Let's turn all this into a pattern/laser cut file.
We’ve got it all set up and scaled, now it is time to make this into a pattern. The steps are pretty simple:
1. We need to label everything. This means assigning names in our layers.
2. We need to arrange everything into a visually pleasing and more compact manner – currently we have a chaotic mess. But to do that, we need to make sure that everything is actually set up to be the same side of the helmet. We want to create one side and set it up to be mirrored.
3. While doing this, we need to organize each of our layers separately (10mm, 5mm, and 1-3mm) so we can have them as one page in the PDF (or layer for laser cutting). This will also look like a chaotic mess. When we have all of the pages organized and visible, it will look like everything is overlapping.
4. We need to make a layer just for text and put the labels on the pieces for our assembly guides.
5. Add a scaling square. Sometimes, when transferring data between applications, the scale can get messed up. I always add a square that is labeled with its dimensions so I can resize everything if I need to.
6. Adjust the stroke width for exporting. We’ve been working with very thin lines that can be difficult to see when printed out, so we are going to make them a bit darker and easier to read later on.
7. Export it.
Let’s get into it.
Step One: Label everything
We’ve already done this basic thing in previous episodes, so this is old hat. The process is simple. We are going to select a path, see which one it is, compare it to its location on the model and give it a name we can recognize. I recommend continuing to work from the top, across one side of the model to the bottom of the model. That way our part numbers make sense.
I do this be DOUBLE CHECKING the parts in Armorsmith. We know what our parts look like and we can just make sure by seeing where they are on the model.
NOTE: before we start messing around with the orientation and location of things, we want to save this as a copy. File > Save As. Give it a different name. That way we have all of this work saved as a back up. If we mess anything up, we can come back to this original file.
Click on the selector tool.
Then make sure the measuring tool layers are hidden by clicking on the little eye by their names.
Then we are going to click on the name of each path in the layer’s panel. If you remember where each shape came from, you can just name and number them. and move on. If you don’t then you will need to compare them in Armorsmith by clicking on the pieces in the model window and confirming what they look like in the pattern window.
This is what I ended up with.
I decided that a lot of it could be done in 5 mm foam. It is more flexible and lighter, but more importantly, it is easier to work with. Most of what we are going to be doing here is going to be twisting the foam quite a bit, so we need to balance flexibility with strength. Additionally, I intend to finish this piece in Epsilon Pro, so it will get plenty of strength added.
Eagle eyed readers will notice that I don’t have any of the fins listed in the parts list. That is because I am going to duplicate them and lay them over one another so I can see how similar they are. If they are super close in size, I am going to delete all of them but one and mark it to be cut 4 times on each side.
To do this, you click on the selector tool. The click on the shape. Ctrl-D will duplicate it. Then you can move it around. To rotate the shape, you just click on the shape again. See how the arrows changed? Just click back and forth to switch between move and rotate. Line them up and see.
Like this:
Since they are very similar, and I don’t want to try to figure out which one goes where after we cut the pattern out, we are going to go ahead and make them all the same. That is to say, We are going to pick one and delete all the others. So when we cut the pattern, we just need to remember to cut 4 of them per side.
Since I am going to be making it slightly bigger than the smallest one, I also need to increase the size of the partial cone at the back a little so it will cover them.
NOTE: I know I am making a few changes to the structure, but we need to balance the ease (or difficulty) of assembly with the overall aesthetic. The teeny changes we are making won’t be noticeable to the average person or the naked eye and will make putting this thing together SO MUCH EASIER.
So, I am gonna futz around with the alignment of the fin parts, get them aligned as best I can and then make a new part that is the average of all of the shapes. I will name it “14 fins (x4 per side).”
Now we should have something that looks like this:
Step Two: Confirm everything is on the same side.
Since we are moving every thing to make a clear pattern for assembly, we might as well place them in a wat that allows is to make sure everything is oriented the same way. Looking at this, I am pretty sure I selected the wrong side of things so some parts will need to be reversed. Lets start with the top. I am going to look at it in Armorsmith to confirm the direction of the curve.
After looking at them closely, I can tell that a couple parts are oriented incorrectly. We will have to flip that in a moment.
Once I get them to a place that is close to aligned, you can begin to see how the parts fit together. To flip the parts, this button is essential.
I am going to start moving the pieces to their final spots. When I do so, I want to keep the groove pieces with the 10 mm pieces, so I am going to select one, then shift click the other one to move them together.
When I have finished with the first 4 pieces (technically 8, since we moved the groove pieces with the base pieces) I have something that looks like this.
And now, you begin to see how this is all going to fit together, including the grooves. We are going to continue moving things to consolidate our pattern into a smaller space and make it clear how things are going to fit together.
I’m going to go ahead and move everything to where it needs to be. While I am doing that, I am going to increase the scale of the fin cover and fin mount parts because I want to make sure that structure is sound. Here is what I have when I am done.
We still need to label everything for export and create a scaling square. Since the square will be pretty easy, I am going to do that first. Click on the rectangle tool.
Draw a rectangle with it. Then change the dimensions to be 50mm x 50 mm.
Now it is time for labels. To do this, we will be using the text tool. It’s over on the left of the screen.
Click where you want to type. You can adjust the point size up near the top of the screen.
I decided to label all of the 10 mm foam pieces. I hid all of the other layers and then made labels for all of the bits. After that, I selected all of the new text shapes (shift-click in the layer window) and merged them into one. To do that use the union command under the path menu.
After merging the text paths, I am going to drag it into my 10 mm foam layer. It looks like this.
We are going to repeat the process for the 5mm foam, 1-3 mm foam layers and Scaling square. When everything is visible it looks like a mess, but that doesn’t matter because we aren’t going to be using the layers with everything visible.
I moved my labels for each layer into the layer itself and renamed the scaling layer. This is what I have now.
And now… we are finally ready to export the pattern. First things first, I am going to save my file. Exporting the laser cut file is a couple clicks, so we are going to do that first. In fact, it’s so easy that we technically have already done it.
Inkscape’s native save format is .SVG. That is a format that most laser cutting software can handle natively. However – I like to keep things very organized, so we are going to save this in a new location. I named it “Samus Helmet Laser cut pattern FINAL”.
Now, to export the rest of this as a pattern for cutting by hand, we need to make a PDF. The process is a little involved, but not complicated. We want to export a separate page for each of the foam thicknesses, so we have to export 3 different PDFs and combine them after.
First we need to load the export tab. Click on the twirl out arrow on the right hand side by you layer tab.
Then select export from the menu that pops out.
Then, click on the selection tab.
Selection only selects the items that are selected in the layers tab. This will allow us to export each of our foam dimensions as its own PDF.
Click over to the layer tab. Click to select the entire 10mm foam layer. Then shift-click the scaling layer. This will make it so our export will include these layers. Select PDF from the drop down menu at the bottom of the export panel.
Then click on that little folder icon and give it a name and select the save location.
Before you hit the export button, make sure you have the “Export Selected Only” box checked. Otherwise you will have a mess in your exported files.
Then hit the export button. Repeat the process for the 5mm and 1-3mm foam layers and you are done. You have a PDF pattern.
UPDATE: This whole series is about teaching y’all… but it is also a learning process for me, as well. Today, I learned that Lightburn (and most laser cutting applications) will import the Inkscape .SVG file as one layer. It is easy enough to separate everything, but to make the workflow easier, I recommend saving individual files for each of the pattern pages. I went back in and exported individual.SVG files for 10mm Foam, 5mm Foam and 1-3mm Foam.
November 25, 2025
