JAFO'S FIRST ORDER STORMTROOPER BUILD (Jimmiroquai)

[JAFO[TK]]

Firstly, welcome

 

Treat this as a placeholder. My journey to the First Order has been gathering momentum over the past six-months but something extra special arrived this week.

 

 

 

 

 

The journey is REALLY about to begin. How long will it take? Stick around and see!

Edited July 5, 2016 by JAFO

[stormtroopergeorge56[501st]]

Hi Darren , where did you buy your First Oder kit form ? 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looking forward to the progress

[LVLAsian[TK]]

Hi Darren , where did you buy your First Oder kit form ?

He got Jims (Jimmiraquois) kit from the rpf sales thread here, http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=245993

[Tigger1972]

Not fair Darren, i did not get the patch

[splinter[501st]]

Looks good Darren, well done on receiving your set of Jims armor.

[Rhino76076[501st]]

yeah i never got a patch either lol

[JAFO[TK]]

Hi Darren , where did you buy your First Oder kit form ? 

Hi George

 

Apologies for the delay in responding. This is Jimmiroquai's kit. Available via TheRPF. You'll find many other build threads on this forum too.

 

Cheers

Darren 

[JAFO[TK]]

Before I get in to the actual build I thought I should follow tradition and list the various elements of my kit and the sources involved. So here goes...

 

Armour - Jimmiroquai (v4 armour)
Helmet - Anovos Standard
Gaskets - FNArmour
Soft Pouches - MTK
Belt - Belts of the First Order (well, that's me!)
Undersuit - Stormtrooper Undersuit
Neck Seal - Darman
Boots and Gloves - Imperial Boots
F-11D Blaster - The Sarlaac Pit
SE-44C Officer's Pistol - The Sarlacc Pit

 

In addition I've built my own Mic Amp system and modified the bucket with a USB fan system. I will soon be modding the bucket with an aluminum aerator and acrylic pulled lenses courtesy of VaderPainter Studios.

 

Photos of all the above to follow.

Edited July 10, 2016 by JAFO

[Darth Colejoy[TK]]

Interested in watching this as looking at a potential 2017 build of a FO trooper.

 

 

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[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looking forward to the progress

[Sly11[Admin]]

Excellent, Excellent another FO TK for Australia.

 

 

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[JAFO[TK]]

Excellent, Excellent another FO TK for Australia.

 

 

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Trust me, there are about thirty on the way!

[UT Trooper[TK]]

How is the progress coming?  Remember to use a respirator, gloves, and goggles when sanding this stuff.  I also had on a cover-all and still got the tingles on some parts of my body.  

[JAFO[TK]]

How is the progress coming? Remember to use a respirator, gloves, and goggles when sanding this stuff. I also had on a cover-all and still got the tingles on some parts of my body.

Don't worry...safety is always of the First Order!!!!

[BrinkHouse]

 Keep it coming! 

[JAFO[TK]]

There is a common phrase I see time and time again in almost every build thread I have visited. In fact, it's more of an apology, and it goes something like this...

 

"Owing to work/life/family/weather I haven't had a chance to do much work".

 

I will make this statement now to make up for my lack of recent posts but will never make it again. Anyway, here are some small updates...

 

My first task after receiving Jim's kit was a little test cutting. I decided the bicep pill holes were a good starting place.

 

I took a small drill bit and using the Dremel I popped in a few holes. Then opened up the holes further with a Dremel Tooth Carbide Cutter before using the Grinding Stone to take it back further. It worked really well. I've yet to finish the pills by smoothing the edges with a needle file before sanding.

 

Feeling confident with the material I then opted for more Dremel action - this time on the chest pill holes. The Dremel Structured Tooth Carbide Cutter just eats up this armour. Loves it! Once again, though the holes are cut I just need to file and stand.

 

Finally (for now) I turned my attention to the belt boxes. Going for a little more accuracy I decided to cut down the centre belt boxes so I could put black 'rubber' behind then. Using a reinforced Dremel blade made light work cutting through. Just a good sanding and straightening are needed now.

 

Here are the pics of the work so far...

 

 

Edited July 20, 2016 by JAFO

[JAFO[TK]]

So whilst I've been prepping to start my build I've been thinking about how I will transport my kit once finished. Well, I found the answer...

 

 

This is an BHX Expandable hard case (75cm) by American Tourister (Samsonite's 'home brand', if you will). It's a fantastic case and, even better, it was a fantastic price - I got 50% off the usual retail of AU$329.00!!! I bought on eBay from Myer (think Macys in the U.S.).

 

I was looking at wheeled cargo boxes but having spent many years lugging them around whilst scuba diving I figured this was a great solution.

