Daetrin

Hey Luis - don't forget to post progress pix - will be great to see how this turns out

LOL - if you're tired enough you'll find a way to sit in the armor. I'd say go for the AP or TE2. They're certainly more work for the beginner, but you'll be happy with the results. Also, there are tons of tutorials now online, so you should be able to find most any answer you seek.

Granted guys - Everett let see some pix!

The above gentlemen, is called integrity.

My $.02... If low price is your goal, just get some parts from Radio Shack and follow an online tutorial posted here-abouts. If you want the best possible sound, you must get RomFX but with the exchange rate it's almost $300/kit. If you want good sound and easy install, use either TK4205's Bommar kits or try out one of the TrooperCom's. There is no one "best" solution, depends on your constraints/goals.

Totally!

Definitely. FX only really looks good/proportional on people over 6' tall. RT is top notch quality and is sculpted to be put together easily.

Yeah, it's not like fans are required or anything. My bucket is still sans electronics of any kind... Just so it's out there - hope you don't mine a little ribbbing Ed...

And that helmet is a huge melon. Where is the RT?

If they are size 11 mens, you can simply sell them to me. I'll pay top $$. Wyatt - MC's are actually patent leather so using saddle soap or shoe polish may actually be detrimental to the finish. If you insist on keeping them or they are another size, I also tried white vinegar which did pretty good. You can also Google for "clean white patent leather", which has some other tips. My MC's also yellowed and I'm using them for my TD so it's not too bad.

What you're really asking is what's the difference between a canon stormtrooper and a canon sandtrooper. And all TD helmets are stunt, e.g. 4 teeth cut out with flat green lenses. For MEPD, you'll also need at least one (but usually two) ammo pouches, and a BFG. And, no drop boxes. And, no cannister. And ideally, no plastic straps to connect chest/ab plate. As you can see, there are about a dozen differences. See http://www.mepd.net/require/index.htm for a good pix. I've see some try to make two costumes from one set of armor, but it never really works out if you want to do it correctly. NOTE! Legion costume designations are *not* always in sync with the costume in question. TD's actually also include "Heavy Weapons Troopers", which are similar to a SE sandtrooper but no dirt. TK also includes an EU "stormtrooper officer", which is essentially a stormtrooper variant with a pauldron. MEPD and FISD focus strictly on canon costumes. Spec Ops Detachment includes all TX (EU troopers) plus HWT's (which are TD) and stormtrooper officer's (which are technically TK).

Superb! Now *that's* what I call submission pictures. Way to go Alex! Unless Scott sees something I'm missing (before coffee), congrats on being the first German garrison member to achieve Elite status.

I've heard only what Terrell says, but agree with Bernard that for the money you can take the pattern and have a local tailor make you one. There is also costumebay on Ebay, but you should probably read up on the Officers Det forum for these things. They have their fans and detractors both.

I'd suggest getting jodhpurs and having them done. This is what I did for my second set (my first are original Mark Cheng), and you can guarantee that the fit will be perfect.

Done! Congrats Scott - I also need the other photo too.

Your suit looks like crap. Mail it to me and I'll ensure it's taken care of. j/k - best armor to apply yet. Those are flat green lenses, correct?

Iain - what no pix? I'm feeling cheated and the UK GWL is slacking! Bob & Julie - all set Kraig - awesome TI, and thanks Curtis - mmmm....should I make you suffer longer? Nah, welcome aboard! Great to finally have you as one of us. You'll notice some new sections of the forums open for you ;-) Alex - access granted! Jeff - all set. *Great* looking TK you got there. And for those that just got 501st TKs - remember that we'll be waiting to see your applications for Elite status soon, so get crackin'. ;-)

And having your speeder bike stolen by primitive fur balls...

It depends on what you mean by accurate. I think there are two needs armor is trying to fulfill: one is true to what was seen/impression which right now TM takes tops but RT is really dang good too, or the closest you can get to the original molds. One is not "better" than the other, they are two different goals, so comparing them while interesting yields nothing fruitful to the buyer.

While I can see the attraction for this on your end, it's a bad biz model for Wyatt on his.

"That's not much heavier than the six packs I hold with one finger back home, they're not much lighter than six pounds".

Very true. It wasn't that long ago that ANH armor was very rare, even helmet upgrades. Now ANH helmets seem to be the rule - heck a fully completed FX bucket is now worth less than $100 - and I see more and more RT/AP and even TE2 full suits popping up all over. As scale goes up and rarity goes down, prices have indeed fallen.

I speak Greenspan...

I think most TD's look cooler than most TK's because most people's TK's look like crap. A bad TK looks worse than a bad TD. That said, a well done TK looks far better than a normal TD.

Another nice thing about this photo is that establishes Stormtrooper Officers with: belt boxes, equestrian (instead of jack) boots, gloves, and slight jodhpur on the pants.