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Welcome to the FISD Kris. I'm Paul (Canadian Garrison Command Staff) Hopefully we'll see you at the Toronto Comic Con next month.

How to attach flexible hand guards to rubber gloves For those aiming for Expert Infantry/Centurion level or just screen accuracy, the flexible hand guards will be need to be attached to your rubber (chemical style) gloves. Many folks have asked me the best way to do this, so here is my preferred method. Note that I am using the silicone guards that I make which have a heavy-duty cloth backing in order for glue to adhere to, but this should work for most other types including ones made from natural latex. ****Instructions for Nomex gloves at bottom Supplies needed: 1. E-6000 glue- I highly recommend using this product instead of CA (super) glue or epoxy, both of which can (and will) get brittle over time, causing the bond to fail. 2. Rough grit sandpaper (80 to 120 grit) 3. 2 or more heavy books. 4. Thin point Sharpie marker or soft lead pencil. 5. Blue painter's tape. Step one- Determine placement. The front end of the guard should sit right at the end of your knuckles, and in the center of the back of your hand. NOTE: Placing them too far forward will put undue stress on the glue in that area when you bend your fingers down and may cause separation. Step two- After measuring both sides and determining proper alignment, attach the blue tape to mark where the bottoms will be. Note distance between end of guard and bottom of glove fingers. Reference image Make sure that there are no wrinkles in the rubber glove. Step three- Using the Sharpie or pencil, mark a line around the guards. Step four- Sand down the area inside your lines. Doing this will rough-up the surface and allow for better adhesion. NOTE: Clean the area thoroughly afterward and allow it to dry. Step five- Place a generous amount of E-6000 around the perimeters and inside, then rub it around the entire center/edges to even it out (you can go a little heavier on the edges). Leave a small area around the edge to prevent seepage. Step six- Lay the gloves side by side and place the hand guards glue down in the outlined areas. Place at least TWO large books or other heavy, flat objects in top. This is necessary for proper adhesion. IMPORTANT: Leave them under the weight for at least 12-24 hours to allow the glue to completely cure/set. If you do have any seepage of the E-6000 it can be removed by rubbing it off with your thumb. DONE! NOMEX GLOVES- When attaching to Nomex gloves, use the same method as above But be SURE to put a piece of wax paper inside the gloves. Otherwise, the glue will seep through and bond them closed. NOTE: Please be aware that Nomex gloves are not permitted for Expert Infantry/Centurion approval.

Thanks Andrew! Excited for the day I get to submit my armor; still a long ways to go but I'm ready (mentally/emotionally more so than physically). Thank you Tony!! Super excited to be part of the FISD community, you guys are awesome! Currently chugging away on sanding, more priming, and hopefully tomorrow... my first "full test fit" to make sure everything is scaled properly. Can't believe how much I've done so far and forgotten to make sure it all fits, whoops.

This is outstanding! Absolutely impressive to me.

Welcome to the FISD Andreas !!!

What a massive undertaking this is. Certainly coming together nicely despite the few issues you've had with spaghetti prints and paint fry. Looking forward to seeing this come full circle and you being approved.

File Name: Lightsabre - Back Scratcher Designer: craigprestidge Last Update: 20/02/2026 File-https://makerworld.com/en/models/2418181-star-wars-lightsabre-back-scratcher?from=search#profileId-2651806 Description: Star Wars Lightsabre – Back Scratcher Bring balance to the Force and relief to those hard-to-reach itches with this fun, novelty Lightsabre Back Scratcher. Designed as a playful fusion of sci-fi fandom and everyday practicality, this model captures the iconic silhouette of a classic lightsabre while cleverly transforming the blade into a functional scratching tool. Perfect as a desk accessory, gift, or conversation piece, this print combines clean detailing with a comfortable grip, making it both display-worthy and genuinely useful. Features Stylised lightsabre hilt with recognisable sci-fi aesthetics Integrated back scratcher “blade” with smooth, ergonomic contours Designed for easy, support-friendly printing Comfortable handle suitable for everyday use Great novelty gift for fans and collectors Images:

Been a while boys but I am back on the saddle excited to get this ready for the 10th for R1! Making the arm moulds at the moment and I swear Im getitng better at engineering these clamshell parts, the overlap and fit is perfect! Need to paint the cover strips before moulding but thought Id give a quick teaser of what I got. Abdomen is almost done, just needs some sanding but will pull some tests of those this week if all goes well. Shins have just finished printing too. All thats left to design are: - Thighs - Butt - Cod - TD - Chest + Back redo (will explain in subsequent post) - Front belt (stillunsure of how I will tackle this part)

@TK6178 if you want to merge the accounts we can do that for you. Just PM me and let me know the 2 accounts, which one to keep, and probably more importantly what email you want to use and I'll make it happen.

