Leaderboard

Hello everyone! Today is BBB day for me!!!!! Im so excited I have a million questions and dont even know where to start! I would appreciate and starting off advice or any advice really. I ordered a ANH kit from Daves Dark side Depot. Thank you in advance!! Stephanie Felton Cadet #2025

I got my armour approved! This doesn't mean I am done working on it I will be trying for Expert Infantry this year when I go home in late October after university my new helmet is on the way which is a AM helmet so it will fit with my kit perfectly from Dave Conklin, I am also receiving new shim material as well to make the shims completely the exact colour of the armour. This build thread will be continued to update when I start the process to go for EIB.

Just bumping so it doesn't get buried Cricket made me aware that the CRL full image has the incorrect TD (although the TD detail image also needs updating )

The full trooper CRL image with TD is incorrect, something that should be changed with the upcoming TLJ review, the CRL had an update, if you check the actual TD image the cap is black and longer. It however does not have the black line at the top. It is believed that the whole inner section is a tube and the outer shell had been cut and is open where you see black, so the inner tube floats so to speak. Also the back section is in two pieces, the main ribbed plate and the TD mount as you can see in the bottom image.

James Machin TK19758 FarEast Japanese Garrison Height:188cm (6’3) Weight: 90kg More photos to come More photos to come

Hello, my name is Gavin and I am so excited that I am finally able to build my own TK armor kit with my dad @Firedog. We have been wanting to do this since I was a small child and with our kits arriving tomorrow, our passion will come to life. A little bit about me, I live in Panama City, Florida and I am a student at FSU in Tallahassee. I might get some shade for this but Episode 3 is my favorite Star Wars movie and the Clone Wars animated series is my favorite bit of Star Wars that's out there. I know this community is full of great people and I am ready to meet some of you at events!

Hello world! I have been wanting to build a Stormtrooper kit for some time but have been SUPER intimidated. That is until I met a lovely 501st member who introduced me to this site (thanks Brian!). I purchased my WTF kit and while I waited for it to arrive I spent my free time here. I am 5'2 so I have been focusing on the shorter builds. I ended up choosing WTF since they make a "shortie" kit. As this is my first build, I welcome any and all comments and advice! I'm hoping I figured out how to use Imgur correctly. This was super helpful for those of us who are using Imgur for the first time. And now for the obligatory BBB photo! Everyone is excited for me to open it... And here we go... feeling intimidated again. Time to start trimming. I have been looking at photos from other threads to see how much to trim. I'm so nervous I am going to trim off too much and completely ruin everything. *Deep breaths* Here we go!

I guess I was sent over here for detailed info about armor producers and possibly where to go for the right fit. I go by several names, primarily the Dark Jedi Master or Darth Sansari. I am also known bu Trigger-1138 in some places. I will probably want something easy to start into with little work. I can have difficulty with nerve damage down my left neck and arm. I am 6'0" and ~190 lbs, so it sounds like I could fit the base armor without modifications from many of the recommended, approved armorers. I think I want to start off working towards an ANH Sandtrooper (orange pauldron), but some have said to get that base Stormtrooper and go from there.

Your welcome brother!!!

E6000 will stick to gloss alright, sanding the surface helps but you should be alright. You can always test it on a scrap piece and see how much force it takes to remove it after letting it cure for 72 hours

You could also remove the stitching and shorten the elastic and resew Anywhere that would flex it would be better to paint before gluing as the paint could crack along the join. I had no issues spraying into crevasses, I normally do a light coat or two in any crevasses first before painting the rest of the pieces.

Thermal detonator fixed with some additional paint. Back to that cod... closer examination of the relationship between the cod and the butt plates (as attached to the ab) showed that the cod was sitting too low, and could stand to be moved up. I noticed this initially when Cameron stood sideways to me. The bottom of the cod and the bottom of the butt plate should be roughly on the same plane, and they definitely were not. I took some measurements, and then took the leap, installing new snaps into the cod to bring it up. The snap placement looks a little wonky, but I can assure you, it will look fine once installed! Okay, so here is the cod installed with the original snaps. Then moved up with the new snaps. Yeah, I guess that I was pretty confident that this would be a better position, just jumping in and installing those new snaps like that! But, hey, it does look better! And in the new position, it emulates the more narrow cod of the TLJ cod shape. Butt plate and cod are in better alignment now as well.

