pandatrooper

Love your new sig, Nazgul

These are both curiosity questions more than anything. I just saw Fanboys last week, and afterwards had to watch ANH (DVD SE) again. Does anyone know who provided the armor for Fanboys and what type was it? FX? I noticed right off the bat that the shoulder straps were riveted on, and that they're using straight out of the box hasbro blasters Also, for the "special edition" ANH, in the desert scene with the sandtroopers and CG dewbacks: - I had read somewhere that they hired "Navy Seals" as the actors. Is this true? Why? - What armor did they use for shooting those new scenes? I would assume these were filmed in the mid 90's. Did they resurrect older suits that LFL had on hand, or did they make new ones? - Is it just me, or does anyone else hate the CG sandtrooper on the dewback? His helmet looks off (frown is wrong, tear traps are too low, eyes are wrong, faceplate looks like the wrong angle, and his shin and foot seem like weird proportions). It drives me insane...

Cool, thanks for the additional feedback guys. I'll do a tutorial to show the progress, I have a good idea on how to do it.

Hey Andy, I'll let you know. I ordered some on the weekend, they should be arriving this week. I'm in the same boat as you. I'm an 8.5, so to be safe I ordered an 8 and a 9. I figure I can keep or sell the pair that doesn't fit. I'll keep you posted. Sounds like we have another great option for boots now! Can't wait to get mine!

This is a great solution! I can see trying to Have the ANH strip with velcro may add to the bulkiness of the seam, but putting an elastic strap is a great solution. Like Jag says, it's just like TK boots. Thank you!

So basically, the Stuka method, but with some velcro as well - correct?

So from what I've read, these are the most common ways to close the back of the shins (on TE style armor, could be used on others too). I'm trying to do mine now and I can't decide on what method. Ideally, I want to do ANH style (strips on front and back) but I'll need to trim and test fit first to see how things line up. But I'd like my fellow troops opinion first before doing any lethal cutting. 1. have the shin backs overlap, have the opening face inwards so the outside of the shin looks nice, use velcro to close it shut 2. have the shin backs overlap, have the opening face inwards so the outside of the shin looks nice, just rely on the overlap to keep it closed 3. Glue the back shut, glue a 20-25mm strip on top. 4. Stukatrooper method (not sure what to call it). Have the back of the shim butt seamed, and only glue the ANH overlap strip on one side (I assume the outside) and rely on the tension to keep it closed. This way, you get the strip / ANH look without gluing it shut Ideally, #3 sounds the best to keep it solid, but there's no way I can get a foot through the shin without spreading it apart. Can anyone actually physically do this? I know in the movies, they just have the back "open" but I'm not sure how practical this would be when trooping. Any advice here would be great! Thanks

Adding 2 more, kind of an outline version of the imperial one. Makes it a little cleaner / easier to see through.

You don't need a lot. Just get some insulating door trim foam (black or white from a home reno store, it's adhesive) and stick some on the inside of the armor, where the thigh hits your outer knee area. This will center the thigh piece, and still allow you to put on on easily, plus it will help it stay in place, and not wobble around. Regardless, congrats on the EIB status! Good job

Looking good. man, so many people going for EIB, I gotta get my act together! I would only suggest one small thing (it's a should have in EIB rules, not a must have) I think the holster should be held with 2 snaps at the top of the belt, and not 4 snaps. Again, small potatoes. The only other thing I would suggest is maybe shimming the thighs near the knees with some foam, that way the thigh pieces will sit centered on your leg and not angled to one side. Otherwise, looks like a nice build!

I just cracked off a couple quick ones for you in Photoshop. Heres a basic one in red and one in yellow. Here's one where I incorporated the imperial logo. Imagine like a holosight like a red dot Eotech or something. I always thought the imperial logo would make a cool reticule (that's what they are called nowadays on holosights). Enjoy!!

Darrel, I'll whip something up for you, Give me like 15 mins.

To be safe, I actually ordered 2 pairs. I'm an 8.5, so I ordered an 8 and a 9 since they only have full sizes right now. I figure I can sell the one that doesn't fit, or if the 8 fits me, I'll keep the 9 (put an insole in it) as a backup or do a TD someday (I would love to have a TK and TD setup). I'll let you guys know how they fit. I'm rather picky with footwear. I found that my left foot is actually an 8.5 and my right foot is an 8, so it's always hard for me to find shoes that fit properly.

Not sure if you want to wait, but I'll being doing a simple Miliput reinforcement tutorial this weekend.

Could it be an older dovetail sight riser / mount? The tapered grooves on the sides reminds me of a dovetail sight mount, possibly from an old rifle of some kind? Like this but a different model? ------------ My only other guess would be a security latch for a door or patio door.

The cool thing is that with real leather, you can shine them up or dull them down. With synthetic leathers (like Caboots) it's harder to do that. When I get mine, I might try to dull them down and try to use some different polishes / colors to make it slightly more cream / off white in color to match my armor better.

I just ordered mine! Finally, with proper TK boots I can submit for 501st / EIB.

Try this new supplier here. http://www.tkboots.com/ They only have full size, so you might need a size 9.

