TikiTechie

Thanks, yeah. Trying to. I'm kind of going with the idea of, YAGNI and "get it done and see what falls off" then make that part better. I don't want it to look bad, but unlike my last kit there are areas where the kit is more forgiving wrt how things are connected or overlapping. Those areas need less focus and the ones that do really will need attention, like sealing the seamless areas which is going to be my weak area and I definitely want those done well. I would also like to do this without paint (not sure that's going to be possible) but if so, there's no sealing sanding, yet. Now that I know how tough my other kit is, I am less afraid of digging into it more aggressively. Though I'm trying to avoid being sloppy and making mistakes like my forearm snafu. It also helps that there some really kick-an impolite person build threads that have helped a lot. This community is so helpful and supportive.

The pile of unfinished pieces grows yet smaller. I am at the point where the only thing slowing me down is a lack of clamps and magnets. I am trying to just finish this kit without any more spending, so it'll just get done when it does. Left gauntlet complete with greeblies. The screwed up cutout area came out as good as I expected. Pretty rough, but some filler will make this better. Hopefully! Right thigh is complete, but I must not have used enough glue to the edge because I am seeing this bulging areas where it did not adhere. I am hoping the solution is insert glue under those edges & magnet it down rather than having to pull it apart and start over. :/ WIP: Sanded right gauntlet pieces with hopes to get that assembled tomorrow. Trimmed up the shoulder bells and will glue when I get some clamps freed up. Exciting picture Glad to be at the point where I have very little dremeling left to do. Or I should say, my family is glad of that. My workshop is the basement and it carries pretty well. Someday will have a garage workshop or something.

Day 8 Lots of things adding up. Got the torso, yoke and chest into a wearable state! Very gratifying to be able to put something on, even though it's pretty rough sized. Still grate. Got the gauntlets repaired and getting them assembled one by one. Given the shape of it, I am wondering if this pencil line would work for a TLJ gauntlet. I think I've seen some trimmed back gauntlets. The torso and back zipper. The butt plate straps are in kind of an inconvenient location so I'm not sure if I need to make a change yet. The zipper was the straightest lines I've ever sown, maybe owing to the shape of the zipper. The back right now is not trimmed back, just split down the middle. The velcro should give it some will "room to grow" but it seems like the torso needs to tighten quite a bit so I will probably revisit in the near future. Test fitting of abs & butt/cod Trying to show the join here on the yoke to back join. It actually is pretty narrow gap and will hopefully only require minimal filling.

Awesome, thank you. I guess if they are hidden it's not all that critical, but I guess they are shaped that way to connect better, so it's good to know the right way.

The list of components to be built is getting smaller. Glad to see progress. Sometimes it feels like I'm not making any. The big components today, got both kidney pieces affixed to the abdomen. Tonight, glued the back to the yoke and will let that sit until tomorrow eve. Some more trimming needs to happen but the join is a closer fit than I was worrying. This is the "rescued" gauntlet. Not as bad as I was thinking when I first realized I'd messed something up. (Thanks to @ukswrath for his build log to indicate where I screwed this one up. Could have gotten a lot farther with a bad pair of gauntlets.) After looking at the top gauntlet plates for awhile, I did realize they are slightly different. (It took me a long while to see the difference.) Which one goes to which arm? I hadn't noticed this difference addressed in any threads. Are there other differences in these pieces?

Oh Snap! Mistake time. Looks like I fell into the same trap Captains_Drydock did when putting the gauntlet together. The difficult bit will be where I chopped out two slots for the clip indents. Not as severe as it could have been. I can still shim the edges and get a good join, but I'll need to fill in the gaps. That'll probably not look great. But, it's only on the one side, fortunately I ran out of time to work on the right gauntlet. Can I leave it as is? (see below for someone elses version.) I think it might look a little off. One thing I noticed while holding this up is that the right and left gauntlet edge with the clips is quite a bit longer on one side. I'm not sure why, but it's significant. It also makes me wonder how I should go about attaching these since I had trimmed the base piece to accomodate the overlap. I'll probably trim the back edge of the fin part to align better with the base. I think I've seen other cuts on there to accomodate the wearer. I think I took inspiration from this picture, which I think also has it wrong. Did it get approved like this? Can I leave it as is? I ripped the pieces apart (thank you E-6000!) and cleaned them up for the next step. So, what's next? I have a

