maxsteele

Yeah, I do have a set of those. What file did you use and did you use any particular technique to do it? I assume I'm going to file it down to where it widens back out. I think I'll be able to keep my placement of the clips and not have to drill new holes.

My request still stands... Post up a list of what you need to finish and pics of the progress you have, and we can give you suggestions on how to proceed!

Thank you so much Steve! You have been one that has pushed me to make changes to my build that I never would have dreamed of doing. It has been a pleasure reading your feedback and working with you to get this build finished! I will get those rivets painted! The rounded tops of the clips is how they came to me when I ordered them. I'm afraid I don't have any tools to flatten them. There may be members in my garrison that have experience working with metal that can get them flattened for me. I will get the male snap in the corner and the snaps / rivet in the cod / crotch area, but not right now. I'm going to go for base approval and then EIB while taking a break from working on this armor, and then I'll get the remaining details up to Centurion standards. I did however make bicep hooks last night that work really well and will get those installed in the next day or two.

I have submitted my approval photos to the Cloud City Garrison's GML. Here is a link to the gallery: http://imgur.com/a/vHyHQ

I get nervous when I have a reply on my build thread from you. I will absolutely paint my rivets. You will be ashamed of me to know that I do not have the couch rivet / snaps installed yet. I will, just not for this current round. You've been a wealth of information and motivation for me during this last year of my build. Thank you very much for your knowledge and patience!

No sir, that shoulder bell strap is black and looks exactly that way. Check out this TK's left shoulder / bicep:

You're absolutely correct! My biceps are free floating. I'm considering bicep hooks, but I didn't want their construction to hold up my approval pics. I'll certainly make sure they're rotated properly in my next set of photos, and come up with a good method to keep them in place. I don't want to use straps between the shoulders and biceps. I'll start experimenting with hooks.

Hey Andrew, sorry for the late post - here's the inside of my helmet. The green foam is protecting my head from the screws. I cut some slits in the foam, put hot glue on the tips of the screws, and secured the foam in place.

Thanks guys! Anthony, I'm sure half of the views of your Centurion post are from me. You were a main model for my build, and your work is greatly appreciated! I also noticed I have my shoulders on the wrong sides, which is what is causing the gaps. I'll correct that along with a tighter back / kidney connection tomorrow.

Finished! I can't use these photos for submission, because you can see the green foam I used to push my sniper plate away from my knee. I'll have to re-take them tomorrow. These are what my submission photos will look like:

Yep, I'll snap some shots when I head home in about an hour or so.

I am using MICH pads I got from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004RCLM8Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 $15.94 with Prime shipping. They were supposed to come with velcro, but they did not. What I found was these pads act as the fuzzy side of velcro. I used the hook side of the industrial velcro I have and positioned them in the spots that were most comfortable to me. I have one of the square pads in the front above the nose against the middle of my forehead, two rectangles with the longer sides running vertically next to my ears, and two rectangles with the longer sides running horizontally next to those going around my head. I found when I put a pad directly in the back of my head, it pushed my head too far forward and my eyes were up against the eye lens. If I put a pad directly at the top of the helmet, the helmet sat too high on my head. I can take a pic of how I have the pads set in my helmet if you're interested. My eyes are the right distance from the lens, I have full view out of the eyes, and the helmet moves with me no matter where I turn my head.

Thanks for the tips Ian. I can certainly bring the clips in a bit. As for the ends, I didn't make the clips, and don't have any tools to square the ends off. Since the clips are just screwed on, I think I can go forward with attaching them how they are now, and when I find someone that can square the ends, I can just remove the clips, square them off, and screw them back on. This is the last piece before I take approval pics, which means I don't think I can wait to get them squared off.

I got my TD clips in today (Thanks Evilboy!). Here is what my TD will look like once the panel is glued onto the pipe and the clips screwed down. I haven't permanently assembled it yet: The panel and the end-caps came pre-trimmed. I do not have the tools to cut the pipe any shorter, so this is what the TD will look like once I drill the holes, install the screws, and glue the panel down. I know we want the ends of the clips to be even with the edge of the panel, and we want them to be up against the end caps.

I see you under that helmet! But seriously - is it all right to see skin under the helmet? You may want to get a balaclava.

