justjoseph63

My pleasure, sir. You are doing exactly as I always suggest, which is to post up photos when you have a question before moving forward. Feel free to ask as many as you like (no matter how small), and keep the photos coming.. we are here to help!

Hi Joaquin.. just a note to say that we haven't forgotten about you, brother! Sorry for the delay, but your submission is being worked on right now and will be up shortly. Thanks for your patience!

The one on the right is the correct type, Mark. Before painting, I suggest roughing up the tops with some fine grit sandpaper and then cleaning them well. This will help with adhesion

Before gluing them on, try to make sure that they match as closely as possible to these. Note that the corners are not rounded and that the small one does not cover the raised area it is mounted to and has space on all 4 sides. You may not be at this point yet, but I would recommend some trimming on the top of the ab plate:

WOW! Incredible job on that, Paul.... always great to see another HWT join the ranks!! Hopefully we will be seeing your EI submission soon, but be sure to take photos without the SE-14R. GREAT work!

Hi Eric, Thank you for your Centurion application. Let's get to it, brother... CRL and Centurion Application Requirements: All required submission photos appear to be present. Firstly, I would like to thank you for making a few of the changes suggested in your EIB app. On behalf of myself and the FISD Deployment team, I'd like to welcome you to rank of Centurion. Congratulations! Other-Armor Fit/Assembly: In this area we discuss any areas still needing some improvement. Though they have not held you back from Centurion, keep in mind that this is the elite level of accuracy and what we suggest here will help you get closer to that. Your armor itself is well built, and though these issues are not specifically mentioned in the CRLs for level 3, there are still quite a few items (especially fitment/dressing/strapping suggestions) which we highly recommend that you address so that both it and you will look your best and represent your Garrison, the FISD, the 501st and the Empire proudly. Starting at the top, your bucket wants to lean quite a bit. This looks to be a simple padding issue. It also sits kind of far off of your shoulders, and removing any padding you may have in the top can bring it down. Reference image Your tube stripes are farther away from the top of the tube than normal. They should be about a pencil width from the bottom of the cheek. Reference image Your Hovi-mic tips and vocoder could use some work. The insides of the tips should be white, and they are angled down more than ideally. The top of the vocoder lacks the definition it needs to make it look it's best. Reference image Working our way down, we see a lot of simple symmetry issues, which should be easy to address with strapping adjustments and/or by an "armor check" after getting suited up. 1. The shoulder bridges should have the same gap on both sides of the chest plate. 2. As mentioned in your EI submission, the biceps are still at different levels. 3. Your forearms are still at different levels as well, causing uneven gaps at the wrist ends. 4. The large gap in the area where the top of the thigh meets the bottom of the ab plate on the left needs to be reduced to match the one on the right. Reference images Ideally, when at your side as shown the alignment of the cover strips of your biceps and forearms should be a lot closer than they presently are. Reference image Since it's the small details we strive for, removing the sharp point from the top of your right forearm would look better as well as make it a bit more comfortable. Reference images The posterior plate could stand to be brought in about an inch to better line up with the kidney. Reference image The alignment at the front of your right thigh and calf is beautiful, but the left looks thigh looks like it could be raised and turned in some. Turning in the calf as well would help those cover strips line up perfectly. Reference image The distance in the openings between the bottoms of the thighs and tops of the calves is way off. Either one is fine, but they should match. The ridge/connection on the left is spot-on, but the one on the right in uneven and overlapped. Reference images We realize that there were more than a few variances in the TKs seen on screen, (uneven gaps, twisted calves, missing knee plates, lots of white gaffer tape holding things together etc.) but for our purposes we want every trooper to ideally look their best. Many of your connections, like the shoulder bell/bridge, ab/kidney, sniper knee and ABS belt placement are absolute textbook and show that you took a lot of pride in this build, but again, many of the issues shown are mostly down to dressing/strapping items that should be a breeze for you to work on and to keep in mind while getting suited up. Happy trooping!

SUPER nice job on the ear placement!! I would suggest a little more trimming on the sides (especially the very bottom) but you are well on your way! Remember, the originals were far from perfect, so don't sweat it too much). Note below that the bottoms are actually pretty thin, and also how there were differences in the gaps.

That's actually not that difficult, and since your cloth belt will cover most (if not all) of the shim you shouldn't need to use any ABS paste, which will save you a lot of work. How wide of a shim do you need?

