:
in 1978, a small production team set out to film a low budget film. They sprayed and cut up some cheap store masks, and threw it on a tall guy. Does it have to be ANY more complicated than that?
Otherwise, lacquer is a hard paint, often resin based in fact. If you’re worried about cracking, lacquer will crack for certain. I don’t quite buy this “flexible taxidermy paint” theory either. If you have never tried spray paint, I recommend it. If you’re worried about damaging an expensive mask, try it on any cheap $10 latex mask first. Explore and experiment.
I like that we’re revitalizing this discussion, and if anyone has theories, please try them out and post your findings! Otherwise, remember that there really isn’t much special about these masks, it’s us fans that make them special.
I don’t believe DPS had any involvement with the original film. The masks were likely altered at the same exact time by the same exact person. They look perfectly consistent, and it is by chance we prefer the ‘hero’ over the ‘stunt’. Had the ‘stunt’ mask been used predominantly, we may be singing a different tune about which is the better mask.
