tkrestonva

You could, but unless your mobility is affected ... why would you want to?

Photos would help.

Not hard at all - it's just a matter of drilling a couple of small holes and installing the bolts. But I would wait until you get the actual armor together so that you can accurately determine where the holes should be.

Many of us have attached bolts to the blasters so that they can be holstered. You don't necessarily need the 100% screen accurate bolts to do it (but kudos if you decide to go that route). You simply need bolts that are long enough and that have the proper head size to fit within the holster grooves.

While return edges enhance the appearance (by giving an illusion of thickness) of the armor, they are not necessary for approval. In fact, if you are doing a screen-accurate "Hero Luke" TK there is no lower return edge on the chest plate at all since the armor had to be trimmed down to accommodate Mark Hamil's height.

Pretty much everything unfortunately. In the end you'll spend more time and money getting the kit up to spec than your wife spent on the kit itself. Better to start over with one of the vetted armorers. Your wife seems like a real keeper for her to surprise you with a set of stormtrooper armor for your birthday. But to be honest, a Rubies Supreme kit (assuming that is what you have) isn't good for much more than a Halloween or con costume, or for a mannequin display. Your best option is to sell it and use the cash to get something legitimate. The way you figure that last part out is to spend as much time here as possible reading the threads here, especially in the Getting Started - Read This First section. Also, you'll want to join your local garrison's forum and/or Facebook group so that you can meet up with them, attend troops as a handler, attend armor parties, and generally get a hands-on feel for this stuff. As for the what to do with the Rubies Supreme kit, think of it as that Christmas present that while is was purchased out a place of love and caring, is still totally wrong for you and needs to be returned to the store for something more appropriate.

Most people I know can't suit up completely on their own, with the biggest stumbling block being the snaps at the shoulders. On the set, the actors would have had costume assistants to help them get suited up. So that's not unusual at all. As far as making a racket goes, yeah ... you won't be sneaking up on anyone in that kit. Somewhere buried here is a link to raw footage (prior to sound and other effects being added) of the Tantive IV scene. You could clearly hear the rattling of armor.

The cover strips for both the forearms and biceps are the same width (~15mm), so it shouldn't matter either way.

I'm going to assume you are referring to the OT TK as opposed to the TFA TK ... I have it, and I got it for the Tier 1 price of $350 they offered as part of the initial introduction in the weeks prior to and immediately after SWCA back in Spring 2015. For what I paid for it, I'm satisfied with it. Like anyone will tell you, it's thin plastic and prone to cracking - in particular at the return edges and shoulder bridges. Also, replacement parts are difficult to come by - you basically have to scout around for someone either selling excess parts (i.e. from a sandtrooper build) or someone who is willing to part out their kit. I can't speak for the latest production run but the initial production runs came with a very flimsy cloth belt, an incorrectly-attached holster, a crappy undersuit, mislabeled pieces, and a helmet with a bad paint job. Hopefully Anovos corrected all of these based on the volumes of feedback they have been getting. On the upside, in addition to the bargain-basement price it's a very accurate kit (there are those who believe it's a cleaned up copy of an RS kit) and as long as you treat it with care, it should last as long as most other kits.

Looks pretty good. An easy pass for Level 1 (basic) approval, at least. You may end up wanting to trim a bit off the tops of the thighs once you get a couple of troops under your belt. While the idea is to have the least amount of undersuit showing as possible, the way you are set up I can see you having mobility issues at the hips, especially around the groin area.

The part of the thermal detonator that sticks out is also all black. So a new thermal det as well.

You use E6000. The reason why you need the magnets is that E6000 takes 24 hours to cure, and the magnets are there to hold the long seams in place during the cure process.

Agreed. N42 or greater strength. I'd go with 50 of them since the more you have, the faster you can build, and you will need spares since they have a tendency to fly together and shatter.

Yes, that's the one I was referring to - the one where the fourth trooper from the front has his helmet up and resting on the top of his head. All of the frowns in that photo are TLJ-style frowns. This one here:

Given the differently-shaped frowns and how it doesn't match any of the helmets seen on-screen or on screen-used display suits from TFA, that doesn't make sense.

So are these guys actually called "Execution troopers" or are we making an assumption?

There is zero chance that you will find a fully-built, professional-quality set of First Order stormtrooper armor with all the trimmings for that price. Add a zero to the end of your asking price and it's doable - provided you can actually find one for sale. As a data point, I built my Anovos FO kit over two years ago, it is one of the original "Alpha 75" prototype kits sold to members of the 501st Legion as part of the marketing lead up to the big TFA reveal at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim back in April 2015. As a rough estimate, with all the accessories and upgrades I've done I have at least $3k into it right now.

What a great read. You all did good that day. Bravo, troopers.

Very nice, and I agree. Unless it's a short parade (under a mile) that moves at a manageable pace (I've been in parades where I had to speedwalk in armor just to keep from falling behind), a float is the way to go.

Yes, I've found that the mic that comes with the Aker amp is very directional. You have to have it oriented correctly and literally sitting on your lower lip for it to work properly. To ensure my mic is properly placed I have to hold the mic steady between my teeth when I'm getting my helmet on, then push it into the correct spot with the tip of my tongue. If you can find an omnidirectional mic (should be able to find one on Amazon) that plugs into a 3.5mm jack, that might work better for you.

I love how you show your sculpting process with your items. What's the helmet made of?

I would start by removing more of the return edge at the top of the shin armor. That will give you more room up top. As for the sniper plate, I find that a bit of solid foam glued in behind it helps keep it from slipping under the thigh. As for photos, until we get Tapatalk back the best thing to do is upload your photos to an online photo sharing site (Flickr, etc.) and post the links in your thread with image tags on either side of it. You do so by clicking on the "Insert other media" pulldown and select "Insert image from URL"

Posting a photo of how it looks right now would help us to advise you.

Yes, he needs to join the Florida Garrison forums and ask for local help. Alternatively, he could start a build thread, post his photos here, and we can provide feedback as well.

In its present state as shown in your photo, your kit will require a lot of fitting adjustments prior to submission for approval. The best thing you can do is to sign on at your local garrison's forum - that's where local events such as armor parties will be advertised.