Day 6 Overnight glue set for gauntlet. It's pretty much how I imagined with a fairly prominent seam. I think the glue shifted a tiny bit and made it more visible, but even with no gap there's going to be no way to seal that without showing something. This is where I miss cover strips. The right shin looks pretty good. The seam is pretty even so I'm reasonably happy with it. I did a try on and this thing will definitely need some padding to keep from jangling. I tried out white paint for the first time Behr Gloss White is the one I've heard of most recently. I was thinking maybe that would blend with the ABS but doesn't seem to be. I think it's ok as-is for the clip pieces, but painting the kit is drawing ever nearer. Does this white look correct?

I like that idea. Ardeshir's video mentions that the lack of flex in the metal bracket might lead to cracks and that made sense to just use a plastic tab instead. I like the bent tab if it's strong enough to last. Where do you run your shoulder bell straps? Not through-hole like I see most others? I was trying to avoid painting if at all possible (probable?) so was considering abs pasting instead of the weld. I haven't decided for sure.

Lots of sanding today, mostly completed 1. Back plate 2. Chest plate Started the gluing: I'm using E6000. I don't have a steady enough hand for the unforgiving drips cyanoacrylate gives me. 1. Right leg outside (more on that later). Once the glue sets overnight, the velcro goes on tomorrow. The tabs are still WIP awaiting paint. 2. Left gauntlet, notched clips side. Gluing a shim tab to the smooth side that doesn't have any overlapping. (I guess?) Kit kat troubles: Due to bad lighting and not being careful I ended up with a stray cut into the side of the left bar. Looks like crap but I will end up doing some pasting on them so it will be ok I've seen a comment about the thickness of the belt boxes and I'm not sure if my printed base is going to be a bit too thick. Got the files from Captains_Drydock which is a way nicer looking base than the hollow box base the kit came with and seems really difficult to attach. I took a fair amount of trial and mostly error trying to get the shoulder yoke and supporter to mate up. I can't tell if they just don't and glue will fill in the gaps (literally). I cut away a lot based on some other comment I saw and I'm hoping I didn't go too far. Some photos of the progress. It kind of pairs up and I'll probably just glue it tomorrow and if it doesn't fit up nicely with the back plate I'll hit it some more with the dremel. I am looking to being done with sanding.

Yes this helps me immensely, thank you!

Here is my first big head scratching moment. I can't seem to locate a good post on these forearms which shows the non-clip side. Does the trimming go to the shortest line? I assume these butt-join and have a strip behind them? Or are they supposed to overlap in some way? I'm not sure if it got over-trimmed here or not. The clip side is pretty clear where to trim and overlap, which makes it a lot easier. I assume since the other side is on the "back" side it's not as big a deal since it's somewhat hidden, or at least in a less noticable spot. Same with the top panel. Is this trim line correct?

Getting more pieces trimmed & shaped. I'm trying to get the low hanging fruit done first to get me motivated. (Seeing the end in sight & progress keeps me moving forward more easily.) This was a little bit of a set back. Apparently the shipment was damaged so much it was undeliverable. Given the condition I've gotten things from Amazon, I'd like to have seen what they consider undeliverable. Here are the hand guards. I'm thinking they need more shaping. I'm not quite sure how much return edge the FOTK has. I removed a lot of it from my ANH kit, but it seems like I see more return on this kit.

Day 2 Progress, all large trimming complete. Sore wrists, blisters & cuts included. First off, the trimmed lot. Actually, I have not trimmed the boxes & some of the smaller strips. But those aren't pictured anyway. A great way to measure success for a day. The trimmings pile. For my own understanding, it helps to just lay the parts out and note where they will eventually be mounted. Here are all the boxes. A fair number more than my Imperial TK! It's been a long day, but I still have all my digits so I count it as a success. Another day, another step closer to completion.

Yes that will help immensely. Thank you!

Yeah, it was fun. This is the first one to happen for awhile so I consider myself very lucky.

