AsBlondeAsLuke

This is perfect! I love the measurements. Thank you, @TheSwede If I could hug you, I would.

Thank you! What size do I need? Appreciate the help. The only time I’ve used rivets before was during the original build back in 2013. Thanks again.

Hello everyone- Thank you for the excellent belt advice. RS was kind enough to send me a new ammo belt. (Thank you!) After a busy summer of trooping, I am sitting down to assemble the new belt. I have a question, though, regarding rivets. (It's always the rivets, right?) Last time we assembled the belt, we used pop rivets. I remember the rivet gun being painful on the hands. What are the other rivet choices for this area? I was reading through both the CRL and the Centurion requirements and I couldn't find anything that spelled out requirements for the rivets in this area. I assume this is because you can't see these rivets? My existing belt next to the one. The old one is an an impressive feat of engineering at this point.

Love this reference for the mobility cuts. Thank you!

Adam, so good to hear from you! My trooping buddy! It's funny as I had the opposite problem in the beginning. My hand guards were almost sand trooper beige and my armor looked whiter by comparison. You can see this in the pics we took together up above the Golden Gate Bridge. This bugged my OCD to end until I figured out a very simple solution. When I polish my Chelsea boots, I also give the hand guards a light coat of white shoe polish. It worked wonders. I continue to "polish" my handguards to this day. https://imgur.com/a/FcNyJ2e

Sound advice if I've ever heard it! Thanks so much, Rob! My husband has been trying to convince it's time to retire the armor and get another set. But, I do love this armor. It just looks so amazing when I wear it. Thanks again.

Thanks so much for the advice @gmrhodes13and @fragarock. Greatly appreciated. I have decided to take both of your guidance. RS Props is sending me another belt and I've started color matching some ABS scraps. By finding the right color paint this will allow me to paint the ammo belt I already have from another armor maker. Between these two options, hopefully I'll end up with a nice backup belt. https://imgur.com/a/0ZkCQyu

Hello All- I wasn't sure whether to post this under my original thread or under the "Belts and Other Soft Parts forum." But, I am having issues with the bendy bendy parts of my armor as my RS Props armor is getting older. Over the past three years, I've been developing cracks in my shoulder straps, belt and smaller ones in my butt and beloved cod piece. The belt seems to have taken the worst of it as this is the piece that gets snapped on and off repeatedly. The belt has developed numerous little cracks that I have shimmed and added ABS paste to again and again. But, I'm worried the whole thing is going to cave in like a sink hole. So, I contacted RS Props to ask them to send me a new ammo belt thinking it would be as easy as trimming it, popping off the old and adding in the new one. Eh, not so fast there. Here was the response. >>You purchased from RS originally? This may be a problem, with it being from so long ago we cannot guarantee the ABS will match as it does change over the years. It will be a slightly different colour. Ah, now while I'm disappointed, I'm not too surprised. A garrison mate gave me their spare ammo belt a year or two ago, but I haven't figured out a way to use it yet as it it a different shade of ABS. https://imgur.com/s41lCbR Any ideas? I know I'll eventually have to replace the whole kit, but other than the micro cracks, I still like the look of the whole kit.

Hi Frank- I can get you added in to the FB page. It's a private group, but a very friendly one. Please look me up on FaceBook as "Diana Wolf Torres" so we can connect and I can get you added in. The group is almost at 500 members already. So, rest assured you are in great company. There are a lot of awesome building tips and tricks being exchanged on there and the best comeback lines to "Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?" -D.

