Hello From Canada

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Most of us locally use fans, does get a little hot down under. There are some very nice kits available or you can make your own if you are handy with electronics, I have two 50mm squirrel fans in most of my helmets, these are independently wired and powered and I only use one at a time, second is reserve for long troops. With the fan you just need some 4 x AA battery holders, switch and wire. Some use a 9Volt but I found they didn't last very long, another option is the 5V usb battery packs you see these days.

 

A basic diagram

 

A couple of how too threads (and there are quite a few on the forum)

 

 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/26/2022 at 4:55 PM, wook1138 said:

Hi.  Yes, fans are a good thing to have.  There are kits out there and I'm sure somebody on the forums provides kits as well. https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/16-ongoing-sales-project-runs/

 

For my first couple builds, I ordered fan kits from Henry's Fans.  https://henryshelmetfans.com/.  They worked out great and were pretty easy to install.  

 

Here is a recent post on fans and helmet electronics in general.  

 

Ahh this is great thank you for the links. 

 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/26/2022 at 6:50 PM, gmrhodes13 said:

Most of us locally use fans, does get a little hot down under. There are some very nice kits available or you can make your own if you are handy with electronics, I have two 50mm squirrel fans in most of my helmets, these are independently wired and powered and I only use one at a time, second is reserve for long troops. With the fan you just need some 4 x AA battery holders, switch and wire. Some use a 9Volt but I found they didn't last very long, another option is the 5V usb battery packs you see these days.

 

A basic diagram

 

A couple of how too threads (and there are quite a few on the forum)

 

 

ok this will involve getting my daughter who is in robotics involved.   free labour !  

[benthemonkey[TK]]

On 7/13/2022 at 12:49 PM, TheRascalKing said:

- remove all of the brackets in favor of snap-based strapping (return edges are thin and not reinforced)

 

I also prefer to build my armor with inner coverstrip reinforcements everywhere, which is extra challenging to do after the fact.

 

Welcome! I hope this is helpful and not an overload of information.

 

Since I received my commissioned RS kit in March I wanted to  agree with the quoted points. After two troops I was able to see weak points in the brackets and definitely recommend reinforcing them. 

 

 

This is using a For Sale sign from Lowes, E6000 and clamps to hold the strip while it dries.

 

I read that all armor is especially weak at the shoulder straps and I think lots of troopers reinforce those.

 

Good luck!

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/29/2022 at 10:18 AM, benthemonkey said:

 

Welcome! I hope this is helpful and not an overload of information.

 

Since I received my commissioned RS kit in March I wanted to  agree with the quoted points. After two troops I was able to see weak points in the brackets and definitely recommend reinforcing them. 

 

 

This is using a For Sale sign from Lowes, E6000 and clamps to hold the strip while it dries.

 

I read that all armor is especially weak at the shoulder straps and I think lots of troopers reinforce those.

 

Good luck!

ok I may have more questions on this on how to reinforce once I get the suit.

 

thanks

[BigJasoni[TK]]

On 7/12/2022 at 2:20 PM, Arvin said:

(waited 45 yrs for this) lol!

@Arvin,

I read your post and this is what I keyed in on. Trust me, you’re not alone. Lol

 Regardless, welcome to the FISD. You’re going to find an incredible wealth of knowledge here and a community that’s willing to bend over backwards to help you along the journey. 
Your question about fans is excellent. For the longest time, I knew about fans, but just decided to sweat it out instead. This was all fine up until I did my first real outdoor troop. Even in decent weather I had to keep taking breaks to wipe out my bucket lenses, clean myself off and decompress a little. While the fans won’t work as air conditioners, they do provide some comfort and keep things clear. Check out the link @wook1138 posted, but keep those questions coming.

 Welcome aboard

[Arvin[TK]]

On 8/2/2022 at 7:18 AM, BigJasoni said:

@Arvin,

I read your post and this is what I keyed in on. Trust me, you’re not alone. Lol

 Regardless, welcome to the FISD. You’re going to find an incredible wealth of knowledge here and a community that’s willing to bend over backwards to help you along the journey. 
Your question about fans is excellent. For the longest time, I knew about fans, but just decided to sweat it out instead. This was all fine up until I did my first real outdoor troop. Even in decent weather I had to keep taking breaks to wipe out my bucket lenses, clean myself off and decompress a little. While the fans won’t work as air conditioners, they do provide some comfort and keep things clear. Check out the link @wook1138 posted, but keep those questions coming.

 Welcome aboard

thanks I am gathering all the questions...:)

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/26/2022 at 6:50 PM, gmrhodes13 said:

Most of us locally use fans, does get a little hot down under. There are some very nice kits available or you can make your own if you are handy with electronics, I have two 50mm squirrel fans in most of my helmets, these are independently wired and powered and I only use one at a time, second is reserve for long troops. With the fan you just need some 4 x AA battery holders, switch and wire. Some use a 9Volt but I found they didn't last very long, another option is the 5V usb battery packs you see these days.

