Dark CMF

Really some great work, but I've got to say that the Dewback seems out of place in that picture. LoL

Thank you again, for saving so many of us from some of the same brand of confusion at a later date!

LoL... At the time, it was one of the most horrible moments of my life. Now of course, it is one of my fondest memories.

Definitely can understand how you feel. Looking at your pics I'm going "So awesome. OMG look at all of those pieces." Good luck with your build!

Unless your phone and my computer are looking at it from a similar point of view, I'd say that it is not your phone, and the tube stripes are black - and poorly placed to boot.

Speaking of kids being embarrassed by Star Wars dads... When I was probably 11 years old, my family and a group of our friends (some other families) were walking through one of the malls. There had to be about 8 to 10 kids in the group. In the middle of the main "square" of the mall, my father stops walking, puts his right hand on his chest, extends his left arm straight out to the side in a grand sweeping gesture and begins "singing" (something he is known - to this day for being horrible at doing) at the top of his lungs "No more Rice Krispies.... Darth Vader has taken them away...." I don't know that you've ever seen children more embarrassed by anything.

Tehya, Just wanted to say that it looks like you're taking the sensible and practical approach. Choose a topic and do your research. Then, choose another topic. You keep that up, and you'll be fine. Take a look at Glen's link above. He does (in my humble opinion) some very good work, and the link he sent is a great example of getting the Hero helmet done right. Slow and steady....

I just saw this commercial on television, and figured that I just also had to share it. Made me laugh out loud - if only briefly. http://youtu.be/QyoUP-jRjaM It is on youtube, and is SFW - unless your boss is anti Star Wars, or perhaps a rebel sympathizer.

I've been on Rob's wait list since late August. Truly excited about the eventual arrival of the big brown box. It is a pretty serious wait, but from everything that I've seen and read here at FISD and elsewhere online, combined with my dealings with Rob so far it will all be worth it when the time comes. Thanks to Rob for all that he does for TKs and (I imagine) TDs everywhere. Thanks to all of his other customers and reviewers here at FISD for helping me to understand that he is the right armor maker for me. Come on, 2014!

LoL. You need to superimpose yourself on a speeder bike or a skif jumping over a couple of Star Destroyers.

That is a very nice sculpt. Honestly, if I were to build two armors that were not of a Star Wars origin, they'd be Master Chief and an original BSG Cylon. Beautiful piece though. Are you doing the full kit, or just the helmet?

Good Luck!!!

Watching with great interest, your build thread, I am. Looking good. Thanks for sharing!

I can only imagine that it was. I experienced my first troop yesterday and it was an awesome experience, but I have no doubt that Katie's ceremony and the events leading up to it were no less than incredibly memorable and rewarding.

I'm not going to lie, I started reading and when I got to the pictures of your helmet I actually thought... "Okay, that's odd that there are reference shots posed on a stand like this. I thought most of the original helmets were wrecked or locked up someplace... Okay, where is the one you finished?...." Then I realized what I was looking at. Beautiful job on the helmet (which is obviously a very high quality kit to begin with)! Congrats even though this is an old thread. I just now came across it as it has become active again. Beautiful, beautiful helmet.

I've always appreciated Katie's story. It was one of the situations that really did bring the 501st more into the forefront of my mind and got me thinking about becoming a member eventually. Since Chicago is where I was born and raised, it hit even closer to home. Thanks for sharing!

Welcome Tehya, to FISD! Personally, I'm new too - but not quite extremely new. I don't have my armor yet, but I'm on a wait list for it. In the meantime, I've been doing what you've started doing - reading. That's the best thing you can do as a new recruit, so hats off to you for that. There are a few points that you made, that I'd like to address quickly for you and hopefully I can help to clear some of them up for you a bit. The pros (Legion member TKs) will certainly be able to help with some of the others better than I can though. a: The TKboots are still being sold. I actually just received mine a little over a week ago. There is an issue that has slowed down the production though, so getting on the wait list is a good idea. b: The original armors were built for actors who WERE 5'10", not over 5'10". The getting started thread has some great info that explains that most kits will work for anyone from 5'1" up to 6' tall with modifications. It is over 6' that people need to look at some of the specific builders that cater to taller/larger troopers. At 5'7" I believe that you'd have no issue with most of the kits available though. c: Saving and waiting is probably the best route to go. The wait list that I am on for my armor will carry me over into late spring of 2014 or so, and I've been on it for over 2 months already. In the meantime, I'm reading and buying other parts like my undergarments which are just compression suit pieces - Eastbay.com has some, Walmart has some, Kmart has some, Academy Outdoor and Sports has some, Underarmour is an option. There are different price ranges for them, but you can get some of those for less than $20 per piece. I've got my boots, and I'm getting ready to order a kit to build my E11 blaster later this month. d: I just saw that you're 16, but that gives you some time to save, learn, and build as you go along and get closer to 18 when you can apply for Legion membership as you already pointed out. e: There are a lot of female TKs here at FISD and they are quite helpful. They can certainly give you good advice about which armors to consider from the female perspective. Hopefully I've helped you out some. Being 16 though, time is truly your best friend in this process. You have plenty of time to learn and read. The forums have everything that you'll ever want to read about Stormtrooper armor. If you can't find your answer by searching, then by all means ask questions. You're off to a great start, and we're all a little overwhelmed by it at first. Hang in there, and you'll be fine!