These particular clamps are rather weak, so when I use them I have to use ALL of them lol

Always wanted the inside of my bucket to be black but cautious about spraying myself. So @FarEast was kind enough to share his skills and expertise and got the job done nicely. Then second to-do item was shorten the side screws to avoid the occasional scratch when removing the helmet. Now I need to redesign the padding and audio wiring. Previously the position of amp would press into the back of my head. The s-trim would rub my shoulder bridges so need to raise the helmet just a touch.

I thought about that as well. However, once sanding, priming, and painting happen, those ridges will soften up significantly. Thank you so much for your help on this!!!

Great, you're on the right way. Let's know when you need help.

Hi Martyn, It’s a good point. However, I’m not really worried. The alignment of the coverstrips is not part of the CRL so I see no issues at basic. For EIB and Centurion, I’d happily argue the toss with the DOs if they questioned it. However, as a former DO myself, I know that many things at the higher levels are based on screen accuracy. As such, I’d be pretty confident with the arm alignment. :-) Good question, though. :-)

Looks amazing so far mate. Loving the details comparing it to the screen used suits. I know that you are already a member of the 501st. Are you not concerned that this suit may not pass future approval? The reason I ask is related to your arms. I personally love the detail and screen acuracy (again this amount of detail is down to individual personal preference and can be clearly seen in the original movie) yet, I see a lot of build threads where builders are advised to have straight, matching, lined up cover strips. Just putting it out there. Again great job Dan! [emoji1303][emoji122][emoji16] Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

Well we did have a member with the nickname CLAMPS but you may very well have be on par with him lol.

I know but I really just like the shiny appearance haha, also need to get my armour to EIB standards first so check out my ANH TK build thread for updates on that Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's one of those kits that are on my to do list, have always loved the details, only $'s holding me up. Great work as usual.

And then there were 22... Congrats to Steve (snaketcher) TK 11764, our newest EI!

Hey troopers I hope everyone is well during these troubled times. I’ve been slowly moving forward with this build, squeezing in build time around work and family time. So, the torso is now pretty much complete. The strapping kit from TM is incredibly detailed and accurate. With the rear section now attached with the original method of brackets and elastics, I moved on to affixing the left hand side of the torso with split rivers and elastics. The biceps and forearms were built a while back but I hadn’t made it round to joining them together. As per the originals, I’ve gone for black elastic glued directly into the armour (no poppers). Based on screen references, I was very specific with where the elastics attach. On the bicep this is close to, and parallel to, the coverstrips. Glued with Gorilla glue clear. Held during gluing with magnets. This is the tricky part - for years, I’ve thought that the front of the bicep and forearm coverstrips should align. I was wrong. As below, the elastics should mount nearer to the centre of the upper forearm piece. This actually means that the bicep coverstrips sit just inside of (narrower than) the forearms. Supporting material for bicep/forearm alignment; It’s these sort of details that keep me enthralled with the OTTK. :-) I also finished off the thermal detonator. Took a bit of jigging to get the proportions correct but it’s okay in the end. The supplied screws are a little big so I might swap them out for something more accurate. Shoulder elastics glued into place; That pretty much finishes off the torso strapping. The shape and feel of the TM kit really is impressive. And finally, also got a brand new pair of gloves through from Imperial Warfighters. Lovely, thin flexible hand guards and a lovely paint finish. Thanks for stopping by, troopers. :-)

Time for another end of the day post! I ended up getting A LOT done today. Still waiting on a lot of gluing, but I can almost see the finish line in regards to all the sitting and waiting for this stuff to dry. Started with the shoulder covers And the back of the right thigh...they say you can never have too many clips I also got the back and cod pieces put together with snaps. By the way, I've been told that Tandy snaps are great, which they totally are, but these things are TOUGH. So much so that I actually really worry about damaging the plastic when popping them off. Just gotta be super careful I guess, but I'm really considering swapping them out for less secure snaps. Also got the bracketing system installed. Considering we are talking about the bracketing system, I cannot for the life of me find a post that details how to connect them with the straps. Do I just glue the ends? Sew them? To be honest I'm lost here. Sadly the one thing about WTF armor, is that the back plate and kidney plate come joined together, and when you separate them there is simply no return edge to install the rest of the bracket system...Sucks but Velcro seems to work fine. I just need to find a way to deal with the sticky back end. Maybe I'll stick some black felt there or something. Lastly, I got the holes drilled for the rivets. This took me awhile to be honest...measuring, remeasuring, and remeasuring a 3rd and 4th time. Finally took the leap and drilled though. Work week starts tomorrow, so I'll be moving slowly again, but I plan on at least to get the ab buttons painted and the thighs glued tomorrow. I'm waiting for a few more parts to come in as well (belt, replacement lenses).

