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Part 3: End results I sanded off all the rough edges with some drywall sandpaper. I was able to use the edge of the counter to assist in getting those curves. Ear caps final trimmed and sanded I thinned out the ends slightly by sanding the inside to aim for a tighter fit at the bottoms. And the end product:

As Glen said, it depends a lot on what you want to use it for and your budget. If it's just for Halloween, comicons, etc. you can get a set of armor from eBay, etsy or the like fairly inexpensively. If you are interested in the joining the 501st Legion the quality has to be a lot better and more screen accurate than the vast majority of the ones you will find on those sites. Joining the Legion gives you the chance not only to enjoy wearing it at sanctioned events throughout the year with fellow TKs (and other assorted Star Wars characters) but to make a lot of new friends in the SW community and help raise money for some really worthwhile causes. However, the price for quality armor is higher... you get what you pay for. Plus there are other items that will need to be purchased, like boots ($60-$100), neck seal ($30-$50), under suit ($40-$80), gloves, holster, blaster, build supplies etc. If you do decide that you are interested in joining and can fit the costs into your budget I highly recommend it! We are asked to appear at charity, community and sporting events, parades, children's hospitals, etc. The first time you see a face light up (especially the kids) when seeing "real" Stormtroopers will make it all worthwhile. Trust me.

Got a little side tracked with helmet electronics. I used the Ukswrath integrated helmet speakers and 4 fan system with 2 anker powercore mini batteries. I made some elastic battery cradles to get them flush with the helmet and cut out sections of the bracket for them to attach to the helmet directly for more strength. I also added 6mm EVA foam to the lens for a goggle-like fit. Getting it on is a chore but it fits fine once on. May need to round off the front right fan so it is not as pointy which can catch my forehead.

Post from 501st legion forum: https://www.501st.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=106862&p=1352596#p1352596 Halloo! It has been five years since our last drive for donations to pay for Legion hosting costs. Over the past five years, we have shifted our servers to the AWS (Amazon Web Services) architecture, utilizing Cloudfront CDN, RDS databasing, Route53 DNS, and AWS Firewall security, as well as regular backups and the storage thereof. We adopted a Google GSuite account to provide a more efficient email solution that also allows us to utilize an API to allow for opt-out, expanded our domain registration account with both Amazon and GoDaddy. And not least, we have taken on six detachments (FISD, IOC, MEPD, BHG, SLD and soon-to-be SP) to be hosted under the Legion account. We push an average of 650G of traffic a month between the main site, Databank, the forums, and the hosted detachment sites. Our last drive in 2015 raised funds to cover the Legion's hosting bills for the period of February 2015 through August 2020, and it was a drive for only 501st.com. It is time for us to pass the bucket again - combining the drives for the Legion and six hosted detachments. Our first goal is just to keep the lights on for one year for 501st.com and the six detachments, no contract, paid month to month. Our second goal would allow us to lock in a contract with some price savings for three years, while our third (stretch) goal would allow us to go beyond that as well as explore other services and/or enfolding more detachments (if they choose) under the AWS account. Please make sure you are logged into the forums, and then take a moment to visit the donation page, and make a small contribution to help fund the site: https://www.501st.com/donate/ There you will be able to make a donation and see how we are progressing at meeting the goals for this drive. If anyone has any questions - feel free to post here, or to email us at [email protected]. Thanks You! ~C Rhaethe Legion Webmaster NOTE this is open to members and no members alike, anyone can donate "troopers helping troopers"

I used a tiny bit of filler on the pinholes - couldn't get em to go away with wet sanding alone. Wrinkles like that are often humidity related, so make sure it's fully dry. I would start at like 400, then 600, then 1000 or you'll just clog your 1000 grit paper up most likely. A heat gun or heat in general can help with runs, and even lighter coats. Paint has been extremely frustrating for me as well, so you're in good company haha

As soon as you added this I found a hobby shop stocking both! Really surprised that the thinner and admiralty grey are that popular always one is sold out. Should be able to do the paint again when it arrives Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Amazing, keep on doing and excellent work!!

