pandatrooper

Thanks Derek, I'll check that out. I'll just be using some of the Doopy's pipe kit parts for now. However I'll make my own bracket for the stock, scope mount, and my own versions of the magazine / well and Hensgtler as I need these to be hollow. I'm going to scratch build those and then cast them in 1 piece for durability, but they'll be hollow for electronics. I'll also hollow out part of the trigger and make my own working trigger assembly to actuate the electronics. I may or may not do something with the scope. Ideally (read: later) I'd like to make it hollow for weight savings and some kind of scope / light FX. This blaster will have electronic sound / light FX, so I've spent enough money on it as it is! It was time to upgrade from the Hasbro! I'm saving my time for another project this year, so the pipe kit will have to do for now.

I'm considering making my E11 pipe blaster barrel / body from 1.5" aluminum tubing instead of PVC for lighter weight, and more room internally for electronics, etc. Anyone have any good sources in Canada or the USA for thin walled aluminum tubing for an E11 blaster build? I'm not really sure what thickness of aluminum would be best (1.5mm? something like 0.1" wall thickness?) I've heard of metalsupermarket, but never ordered from them before. Are they good? Any input would be great, thanks!

The older FX kits and newer FX (AM = armor master) seem be the most cost effective. There's a few AM builds going on right now that people are documenting. Don't always go for "cheapest". Cheapest not always the best solution for your needs, and the wrong direction may cause repercussions down the road.

Thanks Tom! We have none of those types of novelty stores in my area, I'm always stuck getting stuff online.

Yeah, that's one of the expensive ones I found, but it's too pricey and they won't ship to Canada anyways.

I'm just looking for the closed mask / Vader face, not Stewie's face. You can still find those open face ones online for a reasonable price. Thanks though!

Oh, and the cheek tubes near the ears probably have horizontal pinches in them (from vac forming), no? Don't worry, for the most part, they are covered by the ears. I did sand mine down with a Dremel before assembly.

Mine cam out fine. You can pretty much use most reference from TE and AP builds as a guide. I think the helmet comes somewhat pre-trimmed, so you don't really need to cut much at all as the overlap from the back onto the front will be hidden under the ears. You do need to trim the horizontal brow line all the way to the end of the grey temples, in order for the brow trim to fit properly. After you make sure the brow is straight, line the 2 halves together and tape them together, and make sure it matches the pics from Star wars helmets.com There's even pics of helmets riveted without ears (see below) for reference. http://www.starwarshelmets.com/original-st...sub-submenu.htm This is my armor build http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=8811 For the helmet, I would suggest riveting the halves before installing the screws, it makes assembly a lot easier and is even screen accurate (even though you never see it from the outside). Just make sure to leave a gap for the helmet trim! Thread discussing these rivets http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=9486&hl= And this is a tip for strengthening the aerator sockets. http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=8686 Hope that helps!

Very cool pictures! Thanks for sharing everyone!

That would be most awesome, thanks Daniel!

Thanks for the info Paul!

When you replied, I got so excited I almost "Sithed my pants". Alas, they are hard to find now. There's one on Amazon but it's $55!!! These sold for $10 originally! That's out of my price range. Doesn't matter, as they won't ship it to Canada anyways.

Are Hyperfirms solid or hollow? And I assume they're resin cast? Just wanted to get an idea for weight as I've never handled one before.

Hey guys, I'm looking for a reasonably priced "Darth Stewie" bobblehead. The one with the Vader mask, not Stewies face. They came out a couple years ago, and were still available for a while. Now that I want one, I can't find one. I've found some links from the UK, but I'm not familiar with those stores or shipping costs to Canada. Can anyone help me track one down? Thanks in advance!

Ah, now I understand. THOSE rivets! I actually did the same thing, I riveted the cap n back and face together under the ears, but I didn't reference the pictures for placement. You don't see them underneath the ears anyways, but does help in helmet assembly and keeps the sides nice and tight. One thing to remember is to leave enough gap to install the helmet trim. If you rivet the halves without accommodating for the trim, there won't be enough room for it and you'll have to take it apart again.

