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Alright... I've now had three (3!!!) heavy weapons troops. I did two troops on the first day for a total of about 5 hours with the pack. Five hours. These little straps were TORTURE DEVICES. There are no words for how much pain my shoulders were in with these little 1" guys. And as a bonus I had the buckles right up on the front of my chest. It's four days later and I still have bruises. I skipped a morning troop and redid my straps. This is a 50oz Camelbak hydration pack. It's the smallest Camelbak I could find. I bought it with the idea of wearing it under my actual TK armor on extremely hot troops. I did a test fitting and with the bottle full, I can't get my armor to strap shut. It's honestly a very small hydration pack. I thought it could fit inside the OII, but it's still just too big, so it has been sitting in my closet for about 3 months now. Then I had the death march with those terrible 1" straps. Then I started eying all the backpacks and padded laptop straps laying around my house. I noticed this guy just waiting to go into service. SCORE. The camelbak came with this sort of strap connection. Not at all a quick release. I sliced the old buckle free and installed my own. It was quite easy with an X-acto knife. Held together with pop rivets like most of my pack. I'm not sure if the DOs will be happy with this for EIB and Centurion, but I can always paint them black. I liked the little pop of metal on the strap. The new straps are 1.5" wide vs 1". Not a whole lot wider, but it's honestly enough. I strapped the empty hydration pack on and had my daughter climb on it to see how the straps felt with weight. Uncomfortable due to the bruising but not at all painful. So... I hacked the holes up a bit more in my oil can. And there it is installed. It's a thing of beauty. Note that the chest strap extensions (loose 1" webbing) are still there if, for some reason, I figure out how to have a chest strap on this rig. The buckles are also nice and low near the bottom edge of the pack. This makes it much more comfortable and much easier to strap myself into. I actually did a full solo suit-up on my third HWT troop. The little plastic buckles are also still present. Their purpose is to hold the hydration pack hose in place on a shoulder. They hide under my armor and are completely invisible when worn, so I'm leaving them in place for now. My wife sewed some hook-side velcro onto the webbing at the shoulder rub zone after some test fitting. I've got cheap paintball helmet padding velcro'd in place to give my shoulders a bit of extra padding. And it's WONDERFUL! I can dance, run, jump around, and troop happily for hours even with previously bruised shoulders. The hydration pack storage pouch is still accessible if I want to try having water in my HWT pack. It would be a bit of a chore to wedge in there, but I think it could be done. And there's a hole in the side of the oil can to let the hydration hose come out of and into my bucket. All closed up under the velcro & jersey liner.

I am building this as Captain Cardinal, but posting here, as everything I'm doing applies to a standard FOTK (minus boot armor), just with white paint instead of red. I want to catch maximum eyeballs. If the Mods That Be truly deem it inappropriate, it can, of course, be moved. @ukswrath I'm gonna lean on your insights, here. Your build thread for the earlier Anovos suit has been an invaluable primer, and your take on what is the same, what is different, and what to do about it would be most helpful. A technical question, as I've been out of the loop for a bit... Has onsite photo hosting increased? Or is the cap still bizarrely low? If I have to link offsite photos, I'll need to spend a while tonight getting things uploaded. It's a lot easier if I can just upload them inline as I type out a post. First off... Anovos lied. Shocker, I know. Remember when they said the test pulls they got from China weren't sharp enough, so they re-started from scratch to make inversion-forming dies -- where the plastic gets sucked into a concave form, rather than pulled over a convex one? So that way, all the crisp detail is on the outside where it needs to be? The test pulls from that were what they showed a couple years ago before Celebration. A couple people got kits and then we heard nothing more... But Disney mysteriously had a whole bunch of familiar-looking suits manning their "Rise of the Resistance" attraction at both US parks. Well, I just went back and looked at those pics again, and those pieces are what I just got from Denuo Novo. The "wastage" shapes and tells are identical. The pieces I unpacked were absolutely pulled over a convex form. The sharpness of the edges on the insides of the pieces is evidence enough of that, and a few even have some minor webbing out on the wastage. So if any inversion-forming dies were milled, we never saw any pieces made with them. That's not to say these are awful. Some of the edges aren't as sharp as they ought to be, and I'll be addressing that. There have been some improvements since the early publicity and 501st-only suits... And a few things that are definite downchecks in my book. The ab boxes, left-calf "kit kats", thigh holster bracket, and all four belt boxes are all cast resin. For most of the ab boxes, that's a blessing. The cutouts to fit the contours of the ab plate are moulded in. No painstaking shaping required. Same with the kit kats and holster bracket. On the other hand, the belt hanging boxes will now require a lot of work to make functional, if one wants to go that route, and the center-front boxes are inaccurate in minor ways I'll show when I get to pictures. Also, the holster bracket is one piece -- base and stacked plates together. All of it cast as one fused piece. Impressive, but I have to cut the plates portion off, as I have R2dan's aluminum upgrade. And the thermal detonator and its mount are all a single solid piece. So that's gonna get addressed, so all that weight isn't pulling down on the mounting plate. I wish they'd kept the forearms as they were for the early release kits. Careful cutting is required to make something more resembling of the film costume's assembly. And, of course, the cutouts back by the elbow aren't TFA-accurate (somewhat similar to the way Finn's were cut, but not identical). I can fill those areas in, though. The codplate is the trimmed-up version. Some TFA suits had had that done, for whatever reason, but it's considered more a feature of the TLJ revision. I got a KB TFA codplate that I'll be swapping in. Someone please let me know the best approach to pictures, currently, and I'll start with the visual aids tonight.

