Kredal

So the holster is attached with Chicago screws, pop out the top two and you're fine. As long as the belt doesn't fray... Maybe a spot of superglue around the threads?<br><br> The TD should be fine for level 1 approval, but the metal clips should be right next to the endcaps. There's only so far you can move them out before uncovering the current screw holes.<br><br> Pretty sure it's all good enough for the Shadowtrooper (next June or so!) though. (:

Very cool, looking forward to seeing it all together! I'm putting my kit together blind, since my nephew lives about 10 hours away. The first time it's put on will be when I see him over Thanksgiving. It'll be very important that all the things that can be Velcro'd are, since I won't be completely sure of fitment until then! Maybe I could get my sister to make a duct tape mannequin and send it to me for test fitting... lol

Alright, so I'm not alone with that. Bryan, do you have any pictures of your finished set? I'd love to see it!

Sorry I haven't posted anything here in a while. I've been putting finishing touches and fixes on my Ghostbusters setup for Halloween, so haven't been cutting plastic. Others who have done this: How did you get rid of ALL of the support material in the thighs and right arm? I can't seem to get enough leverage to cut with my lexan scissors, since there are so many support beams and things inside. Dremel tool with sanding wheel? Really big scissors? Hedge trimmers? That's gonna be the hardest part of it all, I think.

A little bit more work tonight... before giving my hands some time to rest. Cutting whatever kind of plastic this is, is harder than ABS. Ryan, the helmet almost assuredly won't fit. It's tiny, compared to the body. A costume helmet may work better, but the guy with the video said they just got used to the un-helmeted Stormtrooper. And that's ok too! "Anakin? Is that you?" Ha ha. Then I unscrewed the back from the front at this point, since everything but the arms is one solid piece. (Actually, the kneecaps and black gasket around there were separate and came out once the legs were apart) There's a TON of extra material in the thighs. That's gonna be fun. The holster plate is a separate piece and comes out when the front and back are unscrewed. It'll be easier to mod then, maybe. I took out all the electronics, and set them aside. The plastic "try me!" button on the chest is separate from the electronic button, so I put it back and glued it in place. The back plate is cut in half now, and the things are removed. I split the back right above the thermal detonator. I dunno what you TFA builders were complaining about, it all came as on piece for me! Anovos needs to get their act together! I trimmed up that connection point, it'll have velcro hanging down from the back so the TD can be set in place. I think that's the best way to go about it. The TD, belt, and butt plates are going to stay as one piece. If a bathroom break is needed, taking off that plate and the ab/cod plate should be sufficient. The neck opening has been widened, and I've trimmed out the arm hole and all the interior stuff on the right side. And that's when I decided I needed a break! I'll get back to it this evening, after sleep happens.

Oh, and here's the video of the first guy to do it. (And I noticed Ukswrath commented on it!)

