justjoseph63

The strapping all depends on your personal taste, Gerald. I personally don't attach the straps to the rivets in any way and I put snaps on them to attach them to the plates, so # 2 for me. The reason being is that I may have to replace the elastic in the future (and I have) so that way I don't have to remove the rivets to do so. The most important part of setting those rivets (as I'm sure you know) is the placement of the rivets themselves. Note on the diagram below how the measurements are taken from the center of the rivets, not the outside. Looking forward to seeing your results!

Thanks for those! The reason I asked is because of the return edges. If I could make a suggestion, it would be to smooth out the area seen below a little more. Any time you have an angle in a return edge (yellow arrow) it's best to round it out as much as you can. The return edges take the brunt of any movement, and that's normally where cracks will start. That area and the angles on the bottom of the posterior plate are where we see this happen the most, so I though I'd give you a heads-up. I know it's a small thing, but may save you some headaches in the future.

I don't remember where or when I got this patch, but I just now noticed that it says "501st Squad" (???) with Vaders Fist in Aurebesh. It's a 20th anniversary patch of some sort but has no LFL branding. Has anyone seen this before? Just curious. Thanks! It looks yellow in the pic but is actually made with shiny gold colored thread.

Absolutely. Saves any ambiguity when it's in black and white (or blue/red in this case).

Almost there, Paul! I have a strange request if I may.. can you post up some close-ups of the areas below? Phenomenal paint work on those ab plate buttons, but is the ABS/canvas belt attached to the ab plate in this pic?

Excellent choice, Robert. I've been trooping in IB boots for 7 years and no issues. The only thing I would suggest is to order a half or full size larger than you normally wear as they run a bit small.

I saw ANH over 60 times (seriously) when it first came out in '77. 8 years ago I decided that rather than collecting Stormtrooper action figures, I wanted to BE one, lol. What a great journey it's been so far!

Excellent point, Brien! I have added this to my build thread: *** Please be aware that this product should only be used outdoors or in a well ventilated area. It is also highly suggested that you use a mask and gloves.

Now THAT's the spirit, Matt! You can certainly enjoy your new status.. you earned it, brother, and starting a thread is an excellent idea! Your issues are nothing we haven't seen before and can be remedied of course, but I like your "can-do" frame of mind!

Looking good, Chris! On your shoulder straps, it looks like you could use a bit more trimming. The fronts should "ideally" be squared off, but this will not affect approval at any level, it's just one step closer to screen accuracy. Depending on your height, you can also remove the large tab in the rear (as long as you leave enough to go over the back plate tabs). Keep those photos and questions coming!

Way to go, Matt! If we can be of any help with any of the issues, just let us know!

As someone who had made more than a few 3D weapons/props, I can add that how much time you spend smoothing it out depends on the material you use to actually print the parts. My first build years ago was a DLT-19 made from PLA. Over 25 hours or so of sanding/filling.. and LOTS of those tiny "threads" that can be a pain to get rid of. Resin prints are pricier (but VERY smooth) so I normally have them done in PETG as I find it much easier to sand/fill. There are many items available to help get rid of print lines, but after initial sanding my "go-to" items are Bondo Glazing and Spot putty for the deeper lines and Rust-oleum Filler Primer before final sanding . Both are available at any auto parts store. If you want a durable "glass like" finish you can use XTC-3D epoxy filler (it takes some practice, though). One thing that is important to do is smooth all the pieces before gluing them. Once assembled, it can be next to impossible to get into all the tiny crevices. Trust me. I have a thread on smoothing out lines using these products (link here) which can help. It was for an ESB E-11 (seen below) but shows the basics and can be applied to any 3D weapon or prop.

I am WELL impressed with that bucket, Gerald. One of the best I've seen in a long time! Lots of great attention to detail, and something you will be proud to wear.

Hi Patrick! Posting a few pics using the link that Glen gave you will help us identify who made it. As for the "vents" I am guessing you mean these: They are known as Hovi-mic (or mix) tips and are available in sets of 2 online (a quick Google search will help). They can vary in design, so it would probably be best to remove the existing one so that they match. Looking forward to seeing your new acquisition!

