troopermaster

You could also make a double strap down from under your shoulder strap so that the bell is independant from your bicep and should help since there will be no real tension placed on your bells.

It looks like you might have issues no matter which way aroundy you try. The original pieces had the backs trimmed so anything you see has been sculpted and does match the originals unfortunately. I think you may end up keeping them as they are and trimming the backs of the knees since it looks like they won't match up any better. These are the correctly assembled shins in the LFL archives just for reference.

Do they match up better the opposite way or not?

Now you know how they should be assembled if you follow my advise. If the RS parts are labelled L & R and you followed them then I think they should have a think about what they are doing. As they are you are forced to assemble them incorrectly when you could get them to fit much better if they were labelled correctly. I have noticed this on almost all of the RS builds and people are complaining about how badly they fit. Not surprising if they are marked incorrectly. If you are in doubt, post a photo of your parts and I will let you know how they should fit together.

I think you have glued the two modified inner parts together by the looks of it. You can tell this by how the back of the knees point upwards in the middle compared to how a correctly assembled left slopes down to the right and the right slopes down to the left looking from the back. Those are the two modified pieces made to look like inner parts or simply made to look different since the original shins were duplicate outer pieces.

Just be aware that 1.5mm PVC is far more rigid than 1.5mm ABS and the strapping brackets will pop through a rigid plastic easier than a flexible plastic. That said, the brackets will pop though any plastic if you are hard on your armour since the holes are drilled so close to the edges of the plastic. These are plastic costumes and not real space armour, so treat them as such I have reinforced inside the return edges just as you are asking and it worked out very well.

Congratulations Pete

Just for reference - My thighs measure 16.5" and 17" long (L&R vary slightly) and my shins measure 15" long. My XL shins are 17" long.

I like how you have trimmed the eyes. Very authentic

You're right Wayne. I could never form the PP consistanly enough to ever offer helmets. My machine just isn't good enough unfortunately

From my experience with this plastic I can say it is quite rigid, but has great flexural strength unlike ABS or HIPS. The flex is a lot like PVC and it can be folded back on itself without tearing. It has a waxy feel to it and doesn't like to be bonded. I know, I made some body parts in white PP and couldn't get a permanent fix, and I can imagine paint being a nightmare to stick to it. Here is a photo of a face plate and abdomen both in PP that I made a good few years back.

Superb work Rolf! You truly are the Sandtrooper Master

Looking forward to seeing you suited up Steve. This is going to be one cool looking replica. Just popping to the PO now to send your original boots

45mm is just over 1 3/4" which is not 1 1/2". The only way this can be settled is for Rob to post a photo of the strap with a ruler or tape measure showing the original size and we can know for sure. All my references point to 2" though.

I'll make the decisions for you mate if your having trouble. Trim the eyes more and leave the ears

I don't know either. But I have a good idea who said it. Ist er Deutsch?

I use scissors usually, but sometimes I score and snap if the plastic is thick.

They are seperate lenses made from 3mm perspex. I have tried to find the right material to make a one piece lens with no luck unfortunately.

You should cut all of the return edge off so the buttons are on a flat strip.

Thanks chaps I know what you mean Mathias. I am a fan of the stunt helmets too, but I am taking a fancy to the high brow hero.

Hi guys, I thought I would show off these two helmets that I have been working on to show you how a low brow and high brow look together. The high brow is not 100% finished but I was pushed for time since the low brow had to go to it's new home today. Both helmets are made from 1.5mm gloss ABS and all details are hand painted using Humbrol Satin colours. Hope you like them

I just want to point out that the top button strip is your standard 4 button strip for the abdomen and the lower 3 seperate buttons are your belt rivet covers and should always be used. Make sure you trim the return edges of all the parts so they are flat and can be glued to your armour.

You can glue them but you need to leave one side with a snap so you can open the armour to get inside. If you trust your glue to hold the snap tabs in then trust it to hold your elastic too

You are supposed to leave a border on the buttons so you can glue it to your abdomen. Getting a replacement is your best bet.

Beautiful helmet Steve. You sure do have some pretty things in your ever growing collection! This has to be the best helmet anyone could ever want. Great work Rob and Si