Cadet Momoss KB Props TFA FOTK Build

[MomoSS]

So last month I made a build thread in TLJ FOTK section about getting started on a TLJ FOTK.

But I guess it was my bad to think I would get TLJ armor with my TLJ helmet.  KB Props armor is TFA by default even if you get a TLJ helm, so that brings about a bit of issues when its time to go for EIB and Centurion.  [IE: Cods are different, forearms are different, thermal detonator is different, and probably more I dont know about]  Speaking of EIB, theres this #1000 EIB thing going on in the FISD announcements that I think I want to be a part of.  So I've decided instead of TLJ to go full TFA to see if I can reach this milestone before the window closes.

 

I'm pretty new to all this but from the previous thread I've already been through the whole BBB moment and got the ball rolling with trimming stuff.  I've been scratched by abs, glued my fingers together, and got pinched by neodymium magnets.  I've even been burned by CA glue already and almost lit a paper towel on fire!  All the great noob stuff ya'll missed! 

 

Plan is to look something like this guy by the end of everything.  Not gonna have the heavy F11-D at the moment, and I may or may not have the pauldron when I go for EIB cause the window is closing pretty fast, and theres a lot to do!  Also 2 rifles?  Overkill maybe?  Should have an SE-44C holstered I feel like.  Guy is packing some serious heat and doesnt even have the ammo vest! 

 

Anyways, I'm gonna do like my other thread and list off equipment I have thus far.  I'll be editing this to reflect updates on what I have and what I need to get.

 

Parts List:

-Hard Bits-

TFA Helmet: Anovos (Received)

Armor: KB Props (Received)

Pauldron: KB Props (Received)

Holster: R2Dan (Inquired)

Yoke Reinforcement: Ukswrath (Received)

-Soft Bits-

Belt: JAFO Belts of the First Order (Need to get a bit further in fitment before I commit to a size)

Pouches: TrooperBay (Received)

Gloves: Endor Finders (Received)

Boots: Imperial Boots (Received)

Undersuit: StormtrooperUndersuit (Received)

Balaclava: UnderArmor HeatGear Tactical Balaclava (Received)

Rubber Gaskets: Imperial Gaskets

Cloth Gaskets: Sheev's Emporium (Received)

Neck Seal: Sheev's Emporium (Received)

Harness: Geeky Pink

-Electronics-

Helmet Cooling: Ukswrath

Comm System: Ukswrath

Chatter Loop: Ukswrath

-Weapons-

Z6 Riot Baton aka "Whappity Stick": Force FX Black Series Z6 Riot Baton Hasbro (Acquired)

SE-44C Pistol:  Arsenal Studio (Received)

F11-D Blaster:  Arsenal Studio (Ordered)

Heavy F11-D Blaster: Branfuhr Studios

-Armor Storage-

Chest: Husky 37in Rolling Tool Box Utility Cart (Acquired)

 

 

As I've said in the other thread, this my first stormtrooper and this be exciting times!  I hope I can pull this off in time to make it to that special EIB, if not.  Oh well, it'll be fun anyway!

 

Edited October 1, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Quick summary of stuff I've done so far:

 

Obtained huge cargo box

 

Trimmed and glued together the yoke

 

Trimmed and glued together the forearms

 

Trimmed and glued together the shoulder bells

 

Yoke support brackets bent into shape and ready to be glued in

 

Got some soft goods

 

Cut out this thing on the chest plate and fixed the depth to make it sharper

 

Trimmed spats

 

Trimmed kneecaps

 

Trimmed assorted boxes

 

Trimmed cod

 

Trimmed posterior

 

Trimmed biceps

 

Trimmed handplates

 

Stared at this thing to try and figure out how it'll get mounted to my back

 

Short people problems.  I'm thinking about trimming the thighs this way.

 

There, we are all caught up now!  Tomorrow I'm going to focus on getting the rest of my armor pieces trimmed.  Gonna get the ab plate done so I can figure out how long my FOTK belt has to be and I need to figure out which little boxes belong to the ab plate and which go to the belt and other places.  Also gonna dremel some more stuff on the chest and yoke and get those yoke supports installed with JB weld.