Hey Paul Welcome back. For the record, I think Paul took half of the photos in my troop log.

Back Plate "Altoid Power Packs" This is a very new idea I will be trying out in 2026. I've had some batteries rigged in the back plate for a long time on troops but it was just haphazard velcroed pieces with no real order to it. I came up with an idea using Altoid tins. Note: I've not trooped with this yet. I have some attachment strength, positioning, and making sure they are not visible to work out, but I love how this came out. I will only troop with it if I have the front plate with my speaker and ABS bracket mounted on the chest plate to counterbalance the weight. It's not heavy on the back, but the power bank adds just enough to it. (I weighed the pieces, and the total weight is right at 16 ounces for all 4 pieces. I got a different USB Power bank that was even closer in size to the Altoid tins and only weighs 3.8 ounces.) First, I logged all the electronics I'm using which include: helmet fans, wireless mic, TRamp speaker, air pressure sound board in helmet, MP3 player on blaster, and sound fx/music speaker hidden in holster. I currently am using two 9 volts, two CR2032 batteries, one device charged with USB-C, and two devices charged by Micro USB. That helped me determine what I needed in my power packs. Here's what I did: Using Altoid tins, you can simply paint these black or white or whatever you like. I decided on black since it will go up against the black skin-diving suit. And it matched the color of the USB Power Bank. I then made some logo stickers to represent what is stored in each power pack. I wanted a symbol instead words or lettering. It looked neat. Then of course slapped the imperial cog decal on there on the right side. Each power pack stores what I need for power. You could make an internal liner in the case. But I found some folks on Etsy that make cheap 3D printed storage parts for Altoid cases. I got one the holds three 9 Volts batteries. Another one was a piece made for storing headphones - I used it for the two types of cables -Micro USB and a pigtail USB-C cable. The last case was a neat little mini tool chest that I use for brackets and screws but also for my CR-2032 batteries. Finally, I found a USB Power Bank that was as close in size to the Altoid tins as I could find. Then added the stickers to show was stored in each case. Next was the mounting. The Altoid tins work great for using earth magnets. I found small rectangular earth magnets on Amazon. It was so strong, I decided to wrap them in 6-inch strips of white duct tape to reduce the draw power. That worked great. I used two strips of 6-inch tape around them. If I troop and find it's a little loose, I'll drop one of the tape strips that wrap around the magnet to make them stronger. Small tests around the house don't seem to be a problem so far with the two layers of tape. I'll do a test troop in full armor at some point to verify though. I also need to see how much the screws/nuts rattle in the one tin. Test walking in the house didn't make much of a sound which surprised me. I used clear double sided Gorilla tape to mount the magnets on the interior of the black plate. Since these power packs are not too heavy, there's not a lot of weight for the magnets and Gorilla tape to hold the tins. I wanted it to be easy for someone to reach inside my back plate to easily remove the needed power pack without the tear and pull of velcro. However, I didn't want to use magnets on the USB Power Bank. I put just a little hook velcro on the back of the bank itself and then a piece of loop velcro in the back plate. rt Finally, the pieces in place. It looks awesome and everything is neat, organized, and labeled. I put a "safety hold" black rubber band around each tin. I don't think they'll pop open, but I thought that would be a good safety to have on them just in case. I really hope this works in my test troop. I'll post results once I give it a whirl. I did want to share this idea though. I'd love to see how others hide and store backup power and batteries on their armor.

