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First carefully remove the rivet. Once that's out back the hole with a small off cut of plastic. Then use ABS paste to fill the front hole, ideally made from the same ABS as the armour. You may need to fill and sand a few times but with some care it will be essentially invisible.

Phase one of gluing the sniper knee down. Once the two spot cure, I will glue the last point that makes contact with the thigh. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

UPDATED with new photos/info. I was recently asked "What's the difference between the regular (Sterling) E-11 and the Bapty versions of the blasters used in ANH"? So, having some time on my hands this is what I have come up with. Is it the end-all-be-all of this subject? Not by a long shot, but it should answer the basic questions along with a few odd facts. If anyone has any input or corrections please let me know and I will update this thread as needed. Thanks for looking! The "Blastech Industries" E-11 While no one knows exactly how many were used/seen onscreen, these were real British Sterling Mk4/L2A3 sub-machine guns which actually fired 9 mm blanks from a shortened 34 round magazine. As seen in the 2nd image below this gave the actor(s) the realistic effect of responding to live fire (note the actual smoke coming from the barrel.... and the wince on Han's face). In some scenes the shell casings are seen being ejected. Red "laser" blasts were added in post production by "rotoscoping" each one by hand, frame by frame. Some didn't match up exactly, lol, but it was 1977 and who noticed? I certainly didn't, but it explains our legendary bad aim. To give them a more "futuristic" appearance, the prop masters added all manner of objects: 1. Hengstler counter model 400- Added to the left side behind the magazine, at least 2 versions of this were used in the film. Eagle only- I believe these to be the older versions, made in either brass or a base metal with 890 in the center. Wings are rounded on the outside tops and square on the inside. Eagle with HENGSTLER below it- There are 2 versions of this one. The "wings" logo on the older one have slightly rounded tops and are a tiny bit narrower than the newer version which has squared tops. Both have a smaller 890 in the center as compared with the older models. NOTES: Placement of the counter is ideally mounted slightly above the folding stock rail with the rear lined up above the stock bolt as seen below. As seen in the last 3 images below, the counter is angled and follows the contour of the folding stock. Although cool looking, the coiled wires connected to the counter/power cylinders were not seen in the film and only used on the Bapty version in promotional images so are therefore not "screen accurate". The counters originally had 2 small metal prongs (connector pins) attached to the front. Very few of these made it into any reference images, and were probably knocked off when holstering the weapons. 2. Power cylinders/setup- Unless they were knocked off during filming, these were present on all blasters seen onscreen and were mounted on top of the magazine. If you want to dive into this rabbit hole (and I highly suggest you do, it's actually fascinating reading) about the details I highly recommend checking out Adam's page here. You simply will not find a better reference, and it has everything you could possibly want to know (and more) about these mystery items! Side notes: 1. Some references state that the red wires behind the power cylinders were not seen on-screen, but in at least 2 scenes they were (photos 1-2). The first shows a Stunt TK holding his weapon with it present, and the second is from a photo where Luke is holding it, but I believe this to be the same exact weapon. 2. Ideally the cylinders/mounting plate should be parallel with the end of the magazine well, at an angle to the receiving tube (photos 3-4). 1 2 3 4 T-tracks- While the exact origin/source is unknown, these were 6 of these used to cover the holes in the shroud. They were made of plastic**, the ends bent over and inserted into the openings at the end of each row except for the bottom and row with the bayonet lug. ** Used on both versions, these should not have any metallic color showing when weathering your weapon. Scope- Both the Sterling and the Bapty versions used surplus WW2 tank scopes. While the 1942 M38 type was seen on the majority, 2 other models were employed as well. Note on the M19 model that the original hex nuts were used to attach it to the rail. M38 (1942) M19 (1942) M38 (1943) Scope rail- 3 methods of mounting the rear of the rail can be confirmed. The first (photo 1) shows the rear held in place with a vertical bolt/hex-nut. Photo 2 shows a horizontal version. Photos 3-4 shows how the Bapty's were mounted using a bent end and fastened with what appears to be a star-head screw. 1 2 3 4 The Bapty versions (photo 1) all had a 90 degree bend at the front of the rail while some others (photo 2) had none. Either is fine for all levels of approval. 1 2 Other items- This rectangular item on the top front of scope (photos 1,2 and 3) was seen on both the Sterling and Bapty versions in a few scenes. While it is not known exactly what these were, they appear to be a 14 prong IC socket. These may have been added to all blasters, but since they were glued on few are seen as apparently most were knocked off during filming. There is only one photo I can find of these mystery items being used, and both were located on the left side of the folding stock. The longer one was located toward the front and the smaller one toward the rear above the trigger guard. Many parts like the Hengstler counter and power cylinder set-ups were simply glued to the weapons, and during filming these were knocked off by accident (photos 1-2). Some were seen held on with wire or cable ties (photos 3-4). 1 2 3 4 The Bapty E-11: Because actual weapons were difficult to export between countries during filming (UK, California and Tunisia) approximately 20 custom made replicas were fabricated by the Bapty company (a UK based prop maker) that could be. Based on the L2A3, these were leased to the production to conserve costs, and since they were not actual firing weapons it saved additional money by not having to have a licensed armorer on set. These looked very similar, but what Bapty did (among other things) was to utilize the main parts and entire front sections of actual Sterling L2A3s, but replace the rear end with a custom aluminum tube (thus the rivet) and remove the ejector pin/grub screw from the magazine. Note that the cocking channel on both the aluminum extension (2) and original shroud (1) has been filled. Sterling grip/trigger Ejector pin/grub screw removed 1. No D-ring 2. Solid rear sight 3. Star(?) head screw holds rear scope rail directly to shroud (body) 4, Faux cocking lever 5. Aluminum billet (tube) replacing bolt/spring 6. Wood barrel (not seen) 7. Larger/rounder trigger guard 8. No trigger/mechanism 9. No retaining bolt/screw or emblem 10. Custom made smooth aluminum grip 11. 2 piece body (shroud) 12. Rivet (not seen on all models) 13. Trigger cover plate is different 14. Rivet instead of selector switch Two interesting facts: 1. While Bapty used real Sterling magazines, they cut them in half and used both sides. Some had the original end plates (photo 1), some had flat replicated plates (photo 2) and some just had wooden plugs (photo 3). 2. I have always been told that "There were no Philip's type screws seen in ANH", and having studied literally thousands of reference images I believed that to be true. Until now, when the Bapty cocking lever caught my eye (photo 4). There were 2 other versions as well, one (6) using a flat head screw. 1 2 3 4 5 6 IMPORTANT Even though I believe these were seen more than the Sterling version in the film, please note that the Bapty version is not permitted for approval at Centurion level.