 

 

Edited August 31, 2020 by MomoSS

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Great to see you moving on and changing over to a TFA version for now, looking forward to seeing the progress.

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 8/31/20

 

Anovos bucket came in the mail, awesome!  One less thing to worry about!

 

Field of view is...lacking.  I know some vision loss is expected but I feel uncomfortably blind wearing this compared to other costumes I've worn.  With the armor off its not as bad.  But with the yoke and chest plate on its soo hard to see in front of me.  No wonder TKs cant hit anything!  Maybe the chest plate needs to be trimmed down, or helmet needs some adjusting, cause the yoke is as far as I can lower it unfortunately and the helmet still has a tendency to rest on my shoulders.  It's like my neck isnt long enough xD

 

Got busy with the dremel today, heres some pretty holes.

Not my first rodeo with the dremel

 

Finally got around to JB welding these support brackets from Ukswrath!

 

Trimmed the ab plate and back plate.  Did a test fit and theres definitely a good 5" gap thats going to occur.  Fortunately I think the thermal detonator plate will cover this up in the back.  Also pretty sure im going to need to cut off the top of this ab plate as it comes up too high and then my bust causes issues with it.

 

Calf pieces.  Definitely some shenanigans going on here with stuff not lining up 100%.  At least they fit around my beefy calves though!  Need to make some system to open and close these cause just sliding them on is not happening.

 

I really need a better workspace... but dont have one D:  Still waiting for more soft goods to come in the mail too.  Would be nice to see what some stuff looks like with the gaskets on.  Really cant wait till the stuff from Imperial Boots gets here too.

[Sly11[Admin]]

You are really getting through this build fast Monica, excellent work so far

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/1/20

 

Special deliveries today!

My stuff from imperial boots finally got here!  Here are the boots!

 

Oooof...they got my glove order wrong.  They already got the message and are sending me the proper pair...got a bad feeling it will be a month before they get here.  Just in case, I went ahead and ordered a size small gloves through Endor Finders.  The IB gloves kinda run big since their smallest size is a medium and I found they were more loose on my hands than I'd like them to be.  So perhaps its a blessing in disguise.

 

Also my gaskets and neckseal arrived from Sheev's Emporium.  Looks great and feels comfy!

 

Alright back to this pile of ABS on my bed.  I need some feedback about a couple of things, as I'm not sure what to do from here.

 

I think this is how the shin has to look, the front part overlaps the back right?  I may need to put some shims on the inside cause theres not a whole lot for glue to hold on to.  The other side will need a shim too cause it will be the same issue for velcro.  Now if this is how they have to be there are some other issues with them.

 

The greeblie space doesnt really line up between the two halves of the shin.

 

The inside tops of the shin dont line up well at all.  Only way this will line up is if I cut it, and maybe I can rebuild the return edge with some good use of a file.

 

Now if I'm right about the shins, then the thighs will be done in a similar fashion except those will just be 1 piece instead of velcro together on one side.  The thighs have to be STRONG as this is gonna be a high traffic and stress area of the armor.  Cant risk velcro coming a loose on my thighs.

 

I finally got around to trimming the back of the thermal detonator plate.  I've seen people trim this a bit more but I'm scared to until I get further along with the abdomen armor.  Also cut out the circle for the one side of the thermal detonator.  Some time this week I'm doing to clean it up and glue that circle to it and then JB weld the thermal detonator to its plate.

 

Alright, its time I go about trimming this edge.  I'm not sure how much to take off though.  I'm worried there will be gaps between it and the yoke if I do it wrong.  It cant stay as it is though, it clashes with my helmet.

 

I finally sorted out which boxes belong to the ab plate so I'm going to set these aside.  The belt boxes are another matter entirely...