Wow! Nice progress. I am enjoying following your build. At the time I posted my thread, there were not a lot of smaller troopers out there. Now we have an entire community on FaceBook with almost 400 members and merchandise, clothing and patches just for us troopers who are guaranteed to get the line "Aren't You a Little Short for a Stormtrooper?" about six or seven times a troop. My little armor has held up beautifully and I've trooped in at least 50 times. I repair it on a regular basis with Zap-A-Gap and sludge, but I am still out there several times a month representing the 5'6" and under crowd. I had those dents, too. It didn't affect the final look. I was so afraid of how "thin" the helmet was that I didn't build it for six months. I was approved with a different helmet. However, my RS helmet has stood up beautifully and I am not easy on my gear. It has travelled everywhere with me and stood up to more than one rough troop with swarming kids or sports fans who've had a bit too much to drink. I shimmed in the places it looked like it might crack, and I quickly repair my gear as soon as I see signs of wear and tear. Oh, and while it took me over a year to do it, I did "cut the cod" to get a better fit for my shorter frame. It made a difference in the look and fit. (And, now I can actually sit down in the armor, although I wouldn't recommend doing this too much since it can put stress on the butt plate.)

Heh heh. Great catch. They're Velcro-ed on, so I can swap 'em out with different gloves. On this particular troop, I think I put them on after I put my bucket on. Probably not the best idea. Thanks for the eagle eyes.

The handguards I received from RS-Props a few years back were never bright white, but neither was the armor kit so I didn't worry about it too much. But, as time passed and I logged more troops out in the California sun, my handguards yellowed faster than the rest of the kit. So, rather than abandon them after so many great troops together, I got a bit creative. It turned out there was very simple solution. Shoe paint. Available for a few dollars at the local drug store, it is flexible and just the right shade of white to match the armor. It is crazy easy to apply and dries in a few minutes. You can apply a single coat, or multiple coats. Your preference. I ended up doing three coats on my handguards, but only because shoe paint is a lot of fun. I attached "before" and "after" pics so you can see the difference.

Michael, Great to hear from you and I'm glad you enjoyed the thread! My TK number, TK-95020 is based upon the zipcode in Gilroy. This year, we finally added a few more troopers in Gilroy and I started a "handler training program" and just trained someone in Gilroy into the program, as well. Nice to be able to finally get more folks way here in the Outer Rim where I live with my family. I always see folks with the Star Wars stickers on their car, but it was just a question of connecting with them. I see that you are in Germany. My Mom is from Bavaria. I ended up in the newspaper there in Germany a few months back. I guess it appeared all over Germany, because all of my relatives kept sending me the link. This one is from my cousins in Passau. http://www.pnp.de/mobile/?cid=1898927

Not strange at all. Always best to ask the question than not ask it when you are not sure. My RS kit came with glue, and I was advised to throw it out. (For some strange reason, I haven't. Sentimental reasons, I suppose.) We tried the E-6000, but quickly discovered you actually need patience to allow it to dry. And, my spouse is not a patient man. So, we ended up going with the CA-Glue. This is very fast setting glue, and even faster if you add the Zip-Kicker. An excellent choice for those who are impatient. A very poor choice if you might mistakes.

Hello All! I've been wanting to provide an update for a while, but admittedly it was a busy year. My TK ended up seeing a great deal of action in 2015, but held up beautifully. Not a single crack and I was out trooping most every weekend. I was also XO of the garrison for a year, which kept me busy. Things have quieted down for a bit, so I wanted to touch base again with everyone here and say hello. Kevin Doyle, of the 501 Mile Walk, came and stayed with me on his journey down the California Coast and then back up again. I was amazed at the things he could do in his armor, such as sit down in my Prius, or walk 40 miles a day, or sleep in his armor. So, I asked him to take a look at my armor, and he suggested some modifications. He said that my armor "fit me better than 99% of the armor he'd seen." But, he did still make some suggestions and the advice proved very helpful. His tips are summed up in this YouTube video. But, it basically comes down to making very small modifications. It is amazing how much you can improve the fit of the thighs and the shins by taking off very small amounts of plastic. Then, go out trooping. Give it a try. Then, try taking off a little bit more. He stressed not to take off large amounts. It is those minute modifications that can make a huge difference. My ability to go up and down stairs (which was already pretty good) has improved even more thanks to the modifications. And, I can even (more or less) sit down in my armor now. Kevin also suggested I cut my cod. Of course, you folks here on the boards have been suggesting that for a while, but for some reason, the first time I heard the term, I took it literally to mean "trim down the codpiece." It made no sense to me, because I thought I would lose all the detail on an important piece. So, I didn't do it. Kevin showed me what it looked like on his armor, where the cod was cut and suddenly it all made sense. Oh. Cutting the cod is more like a C-section for a stormtrooper. It still took me another month to get the courage up to do it. But, I did cut it. And, my once famously big cod, has finally been tamed down to size. Here are a series of photos which were taken by our garrison combat photographer in November. Ta da! My once famous cod. Now tamed down to size. This was one of my favorites from the pictures of that day. I might be little, but I'm fierce.

