Last Updated on July 1, 2025 by Team Ideas24
Recycling is fantastic, but actually turning old junk into something new and useful is even more impressive. This Stormtrooper burner is a great example!
We love to write about DIY recycling projects. If you’re looking for fresh inspiration for reusing your old stuff on a particularly cold day, then this post is for you.
Unique, useful, and recycled! This Stormtrooper log burner is just one nice piece of art to keep your place warm!
Made from gas bottles and a few other scrap metals, this stormtrooper log burner was built with no dimensions or plans prepared – just innate creativity working on the fly!
Nearly any kind of home decorating is cheaper when you do it yourself instead of hiring a professional. What’s more, craft ideas like this are a fun creative outlet!
If you have experience in metalworking projects, you can try doing this as your next challenge. The building process shared by the DIY-er below should be able to guide you in creating your very own Stormtrooper log burner.
But if you are not ready to DIY this yet, but still want to have this awesome stormtrooper log burner, you can always ask someone who is up for the challenge! Build two and learn along the way.
Even easier, just order one as the maker is accepting orders!
Do you know a Star Wars fan who will want to have this stormtrooper log burner?
Contents
Building a Stormtrooper Burner
Materials:
- Gas Bottles
- Scaffolding Parts
- Metal Square Bar
- Water
- Carpenter’s Tape
- Magnets
- Hinges and Handle
- Ultra High-Temperature Clear Coat
Tools:
- 10mm Angle Grinder (with Ultra Thin Cutting Discs and Buffering Pads)
- Hammer/Mallet
- Drill
- Marker
- Dremel Tool
Steps:
Design: My biggest challenge was trying to create the sides on the helmet of this stormtrooper log burner, I was struggling with what to make them out of. I ended up using to top section of a large gas bottle and it turned out great.
When cutting into gas bottles I always make sure they are empty and then fill them with water to displace any gas left inside. I then use a 110mm grinder and ultra-thin cutting discs. My out should only use bottles from companies that have ceased trading too as gas bottles remain the property of the gas companies for their entire life.
Mock Up: I used bits of tape and magnets to mock up the basic shapes. The front of the burner was cut and then bent outwards from between the eyes to create to shape.
Pipes and Tubes: To create the shape around the mouth I used a thin piece of tuning that I chopped up and two pieces of scaffolding bar which I squashed and welded together. I then added two more sections to either side of the helmet from the top of the larger gas bottle to start filling in the front of the helmet.
Big Old Cheeks: The top of the cheeks on the helmet we’re again made from sections of the large gas bottle, tacked into place and the persuaded where to go with my sledgehammer. I used my grinder a flap paddle wheel to shape the parts around the bent scaffolding bits at the front.
Grind it: I used more scaffolding bits to create the ear shapes. A piece of the square bar was used to create the helmet rim. I then set about grinding the thing to death…
Chimney and Door: For fear of ruining the front of the helmet I decided to put the door on the rear of the burner, a little more time and design, and mate I could have made the front open but I was too scared of messing it up. I opted for a swept-back style chimney on the top of the helmet.
Burn the witch: Bored of grinding the paint off I decided to do a little test burn…
More grinding: After the fire had died and the burner had cooled I then ground and polished the burner, coated it in two coats of ultra-high temp clear coat, and hit it with some black UHT detailing around the mouth and hamlet rim.
Thanks to doddieszoomer for this great project!
Prepping Gas Bottles for Stormtrooper Burnder
Gas bottles become harmless only after deliberate purging and careful prep steps. Follow these actions so your stormtrooper burner begins without unexpected costly explosions.
Purge and Ventilate
Cutting into a pressurised tank filled with flammable residue can ignite faster than you can drop the grinder. Remove the valve completely with a pipe wrench to vent trapped vapour. Leave the bottle upside down for an hour so heavier particles escape.
Pour in a cup of soapy water and shake it. Bubbles at the neck show remaining gas. Repeat venting until no bubbles form. That visual test costs nothing and saves your workshop.
Water Fill Method
After venting thread the valve back loosely and fill the cylinder right to the collar with tap water. Liquid displaces the last pockets of propane that cling to the walls. It also dampens sparks when your disk meets steel.
Mark your cut line with chalk above the waterline. As you slice slowly roll the bottle so the opening stays at the highest point keeping water between the blade and any fumes below. Dump the water only after the first big panel is off.