Not sure if you guys have seen this or if this was posted before, but this site allows you to take a 15 second clip and remake it in a creative way. All the clips will be put together, and there will be a complete fan made Star Wars ANH beginning to end. Cool idea! http://www.starwarsuncut.com/ There's still some great clips available, including the Han / Luke TK scenes and the "Move along" TD scene! I wish I could participate, but I don't have enough time for it right now. Maybe some FISD guys can contribute!

Whoa, that's like the holy grail right there! Thanks for posting, I'm mailing him right now!

I found a company that I think makes Jodhpurs in the USA, but they don't have a website or e-mail contact. I'd be curious what the cost would be. The thing is, even if we were able to find a manufacturer to do a run (probably at least a couple hundred pairs) the cost would be really high as an investment. I'm just brainstorming here, so my numbers are guesstimates at best. I'm just running some numbers, let's say a manufacturer would make them, in leather, etc.. Due to the smaller run, wholesale cost might be approx $40 (I'm just guessing) at say 250 pairs (this would be a conservative number for a big manufacturer, any less and I'm not sure if they'd do it. If it was a lower cost from China, they'd want even bigger numbers) in various sizes (say, 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 at 50 pairs each), that's like a $10,000 investment - not including any shipping costs. That's a lot of money, and for someone to invest that - they'd want to help the TK community but they'd want some money for their time and effort. So they'd sell the boots for say $75. So there'd be some profit. At the end of the day: - BIG initial investment - some return / profit for their work / time - taking orders, tracking, storage, packaging to ship, brokerage fees, duties and taxes, customs, shipping to customers - potentially being stuck with some sizes (some sizes always sell more than others) - potential returns / refunds due to boots not fitting, etc.. - getting stuck with stock, not being able to return it to a manufacturer - selling leftovers at cost or loss Those are just ideas, but it's a pretty big undertaking. I'd love to do something like this, but it's a lot of money and effort. I think it's worth looking into tho.

I've thought about this too. While there may seem like there's a lot of demand, it's not even close to the numbers needed to order shipments from suppliers. Joey is correct, you either need to order thousands of affordable boots from China (where minimum orders would be very high) or contract a smaller supplier to make them in the USA, but the cost would be quadrupled. Caboots didn't make their own TK boots, they were made by another supplier that went out of business, that's why they only have some sizes left. They haven't been able to find the right supplier that can make the quantities they need at the price they want. They said they should have someone lined up soon and will start making boots in a few months. But they only offer that one style. Personally, I don't like caboots that much in terms of the shiny white finish and the stitching near the instep. You're correct in that if we designed our own boot, it would be better and more based on what the community wants. Ideally, I think it would be cool if there were design choices / options: Standard design: - seamless leather construction or synthetic if costs are too high - no "fancy" stitching - black sole / heel - elastic sides - pull tabs I would suggest offering 2 finishes. A shiny bright white for those that like the style, and a more matte finish off white, that might be more screen accurate to match armor. If necessary, people can apply white shoe polish to brighten them up. Right now, there' no "finished" options for those that want less shiny boots. Caboots are like patent leather white finish, which just doesn't look right to me. I think it might also be worthwhile to contact a Jodhpur style boot manufacturer, and see if they'd do a run with white leather and white elastic. Do a big group buy. There's a lot of Jodhpur makers since they're riding boots, you can find decent ones for about $50. That would be a dream come true for me.

No problem, glad it was useful. I would also recommend putting a small block of foam where the top of your head sits, to prevent it from drooping too low. The reason they don't include that piece is because it's glued tot he helmet from the factory. Derek: I'll snap some pics tonight. The kits comes with the velcro on the foam, but not the "hook" side if I recall correctly. That part is already inside the helmet, but as a trooper you MUST have some extra velcro kicking around. Pics to come.

VT is a another armor seller (recast if that concerns you). I think he's an associate of CAP's who's molds are based off the AP & TE molds. I think it was during a time when people were making armor, then not making armor, selling molds, etc.. and various molds changed hands (this happened before my time, so I'm just stating what I've read). There's a few people here on FISD including myself that have some of his armor. Recasting aside, the armor is decent but the lid is probably not the quality you're seeking. The armor is ABS and is off white in color. The helmet pull detail isn't as sharp or deep as TE2 or some others. It's definitely better quality than FX, but doesn't quite match up to some of the highest end armor helmets. That's just my 2 cents

I totally forgot I had this, but about a year ago, I had placed an order online at 360skate (big online skateboard shop) for some parts for my skateboard and a little skateboard I was setting up for my niece. Anyways, long story short - I had also purchased a Protec helmet liner for a an airsoft helmet I have. I bought a medium, but when i tried to install it in my airsoft helmet, it was too tight. I ended up tossing it onto a shelf where it sat for the last year. I've been gathering parts and supplies for my build, and I knew I needed something for the liner. Bingo! Bust out the Protec liner, and whaddya know... it fits! So for anyone that wants to go a step up from "chunks of random foam", here's an affordable liner you can use for TK helmets. The great part is that you can velcro it in place, and peel it off for washing after trooping. ----- *ps: be aware or sizing, what fits you might not fit me. But here's a tip: when I was a teenager, I worked in a skateboard shop. If you bring your TK lid into a shop, i don't think the guys there will have a problem letting you test the helmet liner out in your lid before buying / ordering one. That way, you can find out what size fits you.