Welcome, to the home of shiny white armor, Mark! As a few have mentioned, the 2 snap system is the way to go to ensure nothing comes apart. Once you get your kit (or even before) I suggest starting a build thread in this section. You are always encouraged to ask as many questions as you like, but keeping those (and posting LOTS of photos) in one place will help get you answers a lot faster. Speaking of photos, I can't stress enough how important it is to include them with your questions, especially if you have an issue. Just take... your... time, hit us up for anything you need, and I look forward to watching your build! I have a few tutorials under my signature at the bottom that may help.

I'll echo what Andrew said about CFO. Mark is a great guy to deal with, and since his kits are literally cast from an original set of ROTJ armor it doesn't get more screen accurate. He's on here often, and you can PM him here. If he doesn't get back to you in a few days let me know and I can email him.

Thanks for your submission Matt! One (or more) of us will be with ya' as quickly as we can!

Getting close to having your 501st TK # soon, Jonathan! Your GML will determine if the boots are good to go, but fingers are crossed for ya'. Even if you choose not to aim for higher levels of approval (but we hope you will ) I would consider getting a pair of Imperial boots (link here). At around 90 bucks they are not cheap, but in this case you really do get what you pay for. They are comfortable, will last a long, long time and are a great company to deal with. Despite what it says on their website meets at least L1 clearance requirements they are approvable all the way to Centurion level! Note that they make them in "waves".. about once a month. The current wave ends in 5 days (June 17th), but if you need to hold off they do these waves about once a month. One word of advice is to order a half or full size larger than you normally wear. Trust me.

Sorry to hear that, brother, and I agree.. that really does look terrible. Especially for the price.

GREAT to hear that they are shipping, but I don't think DN is even offering footwear and gloves any longer as they are presently not listed on their site. In looking at the various grain and textures of the boots I am thinking those are made from pigskin. Although pigskin stays pliable, doesn't stiffen up after getting wet and is pretty resilient, it has that bumpy surface and being thinner than cow leather is prone to fine wrinkles (like crepe paper) as seen in the first pic. I realize that most of the boot is covered with the spats and armor and nothing at all against DN, but when I start on my FO armor later this year I will be going with IB. DN IB

I have these in stock (link here). $27.00 including shipping.

Although it takes extra time and costs a bit more, as Glen mentioned many find one snap at each connection sufficient, I would go with the "double snap" method. I built my first set of armor using only one snap at each end of the nylon, but 5 minutes into my very first troop my left shoulder bell and bicep connection came apart. I ended up removing ALL the strapping and replaced every single connection with 2 snaps at each end. That may have been overkill, but I now do that on all my armor, and to this day I have never had a connection fail. Even if you don't use two snaps on the individual limb pieces, I highly recommend using 2 in the areas seen below. The pic shows the original method, but note that the straps were glued on one side. I don't suggest this. Elastic will lose it's stretching properties over time and at some point you may need to replace one or both. Hint: Note how the elastic is doubled over on the snap end below. I do 3 folds for added strength, glue the folds together and then set my snaps. The reason being is that those connections get a lot of wear and tear when suiting up/down, so better to be safe than sorry.

For the gaps, The front one is not too bad, but the one in the rear will definitely need to be filled for Centurion, Nick, and it's actually pretty easy to do! It should take you all of 15-20 minutes, and will make a world of difference in the look. I see you already added the ABS shim in the back of the front gap, so you are almost halfway there! By the way, the front one would pass at Level 3, but since you will already have the product on hand for the rear I would go ahead and fill that small gap. Luca provided a link to my tutorial here, and even though Sugru is owned by a German company (Tesa) I'm not sure if it's available there. A good alternative is Kintsuglue (available on Amazon Germany here).

When you get to ab button painting, Paul, I would suggest not taking it too low. The reason I say this is that with the quality and attention to detail you have shown if (make that when) you apply for Centurion it needs to have a small gap between the paint and the bottom of the raised part. This applies to the small 4 button panel as well . NICE job on trimming those plates!

The TD turned out great, Paul! Quick question: In the previous photos the ab button plates look as if they were attached, and yet in the recent one they look like they are missing. ? If you have in fact not attached them yet, I would recommend painting them before gluing them on, The reason being is that it's much easier to spin them around and such when they are not a permanent part of the larger ab plate.