gazmosis

I have been in your shoes!! I own a set of that armor. It IS recasted from TE2 armor. Although the molds are accurate the materials and the way they are prepared is another thing. His styrene is WAY TOO THIN to be used for anything but a display piece. His claims that of total accuracy down to the thickness of the materails are great....for display pieces. Although it looked great when it was done, I needed 7 repairs to my armor after my first troop. If you take your time with the plastic...handling it like glass, your new display can turn out nice. Just be thankful you didn't spend $700 or $800.

Kudos again to Paul and his attention to detail. Says a lot when you need Close ups to tell the difference. Just amazing!!! Caps off an amazing build!!!

I don't want to sound too nit picky....but I never saw a close-up of the helmet details. Just trying to stick with the program.

Some sweet looking armor, young man!!! Well done!!!

Try adjustments before trimming! It will work out. Make trimming an absolute LAST resort.

Sometimes it's a fight, it is always a battle, but you and everyone else knows it is to make your armor the best it can be. Congrats Tim!!!!!! Nice looking armor. Well done!!!

Just my two cents, but having just built an ATA kit, yes the forearms can run a little big. Since the forearms taper down to the wrist, I would trim from the elbow side. If you trim from the wrist side, the inside diameter will get bigger. You may still need to install a liitle foam strip on the inside to snug up the fit or a contiuous strap that connects the shoulder bicep and forearm. With the bicep, you can trim from either side it's really not gonna make a difference in the end appearance.

I am drooling with jealousy!!!! Where did you pick up the sterling?

I am going on record as saying that my first armor was this armor. I did my research but only based on a visual comparison. Yes they are the TE2 molds so they are accurate. That's why I bought it. However, if I would have known that I would be making multiple repairs after EVERY troop, I would never had spent the money. Not only is it brittle to begin with, but add a little cold temperature (2011 McDonalds Thanksgiving Day Parade in Chicago) it became like notebook paper. My kidney plate SPLIT TOP TO BOTTOM IN HALF and all I did was take a deep breath. Thank goodness the cameras that were broadcasting this nationwide never got a shot of my backside!!!! I will consider myself a posterchild for "you get what you pay for" Do your research and do NOT buy this armor with ANY intentions of EVER wearing it. You will be disappointed!!!

If you go to the ANH build threads, there are a lot of ATA builds you can reference

I think you are referring to the color? It will be close but may not match exactly. Unless you order a crap ton of ABS sheets of the same number from the same manufacturer, the colors may vary slightly. AM might not be using the same ABS as AP. It shouldn't be that much of a concern because the many of the helmets in the film did not match perfectly with the armor either. It will hurt nothing if your varies a little as well.

Karin herself has suggested loctite superglue for plastics. It has a primer pen that purifies both surfaces for the glue. I don't think the glue is special, just the primer pen.

Other than a chemical odor ELIMINATOR like Mason suggested, I would get my money back from whoever wrecked it to begin with. Then buy a new lid kit. Seems like you are doing the equivalent amount of work.

Hey there ,Luis!!! How 'bout some pics so when we're trooping next to you we can recognize you

Just make sure to think not only what is on the outside of you, but what is on the inside. If you suspect trooping in any hot environment, you need to make sure you are hydrated properly. The human body is amazing in the ways it monitors and controls heat but it needs the tools to work with. Just make sure you hydrate the night before. Lots of water...the night before. The day of, unless your troop is late in the day, really won't work as well and WILL give you bathroom concerns.

Just another idea.....I have used plasti-dip. It is a rubberized, thick liquid used for making comfort handles on hand tools. It's available at Home Depot in the spray paint section. After thoroughly washing off any mold release and lightly sanding the inside of the helmet, I brushed on small sections and imbedded pieces of cheesecloth for the look of a lining or Kevlar or fiberglass. It dries in a couple hors and cures overnight. A second coat after all is done and it gives a really cool effect to the inside plus adds a little density to the overall helmet.

It is supposed to be that way!!! Because of the thicker ABS, the texture is actually softer than helmets pulled in thinner styrene. Those were really bumpy.

I have had that happen before. He was probably updating products or systems and although the site allows you to browse, it won't allow you to complete shopping. It happens from time to time. Once all is up and running, it is AWESOME business as usual!!!!!

Like it has been said before, it is a matter of opinion what you want your armor to become. The ultimate side by side is the troopers leading Leia to Vader in ANH. Just make sure you are doing the research to note ALL the subtle differences between the two (armor wise and not just helmet)! Post pics and have fun!!!!

Having the brow trim in is an absolute necessity. It's just me but is that brow line REALLY high? For the exception of the "move along" sandie, most brow lines are only about1/4-1/2 inch There are a lot of ATA builds on the build section here. Check them out!

Wow!!! That armor fits you well, Brother!!!! You mentioned that you were shooting for EIB/Centurion, I have concerns about that ammo pack on the thigh with the top rounded off. That might be the only thing that might effect EIB. There are other changes that need to be made for Centurion, but you can cross that bridge when you decide to tackle that.

Thank you Mark! And thank you Terrell....I hope I did your armor proud. Just want to serve my Garrison as accurately as I can.

I did that because I did not place any plastic into the belt when I sewed it. This way, the belt does not droop if I holster my weapon. I riveted it on my previous armor, but it was really hard to pack away the armor. This way it is removable and all can be packed neatly.

In my experience, and I have had failure, the failure occurred when I painted the top gloss coat without allowing the primer to cure completely. You need to use a plastic bonding primer and if it does not cure,cit had not bonded with the plastic and will lift (wrinkle) when the gloss coat is applied. I left my primer cure for 72 hours before applying my top coat. You must then allow your top coat to cure completely before ANY sanding or polishing. I suggest 1 week minimum with two coats 10 days with three.

Got it. Thank you, Sir.