Micro Med Kits My first troop I ever did was before I was a member of the 501st. I went to a Ren Fair in Colorado in the summer in the summer of 2001. I had the Armor FX and it was all velcro. It was near 100 and that kit fell apart after a couple of hours. I never considered having a repair or med kit for a troop. I didn't have the experience. A fellow trooper saved me with some white tape. I knew a med kit was a needed thing. I have a repair/med kit for each costume, but I've found that when I go to a troop like a parade or even that takes us far from our tubs, it's all about what you have on you if something goes wrong. In my TK, there's not a lot I can have on me compared to my Scout with my pouches. So, I created what I call Micro Repair or Micro Med Kits. I use our Challenge Coin sleeves and as my base for the pouch as it's thick and flexible. I used CA glue to glue the back side of the coin sleeve to a little ABS piece. Then I glued a black nylon piece to the top to act as a tab. The back side of the ABS has a tiny piece of hook velcro. I glued that on the ABS piece too just make sure it didn't come off. What I do is I tuck this micro kit in the arm armor. The black nylon tab can either be tucked in to hide it or have it out to easily grab it. (Think of it like Spiderman's web shooters, just angle your wrist out a little and grab the tab and pull out your kit.) In the arm armor, there's a strip of loop velcro where the kit attaches. This little kit is small enough to pull in and out as long as you have a little room at the wrist part of the armor. The ABS Piece is solid enough it helps you push it back in to the arm armor when you are done with it. I only take these on events that take me a good distance away from the storage tubs. They really don't bother my arm or are in the way. You also won't have them fall out and not notice. Because it's light enough, even the little velcro keeps it from falling out. I did have to experiment a little to get the right amount of hook velcro to make sure I can pull it out, but also that it won't fall down when arms are down. I don't really notice them, but haven't had long troops with them yet. This is a newer idea with not a ton of hours on them. Oddly, I've not used them for myself aside from Advil, but I've pulled them out for a couple of other troopers at an event. Here's what is in each micro kit: Micro Repair Kit: Roll of white duct tape, swatch of industrial velcro, cleaning wipe, sewing needles with heavy nylon thread both white and black, pencil erasure (to put the point of the needles and to use for scuff marks) and safety pins Micro Med Kit: Band-aid, tissue, $5 (for a bottled water if the situation occurs), and medicine pills (these include meds for headache, stomachache, heartburn, allergies, head cold, and a breath mint) I added some labels with the mini-imperial cog logo for fun on each one too. (Not pictured is a mini multi tool used for cutting if needed that is attached to one of the kits)

Thanks for sharing your ideas! I like the mirror for checking dressing issues, gotta look our best for the Emperor I use a lightweight folding camping table attached with velcro to my kit box. it's ideal for all those parts you can't reach once you have the torso armour on.

Blaster wrap This one isn't too special. I think most of us all have a preferred way to transport the blaster. I just thought I'd share what I do as it's worked well for me. I've tried several different blaster transport ways over the years. I tried a separate blaster case, carry bag, different padded wraps etc. I found in the end, for me, I do want the blaster in the tub for blaster allowed events. But, I want it to take up as little space as possible and also not scratch my armor. I found a Star Wars Imperial Tri Fold golf towel out there. I got mine on Ebay, but it's out there on golf stores too. It's around 16" x 24" which is just about perfect length for the blaster. It's also a thicker towel. I removed the golf bag clip at the top. Then I also added mini velvet jewelry bag for the ammo mag. I doubled the bag up since the set on Amazon I got came with several of them. Having it a little thicker coat on the ammo mag prevents those scratches. You then just use longer black velcro cable wraps to keep it all together. It's a nice, themed way to wrap blaster to prevent scratching armor but not taking up any extra space in the tub. The ammo mag could always be removed and still put in the jewelry bag, but I like to keep it all together.

The Tub Lid Mirror This is probably the most popular idea I've had at troops. So many times, we have to use car reflections or random things to try and see if our costumes look ok during events. There isn't always a mirror. Amazon carries plastic mirrors that I velcroed a couple to the bottom of my tub lid. When you lean your tub lid up against a wall, you can angle it to see how you look! I use this so much. And I'll find many of my fellow trooper's hover over my way to do a review of their kit as well. I also don't have to worry about heavier real mirrors that might crack, shatter, or add weight to your lid. Especially if you use your lid as a shelf like I do too! Amazon.com: JUNEBRUSHS 4 Pack Self Adhesive Acrylic Mirrors, 12x 16 Inch Mirrors Tiles,Flexible Plastic Sheets Wall Stickers,2MM Thick Mirror,Frameless Small Mirror : Home & Kitchen

The Travel Tub Shelf I first saw a version of this from one of my fellow troopers in the Midwest Garrison. My rolling tub has some little slots on the sides and on the tub lid. Using white side paneling from Home Depot, I cut four 3-foot lengths. Then added a small wood block at the top of each bar. These are screwed into the top of the bars as the base to rest the lid on. The lid then rests on the bars above your tub. This maximizes your space when you might be in a small changing room. It gives you a tub lid shelf.

Secret Time Keeper I have found as I've gotten older, I don't make it as long on troops especially in my TK kit. Often on troops, I'll be looking for the time to know how much time is left in the troop. I don't want to be seen reaching for a cell phone, look for a clock, or having to ask. I just want to quickly see a clock but not have it be so visible. My wife came across finger watches on Amazon. I got a black one and tried it out during Halloween. It was great. Very hard to see from anyone else, but I just look at my hand real quick as if I had a watch on. I just turn it on the inside on my non blaster handle hand.