Darth Waya's First Build Thread

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looks like you have made some great progress, just remember the old saying, measure twice and cut once  

 

 

 

 

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Well on your way, awesome

 

That's a big knife, hoping you're wearing some PPE

 

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Just now, gmrhodes13 said:

Looks like you have made some great progress, just remember the old saying, measure twice and cut once  

 

 

 

 

Thanks. I know looking at the pieces I trimmed today I have more to take off, but better safe than sorry. I have it as a goal to get this suit to Centurion. (My stretch goal you could say.) Got to say I am very grateful for my understanding and supportive wife. She not only agreed to me spending the funds to finally do this, she pretty much has nudged me to do whatever I need to do.

 

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Just now, ukswrath said:

Well on your way, awesome

 

That's a big knife, hoping you're wearing some PPE

 

Actually about the size of your average pocket knife. I use it at work when I am checking in deliveries to the restaurant.

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

Don't forget- I'm only 30 minutes away, and I can help you get your entire kit trimmed and most of it fitted in a few hours.

You gotta take advantage of this offer to get together at some point! I’m several hours away, otherwise I’d join the fun!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

2 minutes ago, MaskedVengeance said:

You gotta take advantage of this offer to get together at some point! I’m several hours away, otherwise I’d join the fun!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not only do I plan to, I plan to come with food. (I'm a professional Chef at a pretty prominent local restaurant group)

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

Getting the large parts off of the edges ahead of time will definitely speed things up!  I have a large bench sander that will make short work of the final trimming, lol.  Just PM me with your availability. 

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

So, today's progress... Rough trim of thigh and shin pieces, belt front, thigh ammo boxes, knee plate, and started the butt plate. Have 2 questions about the last 2 pieces....

First the knee plate...do I cut out the piece circled in yellow?

 

Second, the butt plate. Do I need to leave a lip or should I just trim the top straight off?

 

 

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

37 minutes ago, DarthWaya said:

Do I need to leave a lip or should I just trim the top straight off?

Hi Jason,  the amount of return edge will depend on which strapping method are you going to use, you will need more return edge for the "classic" strapping method, is suggested that you leave some of the return edge  to keep it from riding under/over the kidney.

 

 

 

[PhilBobTheFish]

57 minutes ago, DarthWaya said:

So, today's progress... Rough trim of thigh and shin pieces, belt front, thigh ammo boxes, knee plate, and started the butt plate. Have 2 questions about the last 2 pieces....

First the knee plate...do I cut out the piece circled in yellow?

Go ahead and just cut out the entire bottom of the knee plate, so that you can fit it to the shin. This is about the only way to get it fitted, and will give it flex to shape to the calf.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

1 hour ago, DarthWaya said:

So, today's progress... Rough trim of thigh and shin pieces, belt front, thigh ammo boxes, knee plate, and started the butt plate. Have 2 questions about the last 2 pieces....

First the knee plate...do I cut out the piece circled in yellow?

Second, the butt plate. Do I need to leave a lip or should I just trim the top straight off?

 

The sniper plate has to conform to the shin

 

 

Butt plate as already mentioned may need a little more edge depending on brakets or strapping

 

[TheSwede[TK]]

Leaving an edge will also help in keeping it from slipping up over the kidney plate. If it still does, then @gmrhodes13 has a great fix for that 

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Thanks for all the info everyone.

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

So I set myself a goal to have my rough trim done on my days off this week, and well, mission accomplished. I know I need to take more off of the forearms and probably a few other spots, but I was going by the philosophy of "Can always take off material, can't add it." 

Thanks for letting me brag a bit...

 

@justjoseph63 I'll be in touch soon.

 

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

I initially made this post on imgur public by mistake, (Can't edit those to resize them), and comment within minutes- "You'll never hit a pedestrian again"

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Slight concern on my helmet. Large gap between cap and faceplate. Haven't glued or secured anything yet. Also concerned I may have trimmed the cap too much.

Will the gap go away when assembled? Is the trimming ok?

[TheSwede[TK]]

That’s perfectly normal and it will close up when riveted/screwed together and then the ears cover what’s left Trimming looks good, just be sure to test-fit the ears to see if additional trimming on the back is required. I assume you’re not done with the teeth and eyes? 

[TheSwede[TK]]

Some ear-reference for you, there’s a Sandtrooper helmet in there but the principle is the same

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

26 minutes ago, TheSwede said:

That’s perfectly normal and it will close up when riveted/screwed together and then the ears cover what’s left Trimming looks good, just be sure to test-fit the ears to see if additional trimming on the back is required. I assume you’re not done with the teeth and eyes? 

No not done. Need to do some more filing and trimming

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Question for those who have bought Imperial Boots. I know they run small and I should order a little larger as a result. I normally wear 10 1/2, and my work shoes that size are a little loose. Setting up my order with them, and I initially figured I would go 1 size up, but they don't offer 11 1/2. Go straight from 11 to 12. Should I order an 11 or 12 in your opinion?

[Blast 'Em!]

Hey Jason, nice work on your build so far. In regards to your Imperial Boots question, I recently ordered an 11 from them earlier this spring. I wear a size 10 1/2 running shoe, but I have wide feet and rock an EEEE width. I too read that people recommended ordering a size up, so I ordered an 11 and hoped that the leather would stretch to the width of my foot. When the boots arrived I found that they seemed true to length (I have a 1/2" of room at the toes), and I was happy with my selection of an 11 because my feet aren't too cramped width-wise.

 

Long story short, I recommend the 11s as a safe bet. From my experience, you could even go with the 10 1/2 if you're feeling lucky.

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Boots ordered. In general, how long do they take to ship to say the southeast coast of the US?

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

1 hour ago, DarthWaya said:

Boots ordered. In general, how long do they take to ship to say the southeast coast of the US?

There could be lots of variables when it comes to delivery time from IB. I ordered my 421s back in December and they arrived in less than two weeks, and I live in Georgia. Keep in mind that IB's wave system could impact their shipping timing, as they likely ship by purchase order/queue. With all the COVID precautions you might also expect their operation to be running a bit slower, and the same goes for the international shipping/customs process. In reality, I would plan on a month if I were you, for right now.

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

8 hours ago, MaskedVengeance said:

 In reality, I would plan on a month if I were you, for right now.

Honestly was about what I figured. Thanks for the info.

[Waya Chetan[TK]]

Talk about faster than expected turnaround. Ordered my boots on 7/9 and they arrived this morning. 1st impression is that I will definitely need to break them in a bit and buy insoles, but overall very happy with the purchase. Now just need holster, TD cylinder and clips, and my E11.