If I had this kit, this is what I'd do: First, I'd take apart pieces to make them fit to my body (biceps, forearms, thighs, shins) Next, I'd detach the butt plate from the kidney plate if it is molded together. After that, I'd fit the ab and kidney around my waist and cut off the extra on each side. MIght need to do some heat bending on the kidney to get it to form around the body right. If the belt is plastic all the way around, I'd cut out the front belt plastic to match what other people's belt plastic looks like, then buy a canvas belt and attach the belt plastic to the canvas per current assembly instructions. Finally, I'd trim the back plate to the proper shape, as you've stated all the CRL images and reference photos do not have the back plate wrapping around the body. For spacing, the current suggested fit is to have the back plate sit above the kidney plate with little to no gap. I think where the bottom of the back plate is now is fine, but the edges of the back plate seem to go underneath the kidney. You could probably cut the back plate in such a way as to conform to the screen-used back plates and have it all above the kidney. It's already been mentioned to bring the drop boxes up and adjust the shoulders. You had said you adjusted the shoulders already, so that could be corrected now. I notice that your right bicep is rotated much too far. There is a molded ridge in each bicep that should match up with the molded ridge in the shoulders, which will then line up with the molded design in the forearms. The molded ridge I'm referring to is different than the cover strips. Good luck with your modifications!

What is the model of the walkie talkies you have?

I got my holster today and it's attached to my belt. Now that I have it, it will simply be a part of the costume rather than a functional holster to hold my e11. Why? Because my hyperfirm e11 is just too heavy to have in the holster. It throws off the whole fit of my armor. It pulls down on the belt, which pulls down on the ab, which makes the cod start rubbing more against my thighs, makes my ab / kidney transition uneven, etc.... I'm ok with not using the holster except in "emergency" situations. A Stormtrooper shouldn't have his e11 holstered anyway, right?

Woo hoo for another NE trooper! Looking great! These suggestions are from someone who has been staring at NE armor for the past year in my garage. They shouldn't have any bearing on receiving EIB, but are suggestions I've received while building and are for improving the over-all look of your armor: - I would look into shortening the elastic on the shoulder connections. The top of the shoulders can come right up to the shoulder bridges, which will close up the gaps in the front. - The return edges on the top of the ab and kidney seem a bit thick. You could probably trim them down a few mm, get a better fit and most likely be more comfortable to wear. I know the return edge on my kidney really poked into my back before I trimmed it down. - You can have more of an angle cut on the corners of your belt. - Putting elastic between your biceps and forearms will pull the forearms up and keep them from sliding down and colliding with the hand guards. It will also close that gap between the bottoms of the biceps and the tops of the forearms. - The TD clips can come outward a bit more toward the end caps to close the gaps between them and the end caps. You can also hit those screw heads with some black paint. - I believe you will want to bring the ends of your painted frown on your helmet to points. Good luck with the approval!

Hey Matt, could you take a video and upload it to youtube with what this sounds like when you're suited up and talking? This is seeming like a great solution with minimal wiring and electronic fussing. Two walkie talkies and a mic with one cable connecting.

I've resolved the issue with my shins riding up from my boots with velcro on the top of the boot and the inside of the shin. Special thanks to Lighty2627 for the tips on how to best put it in place! Unfortunately, I didn't follow his instructions exactly and I put the fuzzy velcro on the boot and the hook velcro inside the shin. He had said that the hook velcro rubbed against his boots and rubbed the paint off. Oops! I'll leave it be for the moment. It will really only rub the part of the boot that's underneath the shin. This method really holds the shins in place nicely with no "velcro" sound when walking. I've glued the snap in place on my cod and will make a strap to glue into the butt plate tab for the cod / butt strap connection. I have a shipping number for my TD clips, which should arrive Monday or Tuesday. My GML is the one making my holster, which will hopefully be ready in the next week or so.

PP sent! I'd add that I'd like the web hosting company to work out why we'll get times where the site doesn't load, then several refreshes later it comes up. Happens on multiple devices from multiple internet sources. Definitely frustrating when it happens. Could be the forum software as well, in which case it wouldn't be the hosting company's fault.

More than happy to assist! A good place to start is to get pics posted of what you have finished, and then a list of what you still need to complete.

(Duplicate post)

I am awaiting my TD clips and holster. In the meantime, I dipped the tab of the butt plate into boiling water and bent it so it curves in better. I also trimmed away some of the return edge at the ends of the tab for comfort and may trim some more. It won't affect the look at all. The butt plate is certainly fitting better. I figured out the proper way to lace my thigh straps so they don't slip while I'm wearing them. I may need to sand down some more from the tops to get away from rubbing against the cod, and a bit in the back to stop the rubbing against the butt plate. I'm looking at real small amounts that won't affect the look, but stop the catching that's happening. Finally, I know his will disappoint some, but I've decided for the moment I'm not drilling any more holes into my armor. This means for now I will not be installing the snap on the top right side of the ab, the split rivet in the cod, and the two snaps in the butt plate. I'm going to glue a strap on the butt side and a snap plate on the cod side, with a snap on the strap. I am very comfortable with removing glued items from my armor so I can absolutely go back and put in the snaps and rivet when I apply for centurion. Mark this post as a promise I will go back after some trooping and get these touches back in!