 

A basic diagram

 

A couple of how too threads (and there are quite a few on the forum)

 

 

 

Hello there - I have seen some fans for the helmets that have a USB connection at the end.  Has anyone tried using a USB charging connection (hope I am calling it out correctly) instead of batteries?  I can send some photos of what I am looking at. 

 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/13/2022 at 3:25 PM, justjoseph63 said:

 

I like your spirit, Arvin!  As for "If the DO's would be OK with that..", of course!  In many (if not most) cases, commission armor always needs a few small tweaks here and there.. that's to be expected, so not to worry.

 

Once you get your armor on for the first time, I would suggest walking around the inside of your house for a bit.  This will give you an idea of what areas may need some attention or alterations for comfort as well as getting used to your new range of motion.  I also advise wearing your helmet while doing this.  The reason for that is because your field of vision will be a fraction of what it normally is, so be careful and take your time.  After you get a few troops under your belt it will be second nature.  

 

Just know that we are here to help in any way we can so never be shy about asking for assistance for Basic or above.  It's what we do best!

 

[Arvin[TK]]

Well -  while I was vacationing in Disney last week boarding the Smugglers run ride at the Star Wars Galaxy's Edge -  RS emailed me for a schedule update that the BBB is coming week of Sept 26th!   I will take this as a good sign!!  

 

Nervous and excited at the same time!

 

 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

1 hour ago, Arvin said:

 

Hello there - I have seen some fans for the helmets that have a USB connection at the end.  Has anyone tried using a USB charging connection (hope I am calling it out correctly) instead of batteries?  I can send some photos of what I am looking at. 

 

Many do use the USB chargers, just make sure you use the correct wires/pins

 

 

 

 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 8/29/2022 at 5:11 PM, gmrhodes13 said:

Many do use the USB chargers, just make sure you use the correct wires/pins

 

 

 

 

Hello there, 

 

One question - can't tell from the photos but how did you hold the fan pieces to the inside of the helmet - is it simply velcro?

 

thank you.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

26 minutes ago, Arvin said:

Hello there, 

 

One question - can't tell from the photos but how did you hold the fan pieces to the inside of the helmet - is it simply velcro?

 

thank you.

Yes I glued velcro to the back and wire mesh on the fan side so I don't get any facial hair caught.

 

 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 9/11/2022 at 8:38 PM, gmrhodes13 said:

Yes I glued velcro to the back and wire mesh on the fan side so I don't get any facial hair caught.

 

 

Thank you so much.

[Arvin[TK]]

On 7/13/2022 at 1:49 PM, TheRascalKing said:

 

As usual, Joseph nailed it and hopefully made this easy to watch out for!

 

I've been noodling with an RS-commissioned suit to get it ready for EIB over here, and ran into those exact issues, as well as needing to:

- replace the helmet lens material and liner (the acetate sheet and starfish are accurate, but not ideal for trooping)

- add mesh behind the frown

- modify the plastic belt as above and replace the frayed canvas belt with one from Imperial Issue (holy heck their rivets are hard to remove and they use CA glue everywhere)

- remove all of the brackets in favor of snap-based strapping (return edges are thin and not reinforced)

 

I also prefer to build my armor with inner coverstrip reinforcements everywhere, which is extra challenging to do after the fact. We always recommend building your own, but those mods aren't more than a couple hours work if you decide to pursue higher approvals. Most GMLs will approve them at Basic out of the box if it fits you well though. Once you have it in hand, let us know what you need help with!

Hi there, 

 

Well my first box arrived today (helmet) and the second (armour) is arriving tomorrow.  

 

Wow - what a difference seeing it and holding the items in your hand.  Immediate thing on the helmet is I want to do the upgrades.  *mesh, green lens, fans are on order, etc.-  hoping the local folks can help me out with sourcing good products for some items.  

 

I am going to start to put the armour on slowly and move around before taking photos - also downloaded photos from the other forums when people submitted to pick up some more tips.   Also it's amazing how light the material is - I was very surprised about this one aspect - was expecting the material to be heavier. 

 

Once again - can't thank everyone enough to get me to this point with all the sharing of knowledge.  I plan to take this one step at a time...basic approval first, then get started on the next level EIB as soon as humanly possible.  What else can I do in retirement! 

 

Questions for tonight: 

#1 - is there a good method to upload photos - mine seem to be quite large format.

#2 - when I am ready to get feedback should I go directly to the other forum and post.

 

thanks.

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Questions for tonight: 

#1 - is there a good method to upload photos - mine seem to be quite large format. Many use a free online image host such as Imgur, upload your photos there then copy and paste the links into your thread

 

#2 - when I am ready to get feedback should I go directly to the other forum and post.

You can post in the builds area, start a build thread there https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/31-costuming-and-builds-original-trilogy-and-anthology501st-approved/

 

Once you are ready to contact your GML garrison membership liaison you can post images in our pre approval area to get any feedback and tips before submitting to your GML

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/193-request-tk-pre-approval/

[BAZINGA[TK]]

3 hours ago, Arvin said:

Hi there, 

 

Well my first box arrived today (helmet) and the second (armour) is arriving tomorrow.  

