troopermaster

I wouldn't recommend heating the pipe. If you change the inner diameter of the pipe you will have a hard time getting the end cap to fit.

The tubes that are supplied with my kits are cut to the same length as original canisters. Anything else you are comparing it to is wrong.

The tube you got from me is the correct length. If you cut it down it will be too small. Why do you think it is too long? What are you comparing it to? Please enlighten me.

The marks on the RS belt are a bad idea. Their original belt is the only one to have the Imperial Gunners holster oddly attached and following the marks are making you put the straps in the wrong place. Anyone who is not familair with original armour will instinctively follow the marks as a guide and end up attaching the holster incorrectly.

Everything is coming along great. Keep up the good work

I did a test pull but the result was not what I wanted, so I have altered the forming tool now and will be pulling another one very soon.

I just measured my rivets and they have a 7mm head and positioned 8mm in from the top and side on the ammo strap. The 8mm measurement in the center of the rivet.

That last photo is awesome Steve. It's hard to believe it's a replica!

This looks like another case of "troopers copying other troopers mistakes". I can't stress enough how important it is to only use original armour for reference so these simple mistakes can be avoided. Your rivet and ammo strap positioning is wrong. Lifting the strap higher on your thigh doesn't make the thigh shorter so there really is no need to do it. The rivet should be in the top corner of each end of the strap and not just plonked anywhere like have done it. I know it's not a major mistake but it looks wrong compared to how the original armour was assembled.

The mark above the eyes will be fine to cut to. You will need to trim under the face plate but best wait until you have assembled the helmet first. Here are a few examples of helmets I have built in the past for reference.

I'm forming an ROTJ canister later today and will post a photo tonight

No it wasn't. This build is not my handywork.

Your pencil lines look good for trimming and it's better to drill a small hole on the bottom corner of the trap above the ear to create a radius rather than having a sharp corner. This helps reduce any stress in that area which could crack eventually if left sharp. I like to leave the lower edge of the helmet untrimmed until I have the face and ear caps fitted, so I can make the opening just large enough to get my head in. I prefer the opening to be as small as possible to help create a sealed look. The best thing about these 1.5mm helmets is you can make the opening sligtly smaller than you want and just squash the sides to make it open so you can get your head inside without having to worry about damaging anything. You can leave about 1" of plastic above the eyes on the face plate as Phil says. This aloows you to really close any gap between the forehead and brow trim.

Classic

in·cred·i·ble   <a onmousedown="spk(this,{lk:'nx1fkx',en:'wotdau',io:'0',b:'wotd',tp:'lrl',m:'wotdau'})" href="#"></a><a target="_blank" href="http://dictionary.reference.com/audio.html/lunaWAV/I01/I0116300"><img border="0" src="http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/speaker.gif"></a> /ɪnˈkrÉ›dÉ™bÉ™l/ Show Spelled[in-kred-uh-buhl] adjective 1. so extraordinary as to seem impossible: incredible armour. 2. not credible; hard to believe; unbelievable: The look of the armour is incredible.

To have to explain original armour or helmet details to someone who is giving clearance is hilarious

I will have a new batch of completed TD canisters in run #2 soon. I also have a new batch of 1 1/8" aluminium strips cut for the belt clips and can sell you either the flat strips or bent to shape with fixings. PM me if interested.

Conrats on finishing your armour Ian It looks like you had to do a lot of trimming and I was wondering just how tall you are if you don't mind me asking? My mini TK suits will fit someone upto 5' tall and are perfectly scaled to a shorterr person.

Another member on here (Stormtrooper/Pugman) owns an original ESB MKII so maybe he can confirm the material of his decals. Silkscreening can be done on paper and most likely was the way all decals were made for the trooper helmets. I believe the screen used ESB MKII is the same helmet shown in the identities exhibition.

They were not all like that Vern. This is the first one I have ever seen that has not had the holes cut out.

Well spotted Joe. It just goes to show that you can miss something as obvious as this even though you look at a helmet many times. At least I never spotted it anyway.

I have never really studied the ESB decals so I can't offer any advise. But I can offer some nice photos that will hopefully help see any differences.

Thanks for all the great feedback everyone I hope to have more to show soon. Some of the leg parts are in need of a lot of work at the moment and it takes a very long time to get them the way I want them to look. Countless hours are spent on the smallest details as I constantly check the sculpts against original pieces, scaling them down as I go. Looking forward to getting the full test suit finished and then onto the final version once any necessary changes have been made

Been working hard all day getting this assembled for a test fitting. I have got the full ANH strapping in there and it has been really hard work bending the smaller brackets. I will have to buy some thinner gauge wire and some smaller screws rather than the ones I use for adult suits. I need to have the bicep hooks for the next fitting to keep the arms from sliding down and need a belt to keep the waist together. Helmet still needs padding but overall I don't think I have done bad today.

Yes Billy. Your laundry bill will definitely go up when you see this in the flesh. When I put the taped together parts on Luke yesterday I was really shocked at how good it looked on him. All the curves and nuances of the original armour are on this mini kit and anyone who is familiar with the original will spot ll these details that are not on any other adult replica. Just pulled some mini hovi's in resin this morning that I sculpted. The E6000 caps just won't do for this suit so I made some smaller scaled versions. I have smaller Newey snaps ready to fit as well and all Newey hardware for the strapping. Original strapping and canvas belt on this one too