If you have had the chance to look at my "Return edges" thread you will know that I am not a fan of them on most pieces. One of the main reasons is "armor bite", where certain pieces can dig into you or cause chafing during a troop. This is especially important in areas like the cod are (inside tops of the thighs), bicep insides etc). The problem is that if you leave the return edges and the pieces are glued, if you remove them later the openings will be too large and the piece(s) may not fit correctly. You are doing the PERFECT thing by asking questions. Ask lots of them, and keep those photos rolling in!

7: 10.02.22 DSACT Buddy walk, Leander TX wow, just wow. I was worried that I wouldn’t have the patience needed for these kids but even this grinch’s heart grew three sizes this day. They were all so sweet and excited to see us even if they didn’t know who we were. And this little angel went from too scared to be near me to not letting go. She lead me across the lawn to introduce me to the other TK ( Mark ) and then wouldn’t let either of us go!

Troop 042 - 2022/10/08 -- Kansas City Zoo Friends Of The Force in Kansas City, MO

So here is the final product and 501st approval. TK-78945 A very big thank you to John Child (Captain’s Drydock) and Tony (ukswraith). It was your video series on YouTube and build thread on here that got me to pick the FOTK and have the confidence to build it. Also a big thanks to everyone who responded along the way. Your advice got me to the finish line. Body Armor Kit: Imperial Surplus Helmet: Anovos Gaskets: Geeky Pinks Belt: Belts of the First Order Belt Pouches: Trooper Bay Boots: CrowProps Gloves: Endor Finders Holster: Justin-Lee Morrison

