LadyInWhite

YAY FOR THE LADIES! Looks pretty good overall. Girl girl girl, the thighs will be the death of us gals. While I agree they could be higher, I don't know if just suspenders will work. Don't be afraid to rip those babies apart if you need to. (I've done mine 3 times!). Make sure they're comfy. I see snaps or something between the cod and thighs - is that on your suspenders? My recommendation is to tip the belt up in front - it looks a little low. That will make you look like you have a pooch. Make sure it's horizontal all the way around. It's okay if it covers a tiny bit of the bottom of the ab buttons. But this is more opinion and not critical. Chest could be a tad higher too - do you have the shoulder straps glued on at ridge #5? Of course you don't want them too low, either. GOOD LUCK! ALMOST THERE!

DING! Thanks!

My $0.02. Now that I've done a variety of troops... I'm always ready to answer questions about my backstory, what's going on in the galaxy, why I'm there, where is Darth Vader, is my blaster real, etc. Scroll down the NCO page and you'll find a topic about backstory. Troops that are intended to be canon, like LFL events and stuff, I try to behave like a "real" Stormtrooper. Military, aloof, nods, curt, "yes, ma'am" etc., kind of stiff, "on duty." For an LFL-approved marketing event the director wanted us to get lively and not look like mannequins, and had to politely decline. Then we came up with some appropriate "staging" (moving from shooting position to standing guard) to make it clear we're people not dummies - very in character. (I always find it interesting that shiny TKs are in high demand, but are often expected to be something other than on-duty professionals.) Troops that are less formal, which is most of them not including cons, it depends on what the organizers will allow, but usually people want to interact with you, so I go for it. It also depends on the energy of the crowd. I love interacting, giving hi-fives, showing that Stormtroopers are good people and not scary or evil, putting my best foot forward for the Empire. I also occasionally tease, stare down, follow, make "I'm watching you" gestures, and other things that are more in character and indicate that I'm actually still "on duty" but not in a scary way. Cons, anything goes. But I like no matter what to keep up some sense of "reality" that fans imagine in their minds. If they see a Stormtrooper, they don't see a person in a costume, and I like to keep it that way. I don't like to "ruin the magic" by removing my helmet... though occasionally, if the audience is right, it's fun to let my red hair fly free! For your event, it sounds like you'll be expected to be on professional behavior, but think of yourself like a soldier overseas... people are curious about you, want to try to figure you out - and you're the face of the Empire to them. (The good face.) Hope that helps!

Yeah. So. Back end of the hyperfirm: It's a solid little rubber knob. I can drill a hole. My D-ring is pretty solid like a chain link. Has anyone done this without total disintegration of the knob? Should I cut an opening in the D-ring so it's kind of like a C-ring, and put two divets in either side of the knob, and press it in? I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier! grr

Everyone freaks out when they hear "evilbay" and with good reason - but here's my $0.02. It's good that you checked here first. Can you post the links to the actual sales? Quality suits are most likley to be sold here or on the 501st or garrison boards, though people also post their sales on ebay so SOMETIMES you can find good stuff, but it's rare. http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=20461 <-- yesterday Somewhere there's a list for who to watch out for, and also look through some of the Introduction threads. You'll see who bought bad stuff from evilbay and so you'll know which sellers on ebay to stay away from. They all say "501st approved" but they're not. That said, though I strongly recommend you buy from one of our vetted armorers, your wait could be very long. Contact all of them and find out what they've got going on and how long you should expect to wait before you get desperate. I hope that helps!

A friend said you could try this, but I don't know anything about it myself. Not many sci-fi games any more that aren't MMO. http://store.steampowered.com/app/71000/ Evochron

15.5 but I'm a girl so maybe I'm not going to fit in your "average"

As long as the line is straight and flush, you don't really need to fill the gap. Just reinforce it on the back side with ABS. However, if you do brave the goo or bondo or something, that's good too. Here's an example. The gap is on the left and the seam on the right. ---------

Hi, Alex, ATA will be fine "for beginners." Their white TK tends to be for the average sized trooper, so if you want to post your height & other dimensions we can be sure it is good for YOU. Although unless you're freakishly tall like most of my family you should be fine. I'm not sure if the magma is based exactly off the same molds but I assume it is. Also, ATA is plenty durable. Don't sweat it. When they say "scissors" they probably mean lexan scissors and other industrial scissors, not your household paper variety. Anything else?

ARE YOU LOOKIN' AT MY BUM!? CHEEKY BUM LOOKAH

Looks great as far as I can tell, except maybe I think the O2 canister is upside down, hard to tell. Nice work!

Go get'm, Dday! You can make the best of this bad situation! You may have to buy a few parts but if you buy well (like new lid) you can use it with whatever armor you upgrade to as well, rather than buy again..........