 

I forgot to dremel out the details on the handplates so I will do that tomorrow for sure.  My goal tomorrow is to at least get both shins put together on one side while the other awaits for velcro.  If I have time maybe I can get the thighs in order too.  95% of the pieces are trimmed now so its time to get these pieces put together.

 

 

 

Edited September 2, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/2/20

 

It seems like everyday 1 more expert infantry gets approved, I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna make it.  But I wont let this deter me.  Work moves on as I do the best I can to get through this build.  May not get to #1000 but #1500 I can do!

 

Dremeled the holes in the hand plates.  This was the easy part for the day.

 

Here is the CRL for the thighs.  I said I would work on the thighs today.  Apparently this is one of the hardest parts of the FOTK so I've heard.  How bad could it be I thought....it was a pain.

 

It literally took all night to get them to this point, and if I look hard they probably are not 100% symmetrical to each other, but I dont know how to make it any closer than this without going insane.

 

I'm about 5'0 so because I'm so vertically challenged I literally had to chop off a bunch of the thighs to get them to this point.  Pretty much annihilated any return edges wherever it had to be downsized.  Trimmed a good 2 inches from the top and behind the knee I made a cut out that was nearly as tall as in the front of the thigh for the knee.  But at least I can bend my legs now and it somehow still looks like the CRL despite how much I sawed off.  I want to be able to sit, that was part of the reason I picked FOTK in the first place.  I'm sure the shins are going to be the same situation.  Right now they clash with the bottom of the thighs and they leave no room for spats...ugh.

 

I'm gonna turn in a little earlier tonight, I'm tired.  Gonna get my rest so I can deal with more short people problems tomorrow 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

You wanted to be able to sit! I can't in mine, well I can but it aint pretty and I've only done it once as I don't want to break anything. If you really want comfort and want to sit go for a Bikerscout, you can lounge around all day in one of those 

 

Just don't trim too much off to start with, best to try movement and gap with you ab/cod, boots, shins and thighs on. Also best to wear your undersuit and gaskets for a real true fit.

 

Looking good

[MomoSS]

13 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

You wanted to be able to sit! I can't in mine, well I can but it aint pretty and I've only done it once as I don't want to break anything. If you really want comfort and want to sit go for a Bikerscout, you can lounge around all day in one of those 

 

Just don't trim too much off to start with, best to try movement and gap with you ab/cod, boots, shins and thighs on. Also best to wear your undersuit and gaskets for a real true fit.

 

Looking good

Haha but I never was really into biker scouts.  I feel like if your gonna go stormtrooper gotta go full on stormtrooper!  Thats my mentality lol  I'll live and die by it.

 

Unfortunately the undersuit I have doesnt fit, I've ordered a size up but it hasnt arrived yet.  But I decided to take your advice so I put on something similar to the undersuit material and put on some gaskets and tried fitment again.  Heres the results of that.

And here I was thinking I was gonna have to whack off a whole lot of the shins, thank goodness that doesnt seem like the case.  The thighs are definitely spot on to me though.  Thats the height they have to be on me to not have any leg movement issues and leave space for the knee plate.  Glad I did this before starting to really work on the shins.  I feel a lot better about my leg fitment now, that was a big hurdle to jump.  The Ab plate and chest are gonna be my other big hurdles... lol

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Once you get your ab and cod sections on you'll really be able to see how you are going and if you need anymore trimming.

 

Nice work

[MomoSS]

I have a question about the thighs which will apply the the shins as well.  Either because of the way I trimmed it or because of my kit, theres not really an overlap to glue the thighs together.  I'm going to need to put a strip inside of the thigh to act as the overlap and glue the thighs that way.  Thats not gonna ruin the accuracy will it?  Shouldnt change the way it is from the outside.  Also because I had to trim them so much I lost all the return edge on the top of my thighs.  Is there a way to rebuild return edge so it looks like the bottom of my thighs?  Is it okay to leave it without return edge?  My thighs also didnt come with recessed spots for the greeblies (those carved in rectangles the greeblie tabs sit on top of), so I'm wondering how to fix that too. 