Do you mean the ear screws? If so, there's 2 on Hero helmets, and 3 on stunt helmets. Hero helmets have one above the ear comm rectangle thing, and another near the base / neck trim opening. The stunts have 3, one above and below the ear comm, and another near the base / neck trim opening.

Thanks guys! I'll give it a shot at work (I use a Mac at home and it's not working).

Keep the pics coming Will, looks good!

Wow, looks awesome!! Very nice! I'm so jealous!! Have fun at the Adidas troop, those look so fun.

Looking good so far. Keep the pics coming! I won't have time for a while, but in the future I'd like to do an AM build. Everything seems very well thought out!

I would say that a Modified Hasbro (with resin add on mods) is probably the most common (but maybe not the most desirable) due to cost, availability and ease of assembly / painting. It's decent in terms of overall size, but many of the proportions and details are way off from the originals. If you want to make EIB with it, it will require a bit more work. Second would probably be a 1 piece cast resin blaster, or PVC pipe kit style. Again, due to lower cost, availability, and ease of assembly / painting. These might be from Hyperfirm, Doopydoos, etc.. The next category starts heading towards scratch builds (wood, metal, resin, PVC, etc..), builds from plans like the Imperial Fleet / Blaster builder club full model kits style builds, with resin cast mods like scopes, real or replica Hengstlers, etc. These could be built by the end user or sold completed. SR props and the like come to mind. Another category might be Master Replica versions. These are probably more for display / collectors rather than trooping, due to their weight, detail, how fragile they might be, and collectibility / value. The last category would probably be E11's built on deactivated Sterlings. These are potentially more plentiful in some countries, but may be harder to get / banned from others due to legalities / customs, etc.. Most people in this category would use deactivated Sterlings, real screen accurate scopes, actual Hengstlers, etc. An addition to any of these (that are hollow) would be added on electronics like Blaster core or Hyperdyne, etc.. These would allow for LED lighting, muzzle flash, sounds, etc.. I would suggest that rather than selecting a blaster based on popularity, base it on your personal intended use. For my own personal use, I have a modified Hasbro with a Doopydoos kit. It still makes the stock "Hasbro" light and sound FX, and I can use this for trooping. If there's kids around that want to try it, I'm not going to shed a tear if they drop it or break something. It was a $25 blaster with a $30 resin parts kit on it, its not a big deal compared to a more authentic but collectible blaster, such as the higher rated ones above. It's also lighter in weight compared to the others. I plan on making a PVC pipe or aluminum barrel blaster with resin add ons and electronics for photos and stuff where I want to be more authentic, and I know that it will only be myself that will be handling the blaster. I'd love to get a Hyperfirm, but unfortunately they would not pass through customs to Canada plus Hyperfirm would not ship here. At the end of the day, I'd suggest picking the blaster that suits your needs. You can all too easily get sucked into this hobby by getting what "this guy" or "that guy" has, just because it's the most accurate or whatever. Just remember that they may have bought it for different reasons, just get what suits YOU!

Looking good, stay on target... stay on target! Dennis, couple things that will make the armor look tip top. For the backs of the shins, if you're closing them using velcro, try to make it so that the velcro closure is facing "in" on each leg. That way, from the "outside" of each leg, you won't see any velcro, just the finishing strip and overlap. Also, it;s not required for CRL but for more authenticity, make sure to run some black elastic around the shoulder bells, near the base so that they wrap around your biceps. This will help keep them in place and minimize the gap where your armpits are. Look at some of the original pics and some screen accurate builds, you'll see this. Have you already figured out the strap between the chest and back, and the strap that holds the shoulder bell in place?

That means a lot to me, Stuka -Thank you!! But many thanks should also go to you for providing inspiration with your great builds and techniques!

I ran into the same issue a while back and came up with this solution. Works great to get more surface area. They work well on snap plates about 1.25" square or 1.5" square. -----

I'm trying to get my PVC pipe blaster sorted out, and I wanted to get the templates and measurements from the ever popular BBC forum here http://www.imperial-fleet.com/BBC/ The thing is, when I download the files, I can't open them. What format are they in and what program will open them? Am I missing something here? Any help would be great. Thanks!