NEW In Memoriam Detachment Leader Merchandise & Officer Census 2022 Just For Laughs Update Your Build Threads Around the Detachment Spotlight Custom Photo Editing INFORMATION & AWARD PROGRAMS Common FISD Acronyms and TK Glossary Pre Approval Forum 3D Section Field Exercise Award Imperial Attaché Program Master Armorer Award Fire Teams EIB & Centurion: What do these terms mean? Need Help Ask the Deployment Officers Advanced Tactics Awards Public Relations Staff List 2020 Follow FISD It is with heavy heart and great sorrow that we report the loss of one of our own, Jim (Rat) Ferrell TK95970 who has sadly passed away. He was a truly a wonderful human being, detachment staff member and trooper. Our deepest condolences go out to his family and friends in this difficult time. We love you mate and you will be sorely missed by all you have crossed paths with. "Buckets Off" Andrew Franke TK-11469 "Sly11" - - - - - - From the Cloud City Garrison We at Cloud City Garrison are saddened to hear about the sudden and unexpected passing of garrison friend and fellow trooper Jim Ferrell. Our hearts go out to all his family and friends. Affectionately known as Rat, he brought an infectious enthusiasm to any event he did and he will be sorely missed. Cloud City Garrison, Star Wars Oregon, and the entire The 501st Legion mourns the loss of our brother trooper. Rest easy, TK/TK-95970. Buckets off. - - - - - - Jim Ferrell - A Few Words From Staff I would like to take a moment to remember Jim (Rat) Ferrell. Jim was one of the first members that I interacted with when I took on that first run that I ever did. While I had a ton of help from staff on how to do the run and set things up, Jim was the first member that took a minute to thank me for what I was doing and started up a "virtual" conversation with me. While I don't claim to know him as well as other troopers, I was very happy to get the opportunity to meet him in person at Celebration this past year. I know Jim had a bit of a rough go over the last year or so, but it seemed to me like he was starting to come back around and to hear of his sudden passing was a shock. I had just chatted with him a few days before I heard of his passing. None of us know how much time we have on this little blue rock hurling through space. Take the time to talk to your friends, family and fellow Legion members. Do the troops, go to the conventions, spend your time making memories, and try to limit your regrets. I feel I'm a better person for having had the opportunity to know and meet Jim. He will be missed. Buckets Off James Silvius TK-12953 "jsilvius" - - - - - - I struggle to write this posting….As you may recall, Rat and I ran the FISD PR (FB and IG) hand in hand. We checked in daily with each other, and bounced ideas off one another. As a result of working so closely, over time, we developed a friendship. Encompassing legion, detachment, costuming, garrison life, and real every day life. Rat left us earlier this year after the passing of his dear wife Judi. He was trying to find a way to live without her. And I was upset he left me…. Selfish… I know… I cried an ugly cry, telling him I didn’t wish to carry on here without him. And I’ve struggled without him…Jim was my other half here on the Detachment. We worked side by side for years. There’s very few in this entire Legion that truly know me as he did. Not only was he my FISD partner in PR crime, bringing you snappy, witty, beautiful posts of all of you, Rat was my friend. A title of which I do not bestow easily. Friendship is a rare cherished special thing in my world.In all things, he had my back. Supported every hairbrained scheme I may have concocted, every Legion issue I ever wished to fight for or over. Stayed up all night many nights supporting one another personally or this Detachment with shared ideas of how we both could do better here. Filled in for me when I was struggling, and counted on me when he was too. He was an Attaché here in the truest sense of the word. He’d given countless hours full of enthusiasm and wisdom to countless hopeful TKs. He created a fundraiser for me after my fire. As he knew I was barely hanging on. He was the only one who knew how I truly was doing. If you had his friendship, you had it completely.We quietly visited for the first time in person at Celebration this year. Ever so excited to meet. And we talked. And talked. About all things. Hard and light-hearted, and everything in between. About the Legion. This Detachment. Our time as your PR Team. Now there was a trooper that definitely knew the meaning of unquestioned loyalty.My time here has not been the same since he left our staff. And I still cannot believe or wrap my head around the truth that he is no longer a part of this good earth. I cannot effectively communicate the emptiness I feel at his passing. I scarcely believe it.It was my honor to serve alongside Rat for the time we were given, and I will miss him for as long as I have memory. With loyal friendship,Your Captain Sassy/Pink Lady Teresa Nuthall TK-41307 "Soulart" - - - - - - I must admit I didn't have the opportunity to meet or interact very much with Jim "Rat" but when ever we talked I found Jim a really friendly guy and willing to lend anyone an ear or a hand. Thoughts go out to Jim's family, friends and garrison brothers and sisters, you will be greatly missed. Thank you for your service. Buckets Off Glen "Q" Rhodes TK-85421 "gmrhodes13" Eternal Legionnaire Gallery: https://www.501st.com/members/memoriam.php Greetings all A pretty solemn edition this month as we mourn the loss of our good friend Jim Farrell. I wrote a small passage in the memorial section and still cant believe that he has become one with the universe. Gone too soon. All staff are honoring him in this newsletter, placing some of our memories and experiences shared with him. We all miss Jim and his contributions as a staff member of this detachment as I am sure his garrison and family do as well. Jim was someone easy to talk too, a very caring man with a huge heart and always wanting to do more for others. In fact, he did more than most will ever know and has definitely left a large mark on many peoples lives. The world is worse off without him, and I am glad to have known him, what he stood for, and the wonderful things he has done. Rest in peace my dear friend, until we meet again. With Unquestioned Loyalty Andrew Franke TK-11469 "Sly11" Detachment Leader HOODIE ORDER THREAD OPEN The FISD Hoodie Thread is now open. This run goes through 20 Nov 2022. Information and ordering here Future Merchandise I am currently looking to get at least one more run out this term, so be on the look out for more info in the next few weeks. With Unquestioned Loyalty James Silvius TK-12953 "jsilvius" Merchandise & Branding Officer 501st Legion 2021-2022 Census has begun, it is the responsibility of all 501st approved members to fill out the census each year which you can find here You must be registered on the main forums to participate in the census:here I didn’t’ troop because of Covid-19 Due to Covid-19 many didn’t get the opportunity to troop during this census period, Legion Command has advised that GCO’s will determine how they want to proceed in regards to a members trooping activity and status, as such check in with your local garrison command. Here's what the charter says about activity