maxsteele

You don't have to have the return edge at the elbow end of the forearms, so you're ok. Fit should be just barely able to put your hands through at the wrist-end, so you're good there. I suggest that from now you you do all armor fitting with your undersuit on. Having a bulkier shirt or pants when fitting will throw your fit off. Don't make any more big changes on your forearms or any other armor pieces until you have your undersuit.

Now that's a Stormtrooper! Honestly man, your build looks great! Hit the rivet heads on your ab / kidney and the thigh battery pack with some white paint. You're looking sharp!

That was a great instructable! Thanks for posting it! I'd like to find out if this prevents yellowing forever, or if it gets rid of the yellowing for now and then the ABS will start the yellowing process again?

Ok, just checking Andrew! That is certainly the one to have. I was seeing if you had a PTT cable from another manufacturer. If you ever get the icomm, it comes with a "Type 1" PTT cable, which you'll need to use instead of the "Type 2" PTT cable. I need to order a "Type 2" PTT cable myself. I'm not planning on getting the icomm.

Andrew, what PTT cable are you using?

Looking at the photos, it seems like you have more construction than you're expecting. The reason the forearms and biceps are slipping off you is because they're too big for your body. You will need to cut them to fit your arms. I would also highly suggest to remove the velcro completely from them and join them together with glue and finishing strips. You'll definitely want to replace the velcro and go with a snap / strap or bracket strapping system. Biceps, forearms, and thighs should be completely closed and glued together. Shins don't glue in the back or else you'd never be able to get them over your feet. Velcro to close the backs of the shins is ok, but you'll want everything else to be more secure. You may need to remove and re-position the battery pack at the bottom of the right thigh. What we can't tell from these photos and what you've already ran into is your body size compared to the size of the armor. Having the pieces fit you is very important. You'll probably find you need to take apart the thighs and shins to cut and fit them more to your legs. The connection between the ab and kidney will probably need to be brought in, and then you'll need to work on the fit with the chest and back plates. I think you'll need to re-paint the buttons on the ab plate. I am the poster child for "If I can do it, anyone can!" If you take it one step at a time, research everything, and ask for assistance on your build thread, you'll have your TK ID and start trooping in no time!

It really comes down to how it feels on your head. I had some motorcycle helmet pads, and they felt too thin and didn't really do much. I got a set of MICH pads from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004RCLM8Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 They're current $15.94 with free Prime shipping. The great thing about these pads is the back is designed to stick to hook velcro. I taped in the pads to get the fit correct for me, then I put in the hook side of industrial velcro in the spots I wanted the pads. They stick right the hook velcro strips. The green you see in this shot is some green foam I cut a couple of holes in and stuck over the ear screws.

My sniper plate made contact on the left edge, right edge, and the center. I glued those sections, then clamped the hell out of it. I used my magnets to build up a surface, then clamped the magnets together on each side. The middle clamp was a bit easier. That was one part of my build I didn't really document. I took left and right shots of the sniper for my EIB cert. I trimmed down the return edge at the top on the left side a bit more to match the return edge on the shin after this shot:

Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels are cartoons. Yes, they're set in the Star Wars universe, and they are considered canon for the history, but they are kid's cartoons. I have been enjoying them with my children. They like them, and I like getting back story. They're not going to have drama and over-bearing evil on the Empire side mixed in with desperation and hopelessness on the Rebel side in these kid shows. That's what Episode VII is for. I can almost guarantee it. That's where they'll have all the seriousness and drama.

Hi Craig! Looking good! I recently finished a set of NE armor as well. Here are my observations: Nice job on using the brackets for strapping! NE armor has plenty of return edge to do it. For the square notches at the bottom of the kidney, it seems like you may have cut them too wide. You have left the extra material that would get cut off to make the square notches that were already built into the suit: Before (Red line to show where the cut is): After: It's hard to tell in the shots but you may have left it on the right side of the kidney as well? I'm not sure how much of a difference this will make with approvals. Did you paint the snap on the top right of your ab plate? That should not have white paint on it. Your forearm / bicep connection could benefit from an elastic strap holding them together if you don't already have that in place. I believe you're going to run into the same issue with your thermal detonator that I did. The space between the end cap and the panel may be too large. I trimmed down the sides of the pipe to narrow that gap. I second trimming the top and bottom of the belt plastic. There should also be some space between the edge of the rivet cover and the edge of the belt on each side: I also feel like the whole belt could be raised up to right underneath the button plate. Good luck with your submission!

Oh yeah, stripes look much better now. As for your bucket, just like Germain said - you gotta put it on sideways and twist it onto your head. Welcome to wearing TK armor.

I truly don't want to be critical... You want the tube stripes to be a pencil-width from the cheek. These look to be at least 3 pencil-widths away from the cheek. Please don't do anything until someone else responds to this as well. I'm not sure it will prevent basic approval, but there is a chance it could.

Honestly, the whole "We went out for a walk at a nearby park and stumbled upon the Star Wars set" doesn't sound real at all. They're not going to let people "accidentally" come across a live film set like that. With the shots these guys took, they could have acted crazy and ran into the middle of shooting. That's not how it works. This isn't real.

Step away from the ear shaping! Seriously though, here's on-screen ear example: You're good.

Yeah, I can't make out more than "Hey! he's wearing white armor! And it's vaguely Stormtrooper-shaped!" .

I do not recall if I trimmed the top of the butt plate. I can get a measurement for you on the size of it tonight.

I can't tell you how many times I saw that shot of your tri-tip while referencing your build thread for my forearms. Glad to see you're getting back on the build! Post up any issues you're having and I'll give you as much input as I can.

Have you trimmed any of the butt plate? I did. I also heat-bent the tab at the bottom of the butt plate so it tucked underneath between my legs better. I boiled a pot of water, dunked it in for 15-20 seconds, then held it in a bend until it cooled off. Much safer than using a heat gun. As for your thighs, I highly recommend to not do any cutting on the tops of the thighs until after you have the entire upper-half of your armor in place. And by “in placeâ€, I mean the butt / ab / kidney / belt / chest / back all strapped and snapped up and fitting the way you want it. That includes the shoulder elastics between the chest and back. After that is done, then you can truly see how your thighs will interact with the cod and the butt plate.

Definitely take off all the return edge at the ankle side of the shins. Otherwise, it'll cut grooves into your boots. Yep, there is a ton of plastic to cut off these NE kits. Save it all in case you need to mix up some ABS paste or make some backup cover strips. I also trimmed down the return edges on my shins and thighs quite a bit. Here's a comparison of two parts of one of my shins. Untrimmed return edge on the left, trimmed return edge on the right. I trimmed them all down to 5mm: Here's the bottoms of the thighs - left is untrimmed, right is trimmed:

I haven't yet. I did a troop last night and I'm not convinced I need to make those cuts. Thanks everyone for the feedback on the topic. I'm still considering it.

Yep, my mistake! I didn't check to see if this concept art had been posted there. Move along, move along!

Hey everyone! After a few troops, it's time to start with some modifications! I'm starting with notching the tops of my shins to help mobility. I've taken some pics with pencil lines and wanted to get some opinions before I break out my scissors:

I think we'll have actual shots of the armor around January / February in previews. That should be enough time for some mold makers around here to get a full suit.

This may be the look of the new Stormtrooper armor from Episode VII, according to what's been tagged as concept art for the upcoming movie:

I actually think I'm going to put the cut-outs on my thighs and shins after the bit of research I did for that screenshot. I think it will make my thighs and shins more comfortable to wear and easier to bend my legs.