 

One more thing, is R2Dan the only one that makes FOTK holsters? 

My kit came with a lousy resin one that I REEEAALLLLY dont wanna use.  It's not the sturdiest thing and I really dont want to risk it breaking while holding a pricey F-11D.  So I'm on the market for a metal holster with hardware.

 

I'm going to try and get the shins to the point the thighs are at tonight.  If theres time I'll tackle the spats too.

[LTM[TK]]

37 minutes ago, MomoSS said:

I have a question about the thighs which will apply the the shins as well.  Either because of the way I trimmed it or because of my kit, theres not really an overlap to glue the thighs together.  I'm going to need to put a strip inside of the thigh to act as the overlap and glue the thighs that way.  Thats not gonna ruin the accuracy will it?  Shouldnt change the way it is from the outside.  Also because I had to trim them so much I lost all the return edge on the top of my thighs.  Is there a way to rebuild return edge so it looks like the bottom of my thighs?  Is it okay to leave it without return edge?  My thighs also didnt come with recessed spots for the greeblies (those carved in rectangles the greeblie tabs sit on top of), so I'm wondering how to fix that too. 

 

One more thing, is R2Dan the only one that makes FOTK holsters? 

 

My kit came with a lousy resin one that I REEEAALLLLY dont wanna use.  It's not the sturdiest thing and I really dont want to risk it breaking while holding a pricey F-11D.  So I'm on the market for a metal holster with hardware.

 

I'm going to try and get the shins to the point the thighs are at tonight.  If theres time I'll tackle the spats too.

I have Dan's holster and Justin's rifle/pistol mounting. I believe Justin also does the holster:

 

Machined metal components - Justin Morrison Parts for  Blaster rifle and pistol mounting, Resin holsters and other greeblies, machined metal components and more. Email Here

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/219-quick-find-resources/

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Thigh from the CRL: 

• There are seams on the inside and outside of the thighs.

But for L3: 

• The inner seam should be overlapped.

 

So the outside just needs to meet and have a seam and look like below. Normally the insides are not seen in basic approval photos BUT it will be noticed if you want to go to L3

 

You could achieved the overlap but it would be a bit of work, adding a piece of abs behind the back section of the thigh, then adding another to but up against the back, fill with abs paste (so you are really extending the thigh) then sand, that piece would then sit behind the front of the thigh, if that makes sense. It's a bit like shimming sides in an OTTK, like this 

 

 

A nice how too for adding shim to kidney, same principal as you could do to the thighs

 

 

Doesn't appear to be much of a return edge if you check references so I wouldn't be that concerned 

 

But in case you do want to add a return edge, here is the how to 

 

 

[MomoSS]

Hmmmm that does present an issue.  I wanted to be able to go centurion eventually.  I guess I'm going to need to recreate this overlap but in a way where it looks like this:

I want it to have that return edge before it goes in the thigh.  I got some spare abs strips and abs paste on stand by.  I'll see what I can do to recreate that inside overlap

 

These are my shins currently.  The greeblie side didnt have enough material to overlap but the other side does.  (The greeblie indents dont match up either but I'll deal with that later...)  Unfortunately the part that goes underneath the overlap doesnt recess inwards like what I've seen in some other kits like Anovos so its causing an issue where its pushing the front half outward.  Plus it doesnt leave much room for velcro or anything as it is currently.  I might try to see if I can bend it inwards with an iron so the 2 halves can clasp together naturally and have room for connecting mechanisms.  I might be going for magnets here.  As for the other side since theres no L3 requirement I may just put an abs strip inside and be done with it.

 

I'll put a strip inside the thighs tonight so I can apply some abs paste to rebuild the inside.  We'll see how it goes!

 

Edit:  Well trying to bend that inside overlap inwards with an iron wasnt a great idea.  Didnt really do the job and ended up warping the inner flap.  Before I did any permanent damage I stopped and restored the shape as best I could.  Trimmed off the wobbly ends.  It wont be seen once the costume is done but I'm going to need a strong connection to keep these shins from coming apart when im walking.