definitions: Operations Protocol/Membership An Active Member is defined as a member in good standing who meets the following requirements: Meets all 501st Membership Requirements (i.e. ownership of an approved costume, is over 18 years of age, etc). Has an approved membership record in the 501st Legion Membership Database Maintains active contact with their Garrison CO or GML. Active contact and participation will be confirmed during the annual Legion Census held each year during the month of October. Maintains contact information/membership record in the 501st Legion database either through their Garrison CO or GML. Participates in at least one Garrison or Legion activity per year while wearing an approved 501st costume owned by said member as recorded in the Legion Census. (One year is defined as the period from Legion Census to Legion Census). Examples of an activity include, but are not limited to conventions, charity events, or any activity designated as an official event by a coordinating administrative unit of the Legion. Members who serve in military branches are exempt from activity level requirements if their service renders them unable to meet these requirements. These Minimum Activity Level Requirements should be administered as justly and with as much common sense as possible. A member may retain active status, even if they do not meet all of the requirements listed above at the discretion of their unit Commanding Officer or Legion Command. Filling out the census only takes a few minutes and you also have the opportunity to update your contact information ie: address, email, phone and so on. THE LAST EVENT TROOPED is the most important piece of data. Because our trooping year was cut short due to Corona-virus, Legion Command has recommended membership status changes are left to the discretion of the Unit Commander so please check in with your local command prior to filling out your census. NOTE: members who were not able to troop should enter "COVID-19" as their last troop. Any questions you have in regards to the census please contact either your GCO (garrison commanding officer) or your GML (garrison membership liaison) Census form layout With the last forum update the viewable area of the census may not be full page, as such change your page magnification to 75% and you should be able to see the whole page. Note: make sure you tick the box "Is the above information correct?" please tick YES If you have any problems with the logging in please contact the LWM team here: support@501st.com So stand up and be counted troopers, you have until 31st October. "FISD Memes" Thank you to Luca "Morgi" TK-66744 for starting a FISD specific meme thread, hope to see more of these in the future not only by you but by others as well. You can find the thread here. WE NEED YOU TO UPDATE YOUR BUILD THREADS As most would be aware we are diligently working through the forums updating watermarked images, missing images and broken links, this has taken over a year so far and has been a monumental task but there is still a lot of work ahead of us. Members build threads are one of the biggest areas of watermarked/missing images and we are asking you the membership to help and update your build threads yourselves as this is just too big a task for staff. Build threads requiring updates are being moved over to this area https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/241-build-threads-requireing-maintenance/ Thank you in advance for your cooperation. New FISD Tri-Fold Brochure We have launched our revised Detachment Tri-Fold brochure. It's been quite a long time since we actually had these available and since then many things have changed leading us to updating some of the text to include new costumes, and have more relevant information. Originally these were done in a limited run by the member who created them, but nowadays, we have moved this to a print your own service making them accessible to all countries around the globe. Files are available to all full 501st members on request, and are completed in a very high resolution to ensure quality in a finished product. The thread can be found here for more information and how to access the files. Hot to put on a full Stormtrooper Costume Here's another great video by Dan Branton (CableGuy) TK-42911 If you’re new to trooping, or just fancy a look, this video might be right up your street. In this video, I run through how to put on a complete stormtrooper suit, along with tips and tricks along the way. For those aiming for accurate armour, this could be a good resource. Any questions or comments you can find the thread here Ever wanted your action image edited on a cool background, an awesome signature banner or profile picture made, well Jonatan "Nairy" TK23592 has offered to edit photos for our membership. For more info head to his thread here INFORMATION & AWARD PROGRAMS For a full list of FISD awards head here. Are you new to the FISD and wondering what the heck all those abbreviations and strange sounding terms mean? To help you @justjoseph63 has started a list of the most commonly used ones that will give you some insight. If you have ANY questions about a particular term that is not listed or suggestions for new ones please contact Joseph. You can find the list here. Pre Approval Forum allows future Troopers the opportunity to submit photos of their completed build to be reviewed by the Staff, Imperial Attaches and others in preparation for forwarding it to their GML for approval. Any and all advice/suggestions given will be specific, constructive, helpful and respectful. Please note that this program will NOT take the place of your local GML, as Detachments are not chartered for costume approval and can not override a GMLs decision, but is instead a peer review program designed to help you look your best and offer guidance and positive feedback. For more information on this program, please visit the link here. Don't forget to visit our 3D section when next surfing the FISD forums, there is plenty of useful information to potentially help you on your next TK adventure. You might be feeling may generous and share with our community a new TK related 3D file and maybe win yourself a 3D contributors award so check out the details below and be part of the in house 3D community. Here is a link to the FISD 3D Contributor program. Congratulations to our latest 3D award recipient Justin TK61490 "TheRascalKing" Don't forget to create a troop log here on FISD and get awarded for your adventures The list of accomplished troopers keeps growing, so get on board and register your troops today Simply start (or update!) your troop log, keep the running total in the title, and post (at least!) a date and name for the official 501st event where you wore your TK! Once you've hit a milestone count, go over to the "Field Exercise Awards -- Post your milestones here" thread to request your profile be updated! Simple, right? By the looks of things many are returning back to trooping, the largest amount of awardees in one month, well done troops, stay safe out there. Award Recipients September - October TK-83751 "fishgoh0nk" James - - - - - TK-19551 "theswissofficer" Vanessa - - - - - TK-89400 "revlimiter" Adam - - - - - TK-61596 "MakeNoiseMan" Brendan - - - - - TK-66744 "Morgi" Luca - - - - - TK-42174 "BIGDEAL" Phil - - - - - TK-99901 "IRoS" Mario - - - - - TK61490 "TheRascalKing" Justin - - - - - Are you an approved TK that spends more time on the boards than the average Trooper? Do you enjoy using your knowledge to help out future and existing Troopers? If so, we would like to invite you to join the Imperial Attaché program! Members of the I.A. team are chosen to help out not only those here on the boards, but on a local level as well. Our aim is to have at least one in each and every Garrison, Squad and Outpost in the entire legion to be the eyes and ears of the FISD on a local level. For a complete list of Imperial Attaches, go here. Some of the benefits: Access to exclusive Attaché merch., including patches, IA patch , IA Rocker For a complete list of Imperial Attaches, go here. You may also be in the running for an Imperial Attaché Award Imperial Attaché Award for those attaché's who have gone above and beyond [minimum 1 year of service]. You can find a list of prior recipients here. The FISD Master Armorer program is an optional, detachment only incentive award to recognize individuals who have directly helped another 501st stormtrooper to achieve Expert Infantry status. Some people spend countless hours helping others, and want to reward their results as well as incentivizing new people to help as well. To register a “win” in the program, the assistance must have provided hands-on help trimming, building, and/or fitting of said armor for the person who was awarded Expert Infantry status. More information can be found here Congratulations to our latest award recipient Justin TK61490 "TheRascalKing" Want to setup a "Fire Team? the Fire Team program is completely optional, and is intended to help form a common identity and spirit of camaraderie among 501st Legion Stormtroopers in the same geographic area/garrison that troop together. Fire Teams are not officially recognized by the 501st Legion nor the FISD, although they will be able to access a Fire Team sub-forum on the detachment website. You can find more information here. So what exactly are and levels? These programs were designed for those who choose to take their armor above and beyond the minimum requirements for basic 501st Legion approval. It gives you the chance to show a level of dedication and pride that takes your armor closer to being as "screen accurate" as possible, without as much extra work as you may realize! You can find more information on the programs here. For those unaware it is possible to achieve extra awards at Expert Infantry for each additional version costume you have approved, additional awards are not issued with another Expert Infantry number (you are only issued 1 Expert Infantry number) but you will see a star above the award on your profile and the thread title will show [APPROVED] 2nd, [APPROVED] 3rd, [APPROVED] 4th and so on. Multiple EIB award recipients and info here NOTE If you are approved with a "2nd Version" of a particular costume that you are already approved with you do not receive an additional award, there is only 1 award issued for each costume version ie: only 1 x Hero, 1 x Stunt, 1 x HWT, 1 x ESB, 1 x TFA and so on. If you have a second/additional version costume approved you will see "2nd Version" and [APPROVED] added to the thread title, no additional profile stars (more info on profile awards here) ASK THE D.O.s For those of you who have a particular issue (or issues) before or after submitting for Expert Infantry / Centurion level approval, in order to get you an answer faster you can now privately contact the entire Deployment Officer team at one time! Questions about fitting, repairs, CRL standards/requirements or anything pertaining to reaching Levels 2 and 3 are not only welcomed, but encouraged. Keep in mind that no question is too small, and that your queries will only be seen by the D.O. Staff. We are here to help in any way we can, so please feel free to send us a message by clicking on this link: @Deployment Officer Team and we will get back to you A.S.A.P.! This area lists all those who have gone above and beyond basic approval toward screen accuracy and obtained EIB or Centurion or both. FOR September - October the 1st Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment would like to congratulate the following. Expert Infantry Badge Award: Jonatan "Nairy" TK23592 EIB 1051 Jonatan "Nairy" TK23592 EIB HERO - 2nd Award Gerald "Doggydoc" TK96004 EIB 1052 GREAT job on your approval, now on to Level 3! Request your free EIB certificate here. You can find a list of multiple award recipients here. --------------------------------------------------------------- Centurion Badge Award: Jonatan "Nairy" TK23592 Centurion 516 Jonatan "Nairy" TK23592 Centurion Hero - Second Award Outstanding job on reaching Centurion, Troopers! Request your free Centurion certificate here. You can find a list of multiple award recipients here. If you see any of these Troopers around your Garrison or Squad, be sure to congratulate them! Newsletter Editor If anyone has any content for the newsletter please contact me via PM. For anyone interested in having a look through any of the older newsletter they have now been moved to a new archive sub forum which you can find here. With Unquestioned Loyalty Glen "Q" Rhodes TK-85421 "gmrhodes13" PRO, Newsletter Staff List 2022 -2023 Detachment Leader (DL): Andrew Franke (Sly11) TK-11469 Executive Officer (DXO): Steven Sheades (starsaber25) TK-10466 Chief Deployment Officer (DCA): Joseph Pedigo (justjoseph63) TK-10963 Deployment Officer: (DCA): Mario E RT (TKSpartan) TK-48117 Deployment Officer: (DCA): Jose Maria Sanchez (Chemi) TK-30173 Provost Marshal (DCOG): Dan Branton (CableGuy) TK-42911 Provost Marshal (DCOG): Tim Waychoff (Dark CMF) TK-51878 Provost Marshal (DCOG): Chris Pearson (themaninthesuitcase) TK-10911 Merchandise and Branding (DMBO) James Silvius (jsilvius) TK-12953 Personnel Officer (DPER): AC (Novatie) TK-5597 Fire Team Relations (DPRO): Mark Ryner (Captsafe66) TK-4584 Content Editor At Large (DPRO): Christoph (Danny) Lauber (Ripper_L) TK-55550 Content Editor Support (DPRO): Tony Jobe (ukswrath) TK-10116 Content Editor Awards (DPRO): Handled by the XO Newsletter Publisher (DPRO): Glen Rhodes (gmrhodes13) TK-85421 HOF Director (DPRO): Aaron (Bronx) Gibson (Pyrates) TK-99725 Attaché Ambassador (DPRO) Frank Peranteau (Frank75139) TK-75139 Social Media Relations (DPRO): Teresa Nuthall (Soulart) TK-41307 Social Media Relations (DPRO): Justin Reed (TheRascalKing) TK-61490 Systems Administrator (DWM): Eric Brager (Darth Aloha) TK-9674 Systems Administrator (DWM): Mathias (Locitus) TK-2959 Detachment Founder (DF): Paul (Daetrin) TK-8020 Trading Cards Content Support (IPM): Eric Ho (Hoda) TK-77520 Imperial Propaganda Machine (IPM): Brien Edick (Harbinger) TK-92802 Imperial Propaganda Machine (IPM): Jeff Salt (wingnut) TK-50297 Imperial Propaganda Machine (IPM): Richard Tibbitts (CallMeMrTibbles) TK-46116 Imperial Propaganda Machine (IPM): Adam Wolf (revlimiter) TK-89400 Imperial Propaganda Machine (IPM): Daniel Melin (TheSwede) TK-99665 Facebook: www.facebook.com/whitearmor Facebook Group: 1st Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment (FISD) Official Twitter: www.twitter.com/FISD501st or @FISD501st Instagram: www.instagram.com/fisd501st On behalf of the 1st Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment Command Staff and the Imperial Propaganda Department

