gazmosis

That is some wicked cool armor, bud!!! Good luck on EIB!!!

Hey there, Alex! Welcome!! Let's not sugar coat this. Whatever armor you decide to go with, you are going to spend some money making your armor the way you want. The LAST thing any of us want to see anyone experience is regret. I shoulda this...or I shoulda that...... Depending on your level of love for Star Wars (isn't that why we are all here) one thing you need to consider is what level of accuracy you wish to acheive. Do you eventually want EIB or centurion status? To some that is not important. But to others, it is everything. A lot goes into your final decision ($$, body type etc..) but one of THE most important things to consider is your reaction when you look in the mirror for the first time. Once in the armor, you will become someone else. It would be terrible to put on the armor and be disappointed. Make sure you do your homework and come up with a decision that you will be satisfied with. This is the greatest source of information you will ever have on your side and these are the greatest people on the planet when it comes to this hobby. You have all the tools to make your dreams in armor come true. Could I be any more dramatic!!!! (insert corny music here) Anyway, WELCOME!!!

Can you draw up a rough schematic?

I would like to start by saying I am sorry for not having pictures. I am sure I can word this so that it makes sense to everyone and an answer can be found. I am helping a future TK with his set-up. He showed me his Doopy doos kit which I had never seen before in person. The first thing that leapt out at me was the top center t-track covered all the top vent holes. I always thought that the top center most vent hole was left open for the scope rail to tuck into. I have seen all types of blasters...t-track AND scope rail in the same vent hole, all vent holes covered and the track screwed to the body. What is correct and do we need to creatively alter the Doopy Doos kit to be accurate?

Very cool armor, my friend!!! Good job on that ab rivet, but for centurion, you are going to need to get rid of the rivet in your knee sniper plate and repair the hole, then glue sniper plate. Is there velcro on your forearm? I believe that the forearms need to be fully closed. After that, I believe you should be good to go!

Everything looks good Trooper! O.k., um...115 lbs. Seriously, nice looking armor

I think you're gonna need to submit photos of your sniper plate (glued not riveted) and the power pack on the thigh (brads). I'm gonna guess on your weight........93 lbs.

Nice polish job on the armor! Jeez, I need to get me some of that TM!!!

I don't dry them out at all. I'm trying to grow a new science experiment. The bag I keep them in is moving and making strange noises.

I know this might be a radical concept, but no one mentioned good ol' hydration. We are not talking about pounding down a gallon of water an hour before your troop. That does nothing except bloat you and then make you warm and squishy in your boots...gross! It can actually be somewhat dangerous to drink that much fluid in such a short period of time. The human body has its ways of thermostatically controlling itself if given the right tool...water. You must plan ahead though and drink large amounts the night before..I am talking about a gallon total throughout the evening. Yes, you will be running to the bathroom a lot. But since you did this over a long time, your body will absorb the water down to a cellular level within your body. Something that can only be done over time. You might lose a bit of shut eye getting up in the middle of the night, but, you will be FULLY hydrated for the next day. One additional drink and one last trip to the washroom just before your troop and you are good to go! I am not saying you won't sweat...you will. But your body will have it to use as you own cooling system. The fans in your helmet will further regulate your temp by cooling the sweat in your helmet. I have used this method time and time again both in 90 degree parades and street festivals just standing in the sun for hours. It's magic...and mostly free.

If you choose to paint the grey first and then paint the gloss black stripes and edging, make sure you get a brush head that is small in diameter but with the bristles a bit longer. If you get a brush that has short bristles, you won't be able to make a long stripe before your paint runs out. The longer bristle allows more paint to be in the brush head without dripping and will allow you to make a longer pass and maintain a constant width of your line.

O.K. I was buying supplies for a job I'm on and found a bag of thin, exam gloves in the stripping and finishing dept. at Home Depot. $1.98 was the whopping cost. I had a troop at a high school, and although short, my hands still got plenty hot in the rubber gloves. I am glad to report that ALL moisture was kept inside the exam glove and away from the PTT button!!!!

Fits nice, Dude!!!

Nice job so far!! Did you just not tighten the screws on the right side? The ears looks a little....loose. I just can't see how people could wear the FX helmets. No offense to those who own them but......... In seeing yours. I like the high brow line. Mine ended up a little lower. To each his own. Great job so far!!

Do you think the paint could be thinned and put through some kind of small airbrush or other small air sprayer? If so, I think this would speed both application and drying times. I see that the paint, at $3/ bottle, won't break the bank. At 5 coats, how many bottles did you use?

Both silicone and Plasti-dip have already been considerations. I tried the platidip to caot the back of the unit where the exposed metal was visible which was great but the actual PTT button is NOT a sealed unit. Any moisture that would be present on the PTT unit would seep inside when the button was depressed. Step #2...try coating the whole thing with 100% silicone. I tried a thin and thick coats. The thin coat was worn through almost instantly, and the thick coat grabbed onto the button not allowing it to return to the "off" position. AAAAARG!! A great idea, though!! Thanks for your input. Oh!!!!!!! Hey Steve!

Mix even parts Testors flat black with Testors gloss black.

I understand the e6000 thing now. From what I understand, though, when dry the E6000 can get brittle. How does that work with a flexible cord? Or am I awrong about the E6000....I never worked with it before.

Really really nice!!! Glad you went that route. I just always thought that the Hasbro ones just didn't look right. Your new one is so sleek. Use a small piece of PVC pipe to make your front vent cover.

Although my hands don't sweat on that level normally, I have bit of an issue when my hands are in black, rubber gloves in 90 degree weather. The bandaids would certainly keep everything in place, however we are looking for ways of completely and totally seperating sweaty hands and their moisture from the PTT button either by encasing the PTT button with something like the rubber page turner, or encasing the whole hand in a surgical type glove. At this point having already shorted one out, I am leaning towards sealing off my hands rather than experimenting with covering the PTT then finding out what I tried didn't work. I really don't want to make another "hey Jim, I need another PTT cord" call. Thanks for the suggestion though,k Darrel!!

This is pretty gross but if anyone wants to try it......any medical section of your local drug store will have rubber "exam" finger sheaths. Pardon my description, but no other comparison works except to say that they are finger condoms but thicker. I just don't have the guts to go buy them. "No really...., I am using these for a Stormtrooper costume!" "Sure you are, sir."

Sweet!!! Are you going to to keep it mostly black or are you going to weather it a bit? Not a suggestion, just curious.

Go to the metal yard fence section of your home store. In this area, you will find support bars (usually displayed vertically in a tube) that get woven into the fencing to give it support. They are about 5/8" wide and 1/8 thick.

I would put them on the ab and kidney pieces. Just in case that TK loses some LB's and the shims come out you won't need to make new holes.

Nick is right. The glossy part will be up to you. Once the paint is cured, you can go at it with an automotive compound and then a cleaner/polish combo. You have to wait for the paint to cure. You will need about 2 weeks minimum before you can really go at it. Once it is cured, you can polish it out so glossy that it looks wet. Make sure you give the parts enough coats, though. 2 coats MINIMUM 3 is best....in my opinion.