I know that I don't really have a dog in the fight - as I'm not yet a TK or Legion member, but I have a lot of practical ("real life") experience with similar things and I think they are great ideas all the way across. As a recruit that is targeting nothing less than Centurion for my first build, I fully appreciate the ideas that you've presented and I think that they have tremendous potential to drive more recruits to shoot for the higher levels. Under the current system, most of the recruits seem to focus so heavily on getting Legion approval only that they don't even look at the EIB/Centurion standards because there is a prevailing thought out there (and to an extent - rightfully so) that it is supposed to be elite levels. The thought that follows is that it must be too hard to do up front. Then, they get Legion approval and kind of go "well... I want to get active in my garrison and the Legion" so they kind of fade out. I think that making it something that seems truly attainable from day one, and allowing them to understand how to do so early on will lead to more TK prospects going for it. As I said, I have extensive practical experience in similar processes. In coaching them about US Army promotions we always teach new Soldiers to work towards two promotions higher, rather than worrying about one at a time. It gives them a feeling that they do control their own process, their own destiny and an understanding that it is indeed possible for them to move even higher than the next level, if they do some extra work. For what it's worth, I think this is a great step in the right direction.

There are definitely thoughts on him. Don't let yourself go there. http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/23392-wwworiginalstormstroopercom-hit-or-miss/?hl=%2Bandrew+%2Bainsworth

If you've never been to his website, you should check it out. The alien is just one of several builds that he has on display. Rob is no less than an artist, as clearly demonstrated with this particular topic.

Are those ear bumps on the shoulder blades, and Trap stencils near the bottom? Again, truly a beautiful and creative solution to make your son happy. I built a house out of a medium sized box this evening. My two year old son loves it. LoL

LoL. Brilliant!

Beautiful work, Rob!! Not only does it make me excited for your son, it makes me more excited for my armor sometime next spring! Well done man. Very well done!!

As a relatively new recruit, and not-yet 501st member, I'm curious; is there a way to distribute the newsletter to the Garrisons, or does it already happen? I personally love the newsletter, it is really informative and has a lot of useful info in it. It seems to me though, that the (active) TK community at FISD is not nearly the size of the entire TK community. With ongoing changes to the CRLs and new armor/prop vendors coming on the scene from time to time - not to mention the Troop of the Month, etc. it would be great to try to push this information out to the TK community at large to ensure that Legion-wide, the TKs are up to date with changes that are happening and the opportunities that still exist for them here at FISD. Perhaps this would also lead to more EIB/Centurion submissions? I don't know this for fact, obviously, but maybe since Centurion is only a couple of years old there are TKs out there who are simply unaware of it and have made upgrades to their armor but have not submitted for it out of ignorance? If this already happens, then I'll happily talk to my Garrison Leader on Saturday at my first troop, to make sure that it gets posted. If not, why not? Just food for thought, perhaps. Thanks again for all of the work that goes into the newsletter. I understand that this is all volunteer work, so I realize that it is a labor of love.

Greatly appreciate this Kevin. I've actually been doing some light (initial) research into the magnets lately as they are my 2nd planned purchase(s) moving forward (first is my DoopyDoos kit next month). I had already decided that I would need more than one would like to initially think, because I'd like to be able to do BOTH shins/thighs/forearms, etc. on any given day as opposed to one on Monday, the other on Tuesday and the more magnets you have, the faster you can build. Thanks again!