TheRascalKing's ESB Anovos TK Conversion Thread

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Hey party people, Justin "TheRascalKing" R. here. Decided to do another fun little side project with my Anovos ANH-S TK before retiring it and... convert to ESB!

 

This was originally intended to be done in time for Celebration 2020 and the 40th Anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back, but it's looking that isn't going to happen now, so I guess no rush? But I recently started step #1, which was acquiring another Anovos helmet that I feel better about painting up. Not a huge deal, but my original ANH-S helmet is getting pretty beat up and I'd like to retire it without major changes before it's completely destroyed, seeing as it was technically screen-used and all. 

 

I was fortunate that a Garrison mate of mine had an Anovos helmet laying around that he sold to me for a great price! So, slowly but surely (wrapping up my Anthology build as well as my HWT Centurion push) I'll start modifying this helmet to convert it over to ESB, as well as my armor. My checklist is as below, but please feel free to comment if I've forgotten anything! It should be noted that this kit was previously approved at the Centurion level as ANH-S a couple years ago, and as HWT more recently, so I'll be focusing on the changes between ANH-S and ESB - the rest of the armor should already be up to snuff. This is also a screen-used kit, so no changes were made to the base suit - anything different for ESB is new parts. 

 

Helmet:

 

- Remove all existing paint (except ears, no need) *reconsidering, as the decals are lighter grey... Apparently, this is appropriate.

- Replace painted traps, tears, and tube stripes with decals from Trooperbay (unless there's something that fits Anovos helmets better?)
- Repaint frown satin black, extending slightly further

- Paint interior black (personal preference) and add padding/fans/audio

- General Centurion upgrades (replace ear screws with proper countersunk flathead from @justjoseph63's accuracy kit, replace mic tips with @ukswrath ones with white lip/interior and proper mesh, open up the return around the eyes...)

 

 

Armor:

 

 -Belt - new white canvas belt from Imperial Surplus to get rid of my 2 holster mounting holes

- Holster - new holster from Darman's Props - black loops instead of brown leather straps and Chicago screws, worn on left side 

- Gloves - satin gloves from Amazon

- Handguards - snowtrooper-style handguards (I sourced a set from AM that I'll trim down)

 

Here are a few side by side photos of a fresh like V3 Anovos helmet (left) vs my Centurion-modified V1 after 3 years of trooping (right), for fun. The newer helmet (that has the LFL branding stickers) is noticeably thinner than my V1 and has a couple other changes from the factory, most noticeably the sharper ear bumps and thinner plastic. It is lighter tho...

 

 

Thanks for stopping by, more updates in a bit!

 

 

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

Nice project Justin, enjoy. following your thread now. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Many don't realise just how few items they need to convert to ESB, I myself went down this road some years ago.

 

Looking forward to seeing the progress

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

26 minutes ago, TKSpartan said:

Nice project Justin, enjoy. following your thread now. 

Thanks!

Just now, gmrhodes13 said:

Many don't realise just how few items they need to convert to ESB, I myself went down this road some years ago.

 

Looking forward to seeing the progress

Right?! And with the 40th, it's great timing! Would be awesome to see a bunch of ESB Stormtroopers at Celebration (even if it's next year...). Plus, this gives me my next project to work on and keep my mind busy without having to put money I don't have into a totally new kit I don't need haha

I just reeeeeeeally didn't want to paint over my ANH helmet, so finding this one was amazing. They're getting up there in price for NIB Anovos (cheapest I found was $240!) so I'm stoked a Garrison mate (and fellow R1 builder!) hooked me up.

 

 

Any suggestions on what to use to remove the stock paint? I only have acetone on hand (LOL!) so I was thinking... mineral spirits?

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Mineral spirits would definitely be a lot more gentle than acetone, usually acetone doesn't work with plastic very well and can melt.

 

I do love the black teeth and do get asked sometimes "why does that one look different", but only a few ask  

 

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

I’m starting to wonder, “How many TK builds will Justin start and complete before I even finish my own first build?” Haha.

Looking forward to following your progress! Someday I’d love to grab an Anovos helmet myself and paint it ESB style. I love the crisp lines they have!


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[TheRascalKing[TK]]

2 hours ago, MaskedVengeance said:

I’m starting to wonder, “How many TK builds will Justin start and complete before I even finish my own first build?” Haha.

Looking forward to following your progress! Someday I’d love to grab an Anovos helmet myself and paint it ESB style. I love the crisp lines they have!

Can't stop, won't stop hahaha The question is how many I'll complete XD

 

It's honestly my favorite sculpt by far, despite them being a garbage company. I know they're kinda "sanitized", but the proportions are solid and to me it's a perfect balance of accuracy and clean good looks. I don't want worts or a starfish liner lol

Edited May 27, 2020 by TheRascalKing

[StarTrooper]

3 minutes ago, TheRascalKing said:

Can't stop, won't stop hahaha

 

It's honestly my favorite sculpt by far. I know they're kinda "sanitized", but to me it's a perfect balance of accuracy and clean good looks. 

Same, I really like the Anovos sculpt, the crisp lines look really nice, even if it’s not as accurate.

