pandatrooper

Wow, very nice work! It's a shame you're selling it though, it's a very clean build and one of the nicer scratch built Hengstlers I've seen. Very similar to Stukas! The only thing that seems missing is the end cap on the magazine. I would say if you wanted to make slightly more accurate, is grind off the lower T-rack on the left side of the blaster, and drill holes there instead.

I would be careful with that trick, because depending on what type you use, some marker inks will bleed or some paints may not stick. Personally, I find that if you prep the surface properly (sand, wash with detergent / rinse, then primer, and paint) peeling is minimal. Any chips can be touched up with black or silver, making it look more "worn".

This is horrible. Has the organizer / security at the venue been able to shed any light on this or provide any updates?

RT mod can be found here ---------- I will PM you contact info for AM armor / Tupperware TK It's best to stay away from Ebay armor if possible, as you don't know what you're getting if you don't know the supplier. Most reputable suppliers can be found here on FISD.

Why hello there, Jim! Nice to see you on FISD too.

Steve, check your PM and the Badlands board This event will be HUGE! "This will be a day long remembered.."

Thanks Paul!

Trooper1 on MEPD makes the BEST pauldrons, they are 100% screen accurate but they also cost quite a bit more (approx $100). http://forum.mepd.net/index.php?showtopic=6438&st=0&p=77911&hl=trooper1&fromsearch=1entry77911 http://forum.mepd.net/index.php?showtopic=5969 A more cost effective and modifiable to be screen accurate option is shoulderpauldrons.com Theirs are only $28

Looks pretty good, will meet 501st and EIB no problem. You might want to take some pictures in better lighting, just to have those on hand. Nice work!

The circle is now complete. Good news Steve, hopefully everything works out for you! 29 years is a long time, thanks for your dedication! BTW: we have a very cool local trooping opportunity in May. It would be great if you could make it! I need all the local troops I can get (right now, I have 1 TK and one Fett) so any extra troop support would be great!!

The consensus on MEPD is that the radio on these packs might be based on a Crashmann (MEPD member / pack parts maker)radio! There are some distinct "tells" that validify this: - the radio has no bevelled edges (looks vac formed like) - the speaker grill is very Crashmann in style - the corners do not have holes / rivets - no side tabs for the shoulder strap on the radio (most people don't make these anyways) The siphon assembly is also Crashmann like: - The siphon tube ends in a funnel / tip like Crashmanns - the siphon "burger stackers" look like... burger stackers instead of a real siphon - the siphon nipple is missing the 2 small rectangular greeblies

These are reference pics for Pack #3 (most commonly replicated TD pack) from Sideshow collectibles "Sandtrooper Squad leader" orange pauldron trooper. Also included are comparison pics with Sideshow's Pack 5 (second most replicated pack) and some images of the T21 that comes with the squad leader.

Thanks Jim! I've seen your T-21, both you and Woodchuck did a great job! I'm building my T-21 for my T-21 tutorial, and making really good progress. There should be good room in there for blaster electronics, I might actually try and fit the small black amp (1506?) inside so that the amp will project sound out the front, then if I can fit the wireless in there too, and have it transmit sound to a second amp in my chest plate. I'll just use the wired mic going to the chest through the first or second input. That should work, correct? If so, I'll be ordering a second amp from you.

Good point! Need to see if I can squeeze my Memorex wireless transmitter into my BFG...

If you want a great custom saber that you can build on your own, the one stop shop is the Custom Saber shop. http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/ They carry each saber part in pieces (called the modular hilt system MHS), professionally machined. Then you pick the parts, and you can assemble it yourself! They even have a flash tool for playing with various pieces before you buy them http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/mhsbuilder/ They can powdercoat the parts in various colors, and they sell the hilt electronics as well as kits or in pieces. They also sell LED conversion kits for the various Hasbro / MR sabers (metal ones). For service charge, they can do some custom work as well. The do not sell complete or build sabers for you. It's a whole nother world to delve into, but there are many tutorials on the forums to walk you through each step http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/ (see tutorials at the bottom) Great service from honest sellers that have been around for a long time. If you want affordable dueling sabers (no sound) for messing around with (and don't want to drop your new fancy aluminum hilt), check out Ultra sabers http://www.ultrasabers.com/

