hjmediastudios

In the build I'm working on, I've just snapped the shoulder gasket to the biceps, which in turn are snapped to the elbows, which are snapped to the forearms. The legs are similar- the overall effect is that it's like putting on a pair of oddly-shaped trousers and sleeves, which really eases the ability to put the armor on. If you use snaps or another sturdy attachment method, it's actually easier (in my opinion) to put on by yourself than the classic TK.

The Flyye vest can also be found on Ebay---------------

I could give it a crack; in my day job I'm a graphic designer.

I have a quick question for those more up to speed here. We've seen that there are a considerable number of equipment options that the FO TK's have- from various sources I've seen troopers with a large blaster, E-11 (E-12?), E-11 with stock, pistol, white, black, and red pauldrons, and tactical vests. Will these be considered optional accessories for the CRL, or will some of them be spun off into another CRL, like with the current HWT?

I went with a reasonably-priced wet suit off Amazon. The zipper in the front is concealed by the armor and the neck seal, and there are no decals, stripes, etc. I believe it was only $40 or so, which may be cheaper than many purpose-built TK undersuits.

I didn't mean the gaskets on fitting to size; for instance, screen-used suits of armor didn't have shims, but some of our larger troopers might need them to fit even though they're technically inaccurate. The same goes for different styles of padding- Many might rather use a custom solution for comfort as opposed to what was used on the screen suit.

Very nice. Slowly but surely, it looks like the pool of vendors is coming together for TFA stuff!

I'm going to have to disagree that the Tier 1 requirements should be 100% accurate right of the bat. From my view, 100% screen-accuracy should be the goal of Tier 2 and 3, while there should be more flexibility at the baseline level to allow for things like cloth gaskets, different strapping systems, etc. for troopers who may want to add some minor inaccuracies while still being approved. This allows them some more wiggle room to adapt their suit to their own body shape and size, as well as being more comfortable to troop in for longer periods of time, while still remaining approved. I know that if my classic TK was held to 100% screen-accurate standards, I'd be booted from the Legion- there's no gaffer tape anywhere, the strapping is totally different for comfort, I invested in Nomex gloves instead of rubber, etc., as I go A) for a more "in-universe" authenticity (i.e. what would stormtroopers really wear into battle) and for something I can move in comfortably with the often brutal Iowa weather conditions playing a factor.

He could be the equivalent of a modern fireteam gunner- the real-world IAR isn't as obscenely large as a Lewis gun, so perhaps 40 years on the Empire has similarly slimmed down their heavy weapons?

Any pointers to where this's at? I'd love to see more. Yes.

Any word on the actual price? And is this kit form, or fully assembled? I know the initial lottery batch of 75 were supposedly a kit with a completed helmet.

There is also the fact that the point man for the 501st/ANOVOS arrangement has indicated on the 501st forums that the armor will be offered to those on the wait list (as opposed to those who already got the chance) before the general public.

I'll be spending a bit too much of my summer pay on a TK, ideally one of the HWT ones!

Hopefully we'll get some more reference material at Celebration! I'll be interested to see how the field of TFA armor develops as more information is unveiled.

Beautiful! I won't be pulling the trigger on anything unless I know it's accurate, but depending on the cost I may be very interested!

For snowtroopers, ID's, TB's, etc. I completely agree. The issue as I see it as that cartoon-style TK's with pauldrons would almost certainly be approvable, as they've appeared in multiple sources as just a stormtrooper with a pauldron- no backpack, ammo pouches, etc. And, since they're simply a stylized depiction of a movie TK to fit the medium, for me it creates some uncertainty. The JRS, for example, has no problem allowing red-striped TI's as 181st pilots; even though the only depiction of such pilots is in a non-film medium, it's simply assumed that they represent standard movie TI's in terms of armor, etc. I'm not saying that pauldrons should be added to the standard TK CRL as options- merely that the status of a separate Rebels "stormtrooper commander" costume/CRL with movie TK is unclear.

This is kind of a gray area as far as I'm concerned. On one hand, we only see pauldron-wearing TK's in Rebels, which on one hand would seem to indicate that this should only be approvable with a cartoon-style TK. On the other, there's no doubt that the Rebels TK's are intended to represent standard, film-style TK's, but are simply presented differently due to the distinctive art style of the show. (A New Dawn, for instance, clearly portrays film-style TK's on the cover, even though it is set before the series itself takes place.) Personally, I wouldn't be opposed to considering accessories seen only on Rebels TK's to be possibly approvable for standard TK's, and vice versa, as they are both the same troops depicted in different media. Then again, my personal philosophy doesn't hew too closely to strict screen-accuracy, instead going for in-universe "realism"- I consider myself when I armor up to be playing a stormtrooper, not playing an actor playing a stormtrooper- hence the nicer Neoprene gloves, sturdier strapping, etc. Also, as an aside, licensed products and books have depicted the orange-pauldroned troopers as being Commanders, white-pauldroned troops as Sergeants- the first canonical confirmation of a TK rank system. So far, the black-pauldroned ones are depicted just as Tarkin's security detail- perhaps they're intended to represent elite troops?

I'm currently building a HWT and the pack's been done for quite some time. For the radio box (the main one on the back) I used a Platt 207 blow-molded case; for the other boxes I used project enclosures.

Exciting! I'm eagerly awaiting the opportunity to build a TFA TK, and your bodysuit progress is good to see.

I might suggest injection molding, but that can be expensive for large pieces/molds.

It appears more like a white portion of leather or cloth sewn onto the glove; there are no visible seam lines between plates that would be required for the trigger finger to bend.

One of the theories I've heard is that the blaster attaches magnetically, which seems reasonable as there doesn't seem to be a holster on any of the TKs.

Indeed. I've already fired up Blender and have started taking frame-by-frame notes to see if I can make a 3D sketch of the new trooper design. Since it appears a main character will be a TK, we'll have no shortage of reference material to work with.

As a professional artist and shiny new 501st TK, I can give it a shot if there's still a need.

TK-11775 from Central Garrison requesting access; my profile is here.