dougefresh

Mine are supposed to arrive tomorrow -- I'm eager to try 'em out!

I used styrene tabs on my ABS suit and it bonds up just fine. I used CA glue and a little bit of plastic welder, and the seal is airtight. I'd recommend using e6000 instead of CA glue though-- in my experience CA dries too fast, and ends up being kind of uneven and brittle. E6000 will even bond cloth to the ABS, and it's a little more forgiving, so you can slide parts around a bit if you don't get it spot on the first try; it's good stuff.

I'd use the sheet of plastic that came with the kit to make all the exterior strips. You can buy a cheap sheet of styrene at the hobby store for the snap plates. No one's going to see those, so they don't need to match exactly. I'd make sure to save the sheet AP supplied you with for those parts that are going to be outwardly visible.

Rock n' roll, Dave. Looks nice!

Same here. One of the inner calve pieces is a duplicate of the outer calve too. All GF/AP kits are like that. *EDIT* -- And I just realized Smitty already said that. Oops. I'll shut up now.

Thanks, Mike and Johnny! So far, the biggest obstacle has been finding time to work on the kit. I have a really lousy habit of doing things really sloppily when I feel rushed, so I've been forcing myself to leave the kit alone unless I have a nice, big chunk of time to work on it without distraction. It's like telling a kid "There's chocolate in the cupboard, but you can't have any, fatty." I have Monday off, so I'm really hoping to make some progress. I was told by my ladyfriend that if I wanted to experience any smooching in the next decade, this weekend is her's. So no armor building for a couple more days. Mike-- Hopefully we'll get to troop together sometime soon! If you pick up a TM kit, just let me know. If you don't mind driving down to Denver, I'd be happy to let you check out the Stuka-Suit in person sometime. I'm just the spoiled lazy-a$$ who bought it -- far be it from me to hoard it to myself.

Coming along REALLY nicely, Christaan. You're doing a fantastic job! Great idea with the suspenders as well! Dang, we have some clever guys in our crew!

Ha! What a creative idea, Eric! Nice.

Well, shoot. If you guys vouch for 'em, that's good enough for me. Just ordered a pair this morning. Definitely be a step up from the CaBoots, IMO.

Here's Smitty's run: ------------

Good to know, Ryan! Get on It, Alex!

Hi, Shane -- most guys end up making their own lenses out of welder's material to solve the problem. Our very own Smitty makes nice ones, or you could make them yourself. I've seen some other really cool solutions using green visors from football helmets. In my rig, I have welder's lenses, with the green acetate in front of them -- it conceals my eyes from the camera flash, and still has that cool, shimmering green.

Nice!

I'll be trooping the event here in Denver on the 18th. Between the 501st and those wussy rebel guys, there's gonna be at least 30 characters and a bunch of droids at each show. Sounds like a blast! Can't wait! Alex-- you should check with your local Garrison, it's very likely they have something scheduled. *EDIT* -- the only thing is, I know since the event is LFL santioned, they're requiring all the people in costume to be 501st, and we've each had to submit a photo to LFL for approval prior to attending. If it's something you're interested in, I'd recommend getting your 501st application in as soon as ya' can.

The broomhandle is SWEET. Truth be told, it's probably my favorite blaster in the movies. (ducking to avoid rotten cabbage)

I'm basically 6'0". I may not be playing power forward for the Bulls, but I don't need to sit on a phonebook to drive, either. And you're right: I am a total weirdo. For so very many, many reasons.

Thanks, everyone! I totally lucked out getting the TM suit -- definitely one of the most fun purchases I've made in a long time. Couldn't be happier with it. Speaking of Troopermaster, I got some really solid advice from Paul regarding the ATA helmet the other day, so I think I'm going to fiddle with it quite a bit. (Thanks for the tips, Paul. I'm definitely gonna try and put them to good use. ) The brow trim just isn't lining up correctly with the traps right now, and it's driving me bananas. On a different topic, I have a question for everyone-- Looking at almost all the TE-derived armor, it seems like the curve in the left (as you're looking at it) thigh got really distorted somewhere along the way. When you look at screenshots of ANH and ROTJ armor, both thighs have this really severe, flowing, "S" curve where they follow the line of the cod. However, most of the kits I see in the TE lineage end up with a much softer, rounder curve. Just doesn't look as nice, IMO. Just wondering: A.) If anyone knows why this part looks so different from the onscreen suits, and... B.) If there's anything that can be done to restore some of the original curve. I dunno... it sounds weird, but the armor just looks so much cooler when both legs have that elegant contour in them. (Did I really just say that? Man... I'm spending WAY too much time looking at reference photos.) You guys have any thoughts on the matter, or am I just a total weirdo?

Awesome news on your acceptance, Eric. Welcome! You knocked it out of the park, dude. Really nice job!

Oh, man-- that's just heartbreaking! What a shame! So sorry that happened to you. I know AP sells "B" pulls from time to time, and at a pretty decent discount. I'd recommend getting in touch with him to see if he can send you a replacement on the cheap.

Oh -- because I'm obnoxious and a gigantic dork, I'll probably get all fancy in photoshop and make something far cooler than these lame snapshots, but I wanted to post up a couple of pics of Stuka-Pete's TrooperMaster rig I bought a couple weeks ago. SO AWESOME!!!! I just can't describe how giddy this thing makes me. I totally transformed into a goggle-eyed 8 yr old when I put it on. I knew it was going to be amazing, but seeing it up close totally floored me. Between TrooperMaster's attention to detail, and Pete's building skills, this thing's PERFECT. I mean, seriously -- how friggin' cool is THAT!?!?!? Thanks, Pete, Paul and Mark -- you guys are the BEST! I feel totally spoiled. And just so ya' know... my ATA will *not* end up looking that nice. It gives me something to aspire to, but I'm just not on Pete's level.

HOLY CRAP! I want it! You're not going to be satisfied until it's just me and my TrooperMaster armor living out of my car, are you? This is AWESOME! Brilliant, as always, Paul!

Dennis -- NICE JOB!!! The only thing I can see-- and it's completely minor and knit-picky -- is that you might want to put a couple of straps between the back plate and the kidney plate to close that gap a little. Otherwise, it looks incredible! I can't see any reason why you wouldn't pass with flying colors. I think you nailed it.

Thanks for all the continued encouragement, guys! It makes the process a lot more fun, and keeps me motivated! Applied the decals this morning, and started painting the details... Decals: (I'm not sure how I'd do it, but I might need to trim the cap a bit more-- the side traps look a little goofy. Any suggestions?) Frown: (looks a little washed out in the bright light.) Vocoder: (alongside my bada$$ new TM helmet) (the vocoder didn't end up looking as "pointy" as it is here-- I went back and did some fixin') I'm letting the mic tips dry, and hope to get them and the lenses installed late tonight. Then, the neck trim-- and viola! On to the body armor!

Haha! The first time I went out in FX armor, I came home and the back of my legs looked like I was in a car wreck. The term "armor bites" definitely exists for a reason. Looking forward to going out and getting some new ones with my squad mates in a couple weeks!

Looks rad, Johnny! How's it feel to be almost finished?