HansDC

ALDI - What was the tag line? Similar Brands But Cheaper? HAHA! I have a sister too with a very German name. HILDA.

Looks good so far to me! Caution when drilling the rivet out. It gets really hot even if you do it quickly. If it does get too hot, the ABS around it will start melting. I would advise do it under running water or tiny bit at a time so it doesn't heat up.

Another pearler!!!

I keep seeing 'AUSTRALIA' each time I scroll past......

I'll be watching your test results. I have an identical setup, but my throat mic is only a single and it stops working when I start sweating under the neck seal...

Still blown away each time I see that Tony. GAAAAH!!! Why can't mine look like that?!

My entire kit is held together with snaps/elastics. No strapping or braces at all. Here is an old photo. Ive got even more snaps attached now for alignment purposes...

Don't cut the bottom of your helmet! Every TK has to screw their bucket on. Just the way it is. By trimming the bottom off your helmet you will lose the overall esthetic of the bucket. You also lose prime real estate for your electronics.

I use kerosene to clean the paint off my brushes. Also cleans off excess paint spots on your ABS. Just dab a tiny bit on some cloth to rub out your mistakes. I think your ears look good. The gaps might close up if you tighten the screws a little bit more. Looking food so far man!

Ok post edited. Thanks for the clarification.

I think you're ready to go! Get to it!

Dan! Congratulations on taking your fist step! Before you start, do you have all the other materials you need like E6000/CA, elastics, snaps etc? If not, you might wanna do a little more research on what else you need apart form the armour kit. If you do - then its time to get cracking! To answer your questions... 0001 - Hero & Stunt - Plain and simple - HERO = Luke Skywalker or Han Solo in trooper outfits. STUNT = every other stormtrooper you see in the movie. If you put the two together they will look almost identical. But on closer inspection there are many small detailed differences mostly on the helmet. One main one are the lenses. HEROs use a bubble lens where STUNTs use just a flat one. The best way to compare s to open both CRL's on different windows on your screen and compare the bits one by one. Majority go for a stunt because its the most basic and easier of the two to build as far as sourcing correct parts. Your AP is made to be built as a stunt (although with a few mods and different parts you could easily go HERO. 0002 - My CO told me before O took the plunge to build my helmet last. His reasoning was that the helmet is the first thing everyone sees and notices, so you want it to look the best out of your whole costume. By building it last, it gives you the opportunity to practice and obtain the skills you need with working with ABS/glue etc. Normally the arms (forearms/biceps/shoulders) get built first. Make sure you go through all the tutorials available on this forum. If you are not too sure, don't glue anything down yet. Masking tape is your best friend for now and measure it all a few times before cutting it. Again if you are not sure - just ask. You've waited 6 months to even open the box, another 24 hours to get some sound advice on here is gonna reward you later on.

This post is invaluable! Where were you when I decided to start building a TK Tim?

^^^ Yeah they are the least of your worries. If you get something like Echo's fan kit, its just a matter of sliding them into the bottom groove of your helmet. Then you can decide if you want to custom mount your battery packs or just stuff them behind the band.

AMEN! But you DO need them. As for the rest of your body...you troop...you sweat. Unless you're in snow conditions. Then you'd be a different trooper innit..

...so here is a few from a shoot I did yesterday with a mate of mine who is starting out in photography. I think they turned out pretty well. Here is his WEBSITE if you wanna check out his other stuff. Enjoy!

Dan - this is my second bucket after I was approved. Im not sure what the rules are in terms of cutting visible holes in your ears, but Im guessing if you try and hide them with a bit of paint, you will at least be granted basic approval. As for the mic-in-ears technique, I got the idea from Tony's (ukswrath) BUILD THREAD. So much skill and talent there! My mic/amp kit is THIS ONE The speakers also came in the kit...they're not really loud enough. Im yet to take it out into the public to see if it works ok. But if I put some earbuds on instead of using the speakers - I can hear a pin drop two rooms away! I did try the mic in the hovi tips as well.....but they are too close to the fans and pick up a lot of vibration and echo. Feedback was also a problem. The good thing about this way, if you can get it to work, is that its directional. So you only really hear what you are looking at. With the mics in the ears I have almost 360 degrees of hearing, which can be quite annoying after awhile. As for the ears, took me forever just sanding and sanding and filing and then more sanding. I will post a picture of my first bucket when I have some time so you can see how rough it is compared to this one. Its all a learning curve innit. I read pretty much ALL the threads on ears. So made it a point to get it right with my next build and I think I nailed the ears at least 95%....maybe...HAHA! Im happy anyways..with the ears at least. Now the handpainting is another story......