 

Does the kit fit inside? Sure does! It was actually inside the case when photographed. Sure it's a bit of a jigsaw puzzle but it works. Plenty of room for soft parts. Bucket will be carried separately in a lined 'bucket bag' that I already have. 

 

As you can see I've started the case personalisation process. Having drilled the chest pills on my armour I put my spare TB Decals to good use! I have a few other decals en route to pimp this up even more.

 

I'll share more pics when complete.

[Oztrooper[TK]]

I'll be transporting mine to Australia when done...hope to troop with you !!

[JAFO[TK]]

I'll be transporting mine to Australia when done...hope to troop with you !!

Are you doing a Jimmi build?

[JAFO[TK]]

It has been a while. Progress has been happening in the background and it's time to share a rather lengthy update. Thanks to some fantastic 'Winter' weather I've been able to stay true to the old adage of "Make armour while the sun shines" ... or something like that 

First up, I got around to sanding the interior of the kit. Being fibreglass it's essential to take time to smooth it down and make it safer for handling. As always, safety was of the 'First Order'.



After a good sanding with 240 grit it was time for a wash down and dry in the sun.



In the meantime, more decals arrived and I continued to pimp the road case.



Thanks to Aston Martin Hall we had a fantastic Armour Party where we managed to achieve quite a bit. My first task of the day was shaping the chest vent. Using reference material I blocked the 'cut zone' and used an X-Acto blasé to make repeated straight cuts until the desired shape was achieved.

 


With some sanding to finish I was happy with the end result.



Next up I took the opportunity to install the aluminium aerator that I received from Vader Painter Studios. A really impressive CNC'd piece of aluminium that is miles better than the plastic piece installed in the Standard Line Anovos bucket. I used Apoxie Sculpt to mount the aerator.



The Armour Party also provided the ideal opportunity to get some test fitting completed. Much fun was has...



Things shaped up very nicely...

And my codpiece came under a lot of scrutiny...

[JAFO[TK]]

Post Armour Party it was time to get 'snap happy' with a view to securing the codpiece and butt plate...

I used Loctite Marine Epoxy to score the snap played to the inside of the abs. The epoxy really likes the fibreglass.




In the meantime I also commissioned an 11 RIB neck seal from Aaron at Landher Prop Suppliers. Aaron had been making 8 RIB NS but I'm honoured to be the first to have the TFA specific version. Waiting to get this in hand but I'm excited to try it in person.



Oh, and I also continue to pimp my road case...



I've decided to run with a magnetic closure system for my abs. Using 3mm styrene and a Tamiya Scriber 2 (AWEOME TOOL!!!!) I started creating the brackets that will be installed in the back of the abs.




Just waiting on the magnets to arrive to complete this task.

[JAFO[TK]]

In the meantime, a friend arrived to help assist with my build. Meet Jeeves...

Wish I could say his physique was modelled off mine but he's close enough 

In the midst of all this fun I also received my holster kit from R2Dan. Most impressive. It is safely put aside until time comes to mount it.



Next up, time to look at the solution for the shoulder bell support. I discovered this 'Alu Crescent' which seems to mirror the arc of the bell. I need to install in the yoke but, for now, I cut two sections down in to approx. 7.5cm lengths. The Dremel made quick work of the cutting.



Whilst the Dremel was out I decided to utilise it to tackle some of the forearm detailing. I used the 'Grout Removing' tool to make small pilot holes which I then opened up with a slightly bigger bit.






I find this Spray Air Duster a real winner whilst working with the fibreglass. Allows me to clear my path and do spot checks without powering down the Dremel.

[JAFO[TK]]

My next job was looking at a magnetic closure system for the chest plate. I started by marking spots before using Loctite Marine Epoxy to glue the magnets in place.

The final part of this process is TBC.

I then turned my attention to the bicep 'traps'. With this kit they come 'unfinished' so aiming for a little more accuracy I combined a little time with a little styrene and a little Apoxie Sculpt. Once sanded and painted I think I'll achieve the required result.

 



And finally, for now, I've spent a little time with the forearms to smooth out and shape the detail I cut earlier.




And that's about it for now. Next up I'm working on the rigging so I can do another test fit before cutting/shaping the thighs. Once all cuts are done I'll then be sanding away before heading to paint town.

Thanks for stopping by 

[JAFO[TK]]

Happy to report a little more progress today. The TD that forms part of Jim's kit is awesome but being hollow it feels somewhat fragile.

 

Today I created some exhaust holes and then used expanding filler to add support.

 

I went very slowly and was careful not to over fill for fear of exploding the TD. It came out a treat!

 

Once cured I'll sand down the filler then patch up with Apoxie Sculpt.