justjoseph63

Can you add a few close-up pics of the left side of the ab/kidney showing the rivets and one of the Han snap placement?? No need to get suited up.

Overall a good looking build, Garrett! I see a few items that may affect you at different levels, but nothing that can't be pretty easily remedied. 1. It may be the lighting but the teeth look to be gray instead of black as required for all levels of approval. 2. Your bucket is sitting pretty high, and it may be due to padding inside the top. Padding is not required at any level and removing it may actually help you see better by dropping it down more level with your eyes. This will not affect approval at any level, but is just a strong suggestion. 3. You are good to go for Basic and even Level 2, but the gap between the shoulder bells/shoulder strap will need to be be reduced for Level 3. 4. A tiny bit of overlap is fine and dandy, but for higher levels we prefer none. It may be the photo, but it appears as if your "Han snap" (if that's what it is.. hard to tell) is painted white and is sitting way to close to the corner of the ab. 4. Just a simple strapping fix here.. The left thigh is riding up pretty high and cold stand to come down a bit to match the right one.

D.O. Staff standing by for any and all questions! LET'S DO THIS!

GREAT news, Brad! You will more than likely need help getting your armor on (most of us do). You may know about this already, but prior to submitting for Basic approval you should read over the Pre-Approval area here. Once you have the required photos, submit them here along with your info. and we can help with any details. Looking forward to seeing them!!

Sounds like you are ready to sell this kit.. sorry to hear that, Brian! Please post up a sales thread in this area with the price, shipping costs, what all is included and some detailed pics. It would really help if you added your height, weight, build, boot size etc. for anyone who is interested. Heck, I may even be interested myself!

As Dan mentioned (depending on how detailed you want to get) replacing the power cylinders and adding in the central fuses would give you a really sharp looking weapon. I used Tino's finishing kit to "make" the fuses, and made the power cylinders and base from scratch. This is before I attached it to the magazine:

Wow... this turned out awesome, Bryan! Now that you have a good working knowledge of ABS I guess you know that we are expecting the same level of perfection when you start your armor build, lol.

OK, it just may be me but I can see a difference.. The ATA bucket on the left (first pic) has a different hue than the brighter white Anovos one on the right. BUT, the photo on the right shows the Anovos bucket to have a slightly more yellow tinge. At this point, I would suggest donning your entire armor and let's see what matches and what doesn't. I think you will be good to go, though as camera angles and lighting can be deceiving!

Front shot looks pretty darned good, but having your arms by your side would help us even more.

To help with your question, from what I can see in the photo your back plate is riding really high. You didn't mention your height, but extending your shoulder straps would definitely help to bring it down closer to the top of the kidney.

While we appreciate the photos, James, we need ones that show more of the close-up details. I would try to have your photographer get in much closer, and make the photos at least 300 x 700 to get a better idea of how we can help you! Like this, but clearer..

Hi Jason, and welcome to the FISD! There are a few armorers who make kits designed for larger/taller troopers like AM or AP. I would have a look in this area for more information on those: https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/11538-the-various-types-of-armor-and-where-to-find-them/ No matter your size, we are here to help every step of the way, so always feel free to ask any questions you may have!

A lot of it will be determined by the shades of the ABS, Mark. Different armorers use different suppliers of plastic, so some variations will occur. As Mario mentioned, posting a few side-by-side pics will certainly help.

Looks MUCH better, Ian! Caleb hit the nail on the head re: padding. I had the same issue with it jangling around... when I turned my head, the helmet stayed straight, lol. I cut a piece of 1 inch thick foam to 3 x16 inches, wrapped it in black cloth and used Velcro to hold it in place. It sits right below the domed part in a horse-shoe shape and keeps the bucket nice and snug! I would advise that whatever type of padding you use, make it removable. We sweat, pure and simple, and the smell can build up over time... ugh. Being able to remove/wash them will serve you well.

Good catch on that, Tino! Since the front and rear are 2 different pieces the front somehow got twisted. It should be fairly straightforward to fill that extra space with a piece of plastic, but this will also affect the positioning of the bayonet lug hole which may need to be filled and a new one drilled out in the proper place.

Looking GREAT, Ian! In addition to what Andrew mentioned I have a few more suggestions if I may.. Your bucket seems to be riding pretty high and could sit lower, so I am thinking you have padding on the top of the inside. Note that padding is not required at any level, and removing it or reducing the thickness will solve that issue. It may also help you to see better! I added a pad on the top in my first bucket and found that it was causing this and I was constantly tilting my helmet forward just to able to see. I removed it, and BINGO... the eye openings actually sat at my eye level! ESB reference images It looks like the rivet(s) on your thigh ammo pack could use another coat of white paint or two. Easy fix! Not that it will affect Basic approval, but if you are feeling ambitious I would suggest bringing your right ear forward about half an inch. Ideally, the top of the center should line up with the rear line of the trap above it. As seen in the reference images below, there was a minimal gap between the front of the round part and the trap in front of it. ESB reference images

The thigh gaps look PERFECT in the second photo, JC, but I see a couple of other issues.. Although not a requirement for Basic approval, the kidney/ab plate gap will need to be 1/2 an inch or less for Level 2 and have no gap for Level 3. Your posterior plate is riding over the kidney in the back. Some strapping adjustments should take care of that! Note that for Basic approval and above the cod must be attached to the bottom of the ab plate, and not a separate piece.