 

Wow - what a difference seeing it and holding the items in your hand.  Immediate thing on the helmet is I want to do the upgrades.  *mesh, green lens, fans are on order, etc.-  hoping the local folks can help me out with sourcing good products for some items.  

 

I am going to start to put the armour on slowly and move around before taking photos - also downloaded photos from the other forums when people submitted to pick up some more tips.   Also it's amazing how light the material is - I was very surprised about this one aspect - was expecting the material to be heavier. 

 

Once again - can't thank everyone enough to get me to this point with all the sharing of knowledge.  I plan to take this one step at a time...basic approval first, then get started on the next level EIB as soon as humanly possible.  What else can I do in retirement! 

 

Questions for tonight: 

#1 - is there a good method to upload photos - mine seem to be quite large format.

#2 - when I am ready to get feedback should I go directly to the other forum and post.

 

thanks.

 

 

I got a box today to which should be my blaster but I haven't popped it open yet.  I don't expect the armor for another couple months.  May I ask what you ended up doing for fans?  I haven't ordered anything there yet.  Bart

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

8 minutes ago, Bartman said:

I got a box today to which should be my blaster but I haven't popped it open yet.  I don't expect the armor for another couple months.  May I ask what you ended up doing for fans?  I haven't ordered anything there yet.  Bart

You could always try Tony's.

 

Some images are missing so I've just DM'd him to update when he's got some free time.

[Arvin[TK]]

13 hours ago, Bartman said:

I got a box today to which should be my blaster but I haven't popped it open yet.  I don't expect the armor for another couple months.  May I ask what you ended up doing for fans?  I haven't ordered anything there yet.  Bart

 

Etsy and Amazon have a bunch - just check the dimensions - I am still waiting for confirmation.  Not sure if anybody had has had bad experiences with them.  

it's not that expensive so I decided to take a gamble.   they look exactly like the images on the reply posts above.

[Arvin[TK]]

13 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

You could always try Tony's.

 

Some images are missing so I've just DM'd him to update when he's got some free time.

 

Oh I like this - this seems nice and sleek.

 

 

[BAZINGA[TK]]

12 hours ago, Arvin said:

 

Etsy and Amazon have a bunch - just check the dimensions - I am still waiting for confirmation.  Not sure if anybody had has had bad experiences with them.  

it's not that expensive so I decided to take a gamble.   they look exactly like the images on the reply posts above.

I thought maybe you had found a premade system available in Canada.  Bart

[Nairy[Staff]]

Hello Arvin! How is everything going? 

[Arvin[TK]]

On 10/3/2022 at 6:05 AM, Nairy said:

Hello Arvin! How is everything going? 

Hi everyone 

sorry about being off the grid for the past week - I got hacked so was in major security protocol lockdown.

 

the good news - got the armour - it is an amazing fit.  So I learned the following and I will post photos shortly:

 

1.  Line of sight / visibility is tight so definitely walk around and get a feel for everything.

2.  Putting armour on is tricky at first but you can get the hang of it with experience 

 - challenge is are the snaps and trying to do it when you can’t see it.

3.  Keeping things straight and perfect - I was not perfect on the first try but you can quickly see where you may need help and extra pair of hands.

4.  I want to send photos but I need some time to clean up on the IT side.  If someone has an email/text I can send something if you really want to see it…but I need to still do some reconfiguring of my laptop.

 

next steps: second assembly and photos for sending through for comments / approval.

I have Halloween and one of my clients is a TV station and we discussed doing the weather report on Halloween (LOL).  No pressure!

talkto everyone soon.

[Arvin[TK]]

14 minutes ago, Arvin said:

Hi everyone 

sorry about being off the grid for the past week - I got hacked so was in major security protocol lockdown.

 

the good news - got the armour - it is an amazing fit.  So I learned the following and I will post photos shortly:

 

1.  Line of sight / visibility is tight so definitely walk around and get a feel for everything.

2.  Putting armour on is tricky at first but you can get the hang of it with experience 

 - challenge is are the snaps and trying to do it when you can’t see it.

3.  Keeping things straight and perfect - I was not perfect on the first try but you can quickly see where you may need help and extra pair of hands.

4.  I want to send photos but I need some time to clean up on the IT side.  If someone has an email/text I can send something if you really want to see it…but I need to still do some reconfiguring of my laptop.

 

next steps: second assembly and photos for sending through for comments / approval.

I have Halloween and one of my clients is a TV station and we discussed doing the weather report on Halloween (LOL).  No pressure!

talkto everyone soon.

oh Andrea at RS Prop has 2 photos from me so if you know her she could share with you. 

[Nairy[Staff]]

 

These are the images I got from Arvin (he asked if I could post them in this topic for everyone to see)! Wow Arvin, looking sharp!!!