I saw a thing on Facebook from the RPF where a guy had created a full suit of TFA armor for his son out of one of the 4' kid-size toys. Well, I have a nephew who is about the right size, so I'm going to do the same thing as my entry for the Uncle of the Year competition. And this is going to be my build thread. My goal is to have it done by Thanksgiving, since that's the next time I'll see him, and unfortunately, Halloween is too close, what with job and everything, to be able to make it by then. Also, he has two younger brothers who will grow into it, so this armor better last a while! Step 1: Go to Walmart, buy a giant toy, and have random people think my son is standing up in the cart, or wanting to push the voice-activation button on the front. I got the last one, so it was meant to be! Step 2: Take him out of the package, and find the right size screwdriver to start disassembly. I took off the helmet first, so it's no longer a "him" but an "it". These things matter. Step 3: Cut off his leg at the knee! The way this thing was molded is really odd. Someone, somewhere thought it was a good idea, so whatever. I'll deal with it. The shins are split inside and outside, the thighs are split front and back, and the arm not holding the blaster is molded out of one piece of plastic with no seams. So I took off his leg with a Dremel, and then used my lexan scissors to trim up to the return edge, and then took most of that off. (There's still a little cleanup to do on this picture) Then I unscrewed the inside and outside pieces, and look at all the support material inside! Well, that won't do, so I cut out 90% of the support with scissors. I'll have to go back with a sanding head on the Dremel to clean up what's left without cutting through to the outside. My nephew will be wearing pants under it, so as long as there's no really sharp bits, it should be ok. I took off the left knee cap plate next, it's actually split in half as well, with an inside and outside piece. I'll end up gluing them together, and running a band of elastic or velcro around his knee, so it stays in the right place. (Not pictured) I took off his left forearm next, and trimmed it down to the return edge at the top and bottom. The left hand was fit around a knob at the wrist, so I had to take it off, then cut a hole in the wrist end. For the right arm, the hand part is recessed into the arm, the opposite of the left side, so I drilled through the palm and back of the hand, then cut between the holes to get it off. When I unscrewed it to get the blaster out, I noticed that the grip of the blaster was molded onto the hand, and the inside of the grip is left with it, in white. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this quite yet. Other than the grip, the blaster isn't too shabby. (I'm also considering attaching magnets inside the blaster and on the hip, so it can be snapped into place on the hip holster... but that's down the line a ways.) Anyway, that's where I'm at for now. More progress later!

I used Dritz snaps, but attached the male part to the snap plates with rivets and washers, so there was less sticking up on the bottom... and then heated up the snap plates so I could bend them slightly to curve with the armor. So far, the only snaps I've had any issue with are the ones on the fabric belt to attach to the ab plate. One of them comes unsnapped if I don't tighten the belt enough when I put it on... I think that has more to do with the positioning of the snap than the quality though.

What he said. (: Get rid of the gaps where you know they're not supposed to be... butt to kidney, kidney to back, and overlap the chest with the ab. Once those are attached, put on the armor and use blue tape to hold the shoulders in place, and that should give you an idea of how long to make the shoulder's elastic straps. I had my wife put several pieces of tape on the inside and outside between the chest and back over the shoulders, then cut the tape off flush with the back plate, which gave me a very measureable length between the two plates. Add a couple inches to either end for snaps or gluing, and you know exactly how long to make the straps at that point. (for me, the magic number was 2.5 inches showing between the chest and the back) As far as your wife not knowing what she's looking for, have her take pictures with a cell phone of areas you can't see, maybe holding a ruler next to the area in question, and showing you the picture. You can then say "ok, move that piece up so there's only x space showing between them, tape it in place, and take another picture. That way, she's helping, without being the one who has studied everyone elses builds!

And... recovered to about 95%. After one application of ABS paste to the outside, and some minor sanding a day later: The next application of ABS paste: That's been sanded down and hit with Novus 3 and 2. With a flash, you can just barely make out the scar. And then, only if you're really looking for it. And from a foot away at a common picture-taking angle... What crack?

So this is the last picture of my helmet before it was broken... The bride is wearing it. (:

I used a spray paint can pressed up against the first ammo block, and just traced it for the bottom quarter, and then ran a straight line up from there. Super highly technical. (:

Yup, I'm going to have to do that. A trip to the hobby store tomorrow afternoon is in order. I was able to take off the tape and reattach the neck trim before heading to work tonight. The connection with the ABS paste on the back is solid, but it's VERY visible from the outside that there's something wrong. It's in no danger of splitting more, so structurally it's good... but it looks bad. What's funny, is this is the THIRD thing that has gone wrong with the face plate that my first instinct has been "better buy a new one"... but then I stick with it and I can make it look pretty good without replacing it. Just goes to show, or something.

NO! I'm not becoming a zombie because of one little crack!