I think the left side fits well with a little looseness at the wrist. I tried it on with the gloves and that kept it from flopping around. The right side will need some foam as it is a little loose.

Progress has been slow, but progress is progress! I've been working on the forearms here and there. Left forearm is pretty much done (except some inner cover strips). I'm also pretty close to the final trimming of the right forearm. As always, please let me know if you see anything needing attention.

Welcome Manuel! All things related to scouts can be found on the Pathfinders Detachment Forum, though I'm sure members of the SoCal Garrison here on FISD could also connect you with some local folks. Paging @TheRascalKing since he's with SoCal and may know people.

A 2" rectangle block of foam either side of your head will help keep the helmet in place.

A good thread here on the subject Another thread here And here Most of our local troopers who have purchased a RS kit have gone for ABS Also an interesting read here online

You may want to reach out to your GML (garrison membership liaison) as you don't have TK listed on your profile and I see you received clearance in June according to a FB post https://www.501st.com/members/displaymember.php?userID=34264&costumeID=419

Deposit made on AM 5.0, so now the waiting begins in earnest. I'm told BBB day should be in October/November (3-4 months). I ordered the B options that comes with all the goodies to make it Centurion, including your flexible hand guards @justjoseph63. We'll see how patient I am with the build. Centurion would be nice, but I'm not 5'7" 140lbs, so EIB maybe the best I can do. LOL

Nice work

Great to see you back at this Mark. Almost there!

I use cotton inner gloves, they soak up the sweat and stop your fingers pruning, I use a couple of pairs through a troop, nice not to have to put soggy ones back on after a break. Some use Nomex gloves and not the rubber gloves. From the DO: The Nomex type of gloves are 100% acceptable for Basic approval. but not for Expert Infantry and above,

Very interesting compilation. I would add the fact that they might have used both M38 and M40 scopes, as well as M19 and M32. And with M38/M40 there are 2 versions, 1942 version with smooth front foot and 1943 with curved foot. 1942: 1943:

Just a little update: 501st approved (missing in pic are Hero, Stunt and ESB TKs. Reel Icons approved: mash-ups

Excellent point, Tino, and you are 100% correct! I noticed these details as well during my very first DD resin build many years ago, but after looking at the ones that had been approved they all seemed to be vertical so I went with what was the most common (and still is). It may have something to do with the fact that the originals were glued and they needed a larger contact surface for better adhesion, but now days we attach them to the scope rail with mounts/screws and it's easier to make it more vertical. (Aesthetically I actually prefer that vertical look, but that's just me). Since troopers (and blaster makers) have been doing it this way since way before I joined, and as long as doesn't sit too far back or forward I have no issue passing one at higher levels either way. The power cylinders/mounting plate should ideally (there's that word again) be parallel with the angle at the end of the magazine well and not with the main body. This was just meant to be an overview of the differences in the weapons and a basic reference, but since these items are indeed screen accurate I have added both items to the main thread. Thanks for the input, mein bruder!

Wow! Outstanding job, Joseph. Looking at your reference photos below, I just noticed the counters being parallel to the folding stock, not the receiver tube. Hadn't seen this before so all my builds and the FISD E-11 Blaster Reference show the parallel installation. How do we treat this? Leave it up to everybody individually? Seems to be the same issue with the placement of the power cylinders on top of the magazine well: parallel to the receiver tube or parallel to the angled end of the magazine well? What do you think?