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I am happy to report that, as of today, I have been officially approved as a First Order Stormtrooper! (Quite possibly the first in Canada!) It feel goods to be official.

It feels AWESOME to finally be official.

If time is a factor, I can help out. If someone can send me a good quality pic of the forearms that show the wrist detail, I can get it edited & done today. (I would use mine but I cut that detail off when trimming and had to recreate it-it would not be the best example for a CRL.) Just an option.

Understood. I also noticed a few things...(Maybe worth looking at?) Hand plates: Should we mention the small rectangular decal/box detail on the front? You can see them in the pic but it doesn't mention them in the text? Forearms: Should we have a pic of the wrist area/opening? The current pics do not show the black decal/rectangular box on the wrist detail. Text should mention this, as well as the long decals above the rail, and the 2 oblique recessed areas on the back? Neckseal: I assume the neckseal should be made of shiny material as well, to better match the gaskets? (Or does it matter, as you really can't see it anyway?)

Do we think it's important for the holster to have it's own section in the CRL? At minimum, it might be a good idea to have close up pictures of the holster, showing the details/hardware?

Agreed! SQUEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

Woohoo!!!

Congrats on working towards one of your dreams!! So exciting! I remember feeling the exact same way... (I do believe I actually got teary-eyed the first time I tried on the complete suit & helmet) Have lots of fun!!

Great progress so far! YAY! Have fun & enjoy.

Excellent progress so far!!! Looking forward to seeing more.

Looking forward to your progress! So exciting!

Awesome work!!! Congrats on making it to the finish line! YAY!!

Excellent work on the TD and the yoke! (Reviewing your pics of the TD assembly almost triggered some post traumatic stress...hahaha!)

Alright, my first troop in the armour was last night...and was a success. The Badlands Garrison surprised a young fellow who had won an award for Outstanding Youth Leadership. He is also a HUGE Star Wars fan, so it was extra-cool to have a TFA trooper there. (As far as I know, I am the first person finished the TFA armour in all of western Canada. He was shocked to learn that the Western Canadian debut of the armour was at an event in his honour) He was practically speechless while we escorted him to answer some Star Wars trivia before receiving his award. He specifically requested a picture with just the "new" trooper. My Garrison mate & I just had to pose for an EPIC picture - The past & the present. -As expected, all the strapping held up very well. No incidents. -The helmet fogged up instantly. I will probably need a fan set up...or de-fogger on the lenses. -The lip/hook on the TD dug into my back the entire time. I am thinking I might remove it entirely. As I have the straps to attach it, I may not actually need the lip/hook... -My right spat suffered a malfunction... The little "tented" tab that I attached the Velcro to came loose on one side. Given the stress the spats endure while putting them on, I am not surprised. I used CA glue originally; I think it's time for PlasticWeld on that spot. (Will post a pic later.) -Other than some discomfort and some serious squeaking from fresh paint, the first troop was awesome. Loved every minute of it.

I can't wait either! Thank you so much Tim. It was my honour to share this with everyone.

Well, tomorrow is my first troop in my armour! Thought I'd give the whole suit a trial-run... (I felt like a total bad a$$ with both guns. ) One must remember to stop and take the time to smell the flowers along the way......while blasting Resistance Fighters. Only issue I noticed was the one strap for the shoulder bells. It's not enough to keep the shoulder bells from moving all over the place. I will have to alter my set up or go with 2 straps, spaced out a bit. That will keep them in place.... Other than that, everything was held in it's place quite well! (Yes, I am aware that the large belt pouch is on the wrong side. In my defence, it looked right in the mirror! lol) I will give a full report after my troop tomorrow.

I love that we get the option of a small pistol! I really do hope we get It up here in Canada; sometimes the selection can vary... Fingers crossed for Force Friday! I think a good conversion can be done, based on the leaked pic of the pistol.

Anymore progress pics to share? I'm curious to see how it's been going.

I do see your point on the boots.... Personally however, I would rather not spend money on the boots available as they are not yet accurate. While they are indeed more "accurate" than the regular TK boots, it seems a waste to invest in something when more accurate items/suppliers will be popping up very soon.

Well, seems like I forgot to post my last work on the suit.... Finished applying all the decals. As I work with adhesive vinyl regularly, it went smoothly. Pro-tip: a q-tip works perfectly for getting the little pill decals in and smoothed to the shape, without scrapping the finish of the vinyl. This pic also shows my final recreated lower wrist detail. (The one I cut off!) Final result isn't perfect, but it still looks good. Assembled the holster and bolted that baby on! I only bolted the 2 large screws to the thigh, no glue. I hope to replace the holster with a functional cnc'd version sometime soon. The bolts hold very well.....I'd rather not fight with CA glue trying to pry the holster off. lol I used my dremel tool to drill the holes for the screws & counter-sunk them with one of the tapered sanding bits. The belt is completely finished but I haven't attached the boxes yet...so no pic. I won't be attaching them until the first troop I do in the kit. I want to save the paint finish... lol And lastly, the gloves. I got sick of waiting for Anovos to send my pair....so I found a supplier and got my own. I removed the white leather at the finger tips with a stitch-ripper. I got as close to the seam as possible. This way, I was able to remove all the leather, even from the inside of the gloves....which means no black Sharpie! YAY! (I did tear a few stitches along the way....but just sewed them back up.) No Sharpie required!!! I have also begun to add more accurate details to the gloves....namely the stitched palm pads. Given the horrible state of the Canadian dollar, I just can't bring myself to buy an accurate pair right now. Maybe when our dollar gets better..... This was a pain in my fingers...literally. Stabbed myself soooo many times....lol I still have to do another round to create the double stitching...but it's off to a good start. I have my first official troop in the armour next Wednesday. I'll be sure to post pics and report on how the strapping held up.

Here is what I have done for my harness...

Hmm, I do see your point. If fabric is to be used, I think that individual approval will have to be quite strict to ensure that the gasket visual requirements are met. There is also the issue with some people have allergies to the rubber/latex gaskets....

Agreed! Eventhough it was frustrating at times, it was kinda cool figuring out some of the things on my own. (Neat feeling helping to pave the way for the future.) I must say thank you Clint. You were a big help with my build; through your own build thread & the consistent support & comments on my own thread. Thanks buddy!

I did notice that you haven't touched the TD yet. lol. In all honesty, it was a bit of a nightmare to do....it's like one giant set of TK ears, from hell. (But when compared to trying to figure out my own fabric gaskets, it wasn't the worst part for me.)

Hahahahhaha. Would probably be slightly more than $10.00 Yes, good ole' Dollarama was the source. (That place has been very handy!) The black gun came with a cop playset and the other one was a pump water gun.