daennika

I just started gathering intel for this. Really cool suit, Thalizar!

You can't really tell if it's a mannequin or an actual person standing there, I think that's the nuance! Very cool find, I must say.

lol do post pictures if that ever happens!

I don't know... I'm female and I think all of these things are pretty awesome

Damnit Ingrid I love that you're going the Clone way and why do I only notice this thread now? The kit is huge, I can tell just by looking at the average CT trooping out there. Some of them could do decent Wookies if they wanted to. I wonder, if there were smaller clone kits I would totally try my hands at one... So the warping edges, that must hurt. Though I heard about a clone prop maker that sold detail pieces (OSCS?)... and how do I know this? I'm currently researching the Galactic Marine costume

PP sent!

Oh wow... this makes me want to pick up the old dusty fiddle and try this...

Awesome! I feel proud of my little brother After a year of waiting, building, and also trooping... You've really earned those numbers!

Poor Ingrid, that picture is packed with emotion! If there's a Shoot-a-trooper tragic hero moment, here it is. Thanks for sharing the pro photos, Brian! I also want to say it was a big honor to have been part of this photo shoot with everyone present. I was really looking forward to it, and was amazed at how awesome we all looked. To this day I still can't get over the fact that I belong to this big Stormtrooper family! (an army, even ) Also, here's one proud moment for Nicky and myself: inducting James Burns to the 501st with Steve Sansweet during a podcast! We were drafted to do this one morning, and had no idea what was going on!

I'm the one doing the Mario jump

For me it depends on the moment and who I'm around. During casual conventions, most of the time I will be your generic "cop" trooper pretending to be minding my own business, almost never removing my helmet because my hair is a mess anyway When around buddies, we like to relax and be funny with each other which makes people more comfortable around us. My favorite "acting" moment is around kids, though. Especially the shy ones, being a shy person myself I find that my Stormtrooper character brings out the "hero" in me and so I care a lot about the impression I give to children. I won't hesitate to take their hand and talk to them while their parents take pictures :') My advice to you is to find the attitude that makes you feel most confident, and use that feeling to act as naturally as it comes. Be yourself! Kind of cliché but it's what it comes down to. There is no need to be afraid to do anything since, at the end of the day, anything you'd have done would have been awesome because you did it as a Stormtrooper. It takes time, yes (over a year for me, starting as a biker scout,) and recently had to get used to trooping as a TK which made me start over as a comfortable trooper. What I noticed made people uncomfortable was the slight "sideways look" with the helmet. It's more socially acceptable to look at them straight and wave/nod/do something with your arms. Because our faceplate is intimidating, it's important to distract the non-fan public from it with body language. Always choose slow, deliberate motions as opposed to quick, unfocused, hesitating gestures. The way you move your upper body is important, that's what takes practice.

My dog pay no mind to my armor and behaves no different than if I was wearing regular clothes Was getting my clearance pictures... and he kept getting in the way for attention.

That's crazy! Grats Ingrid

Awesome thread, bro! For one I want to say that I'm extremely jealous of your ABS (even though it's tough as a rhino's nails) and how shiny it is. Mine is almost matte by comparison! Your creative solutions have surpassed some of my methods to get things to work... The student becomes the master, looks like!

Awesome pictures for a first troop! Those celeb pics... And don't sweat for the armor put on incorrectly. Happens to the best of us, and we have proof that you really had a good time!

I started with the blaster, and that took nearly two months because I wasn't used to working on weapons. Or painting them to make them look realistic. All the while I studied armor and all the fitting/strapping/gluing business. Once I received my kit it took me 3 weeks to get everything all done, starting with the helmet, then the strapping system, then the legs, and finally the arms. I'm 5.3 and some severe adjustments had to be made for my kit. I work from 4am to 1pm which left me plenty of time in the afternoons... But I maximized productivity by doing all the research before actually doing the work on the armor.

I use anti-moisture soap or kitchen cleaner with paper wipes after each troop. We trooped Star Wars events at a fast food restaurant, and we walked riiight next to the fryers. The smells were pungent.

I'm preparing for CVI, and this is how my armor will fly: I still got room in there for clothing and shoes. I may add another blaster in it too... What I need is Star Wars stickers and Stormtrooper images to stick on it so that the airline security doesn't flag the bin for a thorough search

My AP kit came with several extra ABS pieces for the cover strips... as thick as they are, they were pretty easy to snap, even with just one scoring line (with the xacto, or just any box cutter). I made my strips 22 millimeters wide, and I helped myself with large pliers to snap them off.

Mysie, I'm totally with you about the natural voice range and having to work on that if we want to pass as male. It's a pain if you focus on it too much... But once you're out there, especially in conventions, some people will be able to tell that you're a woman just by looking at you. Might be the hips and whatnot. In general, people will assume that you're male, even if you're super short, and when you speak they won't have the shadow of a doubt. You'd still be a short, high-pitch vocaled male to them! Because most people are obtuse and think that Star Wars is only for boys...

I have the same sagging thing going on with my thighs because they contain a lot of meat I use the belt & garter system, but instead of elastic straps, I use non-stretchy nylon straps. The buckle is secured with industrial strength velcro.

........ SO MANY CATS! Good look on your build!

To be honest, your approach is far more thought-out than mine. I just winged those handguards! Most of my trimming on the AP was done with the X-acto knife, scoring, snapping, and trimming line by line. Sanding at last when nothing else had to be removed. You want to leave some return edge near your wrists but not too much since your hand has to fit inside the curve.

Awww! The feminist within is rather annoyed by the fact we have to conform to "female" characters, and if anyone would ask me why I'm a Stormtrooper... I would just say "Why not?" But your answer is way better

I love reading these "first time trooping" testimonies, and yours was especially touching and made me feel proud to be 501st!