Good luck with the build, looking forward to the progress

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Awesome job Justin

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Alrighty time for a little update!

 

Started disassembly on my helmet today! This isn't exactly rocket surgery, but I'll take you guys along for the ride if you've never seen it done before:

 

Step one - start peeling off that bottom neck seal trim. There is a bit of adhesive on it, so work slow, especially around the ears.

 

 

I'm not a huge fan of the Anovos neck seal trim, so I may replace it anyways, but one thing I always do is at least spin it around - I like the split to be in the front where it's hidden a little better by the black of the vocoder. It helps to leave the rubber trim outside in the sun for a bit to soften it up and make it more pliable before reinstallation. Always leave it a tiny bit longer than you think it needs to be if you're cutting it - the pressure will help it wedge into the tight corners and stay in place better, plus no visible gap.

 

Next up, pop out that lens and peel off the frown mesh carefully - they're held on by double sided tape, sticky foam blocks, and a little velcro.

 

 

Next up, mic tips! You can see where the helmet is a little deformed in the depression - be SUPER SUPER careful, as this is one of the weakest areas of the entire helmet, due in part to how far the ABS has to be stretched to make those deep depressions.

 

 

Anovos just screws right into the resin tips... not my favorite system and should probably have a washer at minimum. I've seen the outer casing separate from the white insert too, so be mindful. 

 

Next up, remove the foam covering the ear screws... it's not bad to have, but I just chuck it.

 

Carefully remove using some pliers to hold the nut and a small flat head screwdriver. Love those smooth cut lines, Anovos... *eye roll*

 

 

Be careful - my ear was glued a little down at the very bottom from the neck seal trim, so gently pry until it separates. There should just be two more screws holding the back cap and front mask together - these must have had a little dab of CA on them as they were stubborn but eventually worked loose. 

 

 

Boom, now you can separate the two main parts of the helmet.

 

 

Pull that brow trim off...

 

 

And you're pretty much done! Here's everything all laid out.

 

 

 

 

You may be asking why I bothered doing this, and there are several reasons. First up, I like to spray the insides of all my helmets black - it's not technically accurate but I like the look better and I feel like your features are less noticeable in a dark helmet. The inside will be getting several coats of Rustoleum truck bedliner spray - I'd like to think that it adds the tiniest extra bit of strength, and I like the look and texture. It will also be easier to rub all the painted on graphics off for replacement with ESB decals - just be careful, I forgot how thin these helmets are. If you hold this one up to the light, you can see almost see through the white, and in several spots, you could tell how scary thin it is...

 

 

Another reason to pull it all apart is to replace the hardware and mic tips with more accurate ones for Centurion. The hardware is from @justjoseph63 - I painted the screws white and used nylock nuts and washers that I painted black already. The mic tips are from @ukswrath and I'll need to sand them a bit and paint the interiors white - he left em black for me but I ended up using another set for my R1 build.

 

 

Here's a little comparison of the inaccurate, rusty stock Anovos screws on the left below (right above, oops) and Joseph's set on the right below if you haven't seen the difference before. Ironically, I want to say the incorrect Anovos helmet screws can actually be used as correct Thermal Detonator clip screws last I checked!

 

 

 

Anyways, when I get a chance, I'll paint the interior of the helmet black, remove the painted details, then reassemble with more accurate odds and ends. More to come! Thanks for stopping by!

Edited June 16, 2020 by TheRascalKing

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

Great job explaining all the aspects of disassembly! What is your process of painting the ear screws white? I had intended to just paint the top of mine, but is there a benefit to getting all the way down to the threading? Perhaps tighter fit?


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[TK 14166[TK]]

Awesome work man. I’m glad to see you taking on this project to. ESB for the win!

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

19 hours ago, MaskedVengeance said:

Great job explaining all the aspects of disassembly! What is your process of painting the ear screws white? I had intended to just paint the top of mine, but is there a benefit to getting all the way down to the threading? Perhaps tighter fit?

 

I just shove em into a piece of cardboard and spray a couple light coats from each side. I could probably push em further down and keep it more out of the threads, but I want to make sure I hit the bottom of the countersunk head, in case it's visible. Luckily only the threads towards the bottom really even engage, so the paint won't bugger anything up.

 

 

Thanks, Matt!

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Well, my ESB decals came in today from TrooperBay!

 

 

They're definitely... symmetrical in shape. The helmet forsure isn't. We'll see how it looks! Still working on scrubbing the paint off... Goo Gone hasn't really worked, nor Novus... Mineral spirits? Suggestions anyone?

 

Also, before I spray my interior black, can y'all confirm that these eye opening cut lines look proper? Theyre pretty much supposed to be maxed out to the edge for ESB, ya? Thanks!

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by TheRascalKing

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Masked the outside edge of both main pieces with painters tape and a garbage bag and sprayed the interiors with my favorite Rust-Oleum truck bed liner. Did about 5 coats, ten min apart or so.

 

 

Removed the masking!

 

 

Touched up the teeth and eyes with a brush.

 

 

I think I'll be trying to emulate this helmet and will probably try to mask and paint the frown next!

