T-Jay

That would result in some sad faces when I have to tell them, all blasters (except my own ones) are gone already... Thank you very much, guys. Your words do really mean a lot to me. I am very happy to have so many people following and commenting on this build. Glad if this thing could be of any help for any builder out there... I agree, Dennis. The E-11 has a very individual look and its own fascination. Thank you for helping other Sterling owners to find out more details via their serial numbers. Great service. To be exact, I only have 2 builds. The first one is a doopydoo's full resin blaster. The current one is a Phoenix Props pipe kit from Derrek (Dday) with some add-ons. The comparison photos in update #20 are showing my two builds next to each other. The three blasters from that extra posting are finished standard builds from Derrek's kits (no add-ons). And the latest "family photos" contain those three blasters plus the two I own. Confusing, he?! Would love to do that, Sergiu. But I worry this blaster might be too fragile for shipping However, your real Sterling will surely survive that procedure, so send that to me instead

Alright, after recovering from a very exhausting weekend ( ) I now found time for the promised extra posting. During the last weeks I was distracted with another project in the background. Why am I telling you? Because it has something to do with Star Wars, more specifically with Star Wars blasters. And now that the project is finished, I thought to share just a few photos of it here... And while taking these pictures I thought "hey, why not doing a few family photos?"

Bryn, attaching the grip to the receiver before or after painting depends on how you plan to add the colors: - Leaving the grip separate, minimizes your covering effort and avoids any gloss black spray paint on the rest of your blaster (except the trigger group - if that is uncovered). - On the other hand, a mounted grip is okay if you start your paintwork with that gloss black, then cover the grip after it dried and continue to paint the rest of the blaster. There is no perfect way to do it. You will have to prepare areas before painting, so I suggest to ask yourself how to keep your effort the lowest. The magazine from Steve (gazmosis) is a very nice cast and yes, it is possible to hollow the housing/mag well instead of cutting the magazine. Just be aware: To make it fit into your housing, the outer walls need to be thin. Very thin! We are talking about serious hollowing work, leaving you end up with resin walls of about 1.5 or 1.0 mm to receive this magazine. Consider this when thinking about the purpose for your blaster (trooping or display)...

Maybe this helps: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/tutorials/article/42-cutting-a-sterling-magazine-to-e-11-size/

Seriously Aaron, without knowing it, nobody would be able to tell from that earlier problem when looking at your second photo now. You did a very good repair!

Update #20 - Like the prop-builders did in 1976 About 40 years ago, the British Sterling SMG was chosen to be the base for our beloved “BlasTech E-11”. To not immediately be recognized as a weapon from the British Army, a few changes were made by the prop-builders. They removed the shoulder straps and shortened the magazines. To further disguise the true origins, they also installed some add-ons. Those who read my first blaster build will know the E-11 in the last pictures. Not perfect, but this was the easiest way for me to make such a comparison. After using pictures of Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford in update #08 already, we now also have Mark Hamill to complete the trio In the next updates I am going to cover each of these additions in detail, because it would be too much info for just one single posting. Will close today's entry with another extra photo, inspired by the emblem of the FISD. Wishing everybody a nice weekend - and stay tuned to not miss an upcomming extra posting within the next days...

Seriously thought about later taking a photo (when the blaster is fully completed) where most of it is buried in sand – inspired by the TFA teaser with the crashed star destroyer and X-wing. The idea was to make it look like another found on Jakku. But I worried to never again get rid of all the sand… That was a good one. Thanks again for our latest meeting. That was a very nice day and a lot of fun. Do you want it now, or shall I finish it first? “This is not the blaster you’re looking for. Move along, move along…” Thanks Kevin. Just trying to cover each step to make it easier for some people out there. It is awesome what can be made out of this blaster kit. I don't think this thread gets pinned, but IF it gets, it would mean a great honor to me. For the E-11 modifications, just scroll down a bit... Jonathan, it seems like something got mixed up here, because so far I have not built, owned or sold any DLT-19

An awesome start, Henry. Something in your first posting made me click the follow-button. Not sure what it was

Very glad to see you solved that problem, Aaron. The bigger hole can surely get covered with Roy's track. Like said earlier: sleep about it Many things are seen different the day after. Really happy you don't have to start over. Now I am curious on that gun bluing...

Aaron, I am so sorry for this and will keep fingers crossed for your work-around...

WHAT??? Sleep about it, maybe there is another option... After all the work you have put into this, I would feel really bad if you need to replace the receiver. What about drilling or mill-cutting that stainless steel pin and installing a new one into the next hole?

Very impressive work on the scope and counter. I really like how both parts look.

Aaron, please correct me if I am wrong but this is not going to work. I fully understand your idea behind that inner barrel, but the stainless steel pin currently blocks a hole that you will later need for your T-track. You need to save the last 2 receiver holes (for scope rail and T-track). In your barrel you made a total of 4 holes. Any chance to move that steel pin to another one?

Send it to me and I will weather it for you - but I cannot promise to ever ship it back

Awesome interior photos, Aaron (knowing how hard it is to get a few good ones ) A massive effort to not get in conflict with your gun laws! Any plans for a different paint job than last time?

If your son wants his blaster to look new and shiny, at least that means less work for you Maybe he changes his mind when he sees your weathered blaster...

Update #19 - The one with the open bolt For a while I thought about ending the build at that stage, because I really like the look of that “Sterling”. But the build goes on and the next update will cover the changes to the original Sterlings for converting them into the “BlasTech E-11” from the first Star Wars movie. And who knows, maybe someday in the future I grab another kit just to make a Sterling model… However, here is another picture for your viewing pleasure. Looks like a find on an old battle field... Thanks again for reading. Happy weekend Troopers and Cadets

Thank you. Well, a real Sterling somehow still looks different. And although being praised, my model building and weathering skills are not sufficient to reach 100% of realism. But I am quite happy with how it looks now Hey Adam and Carl, glad to hear that some people get encouraged and inspired by this. That means, the other 50% of this build (running the thread) are not a waste of time. Thanks. Ehm, well, yes I had a few thoughts about how to display this and it seems to result in something rather unusual. When this build is completed, there might start a new project-thread…

Wow, the amount of comments and replies since the last update is a lot more, than I dared to dream. Thanks very much for all your support, guys! That really keeps me pushing. Thanks for your words! All I did has been listed in this thread – and that is not even enough to fill a magazine, let alone a book. There are people here on FISD with a lot more talent for this. Just remember Steve’s (gazmosis) magazine paintjob or Andy’s (PlayfulWolfCub) weathering on his power cylinders. Unreachable for me (got no airbrush). I leave it up to these guys to write that book

This really gives an idea of all the efforts behind resin casting. Will look different at resin parts in the future...

That looks really good, Michael. The only thing I would suggest, is to replace the grub screw with a bigger one (M6 is a nice fit).

Only half an hour of work for a full update - that is something I can only dream of Seriously, great work. I like to follow your progress and can't wait for the next update...

Ian, this thing is so damn cool You turned this into something very special and made the best out of the little references that were available. Looks absolutely believable. I really love every add-on in this build - and there are a lot: bipod, tactical grip, big scope and rear stock. Nevertheless it still has the typical look of a Star Wars blaster and can immediately be recognized as a piece from that universe. A perfect match for every biker scout.

This is awesome! A full set of power cylinders, built from scratch in just one update. Wow, I like it. Any plans to close the gaps between the washers and the rings to make the end caps look like one part? Maybe epoxy or soldering?

Sorry to hear about the issue with the M19 mold. But once you start offering the M38 scopes, it will only be a matter of time to get some new silicone...