Modifying The Reebok 3K L

Recently, one of my readers, Greg, commented on my post "Modifying The JOFA 390", suggesting that I modify his Reebok 3K L (large) for a fee. It sounded good to me; I thought it would give me the chance to check out the new Reebok version of the JOFA 390, while also co-creating a one of a kind helmet. Greg also asked me if I could take some process photos and send them to him, so I did. Anyways, I thought I'd share these photos with the world, giving you readers out there an idea of what the process looks like, as well as showcase Greg's new "Reebok 366K" helmet.

The first step is disassembling the helmet. I kept the front part wrapped up to prevent scratches while separated. Notice the Reebok branding; Greg said he ordered this helmet from the UK, which made me kind of nervous doing this mod, as this model would not be easily replaced if I were to make a mistake.

Next, I drilled and pried out the rivets that hold the padding inside the helmet. The picture shows the parts side by side, with a little pile of broken rivets in the middle. Fortunately, I was able to remove the rivets with no problem, leaving the holes nice and clean without any "blowout".

This picture shows the bare part, ready for modification. By isolating this part of the helmet, it makes it much easier to handle and work on during the process. The front part is untouched, as it does not require modification.

Using painters tape as a drawing surface, I traced a template I made from an actual JOFA 366 on both sides of the helmet. This way, I can be sure that the sides are nice and symmetrical.

With the cut lines laid out, I then go ahead and cut along them with an X-ACTO knife. I remove the bottom half of the tape to indicate the area that is being removed; leaving the top half covered with tape to preserve a nice line to scribe across, while also serving as a layer of protection from handling and cutting.

The next step is fully scribing and sanding the new ear contours, as shown above. Also shown is the removed ear protection laying next to the part.

This picture shows the finished part after detail sanding; where all the rough edges have been sanded away, producing what is apparently the original manufactured part.

The ear loops take a little modification as well. Here's a look at them before installation.

After rounding up the appropriate hardware, and trimming the padding to fit, I am then ready to finish the modification. This picture shows the helmet without a chinstrap because the picture was taken before I received the part. The only thing left to do is re-assemble the helmet, install the visor, and trim the chinstrap. Check out my next post for the final product. I'm really happy about the way this helmet turned out; and so was Greg!