Glad you finally got your kit. Looking forward to following your build Most are using imgur for posting pictures.

Congratulations trooper, Welcome to the EIB ranks.

Finally getting my Havoc armor finished! Designed by Marko Makaj, this thing is awesome!

@Paige Basically the suit that Glen linked https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/gallery/album/59-the-rs-suit/ is a suit owned by one of the owners of RS Prop Masters (they are a vetted seller) - and the biceps on the suit basically has no return edge at all on the left arm (except a tiny little dink), and on the right arm there is a little return edge on the front part of the bicep (the part that has the U shape). The bottoms of the biceps has no return edge. Left Right So I guess you could leave just a little bit on the areas where you are unsure as @gmrhodes13 and @Doggydoc said, and just ask again later!

That is a neat idea, I like it.

Looking good Adam, fantastic work!

It is easier to leave a bit if you are unsure. As you can always trim a bit later, even after the piece is built.

I am wondering how much return edge should be left

Curved lexan scissors can really save your sanity. I believe this is the set I bought ages back. https://www.amazon.com/Hobbypark-Puncher-Scissors-Straight-Trimming/dp/B088X1M5VM/ Long straight sections can be scored with a razor blade and snapped off, but curved fiddly bits like the biceps really benefit from those little curved shears. They make quick work of things.