Congrats on your AM helmet, Bryan! Strangely enough, I received my latest kit from Dave as well last week and am also doing an ESB as my next build. Don't forget that the holster is a lot different than ones used in A New Hope. I got mine from Darman (a tried and true seller here on the FISD). Link here. Dave normally includes the correct hand plates for ESB as well so you should be good to go. You will be more than pleased with AM armor. I have been trooping in it for years with no cracking, splitting or yellowing. Looking forward to seeing that bucket completed!

If I could jump in with a suggestion it would be: As many of you know, I am not a fan of return edges on many armor parts, but in this case I would leave some of the return edge (at least 1/4 inch) on the bottom of your back plate and the top of your kidney plate. The reason being is that this will keep them from riding over each other. This thread may help: https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/48166-return-edges-101-ottk/?tab=comments#comment-670906

This hasn't been (e)mailed out yet, correct? The reason I ask is that the information below the 1000k patch needs to be edited to reflect that it has closed.

While we prefer actual rivets (as seen onscreen) Chicago screws or even snaps are acceptable.

There will always be "one offs" like Mr. No stripes or a Hero bucket with silver mesh, but we generally go with what was seen in the majority of what was seen onscreen.. the "ideal" trooper. Yep, the CRLs need to be updated to reflect this.

The CRLs are our benchmark for approvals at all levels, and actually benefit from being updated from time to time. We try to keep them as specific as possible, but unfortunately every single aspect can't be listed so they can be a bit vague on certain things. Example: For Basic approval the paint on the frown "... shall not leave the teeth area". Without a visual reference this can be confusing to new folks as to what the term exactly entails, and some GMLs are not as well versed in TK armor as others. So, when some troopers apply for EI we have to ask them to adjust it. The FISD Gallery is an incredible resource to say the least, but poring over hundreds of images to find one specific item can be tedious, so to that end, last year I wrote a post located here (link) that was designed to show the requirements in the CRLs, along with precise, detailed images from the Gallery as well as from my own collection of screen-caps to help explain exactly we look for when approving armor at higher levels. I only wish more future troopers/EI candidates had the chance to look it over before submitting. There will always be (sometimes heated) discussions on certain aspects of armor. We all have our opinions, and I always keep an open mind and try to use these discussions to learn something new!

As one who approves armor for EI and Centurion I can feel your pain, brother. Allow me to explain as best as I can.... We all know that there were more TK costuming mistakes in the OT than there were laser cannons on the Death Star. Gaffer's tape, twisted parts, ill-fitting biceps... well, the list goes on, and all were seen onscreen if you look closely enough (as we as SW fans tend to do). They were on a budget, and I'm sure they never dreamed that a legion of fans would scrutinize every aspect of the costumes that we wear today. Please, no hate (or PMs) on this one, but in my personal opinion ESB in particular had more than it's fair share... it's like the special effects supervisor, production designer and art director had no interest in continuity and let some really sloppy looking TKs appear on the film. But, it is what it is, and at least we have the basics of what the armor should look like and the main differences between ESB and ANH are fairly straightforward. Are the CRLs perfect and 100% precise? Nope. Due to the fact that we are always finding new/more accurate screen caps and references they are and always will be an ongoing venture. Most folks are not aware of the fact that changing a CRL is not the easiest of tasks and is not done without a lot of discussion and participation/opinions of the general membership. In some cases this can take weeks or even months, but the final determinations are made with the input of our members. Please keep this in mind.. As listed in the reviews for higher levels, Note that we consider both text (CRL) and pictures (screen caps/reference images) when reviewing submissions. What this means is that we do not depend solely on the CRLs, but in many cases we can actually see what was seen onscreen on most troopers (discrepancies aside) and include these in our reviews. Unlike the MEPD, we do not insist (or suggest) that a TK look like a particular trooper in any film in order to reach higher levels, but rather we look for the "ideal" set of armor... the perfect trooper. This ensures continuity in the ranks. To sum up, we in the D.O. staff are pretty forgiving in some areas, but we have to maintain standards and I hope that this answers your questions! Always, always, ALWAYS feel free to post up here or PM me if you have any concerns.... you are a Rockstar on the FISD, brother, and I'm gonna' stay on your case until you join the Imperial Attaches!

Looking GREAT, sir! I wish all the submissions we receive had such fantastic photos..