Cold Cut Tools and Flashback Arresters
An ultra-thin angle-grinder disk works yet a plasma torch stays cooler at the surface and lowers ignition risk. Whatever tool you pick keep the speed moderate. Fit a flashback arrester on any oxy fuel set sitting nearby because stray sparks can backtrack through hoses in a cluttered bench.
Keep a CO₂ extinguisher within arm’s reach not across the shed. When the helmet outline is liberated file the edges right away so no one grabs a razor-sharp rim while admiring your progress.
Welds of Steel: Joints That Stand Imperial Heat
Heat in a log burner wants to rip weak seams apart. Pick joint designs proven in boilers so your stormtrooper burner laughs at thermal stress.
Full Penetration Butt Welds
Match the wall thickness of donor bottles by trimming them square on a chop saw. Gap them the width of a two-millimetre filler rod so the arc can flow through and fuse both edges completely.
Run a root pass in a steady weave then stack two cap passes for reinforcement. Brush slag between passes. A full penetration butt weld leaves no hidden pockets that trap creosote spark corrosion or split when you feed the fire hard on cold nights.
Sleeved Lap Joints on Curved Helmets
Laps work where butt welds are impossible like the slanted cheek plates under the mask. Slide a twenty-five-millimetre band cut from scrap pipe behind the joint. Tack every fifty millimetres to lock alignment then stitch-weld in alternating sections to contain distortion.
The sleeve doubles wall area and moves stress away from the visual surface. Once ground smooth the step disappears yet the extra steel keeps the blower elbow and chimney collar solid after countless heat cycles.
Post-Weld Heat Relief and Inspection
Even mild steel grows brittle after multiple rapid heat swings. Lay the finished helmet inside a charcoal fire for an hour bringing it to a steady dull red. Let it cool in still air not quench water. That slow drop relaxes residual tension along the seams.
After cooling run a dye penetrant check on high load spots around the rim door edge and chimney root. A quick buff removes any dye and leaves the shell ready for polish and paint.
Heat Resistant Finishes Over Welds
A stormtrooper burner lives outdoors. Coat every ground seam with two light layers of zinc-rich primer followed by ultra-high-temperature clear. This combo seals micro pores you created while grinding.
It also hides heat tint and delivers a uniform silver sheen that echoes the cinema armor. Reapply each spring after the first firing session to block rust from creeping under the paint.
Beyond the Empire: Crafting Boba and Clone Trooper Burners
Your stormtrooper burner template adapts easily to other iconic Star Wars helmets. Tweak panels and paint to forge a Boba Fett or crisp Clone Trooper hearth.
Adapting Templates for Bounty Hunter Flair
Start with the finished stormtrooper helmet body but swap the smooth cheek plates for asymmetrical insets that mimic Boba’s dented faceguard. Add a narrow visor slot with a welded brow ridge cut from thin flat bar. Build the range-finder stalk from twelve-millimetre square tube and mount it on a hinge pin so it folds against the side during transport. These additions use offcut steel and keep the combustion chamber identical meaning your previous jig for hinge alignment still fits.
Colors Weathering and Sigils
Boba Fett metal never looks fresh from the factory. Prime with ultra-high-temp grey then spray moss green enamel on the dome and maroon on the cheeks. Scuff selected areas with one-twenty grit before the coat cures.Â
That salt chip technique exposes silver steel and fakes years of carbon scoring. For Clone Troopers flip the palette keep the shell white and mask bold unit stripes with heat-resistant blue or orange. Lock everything down with two mist coats of clear rated to six-hundred-fifty degrees Celsius.
Modular Attachments and Airflow Tweaks
The base burner already drafts well but extra side vents let hotter fires paint the visor with flickering light. Plasma-cut a pair of narrow slots under the eye line and fit sliding dampers from scrap stainless.
On the Boba build remove the chimney cap and thread a cast-iron grill ring so you can reverse-sear steaks above the Empire’s glow. Bolt-on modules turn one helmet into a multi-role patio centerpiece without rebuilding the firebox every time inspiration strikes.
Conclusion
Building a Stormtrooper burner blends safety-minded engineering with creative metalwork. Careful gas-bottle purging and strong welds guarantee the helmet stands up to real-world heat. Thoughtful airflow and finishing touches transform recycled steel into a functional sculpture that sparks conversation.
This isn’t the first time we’ve featured this artist’s work on our site. Just a few days ago we posted his Darth Vader Log Burner which you also might want to see if you haven’t yet!