I would use ABS paste sparingly and for smaller issues or as little bits of glue. However, for larger errors I would reinforce and try some bondo or something a little more easy to sand & set. Liquify your ABS shreds & fine scraps (I shaved down edges with an exacto) in some pure acetone (no coloration added).

Really, really patient hands and hard labor, I'm afraid! I generally sand and/or polish while watching TV, watching my kid in the back yard, etc. Long hours of repetitive stress injury on my shoulder...... I learned from Rob "Matt Black" here on these boards how to sand. And I know Vern doesn't like it but I still use Maguaiar's compound to polish, though of course everyone uses Novus 2 & 3. If you need more help let me know - I can't stand yellow armor

Sweet! Lookin good, Fernando!

This tape-a-holic is jealous she didn't think of that! But don't stress the scuffs and bruises too much - they eventually get polished off. That little bruise on your bucket might polish right off too. Score and snap what you can, lexan scissors where you need to, and pencil all works just dandy. You don't need any tools (though i admit to using the dremmel sometimes) except glue and a sharp knife. Measure about seven times, cut once, shave off the parts you missed with the blade... sand... lol.

Welcome, Michael! The first place you'll want to go is here: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=11538 Then read the rest of the stickies in the Getting Started section. When you decide what movie style you want your armor to emulate, go look at some of the build threads in that section (lower in the forums) and review the CRLs for it. Most importantly, go register on your garrison boards and that's where you'll meet some more of your local folks to help you out. Otherwise, all the help you need is right here in FISD!

So shiny! :)

HERESY!

I found it impossible to get a hardhat liner into my lid. I've tried foam and it wasn't enough. I now have a combo of a little foam and baseball helmet padding. I think it's more about the positioning and thickness of the padding and less about what it is to get it to fit right and in a way you like.

> pre formed button-esque round ridges but really wouldnt look good painted. What's wrong with them? I'm not sure I've ever seen an RT suit in person.

I see from your strapping photo that you have the right idea to help with the cod. I did find, however, when I moved snaps further out, that I ended up with it popping out from under the belt a lot, so I put a big giant velcro thing in the middle connecting stiffly to the ab, kind of like a tab would do, to prevent it popping out. Your butt looks fine except I agree with Keith that you should forego the velcro and replace with snaps. Also, do not expect the top of the butt to line up all the way around with the bottom of the kidney. The movie suits were split and they rested on the form of the butt, making little triangles of black on the outsides between butt & kidney.

GORGEOUS!

Welcome back, David! Never fear, we're here to help Your questions/concerns almost reflect mine exactly - you can read about them in my build doc (linked in my sig). That might be some chicken soup for the trooper's soul. 0. It might be the reflection in the mirror, but your ab plate looks upside down or something. 1. Your butt plate looks fine to me - I'd tuck it under the kidney/belt and let it be. They all sit kind of funny. When I had this same question/issue, someone posted a pic of a rear-shot of a bunch of troopers (I think heading toward the Falcon?) and they all have the same issue. 2. Maybe we all say that.......I'm still trying to lose that 10. So I shimmed about 1" on either side. The AP is definitely a skinny man's armor 3. You'll be happy for the gap. It's where the girls can pinch your bum instead of your armor. 4. Your garrison friend may be right. I'll post an alternate below because ABS paste is a messy p.i.t.a. 5. Nobody's judging your photos - glad you provided them! So. Thighs. Certainly still my biggest bane. I've been through them three times and I still hate them. First, left and right are not equal - it's probably not you. The right is a bit more convex on the AP and they don't fit together quite perfectly. Do the best you can and don't sweat it. OPTION 1 If they fit the way you want them to, put a cover strip in the inside to completely fill the gap. (Use a white "For Sale" sign because they're more flexible and curve better.) Then, of course, you need the back cover strip. My guess is that you attempted to taper it a bit to match your leg. (I started not tapering, then re-did my thighs three times. Wait I already said that. Dammit!) OPTION 2 I would undo the back, put a wide cover strip inside so that you can LINE UP THE TWO SIDES in such a way that they fit you properly with the inside cover in place. Make sure the two edges are as parallel as possible, but you might already be curved and I wouldn't cut any more. If you do have to trim the edges any more, trim the inner thigh so any seam cheats away from the bump on the outer thigh's edge. Then once that is set, you have two choices. If the gap is really wide, fill it with Bondo or an equivalent, sand/smooth it down, prime and paint it, and then afterward apply a cover strip where it would go along the bump on the outer thigh's edge. If the gap is less than 20mm, you can apply a 25mm cover strip over it and voila! I hope this makes sense. I'll try to make a diagram to visualize what I mean and update. Or you can ignore me, because I'm sure someone else will post an easier/better solution that I will joyously learn from! Ok here's what I mean, hope it makes sense. ---------

Or sent to Egypt by way of graphic excision.