rugbyrat

Nice work Brian! I imagine the cat hates you now.

This suit is terrible. I'm almost speechless. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Custom-Star-Wars-Stormtrooper-Movie-Accurate-Costume-Prop-Armor-Sandtrooper/141037211647?_trksid=p2047675.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222002%26algo%3DSIC.FIT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D11%26meid%3D554151988201827088%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D1005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D231032035321%26

Brian, Good to meet you yesterday at the museum. This build thread is great! One suggestion I have to save time on cleanup. When gluing cover strips onto the outside of a piece, run masking tape along the outside edges of where the cover strip will lay before gluing and clamping. Once the glue sets you can pull off the masking tape and it removes the glue that leaks out from under the cover strip. Less scraping of excess glue. Its a time-saver!

TK 11773 requesting 501st Member Status http://www.501st.com/members/displaymemberdetails.php?userID=15968

For my build, I printed off a copy of the CRLs and used them as a checklist. This expanded into a binder I call the TK Bible. It contains printouts of the CRLs, the description of my armor from the maker, the ANH Stunt Centurion Checklist, Armour and Helmet Paint Colours reference, other reference documents, and all of my receipts and empty packages for items I've used in my build (snaps, painting templates, Chicago screw bag, split rivet packaging, E11 bolt specs, etc.). It stays in my armor tote. This way, if I need to fix something a year from now, I have all the information in one place. No time wasted tracking down old information. Anytime I referred to something here or purchased something, it found its way into the binder. I applaud you for creating a build thread. My biggest regret in building my armor was not doing so - it would have been very helpful and an excellent motivator.

I'm a larger than life TK - 5'6" and 204 lbs (lost 15 pounds in the last 52 days with P90 and diet modifications!) so I had to rely on shims or the armor looked awful. Here's a few shots of mine. I used 2 sheets of ABS on each side so that my shims would "fit flush". I think it looks better than the standard for sale sign modification. Please note many fitting changes have been made to the armor since these pictures were taken. I've submitted for basic approval with Garrison Carida, but expect to see an EIB application soon! -------

The belt should be straightened and raised. The top of the belt should touch the bottom of the ab button plate.

I agree with this. I use the little bits of ABS that are left after drilling a hole. They are easier to catch and keep than filings.

I used ABS paste to fill the seams where the shims meet the kidney. Sanded it down with 1500 grit sandpaper and applied a touch of gloss white paint. When sanding, I covered the armor near the seam (leaving the seam and about 1/8" on either side exposed) with 3 layers of masking tape so that I did not sand the armor.

Brody, I don't know if this will help, but I simply photocopied the decals I received, cut up the copies, and used those as templates. I believe if you are looking for a good template, you would need to specify which helmet you have, as size of traps vary by helmet.

Is that mini van the stunt or hero model?

Ordered the resin blaster kit on ebay from Doopy on 03 May. Received on 23 May.

Luck be a lady tonight! I was able to remove the finishing strips with an exacto knife and 5" pry bar. I need to clean them up, add the shims, and re-glue. Thanks for all the advice!

I tried the freezer and it didn't work. I'm going to cut the bottom finishing strip in half, insert a triangle shim and see how good of a repair job I can do on the finishing strip. Wish me luck!

Thanks for the advice. I used CA glue, so I don't believe I can remove the coverstrip.

My forearms are completely closed with finishing strips. I can slide them onto my arms but they are very tight. They are so tight that I cannot slide on the forearms while wearing gloves. How can I expand them? I've tried using a heatgun and I've tried heating a can and passing it through the forearm. I've also tried removing the finishing strips, but I was not able to do it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as this is the last hang-up before my build is finished. I cannot remove length from the top of the forearm (near the wrist) because the length is proper on my arm. Thanks! Here's 2 views at the bottom of the forearm (where it meets the elbow). Finally, here's the top of the forearm - there's plenty of room there.

The belt should be raised. It should lay just underneath the button box on the ab piece.

Check with someone more experienced than me, but I believe the straps to the ammo boxes must be white.

I was able to straighten the backplate by changing out the strapping under the shoulder straps. I need to bend the right plastic shoulder strap inward to fix the appearance. I'm still working on creating no gap between the back and kidney plate. Tommorrow will be a good test of my fit. I'm participating in a zumbathon in costume. I will likely die. -----------

I intend to convert to all snaps once I have a good fit. The velcro is being used now because its easier to manipulate while I finish my armor.

To answer questions, I'm 5'6". The belt is from TKittell and measures 3.25" wide. Here's pictures of the strapping. Essentially, the kidney/ab are joined by velcro at the ab plate (third photo). I use suspenders to hold the entire kidney/ab piece on me. The two black straps on the top of the ab plate connect to the chestplate to prevent the chestplate from shifting out of place. I trimmed a centimeter off the bottom of the ab plate. Will try a refitting tomorrow. ---------

I checked the shoulder straps, and both measure 6 1/8" long from the inside of the chestplate, so those are the same length. I'm sewing some new strapping to try to fix the issue.

I'm experiencing 2 issues with my backplate. First, its crooked - the left side is higher than the right side. I've toyed around with its positioning, etc, and cannot get it to even out. Second, I cannot create a gap between it and the kidney plate. I've raised the backplate on the shoulder straps about as high as I can. Does anyone have any suggestions for either issue? I think I might need to cut the back plate or kidney plate, but I want to be sure I've tried everything before cutting. \ Thanks. Front view --------- Rear view ---------- Here's my shoulder strapping so you can see how far forward I have the backplate mounted. --------- ----------

Here's a pic of the ab/kidney rivets on the shim and ab. How does the split rivet placement look? I know the butt plate needs to be tightened and that the belt needs to be straightened and lowered a bit in the back! ----------

Okay. I follow. I was confused because my shims are full wraparound with no gap. I'll just need to fix those to create a gap.