I'm digging that Tomsuit. I might have to check it out. I'm intrigued by the idea of the integrated gloves. Once you are in the armor, you are committed anyway. I always make a bio break before suiting up and one after, and once I'm in the armor, I'm in it for the duration. So one piece, two piece, doesn't matter. But, I do like the idea of the integrated gloves. Tugging up the gloves drives me crazy.

Looking good! The process is never really over. You'll always be wanting to make improvements on your kit. And, then, of course, there will be the inevitable urge to start another build...

I use two squirrel fans pointed directly at the lenses to prevent fogging. I've also found that I fog more with certain balaclavas. I bought a high end balaclava on Amazon, spending 3x as much as on the others, and I no longer fog. Better materials, maybe? Superior design? Not sure. But, it is awesome to no longer worry about fogging. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I use two under suits. For hot weather trooping, I wear an Under Armor top and bottom. When it is cool enough, I wear the nice, thick undersuit which came with my RS. (Better protection from armor bite.). When it actually gets COLD here, I combine both and wear the Under Armor under the thick suit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

LOL. I have mastered this one. Although, getting up from this position requires considerable leg strength and dexterity.

Hello All- Kevin Doyle of the 501 Mile Walk stayed with me on his walk down the coast and then again on his walk back up the coast. Both times he stayed over, I asked him the same question: "How can you walk so many miles each day in your armor?" Kevin was averaging anywhere from 20 - 40 miles a day. He once went two days and three nights without taking his armor off, (although he says this does not smell pretty.) He checked the fit of my armor, and helped me make some little mods here and there, (although he said mine fit better than 99 percent of the armor he's seen.) He said the key is to take off very small amounts at a time, as these minor modifications can make a big difference in overall fit, (and it is hard to put the plastic back once you have cut it off.) I asked Kevin if he would explain his mods on video. Kevin's armor will soon be on display at Rancho Obi Wan. After (more than) a thousand miles, it needed to be retired and was being held together with duct tape in places. It will make for a very cool display item and part of our 501st history. - Diana

Shhhhh.... Jorge. You're shouting. I can hear you all the way from California. (That's my teasing way of saying take off the "Caps Lock" when you type.) So, hello there, TK 11161 and I'm pleased to meet you. Glad you enjoyed my cards. To answer your questions, depending upon your garrison, you have a choice of a couple of different style cards: 1) Garrison Cards. 2) Detachment Cards. 3) 501st/Legion Cards. (And, there is nothing saying you can't do all three if you want to go all card crazy.) I opted to get the FISD (Detachment) cards because my mentor, Kyle, advised me that Tray does an amazing job with them. I received my cards very quickly and love them. You can get in on Series 4 here. As of today, there are 47 spots left: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/60-fisd-trading-cards/ Send me one of your cards when you get them done, OK? I collect them.

Hi Vern and Steve- Just saw your notes. Speedy recovery to both of you. Steve, meeting you and your wife was one of the highlights of Celebration. Despite your fatigue, you were charming and mentally alert everytime I spoke with you. Not sure I could have done half as well if I was coming down with pneumonia. Already looking forward to the next Celebration and getting to spend more time with everyone. At the end of Celebration, one of my garrison mates said: "No. No. No. Bring everyone back and start Celebration over. That went by much too quickly."