Looking INCREDIBLE, Eric...!! EXCELLENT work, brother.

I have been working on getting my armor ready for my Centurion application and I'm just about there! I think... Here's what I've been working on: Removed the return edges from the shoulder bells. (Photo shows the one on the right with the edge removed) Removed the Anovos paint and completely repainted the vocoder: Replaced the ear screws (Thanks @justjoseph63): Removed the male snaps for the belt, filled the holes with ABS paste, re-positioned the belt, and put in new snaps: (It was too tight for velcro to keep it in position, it kept falling beneath the lowest button) I also adjusted the strapping on the left forearm up to even the gap between the elbows. I am planning on fixing the angles of the sniper knee later today. Hopefully I'll be able to get some pictures wearing the armor later this week.

Super easy to fix those teeth. Get some Humbrol Thinners and an earbud (qtip / cotton swab) and using a small amount gently rub against the paint. It will soon all come off cleanly allowing you to repaint the teeth.

Yes, this is what most people usually recommend. Good Luck

While I wait for armor and slowly gather material I’ve come across Imperial Boots as what everyone seems to recommend for TK boots. Their shop opens this week and I’m planning on getting on their order list. I believe it’s recommended to order a size up and get some gel inserts, is that correct?

Yeah Shane - Armor building is a test of patience, for sure. When I was using my black G-2 pen on the threading I was very careful to stay only on the threads. However, if I did over-ink, I immediately wiped the excess off with my fingers. There were actually a couple grey sharpie cut line marks left on the leather from the crafting process, which I colored over with my black pen (and rubbed the ink around to diffuse it). Needless to say, my fingers were definitely black when it was all said and done. I suspect the pressure, and perhaps even heat, from using my fingers resulted in better cleanup then paper towels might have. My pouches have now been sitting untouched for 2-3 months, so maybe I should check them again; surely the ink is completely dried by now. I don't recall if I colored the threading on the back of the pouches or not, since they wouldn't really be seen (except possibly the shoulder pouch), but I definitely wouldn't want any ink to rub off onto my armor. I'll want all my weathering to be washable, so I can switch between shiny TK and battle-worn HWT.

Multiple light coats and noting dry times is key - spray within an hour or wait a full 24 for this paint, I wanna say. Plus, if you're going for perfection, it's going to take several coats and several rounds of high-grit sanding. I think I'm on my 7th or 8th coat, including primer. Also, keep your nozzles super clear or use fresh ones. And keep an eye on temp/humidity. Lots of tiny factors can complicate paint... Occasionally you'll just get a bad can, but that paint shouldddd work fine...

I'm not a Legion member yet, but I intend to be this year, so I donated! I'm glad to be a supporter of this fine group! When we pool together we can do great things!

Great job. :-) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Welcome back, Emma. Please also have a look at the requirements for the higher levels here. Good luck on your build...

Looks great! Looking forward to the fitting. Really nice job on the ab button painting. Make sure you walk around and go up a step or two, this will show you some pinch points. Indicate those pinch points in posting the pics and we can help with solutions. I had a hard time removing some of the return as I think it makes the armor look "less thick", but being mobile is necessary for troops.

Grat Work !!

Looks great, wish my bucket could look like that but then my head would never fit inside.

Thanks Joseph. I actually already masked off and repainted the handle and T-tracks. So there will be no question on EIB. Realizing I'll need a different one for Centurion - just have to get that EIB first. Thanks to you and eveyone on the forum for their support and input.

Extremely useful resources!!! Thank you- I will make sure to use these when I come across these issues more.

Hi Emma, Well , with the cover strips perhaps your new knife help you to have a better result. May this post can help in the Kidney Return Edge issue The following post may be useful for the Ab-Kidney Shims take a look . Cheers

Hello and welcome aboard, firstly do you want to become 501st approved as this is not a budget hobby, if it's only for fun and giggles then I'd suggest ebay, If indeed it is to join the 501st have a read of the thread posted above Good luck with the research.