Mario, Thank you very much for the for the advice. I like the idea of heat bending the top of the kidney to flatten it out. I will try and do that and if I mess up or don't like the end result I will just cut it off.

My armour has been approved! I won't be going for Expert Infantry for this armour due to having to weather my armour. I like it shiny but will be modifying my backpack to have no knob which Dave Conklin has made a fix for and will be sending to me other then that this build is done as I won't be going for EIB for my HWT ----------

And who knew I'd ever spend so much time staring at Stormtrooper crotches?

Different make helmets assemble slightly differently, the faceplate appears a little high (which a Sandtrooper normally is), also moving the bottom back piece further forward at the bottom will close those gaps, it will also bring the gap up at the front brow. It's a bit of playing around and slight movements, any gaps on the sides should be covered with the ears, both sides don't always match up either depends on make. Magnets and clamps help making the adjustments. Here are some great build threads which could help:

Update again! The pauldron is in!

Welcome aboard Erina, we all felt intimidated the first time we built armour, but is is easier then you think. Look at it this way, you are going to learn some new skills, your confidence will skyrocket after you make your first few cuts and trims, and you have the support of the detachment right there with you all the way. I look forward to following your progress. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Congratulation trooper, welcome to the legion

Nothing better than BBB photos, good luck with the build

Welcome to the FISD! Walt makes a great kit and don't worry about messing something up. We all make mistakes that can be fixed. Plus Walt offers parts Do your research, ask some questions, have fun along the way! Good Luck Future Trooper!

Hi Erina! Good luck on your build! You’ll do great, especially with all these fine folks backing you.

Hi Erina, Welcome to FISD and congratulations for your BBB Day !! Yes, the first day you see all those plastic pieces is intimidating, but if all of us did it , why you not? I'm sure you're going to make your dream come true. remember. Post Tons of photos, ask questions, review the CRL reference photos , other troopers build threads, measure twice or more, cut and glue once. Can you tell us more about wich info have you checked here in FISD please, so we can recommend other sources here. We are here to help

NEW Visual guides created by TK-50297 Wingnut65 Printable PDF below 13 FISD Rogue One L3 Centurion - Ver 001.2020.pdf

NEW Visual guides created by TK-50297 Wingnut65 Printable PDF below 13 FISD Rogue One L2 EIB - Ver 001.2020.pdf

Jonathan - Here are a couple threads with information regarding sanding and polishing. The more you work on a section of ABS paste the more it will begin to appear like and match the surrounding regular ABS. Note on this next one the photos are missing, but the write-up is still descriptive enough.

Hi Jonathan, great to know you're going make the fix. What I did las time in a case like this was to : 1-remove old rivets both sides (ab/kidney) 2-glue a small piece of ABS behind the old hole. 3-fill with abs 4- sand to smooth surface 5- apply automotive polish wax 6-measure the new rivets location and mark down 7- drill the new holes 8-place the rivets 9-mark the new rivets position from AB to Kidney , drill and place them. NOTE: I highly recommend to make the Ab side first. About your Kidney flat /level top, If It was my case, I would try to reshape the return edge a bit either with hot bath or and iron tool. Hope this can help to have an idea of what to do. Cheers

Congratulations Trooper Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

Time for the CableGuy montage. ;-) CableGuy Builds: Troopermaster completed montage

Had a brief chat with Tino recently and he told me that @Bulldog44 would be very happy if I shared this little picture with you guys

Thanks Germain! 1. Semi gloss black base coat and light weathering with silver guilding wax (like Rub and Buff). Seal with clear coat. This will show through the "openings' of the wrinkle layer later. 2. Brush and dab toothpaste on areas where you want the base layer to show through. Allow to dry. 3. Spray a light but thorough coat of wrinkle paint. I use VHT Wrinkle Plus. Allow 48 hours to dry. 4. Use a dishwashing scrub and remove the toothpaste under running water. Now your blaster smells fresh and minty! That's it!