Ah my bad! I have looked at too many applications lately without checking back with the requirements! Note to self, do that! I found the thread you linked this information from, sorry Gerald - and thanks Glen!

Location: Seattle WA Event: Buddy Walk Date: 10-02-2022 Garrison: Titan Buddy Walk is a great event for raising awareness of children with Downs Syndrome. Last few years the event has been at Woodland Park Zoo which is a great location and pretty central to the Puget Sound area. Have done Darth Vader before at this event, but noticed that the TKs were far more popular, which is usually the opposite of most events. I'm the TK behind the scout. Was unseasonably warm and sunny here, so the snowy next to me was roasting a little bit! Someday I'll make a snowy for the December and Christmas events, but will need a bigger place than a townhouse to store it.

10/9/22 - Balloon Fiesta Balloon Glow Day 7 30th Troop, 3rd Heavy Weapons Troop I skipped the Friday morning troop due to a sick daughter, a car that needed puke cleaned out of it, and armor that needed an overhaul. Which is a shame because Friday morning was apparently epic. Vader and Yoda both flew and the crowd and trooper staff was huge. Alas, there's next year. Thighs - I realigned my garter system to get the thighs ever so slightly higher and rotated correctly. I've lost about 30 lbs since I did the garter the first time (didn't lose the weight by choice) and the straps were in the wrong place. Easy fix that took a while to find. Now the ammo pouches aren't catching on the thigh armor edges anymore. Bucket - redid the padding. I had my iComm and amp up high touching my head. This was fine for an hour or two, but after 6+ hours of trooping in a day, it was very not comfy. They both were moved so they're not in contact with my skull any longer. Pack - I abandoned the 1" straps and hacked the pack up to accept a small Camelback. It has 1.5" straps to which I added padding. Infinitely more comfy. I can dance and jump around in it, even with heavily bruised shoulders from the stupid 1" webbing. My build thread will be updated with that stuff soon. Weathering - I used up all my eyeshadow. My belt and legs were just too light and my bucket had lost much of its weathering. I'm really happy with how it came out. Daughter - now feeling better!!! Car - cleaned and 99% less puke smelling. Friday Squad! My buddy Gus, who is usually a scout, signed up to handle and take photos for the event. He's got a great eye. All of the Friday pix are epic. Love this shot. If you could hear it, you'd know that my pack had a little bluetooth speaker shoved in the wipe bottle with Imperial March BLASTING on loop. Good times. "No, I'm not taking my bucket back off." Rolling out. Dirty squad! They kept trying to convert me to the sandy side. We found Fett and trooped around with him a while. I love being HWT. I don't need to point out which one I am anymore! lol I can be found like this rather often... and lastly... I FOUND THE DROIDS I WAS LOOKING FOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can see the huge smile under my bucket, right? So dang cute.

10/8/22 - Balloon Fiesta Evening Balloon Glow Day 6 29th Troop, 2nd Heavy Weapons Troop 2nd troop of the day too. First troop required a 2am wake up to meet at 3am. The 2nd troop had a 2:30pm meeting time. Short nap between. A squad of happy nerds getting fried alligator and other bad for you food. E for Empire Our evening herd. They do two special shapes balloon glows per Fiesta - Thursday and Friday. This was Thursday. They picked 5 of us to walk to the VIP pavilion. Han, Leia, Mara Jade, Sandtrooper Nick and myself. We walked a conservative 1.15 miles before starting the 2 hour troop. I got picked because my bluetooth-speaker-binocs were "friggin awesome" and Nick got picked because he matched me nicely. That HWT pack with the little 1" straps dug into my shoulders. My stupid right thigh was getting clunked by the right ammo pouch every step. And my bucket was digging into my skull. It was unpleasant. It all got rebuilt on Friday morning. We still had fun. We took over the band area in the VIP booth for a minute. Mara has some pipes. They wouldn't give me a guitar... Then we joined the other troops who DIDN'T have to walk an extra mile. Quality trooping antics were had. We entertained the crowd all night. Himhaer (guy in the middle) is a 501st jawa who had to work a booth that night. He still came around for pix. My favorite pic of the night. The little guy had a little trooper who was reportedly his favorite toy. I gave both kids trading cards and have never seen such pure joy. They hung out with our troopy trio for a while that night. At the end of the night, I got my Fiesta challenge coin. We had to do a photo challenge of 3 pix to get it, one of which had to be a silly shot. As a trooper so inclined, this was not a hard task. The coin is just a beauty. It's my favorite in my collection currently. Note - there was no balloon glow that night. The wind was high and balloons couldn't inflate. We were all the entertainment for the crowd that evening and everyone was invited to come back Friday night with their Th night ticket. So Friday's crowd was set to be huge.