 

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Opened up the eyes all the way...

 

 

Got my cut line marked out on the AM handguards... they come super big. How's that look? 

 

 

Also disassembled the Hovi mic tips for a lick of white paint on the interior, and prepped the ears - opened up the holes to fit Joseph's slightly larger countersunk hardware, and decided to add extra rank bars. I use vinyl stickers because I can't freehand paint worth a d*mn and rock the "Captain" style since I occasionally like to wear an orange pauldron for funsies if there a ton of TKs at a troop... so even when I'm not canon, I'm accurate lol

 

 

And got the mic tips holes drilled out to fit Tony's bolts.

 

 

Progress! Reassembly soon...

 

Edited June 28, 2020 by TheRascalKing

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

More updates...

 

Removing the painted on trap/tear details was a paaaaaaain. Just work slow and steady until they're gone.

 

 

I'll be applying the decal set I got from TrooperBay! Looks pretty nice, but was not cheap ($26USD?!). I'm going to apply them using some decal application fluid so I can "float" them into place, then used a squeegee to remove any excess liquid.

 

 

I like to use a small screwdriver to help position the decal so I don't have to touch the adhesive with my fingers.

 

 

And there's the first one on there - actually fits pretty well considering it was clearly not made to fit exactly. They're symmetrical (the helmet isn't) and not quite "tall" enough, but really not bad. 

 

 

And two...

 

 

Time for the front traps - these fit pretty well also, but were obviously a little crooked if you follow the shape. Just trimmed off the excess at the bottom, as it's hidden by the brow trim anyways. 

 

 

 

Decal application really isn't that exciting, but here it is with all of them on!

 

 

 

Next up was spraying the frown black. Started masking...

 

 

Then layed down some rattle can Satin black:

 

 

Did about 3 coats from different angles...

 

 

Removed the masking... yikes, gotta clean up that overspray and mask more carefully...

 

 

 

And boom, more or less finished result:

 

 

Time for finishing touches like the mic tips, lens, and interior assembly, but I knocked a big portion of the helmet build out this weekend... sweet!

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

looking great !!  

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Alright, time for an update to finish out this thread! I took some photos to show the things that needed to be changed to convert to ESB.

 

Helmet

I finished modding the new Anovos helmet from earlier, adding the mic tips and finishing the interior.

 

Front

 

Left

 

Right

 

Back

 

Interior

 

 

Gloves and Handguards

I trimmed down the AM Snowie-style handguards and E6000'ed some 1" elastic into them to pair with my rubber gloves. I decided not to go with the satin ones because I didn't feel like sewing and usually troop in a pair of specific lightweight gloves, so I would only ever wear em for photos (like my rubber gloves). 

 

 

Belt and Holster

I use snaps to attach my plastic belt to my canvas belt, which allows me to detach it and ROLL my Imperial Issue canvas belt so that I don't put strain on the insert by folding it in my tiny crate. It also allows me to use the same plastic belt for all three of my TK variants (ANH-S, HWT, and ESB) that I use the base suit for. I paired it with a ESB holster from Darman's Props and opted for the 8oz leather, which is sturdy, looks excellent, and has the correct LOOPS instead of rivet attachments. It is set up to be worn on the RIGHT side of the belt, instead of the left.

 

 

That's pretty much it! I did not need to make any permanent changes to the base suit for a successful conversion - just added a few new parts. Aaaaaand I actually already submitted to our GMLs and received my approval this weekend, I'm happy to say! Next stop, EIB and Centurion!  Thanks for reading and I hope this helps someone out!

 

 

 

 

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

I’m loving this conversion, and may someday need to do my own as you have, since ESB is my fav of the films anyway. Great work, as always!


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[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

I’m starting to wonder, “How many TK builds will Justin start and complete before I even finish my own first build?

I’m still wondering this same thing. Let’s see, since then you’ve started, completed, and taken to L3 this ESB and also ANH-H conversion. And somewhere along the way you got your HWT to L3 as well. ROTK completion on the horizon and then FO after that. Beast.


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[Sly11[Admin]]

Looks really nice Justin, well done sir.

[ukswrath[Staff]]

BEAutiful! 

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

Dude. I started my ESB conversion! Stripped the paint on a WTF helmet I had and am going to be painting the teeth soon. I do need to figure out what I'm going to do about  the gray on the ears, which, as you pointed out, is darker on ANH than the ESB decals. I might need to go source another shade of gray enamel.

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

16 minutes ago, MaskedVengeance said:

Dude. I started my ESB conversion! Stripped the paint on a WTF helmet I had and am going to be painting the teeth soon. I do need to figure out what I'm going to do about  the gray on the ears, which, as you pointed out, is darker on ANH than the ESB decals. I might need to go source another shade of gray enamel.

 

I mentioned this to @Oztrooper a while back and I believe he remarked that this is actually accurate - ears were paint and don't need to match the decals exactly. You can kind of see it in this shot that the ears are a little darker, if it isn't just the light. I wouldn't trip on it and the DOs didn't at Centurion when I applied.

 

http://www.starwarshelmets.com/2009/molloesb8.jpg