Decided to start slow and watch some videos, namely Captain's Drydock & Equusvideo's youtube channels. Started a few cuts but mostly just doing a dry-run penciling where I will be cutting BEFORE I make any major cuts. Novel, I know. TLJ cod There was one piece with a small broken corner that had been repaired by the previous owner. Liberated the glove hand plates from the rear shins. Shoulder bells waiting for the dremel to get a trim: more pictures I'm sorting through.

Day 0 The BBB day. A mixture of excitement and "what have I done"? I am not entirely sure if this kit

It's almost one year to the day that I began building my ANH Stormtrooper kit. I'm 20 troops in, having fun experiences, making good friends. After so long without a project, it was time to expand my kit collection and join the First Order. Sticking with the always recognizable, always popular clean storm trooper kit. I love the Star Wars Resistance show and I have some fellow troopers with some FO kits, so I want to expand on that. I also enjoy the Galaxy's Edge troopers. Their banter is always entertaining. Since I didn't really do a build thread of any sort for my first kit, I wanted to start out with one. Mostly because this kit seems like it might need some feedback on way to approval. Some details about the build First Order TK The Last Jedi CRL: https://databank.501st.com/databank/Costuming:TK_TLJ Kit: Imperial Surplus (I don't think they offer this kit any longer, so no link.) Boots: KeepTrooping https://keeptrooping.com/product/trooper-white/ Gaskets: May be used from a fellow Mountain Garrison member. If not, likely Geeky Pink. Helmet: Looking to get the Denuo Novo premier https://www.denuonovo.com/products/star-wars-the-last-jedi-stormtrooper-premier-helmet#description-flex Blaster: 3d print from this site. I'll find the article link... What am I forgetting?

Getting to be the warm up act for the Colorado Symphony was an honor and a privilege. And pretty fun. It's great to have a Star Wars specific event where everyone is glad to see us in equal measure. Getting to see A New Hope backed by a great orchestra was an amazing experience I am lucky to have had. Lots of great fan interactions. So many smiles, makes it all worth it.

Another Night To Shine event. Always fun. You never know what to expect. I didn't get any photos of myself in the group yet, so I did my own in the photobooth.

@Jedikiller2024 Kian be sure to check out the Mountain Garrison https://www.mg501.com/, I think you would be in the Mile High Squad. If you join that forum you can find out more locally. Also, if you use facebook, look up Mountain Garrison and you should find the build group that can also help you get started. I am starting on a FOTK right now and will probably end up with the same questions eventually. As for glasses, I wear them but take them off with my bucket on. If you really can't see well, I guess contacts? I am sure someone in the forums has a better answer than mine. Good luck!

SRS - Fort Collins Comic Con 2023 - 2 days A great small con in Northern Colorado. Saturday was slow but Sunday was a lot more active due to the cosplay red carpet. Keeping an eye out for any rebel activity. Room for one more. [Updated: Got featured on the 501st Instagram. Woohoo!] The only thing that keeps me from staying in armor all day is a bathroom break. Assigned to intimidate the rebel legion. Success. Got in a little scuffle trying to detain a known Imperial outlaw. Armor held up to a saber as well as expected.

I think a lot of people use thin white cotton gloves as a liner (and sweat sponge). Maybe that would provide a barrier against allergy? I personally use the nomex gloves for comfort/breathability.

Greeley Monster Fest 2023 https://monsterdaygreeley.com/ A fun event with proceeds going to prevent bullying. Hot as a dog, but worth it.

Denver Fan Expo My first big con was a blast. Definitely the most fun I've had at any trooping event as far as volume of people, photos taken and number of club members. Our area was combined with the Rebel Legion and Mandalorians so we had a great mix. Unfortunately I had an obligation on the last day, so I feel like I missed some of the best moments, I would have kitted back up for the rest of the day if I hadn't had to leave, but what I got to do was definitely plenty of fun. Great image, but not the friendliest of backdrops. The Garrison, Mando Mercs and Rebel Legion put together an amazing set for our corner of the con. A young trooper stopped by with a great armor kit that I had to get a few extra shots with. (pun intended) The kids parade. Our last day had a much bigger crew that Saturday. Of course there is only One Way Out! Nutty fun.