justjoseph63

A very wise move. Having everything on hand before you start will help immensely. Nothing worse that having to stop mid-build because you are missing something and have to order or go out and buy it.

Looks like that weapon is going to turn out phenomenal! If you are anything like me, you want to see the finished product ASAP, but if I could make a suggestion it would be to let the silver dry for at least 3-4 days. I assume you are doing the silver so that you can use it as a base for the weathering, and although it may seem dry in a few hours, enamel paint needs time to cure thoroughly. Otherwise, when you remove some of the black top coat to give it that realistic appearance you will remove the silver as well, defeating the purpose. I sincerely admire your dedication to detail on this, Ben, and I can't wait to see the finished product!! This bin is going to turn out SO cool!

As Glen pointed out, the large ab button plate will need a rim, but the small plate should have zero return edge and lay flat (same thing with the small button covers). I would trim it down as seen below, and remember that the paint should not go all the way to the bottom of the actual raised part of the button. Fantastic job so far, sir. Keep up the great work!

PERFECT! Can I ask where you got the file for that? Thanks!

MUCH better, Cory. Still a bit rough, but I wouldn't have an issue passing these at Level 3. Nice work!!

First. thank you for your service! A good fan system will be a lifesaver, Michael. Not only do they keep your noggin cool, they help keep the lenses from fogging up- especially when it's humid. The ones I use are from Tony @ukswrath. Great quality/service and lots of options (link here). As for tutorials on Youtube, there are a lot out there for sure.. but not all of them provide the correct information. We have hundreds here on every subject you could possibly need, with the added benefit of an entire Detachment that you are welcome (and encouraged) to ask for assistance from at every step of your build. As you have probably noticed, we suggest starting a build thread when you get your kit. That way you can show off your progress, ask as many questions as you like and post up lots of photos. Posting photos is especially important when you have an issue. We are here for ya', so never be shy about asking for help. It's what we do!

It depends on what you are using it for, Bill. What part are you thinking of?

Lots of great folks in the Krayt Clan Detachment that helped me immensely. Lots of little details involved, but a really fun costume.

Spectacular job on those teeth, Chris!

Looks like you have figured it out FAST, lol. While we are awaiting the rest of the images, you will need to remove the paint from your cod rivet. It can probably be scraped off and should take you no more than a few minutes! After that, please post up a new pic of that area. THANKS! As per the CRL for Level 2: Rivet on must be brass or silver in color, approximately 5/16" (8mm) in diameter and is not painted.

Hi Merlin! Thank you for your submission, but you will need to post up the photos here in this thread before we can get started on your approval. If you need help, I have a thread here which will guide you through the process. If you have any trouble, please feel free to contact one of us in the D.O. department using this link. A link to the required photos can be found here. Looking forward to seeing your pics!

That is the nicest looking E-11 I have seen in a long, long time, Adam, and thanks for this tutorial!. All that hard work and attention to detail has paid off in spades and is certain to be the envy on future troops! I'm not a Doctor (nor do I play one on TV) but I think I can officially diagnose you with OCTKD disorder. Welcome to the club!

Why does this not surprise me? You are an ANIMAL when it comes to builds, brother. I am constantly amazed every time I see one of your new ones, and I always wonder what the next one will be!

EXCELLENT idea on waiting until you get the chest and back complete and fitted. That way you will have a better idea on where to place the bells. I assume you mean the white elastic that connects the chest and back, correct? If so, doubling this for added strength is certainly can't hurt. As for adding a strip of nylon webbing, I don't think it will be necessary. BUT, if you do, make sure the posts on the snaps will be long enough to go through all the layers and still have enough for them to connect securely to the bases- you might want to do a test piece. Keep those photos rolling in!

Although they were cast from original screen used armor, RS shoulder bells can be a bit tricky as they are not the same length (photo 1). As seen in their commission builds (photos 2, 3 and 4) the left bell is almost always shorter than the right (photo 5 shows them reversed). 1 2 3 4 5 Screen used bell (no return edge) Reference images Not the biggest of deals by any means, but since you are doing your own build you have the opportunity for a better "ideal" look by making them both the same length. That's up to you of course, but I would suggest trimming them down a little at a time until you get to where you are happy with the overall look. Some things to keep in mind are: 1. The tops should touch (or be very close to) the shoulder bridge area with no big gaps (as seen in pics 3, 4 and 5). 2. Any gaps between the front/back of the bells and chest/back plates should be kept as minimal as possible. 3. You can trim all or most of the return edges off of the bottoms (this is screen accurate) to even them up if needed. Will it affect higher levels of approval if they are not the same length? Nope, but we recommend getting them as close as you can.

The product I use (for the exact same reason) on the electrobinoculars I make is Rustoleum 2X clear coat, but be sure to get the Matte finish.