Edited September 4, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/3/2020 Happy Dragoncon!

 

After getting some feedback regarding the thighs I decided after doing some quick work on the shins to get right into fixing my noob issues with my thighs.

 

I've JB welded these strips inside the back halves of the thighs.

 

I'm really tempted to just do this lol  It would be good enough for Expert Infantry and be much less painless.  But I want to be centurion one day so.  From here im going to glue another strip on top and once it cures I'll put my abs paste to use.  Once it dries, best believe im taking a belt sander to this mess.

 

I cant wait for these thighs to be right...sheesh.

[Sly11[Admin]]

That is the thing when you are new to building armour, you learn some awesome new skills. No obstacle is to big for you to overcome, and I love that. Great work Monica, keep the focus and keep learning. Cant wait to see you a Centurion.

[shashachu[TK]]

Just found your thread - you are blazing through this build! Really exciting to see you make so much progress. Re: EIB 1000 unfortunately it is going to be too late for that, but please don't feel deterred - the L2 and L3 approvals are an honor, no matter what your number is.

 

Agree with what the others say to not make any irreversible decisions until you have your undersuit and gaskets. I'm also jealous of all of the changes KB has been making to his kits - I have a v1 that is a much more complicated build. But at the end of the day, it's all excuses. Can't wait to follow your progress. 

[MomoSS]

7 hours ago, shashachu said:

Just found your thread - you are blazing through this build! Really exciting to see you make so much progress. Re: EIB 1000 unfortunately it is going to be too late for that, but please don't feel deterred - the L2 and L3 approvals are an honor, no matter what your number is.

 

Agree with what the others say to not make any irreversible decisions until you have your undersuit and gaskets. I'm also jealous of all of the changes KB has been making to his kits - I have a v1 that is a much more complicated build. But at the end of the day, it's all excuses. Can't wait to follow your progress. 

Hey!  Thanks for the kind words of encouragement!  I've been watching your build too, we have similar height challenges  Though I've got a bit more meat on me to fill in the gaskets and space lol  The undersuit I'm still waiting on, but I do have my gaskets and I've been building my armor with that in mind.  I've consulted some other people who have built FOTK and I think this is good for an overlap for L3?  I hope so...

It does look much better than how I had them before.

I've pretty much accepted that I wont make it to EIB 1000 but I've got my sights set for the future.  Still aiming for EIB but I want my armor to be centurion ready so all I'll need to do is get rubber gaskets for the upgrade.

 

I spent most of today throwing together a belt sander...also Dragoncon Virtual has been kind of a distraction xD  But tomorrow I'm gonna smooth out a lot of rough edges that are on some of my armor bits and hopefully get more stuff assembled and ready for primer.

 

Edited September 5, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/4/20 "Leg Day"

 

I've dedicated this whole day to just the thighs.  I'm determined to get them set, also got Dragoncon Virtual running in the background.  Working hard but also taking it easy while the con is going, so only gonna focus on one section a day till the virtual con is over with.  The right thigh is now assembled.  Outer side is joined together, the inner side overlapped and both halves are glued with JB weld so they are non-functional seams.  I'm pretty sure with how thick my thighs are if they were functional seams they would constantly come apart.  Dont feel like dealing with that, so thats how its going to be!

Right Thigh - Outside

Right Thigh - Inside

If this is right, hooray!  If not, I'll be sad, but I'll probably just live with it at this point and get new thighs later.

Glue kinda got messy as the 2 halves were clamped together with clamps and magnets.  But a light sanding before primer should take care of that.  The left thigh is going through the same process at this moment with the outer section being JB welded.  In an hour I'll get to the overlap and then call it a night.  Tomorrow I'm belt sanding the edges to remove excess abs.  Then I need to address the issue of a lack of greeblie rectangles on the thighs, I'll need to mark where they are supposed to go and then I'm not sure what next.  I could put the clip there but I think I need the little etching too.  I'll also install that abs holster base with the epoxy putty I picked up the other day.