Just wanted to post this as a warning to those that may be interested in a certain TK style saber, available on Ebay and on the sellers site: http://www.saberforge.com/index.php?page=view_albumℑ=44 In a nutshell, if you're looking for a higher caliber saber and are planning on ordering from Saber forge - I would advise against it. There's a rash of negative feedback on FX sabers forums and the Custom Saber shop forums. Unfortunately, I ended up buying a saber from him a while back before I found out more info on his products. I got it in a reasonable amount of time, but there are serious issues with it. In a nutshell: - communication is rather slow / non-existent (seller was a prominent member on the various saber forums, but has dropped out of sight due to deals gone wrong / products failing / failed promises to fix things - hilts are "OK" quality wise (a common issue is that the inside is dirty / oily, with metals shavings intact (like the part came fresh out of a machine shop without any clean up), and there are also some rough lathe marks - the electronics installation is dodgy - at best - wires are held in with solder and tape, no heat shrink, etc.. for stability - there is no electronics sled, everything is just "stuffed inside" the hilt - both battery holders broke off the board during the second battery change (and I'm super gentle with this stuff!) - the sound board only lasts about 10 minutes at full charge (it's been discovered that if you're not running 6V consistently, the sound board drops into a constant loop swoosh sound and becomes useless.) - only fresh AAA alkalines work for 10 mins, Rechargeable batteries do not offer enough voltage - the LED is glued in, somewhat fragile with glue (TCSS LED’s are held in with 2 nylon bolts on an aluminum heat sink for comparison) - the switches are non guarded / momentary, so your hands tend to make it go on / off a little too easily - the blade is sanded on the outside, the inside has no film (bright top and bottom, but not the middle) - the blade itself is slightly larger than 1" and does not fit into standard 1" blade holders / hilts - the blade is 32" long, a bit short for my taste. His soundboards (Saber Sound) are very glitchy, and only work with a minimum 6V of constant current. You can’t achieve this with regular batteries, they only last for a few minutes, then the board goes crazy and makes repeated “swoosh” sounds. Most people that got these boards experienced this. If you're looking to spend $100 or less and want an LED blade with no sound and so-so machining, then it’s a "buyer beware" purchase. Looks good on a shelf and turning on the blade for friends, but lots of sabers do that (including FX / Hasbro). Personally, I would avoid this seller! I have settled my issues with him and I don’t intend to buy from him again. If you're looking for something sturdy for dueling, higher quality machining, or something that lasts - look elsewhere. I have since ordered other parts from The Custom Saber shop and they are AWESOME in comparison. Couldn't recommend TCSS more, they are that good. I'm not a saber expert, but I've become a lot more knowledgeable after taking various sabers apart and rebuilding them, along with building my own from TCSS parts. I just wanted fellow FISD troopers to know, to save their money / learn from my mistakes.

Awesome, thanks!

Thanks Dashrazor. Does polarity matter for hooking up stereo jacks? I know there's the "inner core" wire and the surrounding wire, does one need to be positive and one negative?

Not if it's detachable (eg: connection at the wrist for a 1/'8" stereo jack). the cord would feed up through the arm and into my chest plate where the amp is. Or, I would wire the amp directly inside the blaster (note: I'm talking about a BFG, not an E-11)

I’m not a sound electronics expert, but would it be possible to do this: Take any electronic sound device in a blaster that normally outputs to a speaker (eg: Hasbro, Blaster core, etc..) and instead of having the wiring go to the speaker, strip the wires and wire in a standard 1/8” stereo headphone cord and jack, so that the output could be sent to an amp (eg: Aker voice amp, since it has an “input” jack?) Any feedback would be great. Thanks!

These are ANH photos / images borrowed from Stukatroopers site (for reference only) Really, at the end of the day it: - be inspired by the original images / movie - but do what fits your body Remember: these guys were IN A MOVIE. they did not troop events, care about comfort, etc.. they just need that "good take" on film, so you need to take that into consideration in terms of usability and a little comfort. It's hard to tell without seeing stuff in person, but I would probably trim near the lines you indicated but leave another half inch on each side on the backs of the thighs, tape them up again and look at them again. If it looks good - then do the final cut. If not, well you gave yourself an extra half in on both sides for safety, so re-evaluate again, re-tape, stare at your butt in the mirror, etc. then do the final cut. Trust me, you're going to run into this multiple times, you'll get used to it. I'm not sure if you have pr haven't already, but starting with biceps and forearms is easier than the legs.

Helpful link re: overlap if you haven't seen it already -----

Both Blastercore and Hyperdyne make their electronics in runs, so items are not in stock 100% of the time. You have to wait until they are available.

make sure the thigh fits you correctly. I find sometimes people leave too much "wiggle room" inside their thighs, and so their thighs look really big in comparison to the shins. Make sure it fits your leg, but try not to have it the area around your knee swing like a bell. The proportions looks good to me, but really it needs to fit your body so you need to decide. I know it's an AM kit, but I still plan on butt joining mine rather than overlapping.

You can get flat sheet styrene stock in 1 foot long sections from most hobby shops. They use for making scale buildings and such from scratch.