10/8/22 - Balloon Fiesta Morning Mass Assention Day 6 28th Troop, 1st Heavy Weapons Troop! We had only a small gathering for the morning launch, but we were ready to support the Vader balloon. UFO? Nah, we want the boss! There he is!!! This was my only photo with Vader. I managed to not get my pic taken with the big guy whilst holding back the crowd. Me and Nick trooped together the whole day. I thought my weathering was a little heavy until I stood next to him... lol Note - Nick is indeed a little tall for a trooper. I'm OTTK height at 5'10". He's 6'3". Together for the first time this year. The Fiesta officials didn't let Vader inflate till Thursday... I made the news. I also got interviewed by French TV. Not sure what channel or services, but I had to wrestle my bucket off to chat with them. Good times!

68. Orange County Children’s Book Festival - Costa Mesa, CA - Sun. 10/02/22 (ANH-S TK #41, FTE #50!)

Hello and congrats TK-22617! Speaking from my own experience, there are a lot of small things that are not all too time consuming that you can do to make huge improvements on the looks! First off what I did was to just scrape off paint from the teeth, both the upper and lower part of the teeth, making sure that the color doesn't leave the teeth area! Then for L3 you might want to fill in the gaps in the back of the thighs with some Sugru! Find out how to do that here! Also a very quick thing here is to move out the dropboxes (blue) so they align with the outer most line of the plastic belt (yellow), and maybe dab a little glue on the back somewhere so they stay in place (that's what I did but there are a lot of other solutions) For L3 you might have to carefully cut off the sniper knee and reposition it (blue) to (yellow) These are some of the things that I have had to do myself (all of the above)! Regarding the sniper knee, it took me 2 hours or so of just carefully cutting in with an exacto blade with this attachment If you do this and you have to reattach it, don't be afraid of a little gap under the knee as we've seen many sniper knees with a little gap under it. I'll just attach how my knee looks now Again congrats on your new ID and I hope that you'll put many smiles on peoples faces!

[27] 18.09.2022 -- Noris Force Con Fürth, Day 3 Starting the day off by chasing yesterday's Jawa all over the premises (up the stairs as well, which surprised them), the halls filled slowly with everyone sleeping off last night's aftershow party. I took the time to listen to one of the panels, before going back to my patrol. Soon enough I ran into TK-19551 and resumed trooping with her. We found not only the droid above, but also several other R2-units, some mouse droids, Chopper and, most importantly, the protocol droid known as C-3PO -- both as a costume and the actor Anthony Daniel's. When we found yesterday's Ahsoka, she had a small surprise for us, turning us into the most fashionable troopers of the day. Wearing this outfit we got a bit of attention, some fun photo opportunities and took a picture with Brian Muir before heading back to the Endor bunker where TK-23115 played the Cantina Song live, so we could dance to it whilst dressed up. Afterwards we headed back to the star guests and I had the incredible opportunity to get my armor signed by Brian Muir. Honestly, having him compliment my armor and sign it means the world to me and is probably one of the highest compliments. I very much hope I get to meet him and his wife Lindsay Muir again in the future. Stealing this amazing meme by @revlimiter to segue into the last part of the day, where I finally managed to convince TK-55550 to join us in white plastic for a few pictures, before all of us joined the Landspeeder crew for deconstruction and clean-up. TK-66744 signing off

67. Orange Public Library Comic-Con - Orange, CA - Sat. 9/17/22 (ANH-S TK #40, FTE #49)

66. Zion Lutheran School Star Wars Lego Night - Anaheim, CA - Fri. 9/16/2022 (ANH-S TK #39, FTE #48)

[24] 10.09.2022 -- Fanfilm "Descendants of Order 66" Premiere Kiel After 16 years of work, the team who had worked on this movie finally got to show it in cinema for the first time and as some of them are members of the 501st themselves, they requested some support. We trooped outside of the cinema for about an hour and I ran into an old teacher of mine (left in the picture). I didn't approach her and she didn't notice who I was, but it was still very funny and awkward at the same time Having found one of the droids we were looking for, we decided to suit down to watch the movie. Honestly, 9.5/10, would definitely recommend, go check it out on YouTube! Those special effects are so very Star Wars, this might as well have been a canon movie. Afterwards five of us got back into costume to troop some more before meeting up with everyone for some food and talk. TK-66744 signing off