Edited September 6, 2020 by MomoSS

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Great work on add the overlaps in, many would have stopped for EIB but you've gone that extra mile, well done.

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/5/20 "Leg Day Part 2"

 

After success with the thighs (Thank goodness!) I went straight to the shins to get them ready for the primer phase.  These are gonna need a bit more detail work cause those greeblie indents dont really line up.  I'm thinking about using the abs paste to make them look right before putting the greeblies there.

 

CRL for comparison

You can see that botched ironing job on one of the inside overlaps.  Couldnt fix it 100% but since thats gonna be on the inside and covered with velcro or magnets, nobody will see it.

 

You can see what I mean by the greeblie indents not lining up...even though everything else does.  Vacuform mold defects maybe...?

 

For some reason the right shin did NOT want to cooperate.  The shin fought hard to stay open.  Took like 5 attempts to glue the thing together, so yeah not the cleanest job sadly.  I'm hoping when I get to the sanding and priming phase this can look a lot better.

 

Some of the glue got on spots I wish it didnt, and trying to remove it didnt seem to help a whole lot.  Hopefully I should be able to make this smooth again when I get to the priming and spot putty phase of the build.

 

I plan to work on spats tomorrow.  It shouldnt be too much trouble....I hope lol

 

Edited October 1, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Eh, not really a progress report as Dragoncon distracted me a lot today and I decided to take a break so I dont burn out - 9/6/20

 

Cleaned up the spats, they were a little thick on their edges.

Alignment is a little wonky.  Cant see it with the tape but they dont mesh together exactly.

 

Just trying to visualize how to throw these things together.  Ive seen people use snaps, velcro, or magnets and not sure what would be best.

Also should I trim those tabs off a bit more?  I thought about leaving it there as a hinge or something to help glue the front parts together.  I'll see if I can find a build to help visualize how these go together better.  Also these things barely fit around the bottom of the shins...so I'm kinda leaning more towards magnets if anything...

 

Was nice to take a little break today.  After Dragoncon Virtual is over with there will be no more distractions! 

Edited September 7, 2020 by MomoSS

[MomoSS]

Progress Report - 9/8/20

 

Not all progress is plastic!

The undersuit that once did not fit, now fits!   Good to know the diet is working!  Gotta keep it going, even if the bigger undersuit is about to come in the mail.

 

The knee gaskets right now like to slide down my legs, hence why I'm not wearing them.  I'm thinking this wont be an issue once its velcro'd to armor.

My order of extra neodymium magnets came in the mail, also the mesh for the TLJ helmet and my gloves from Endor Finders.  The endor gloves fit a bit better and they are also soft on the inside compared to the gloves from Imperial Boots.  But I also like how the gloves from IB feel a bit more breathable.  I think I will keep both but that means I need another set of handplates.  The velcro is not the same side on the 2 pairs of gloves.  As for the Deathtrooper gloves I got by accident, someone in the garrison already called dibs

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Great work on the dieting   

[MomoSS]

The build has been going slow lately as I've been running into a few roadblocks.

 

So... The good news is I've got my shins all fitted up and held together with neodymium magnets and they are snug and comfy.  Looks great with the IB boots!  Just need to add the greeblies, primer and paint.

 

The bad news...the spats do not fit

The shins are too large for the spats to make it all the way around and thats quite a big gap.  I think the issue is the shins are not exactly round at the bottom where the ankle is, more of an oval shape, but the spats are not fitting around them too well.  Not sure how to go about shimming these either, they have a specific shape about them, not sure where I would even cut.  I could force it together but then theres no way for it to hold; the forces wanting to pull apart are too strong.  Even neodymium magnets wouldnt be strong enough to stop them from wanting to come apart and velcro or snaps would just come off.  I'm not sure how to fix this.  I feel like I need a set of larger spats honestly because the KB prop ones were wonky from the start.  They didnt fit together 100% even before this problem.

 

Trying to find build threads where anyone else has run into this problem, but so far no luck.  Not many people run into big shin problems I guess.