Hi Chris. Those cuts will make your armor more comfortable when walking...But remember: "mobility cuts should not extend beyond the raised ridge" You are doing a very, very good job...

You got it David!!!. Everything looks shiny and taking care of the details... Waiting for the photos of your first fitting...

Thank you for the useful information CableGuy! I thus continued dremeling away at the ears to get them a bit smoother and thinner- how did they come out? I ended up screwing them in too... I can always unscrew them but I felt pretty comfortable with where they were at.. hopefully they still aren't too thick? Also began making some cover strips... measured marked and cut a 15mm strip from the spare plastic that comes in the WTF kit: Dremeled the sides to 45 degree angles: Applied E6000 with a popsicle stick: And used clamps and magnets to cover the forward junction on one of the forearms! Will do a little more later tonight... a little bit at a time... it's easy to feel overwhelmed.

Progress report! I have figured out the quality issue. Short story long: it was the 0.6 nozzle. After a fleet of benchy's and other test/calibration prints I just went and swapped back to the 0.4. And lo, the quality was back. So in the interest of saving hard work at post processing, I am going to take longer with the prints. Sort of how if I was able to print all night I'd print all this at 0.1mm layers instead of 0.2. This keeps the surface quality up and means I can keep infill and thus weight low. Just means a 20-30% ish longer print time. I'll cope. I was looking at the CRL again. Specifically the chest section, and discovered I am an idiot. Whilst I know my pills are a weird shape, I was going to fill them and reshape with drill bits as a mould, I missed that they punch all the way through. Had I done so I would have asked for a file mod, now I am half way through a reprint of the chest and don't really fancy a 3rd. Power tools it is. Rough plan is to Dremel off the back lump, plate over with some 1.5mm HIPS I have, and then drill, shape and fill as needed for the new holes. It's going to be a mess, and a pain but I have at least 1, possibly 2, spare copies of this part. Also at 5% infill there's not a lot of it in the way to drag drills off line etc. Fun times ahead.

As Rowan mentioned the T-tracks and handle should not be weathered, but I wouldn't fret over it. The reason being is that it will pass at EI as is, but at Level 3 Hasbro blasters are not permitted. This one will definitely be good for trooping for the time being, but once your armor is approved you will have the time for your next project... a resin or 3D print E-11 for Centurion level!

Here we go! Today I finally took steps forward! Steps were small but I guess every step counts Parts in the picture are roughly trimmed so I will sand them later. So many boxes but I still enjoyed every minute.

Hello Carlos, Greetings from a member of your local Dune Sea Garrison. The next steps to join the 501st Legion and the Dune Sea Garrison would be to sign up on the forums over at https://duneseagarrison.com/, if you haven't done so yet. Our local Garrison Academy Instructors (GAI) are Christopher Gilb, Jeff Seager. They are tasked with assisting new members with costumes, questions, and onboarding. Over on our forum Chris "Big Gulp" is TK-BigGulp Jeff is RapierOne. Our local Garrison armorer is Michael Culp @TK1636, and he is extremely knowledgeable as well. Also, I'm willing to help you out with any questions you have. We look forward to having another "Shiny" amongst our ranks!

Hi Carlos, and welcome to the TRUE home of shiny white armor! Your decision to purchase a commission from RS is a wise one... you really can't get any more screen accurate, and their customer service is second to none! What I would suggest at this point is that once you get your Big Brown Box from them, try on the armor (you may need help with this) and post up some photos in our "Pre-approval" thread" located here. We can will help you with any details so that when you apply for Basic 501st approval you should pass on the first try. Note that RS builds their commission kits to Centurion level, so I hope you will consider taking your armor to the next level(s) by applying for the Expert Infantry Badge after initial approval and Centurion Level after that!

Thank you for the advice on the helmet. I honestly don’t know if I can get the same paint in time before my helmet comes due to COVID Also thought I should add some pictures of my blaster for some inspection. Think I’ve got to replace my decals for sure Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I just got my Cassian Andor jacket shipped today... After 2 and a half years Sent from my CLT-AL00 using Tapatalk