The sniper knee plate ridges need to align with the ridges on the top of the calf. Know in advance that it will not sit perfectly flush.. below is a detail (first photo) from a WTF build. Note how the ridges line up on the side but there is a gap under the front (arrow). This is expected and is perfectly fine. The ridges will also not be in contact all the way up (second photo). Again, perfectly normal and acceptable. It helps a LOT to remove ALL of the return edge on the bottom of the sniper plate before fitting/gluing. For the TD clips, I suggest going with Tony's (ukswrath). He includes the correct screws as well, and you can find those here.

One word here, Chris.. spectacular! A truly awesome build, and your "esprit de corps" is shining brightly, brother. Just one thing before we can move you along.. we need one small favor which should take you all of 15 minutes or less. As per the CRL for Basic, the "Frown... does not leave the teeth area". The rest of your paint work is absolute textbook, but we need you to grab some toothpicks and some (non-acetone) paint remover and take a bit off the tops of some of those teeth (the bottoms look great). Yes, there were some TKs that had the paint extending further onto the gums, but for our purposes we gotta' go by the CRL Reference images (note the white space between the teeth and "gums"). After following your build thread and seeing that keen eye for details. we have every faith that you can quickly knock this out! After getting this done, please post up a few pics of the finished product so that we can get that EI badge under your name.

It looks like you have a nice taper on the forearms, but double check that the wrist opening is not too wide. I would also remove 100% of the return edges around the wrist (arrow) and in the "hump" area. The ridges on each side of the seam/where the cover strip will go look a bit wide. If you can narrow these it would give you a more screen accurate look, but that depends on the size of your thighs. Troopers come in all shapes and sizes so we allow for things like this. "I've never used abs paste before, but I have a mason jar outside cooking with acetone and scrap. I saw that I could weld plastic, sand and polish it? That's rad. I planned to use this to reinforce the interior of the armor along the cover strip seams". I personally don't think you need the ABS paste on the inside. As long as the interior cover strip is wide enough and you use E-6000 to attach them you should be golden. Since the calves get opened and closed a lot it puts stress on the front seams. ABS paste is brittle and not very forgiving, whereas E-6000 stays flexible.

Coming along nicely, Chuck! You won't be disappointed that you removed all those return edges. Trust me. Do you have your boots yet? The reason I ask is that it makes it MUCH easier to size the calves if you have them to wear when sizing. Otherwise, you may measure them too loose (or tight) which will throw off the connections in the back. Keep those photos rolling in!

Folding Stock The folding stock for the ROTJ version was (for the most part) the same as the L2A3. However, 2 differences I noticed were that there is a rivet in the section that folds out (left side only). I have no idea why it's there, but it will lock the stock in place when present, so that may be why they did it. There is also a hole toward the rear. I have drilled these out (below) and will add the rivet in the front, and since the rear hole seems to have a backing of some sort I will probably just glue a tiny ABS scrap behind it before re-painting. Reference images One more tiny detail is that unlike the L2A3 type, an E-clip is present behind the bolt on the stock hinge (both sides). Looks like a trip to the hardware store! Reference images E-clip

Scope OK, back to it. Just when I thought I'd nailed the scope, in studying the reference images closer I noticed that the small brass grommet I had used on the front end was too small (photo 1). Even though I made the knurled screw insert (photo 3) I just wasn't happy with the look. I searched everywhere for a more accurate one but to no avail. I also was not over the moon with the overall shape of the rear part, but was not up to sculpting a new one. I ordered the mounting bracket on ebay: I know I'm getting WAY too finicky, and that many of these details will never be noticed, but that's just in my nature so thanks for bearing with me. Reference images Note: In the reference images (first 2 pics above) a few of the front sections were bent up, but not all of them.. I wonder if this was because they got caught up on the holster. I also noticed that some of the front sections were not at the bottom but on the side (last pic above). I'm sure either would be fine, but I'm going with the bottom. After some serious consideration, I decided to bite the bullet and ordered an accurate replica aluminum Stembridge scope. A bit pricey but well worth it imo. 1 2 3 You will need to cut out a section of the scope rail for the mounting hardware. Easy to do with a Dremel, but leave something (a small lip) for the mount to grab onto.

Ouch. So sorry to hear about your loss! Getting that ratio exact is not easy, but with the syringes you should be fine. Since I know zip about 3D printing, following Andrews and Glen's advice is a great idea. For some hard to reach areas I used the Bondo glazing and then sanded with 3M silicone sandpaper wrapped around the flattened end of a craft (popsicle) stick. This sandpaper truly is a miracle. It is insanely flexible so you can bend it into any shape, it will not tear, and seems to forever. It's also washable! (I did an entire TK and an E-11 build with one 5 x 7 sheet and it's still going strong)! They don't make it anymore, but I can send you enough of the 150 and 220 grit to get you through this build (no charge), just PM me.

As per usual (and to echo Andrew's comment) this is one fantastic submission, brother (not that I expected any less from you)! You are in the queue, sir!