Joe - Looking good mate! Kyle - if you can you should try and have a look at someone else's armour. I looked at millions of pictures for months before my first build, but only after I went over to another troopers house to check out his suit....everything made sense!

There is already a few threads requesting troopers to show the insides of their helmets. Click HERE for the latest one. Im sure if you see one you like you could PM that particular trooper and ask what they used and how they did it. I re-read your post again and I missed the part where we explain why our helmets are so. Well, I have recently got a second bucket mainly because I wanted to see if I could do better now that Ive already built one. Mostly for aesthetic reasons. I did experiment a lot with electronics in my first bucket but because it was mostly already built, I didn't want to keep taking it apart etc. With my second bucket I tried my hand at hand painting and making sure the ears had minimal/no gaps. Also did some mods and installed the Active Environmental System which gives me some volume in the lid so I can hear a little of whats going on outside. Apart from that I went with just fans. I don't like the idea of wires connecting the helmet...so I went with a throat mic system. There are so many ways of customising your helmet on the inside. There are no rules so do what works for you. I tried so many things and I think Ive found what I like, Im sure in the months ahead someone will give me some crazy idea and I will try that too! I suggest you check the thread I linked if you haven't already cos there are some amazing builds in there. Some look so good im sure they were issued by The Empire....

Keep in mind that if you're from the southern hemisphere, you will need to account for higher postage fees too. And a longer wait time. Ive probably spent closer to AUD$2000 maybe a little more, but I started with nothing. So I had to buy all the tools (Dremel, hole punchers, rivet guns etc) and all the base materials (snaps, elastics, glue etc.) I also had to go through making some of my own mistakes in sizing like getting the wrong sized boots and gloves. Luckily I resold the boots and didn't loose too much on them. But like everyone says, there are cheaper and of course more expensive ways to do it. For example I'm sure everyone has a mate or two that has a garage full of tools that maybe you could ask to use for your build. Even ask your mom or grandma/aunties if you can look in their sewing supplies and raid their kit. Or you could go the other way and splurge and get a pro to build it for you. Whatever choice you make, there is no right or wrong. And the end result is worth every single cent as many if not all will agree.

HooRag arrived and its no good. Its still too big! I can wear it but as soon as I twist my bucket, it twists with it. There is a spot tho inside the lid in between the back pad and top pad. If I put my hair in a little bun and twist it in correctly - it sits nicely in that area! First world problems really.

Wow. Something that is so important and necessary...but you never think its actually someones job to come up with it all.

Anyone ever approached you with prescription green lenses for their lid?

I though this would be a thread already but I searched a few pages back and couldn't see anything so here it is. I find it very interesting to know what people do for work outside of their Star Wars fantasy. As been mentioned before some of you are servicemen or ex-servicemen in the army/police/etc. I am also constantly intrigued with random occupations. All of us are different and do different things. Please share if you will! Lets be honest this is in no way a cheap hobby. Those who are good with money will always find a cheaper better way, but for most of us, time is the most costly commodity. Would love to hear some stories of the balancing acts you do with your life and The Empire.. Myself - I'm a full time DJ. I work 4-5 nights a week and spend most the week digging for music and dreaming about Star Wars. Since music went digital, I spend a lot of time online, which is bad, but also allows me to trawl the interwebs a bit. Before that I managed retail stores for 15 years. I also work for a magazine called 'Sneaker Freaker' once a week in an office looking after the e-commerce side of the business. You can probably work out what the magazine is about. So thats me in a nutshell! Your turn!

I too have an EAS kit but haven't properly installed them yet. But yes, the green speakers come with the kit. I was given an option of bigger or smaller speakers.