You mentioned that you had too much wiggle room in the arms and that you need to cut down the return edges at the tops, and I'm glad you haven't glued them yet. You will have to re-fit them so they are not too loose, but below are a few suggestions that should help them fit better. I can see in the third photo below that it appears that the "scoop" is a bit too small and is already beginning to cut into your arm, and considering your arms will be bent most of the time I would recommend opening them up as shown. Keep up the great work and posting those photos!

That is some awesome advice from Dan, Josh. Angling that down as he suggested will make a big difference and help close up that gap nicely.

Can you post up a photo or two showing exactly where you mean for us, Jim?

Perfect.

I assume that you are (hopefully) aiming for Centurion, Eriberto, but before you purchase any hardware or flexible hand guards that I offer, please note that some armorers send all (or portions of) the ones you will need for the higher levels. If you let me know who you got your kit from, I can let you know so that you order only the supplies that you will need (if any). Some makers include items like TD screws, but they are not the correct ones. If you have any questions, please feel free to PM me!

Hi Eric! Almost done, brother, but there is one thing holding you back. Please back one of your TD screws out 3 or 4 turns and take a close up side pic for us. It may be the angle of the photo, but they look a lot like V-heads and should be pan heads. Thanks!!!

I was gonna' wait, but what heck... (you know me too well, lol). This is the "ideal" angle/placement for the ears, Josh.

My advice at this point would be to post up detailed photos of any fitted connections before gluing. It's a bit of a pain I know, but better to get a perfect fit than to have to change it down the road. We are here to help every step of the way, and always feel free to ask as many questions as you like.

Can you do me a favor and post up (or PM me) some detailed pics of your stirrup design, Dave? I would like to have some as reference photos for those who need them. Thanks!

Looks like you are right on track, Josh.. great job so far! If I may make a few suggestions, they would be: 1. I'm jumping ahead of you, but since you are aiming for Centurion try not to round off the edges of the ab button plates, and make sure that the smaller one is thin enough to where the "hump" is visible on all 4 sides as seen below. I know a few of you following this who know me were waiting for this comment, lol, but looking at the your forearm and bicep openings,I would recommend trimming them down. In the forearm photo below, I can see where the return edge is already digging into your arm (blue circles), and since while trooping your arms will be bent most of the time (holding your E-11) it will get uncomfortable.... quickly. The same with the bicep openings. Trimming these is acceptable at all levels, and is actually screen accurate. NICE job on the knee plate!! Keep up the fantastic work, and keep those photos coming!

Great to hear we have another FOTK build thread coming, Ryan! No pressure here, lol, but since you have the experience we look forward to great things, trooper. I've been mulling over whether or not to order one of Jimmi's kits, and hopefully your build thread will push me over the edge.

Really nice work so far!! Have you glued the forearms or biceps yet? If not, you should post up a few pics of the openings before doing so.

You can safely trim any areas you need there to make it comfortable and still pass at any level. It may take a bit of extra work, but I suggest trimming small amounts at a time following the existing lines until you get to where you need to be. How much do you think you will need to shim on the calves? Depending on this, I may have some suggestions that will make it a lot easier and would not involve having to make up ABS paste to cover any seams. Can you post up a pic of the inside of one of the calves as seen below?

Nice work so far, Tuomas, and fantastic job on the ab/kidney rivet placement! If I could add to the suggestions that have been made, I would recommend doing a little trimming on the tops of your biceps, including increasing the size of the "scoop". This will make them MUCH more comfortable, as well as prevent them from cutting into you and still be screen accurate. Keep up the great work! Reference image

Much better, sir, and thank you! Be with you shortly, Joaquin..

Awesome! I thought about designing one that would mount them horizontally, but due to limited wall space they have to be vertical. Any ideas would be appreciated, and no rush.

Incredible progress, Brendan! Just a few minor items that may help.. I realize that you have already set the snaps to hold the belt in place, and that the requirements are met for L3 at this point but hopefully the top of the belt will cover a little more of the ab button plate. Again, not a deal breaker by any means, but just my OCD nature, lol. You may want to think about shaving down the return edge at the top of your ab plate just a bit. It doesn't appear to make your chest plate bulge out, but may cut into you and get a bit uncomfortable while trooping, especially once you get strapped in and your belt is tightened. One of the issues we see a lot is misalignment of the posterior/kidney connection, but you pretty much nailed it. Well done! Gotta say that this is one of the best build threads I have seen in quite a while, sir. Keep up the great work!