With the rubber trim on, it doesn't look so bad... I know it's there, but hey, it's pretty much under my chin, so no biggy, right? And then you take the trim off... Holy crap, that looks bad. So, I taped up the outside with blue tape, and painted a glob of ABS paste on the inside from well beyond the crack all the way to the inside edge. Once that has a chance to dry completely, I'll take the tape off and see where I'm at. If it's down to a hairline fracture, I'll probably say good enough, and go with it. If there's some elevation differences or more visible cracks, I'll fill that in as well as possible with ABS paste, then sand it smooth.

Today, I learned that a 5-foot fall is too much for a bucket. I was at an unofficial troop for a wedding, let the bride wear my bucket and hold my blaster, and as she was handing them back to me, I ended up juggling them, and dropped the helmet. NOOOOO!!!! There's now a crack under the left mic tip from the edge of the neck hole, up about 3 inches. I'll have pictures up tomorrow of the crack, and also some pictures of trying to salvage it. I'm planning on using some t-shirt fabric soaked in superglue on the back side, and if that's not enough, possibly some ABS paste in the crack and sanded down smooth then polished up. My first battle damage. ):

The first post here is continuously updated. It's still accurate. You will fit in any of the screen-derived armors, as long as you build it to fit your own body. Broad shoulders won't keep you from wearing anything at all. Most of us here started with zero skill, but with lots of research, reading, asking questions, and practice, you can get better. (: Several of the makers on the first post do sell completed helmets, but you will pay at LEAST twice as much, probably closer to 3x... Email them and ask. Good luck!

Drill your own holes where you need to, once you have the ears positioned correctly, then use washers and locknuts to keep the screws in place. Hmm, I don't have any good pictures of the inside showing where the screws are... but I assure you, they're not where the AM kit says they should be. (:

The ear holes probably aren't going to line up with the divots on the back plate. Better that you don't try. (: Get the ear up against the black molding, with the notch at the top of the ear laying over the seam between the front and back plates. (Basically up 1/4 inch, and to the left until it snaps into place. Then just worry about the drape of the bottom part of the ear, making sure the seam is all good and covered. You may (read: will) have to sand down the ear some to get it to lay more flat... but a little gap is ok. (: Edited to add: Clean up the paint around the rank bars on the ear before you attach it... You've got a good puddle of gray paint going on the top left corner, and you still need to paint the pinstripe around it, it looks like.

Sure, let it soak. It won't hurt the plastic.

Testors makes a paint thinner that works well. But I've not had problems with mineral spirits on the Testors paint... maybe just need more elbow grease?

AM2, [email protected] You may have to shim the Ab/Kidney connection, but every other part of the armor will fit you just fine. I'm 6', 235-ish, and I barely got away without having to shim. First order trooper through Anovos is completely off the table for me, because of the way the chest, back, and ab plates all join up. When another armor maker starts making Big and Tall versions of the First Order armor, I'll have to throw money at them. (:

Turpentine WILL KILL your plastic! Don't use it! Get mineral spirits, which will take paint off like nobody's business, and not harm the ABS plastic.

That's a sharp looking set of armor! The only thing I see is your drop boxes look like they move around a lot. They should be attached to the belt so they stay even with the outside edge... Maybe with some Velcro or something on the back side? Some of the pictures they're at the end, and some others they're under the last boxes on the belt. Oh, Steve is also going to want a picture showing off the D-ring on the back of your (great looking) blaster. Good luck!

You put a snap on the right side of the ab for a reason... use it! Snap plate across from it on the kidney on the inside, and hook those together with a strap! (: It can be a little pain to put on, but it'll look so much nicer! Great kit, though. Looking forward to seeing your centurion app too! Oh hey, just noticed (and this won't affect anything, I'm sure) but on the blaster's right side there's a gap in the barrel holes. There's supposed to be a bayonet lug there... looks like a misshapen blob of resin. http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/32351-kredals-doopy-doo-with-t-jay-kit-e-11-build-80-realistic-maybe/?p=418480shows how it goes on... since I had to look it up too. (: