Scimitar

Well after a couple of troops the new elastic in the shoulder bell to bicep connection continues to work flawlessly, I'm very happy with this setup now. The bad news is after 6 troops, one work event, and Halloween, both of my shins have developed small cracks at the tops from the stress of opening them to get them on and off. But not to worry, a little reinforcement and ABS paste and they'll be back up to par in no time. I currently have no events this month so my plan is to fix those and finally take pictures for EIB/Centurion.

I am using the same closure system, you'll need to do a handful things to make them work and hold. I've done four pretty long troops so far and have had no failures yet. 1. Rough up the glue side of the magnet like Jared mentions. I used a very coarse sanding sponge. 2. Rough up the cover strip area that you're gluing to. 3. Thoroughly clean the magnet and cover strip surfaces with rubbing alcohol, be sure not to touch the glue side of the magnet with your bare hands after cleaning them (I used powder free latex gloves while cleaning and gluing). The metal particulates from sanding and the oils from your hands will mess up the glue's ability to bond the magnet to plastic. 4. Glue the closure magnet on with E6000, use a magnet on the opposite side of the cover strip to hold the closure magnet in place, and then let cure for 72 hours. The sizing shouldn't be a problem unless the holes you have in the shins are pulling or pushing against the cover strip magnets when you're wearing the shins. I did drill the holes a little bit larger than the magnets in my shins just for some wiggle room/flex.

Please don't blast the new guy for pointing this out, but that should be ESB holster is worn on the right, correct?

Congrats!!! Good job Trooper!!!

As noted above, that setup is what wasn't working unfortunately. As a result of lowering the biceps to accommodate my longer arms, the hooked straps sat at an extreme angle vs. a straight line across the bicep. In the picture below you can see how the strap isn't even touching the bicep. I'd end up with the strap getting caught under the bicep, on an upper corner of the bicep (which would pull the bicep down further), or the bicep would escape out from under the shoulder bell. Now the strap and hooks will be there but only because the strap is a required item and the hook will still keep it across part of the bicep.

After a few troops I found a couple things to improve on. Since I had to drop my biceps pretty low, the bell straps & Han hooks weren't working as they should. The straps would usually slide up on top of the bicep and pull it down or one side of the bicep would get out from under the shoulder bell and not go back by itself due to the tension from the strap. I wasn't happy with either of those situations, so I left the nylon strap in the center and added two elastic straps at the front and rear. The result is exactly what I wanted: the bicep doesn't come out from under the bell, the outside centerline stays aligned, and it still has plenty of flexibility. Now I just need to reinstall the required elastic strap to go around the bicep. It will still need a hook to keep it secured down around the bicep but the strap itself will be purely aesthetic. I also noticed a couple places where the holster hardware was scratching into the armor. It's all hidden but I still like protecting it from that sort of thing. No more scratches now.

Yes, you will have to cut, heat, and bend some ABS in order to make one. But it works extremely well, from my own build:

Troop #: 3 Date: October 13, 2018 Location: Newnan, GA Event: Zombie And Super Hero Day Event Charity: Make-A-Wish, Promotion for Star Wars Reads (Coweta County Library System) Third deployment was a fun one, the weather was perfect, and it was a great mix of all kinds of superheroes, villains, and zombies. I brought out the DLT-19 just in case any of those zombies got too rowdy. Kids and adults alike all had a blast as there were so many genres being represented in one spot. And an article from the local paper: --------------------------------------------------------- Troop #: 4 Date: October 13, 2018 Location: The Barn at Oak Manor, Newnan, GA Event: Wedding of Chadwick & Purvis Event Charity: The Zone at CHOA This was a surprise to the bride and groom who both love Star Wars very much. The groom submitted the request but the follow up was done through the wedding coordinator, so they had no idea that anyone had actually signed up. So TK 64622 and I (both of us now being referred to as "The Surprise") got prepared and as soon as the bride and groom were announced at the end of their ceremony, the doors opened and we proceeded down the aisle to escort the bride and groom back out. It was hard to tell who was more excited: the bride, the groom, or those in attendance, but I'm pretty sure it was the groom. We were asked to participate in the photos and we also made sure to take photos with anyone who asked. That was an awesome experience and an honor to be a part of.

If you've waited the quoted refund time (I think they say 12-15 business days now) and you still haven't received your refund, send an email to Joe Salcedo at joe@anovos.com with all of the important details: your name, order number, support ticket number(s), and a brief timeline of events (when you cancelled, any time you've contacted chat support, etc.). I've had to do this twice now and while I didn't get a reply back from him, the refund was processed within 1-2 business days.

Nick, first off, nice work! I also think you're good for basic approval. I struggled a little with the AP shoulder bells too since they're a bit smaller than others, so like Arthur suggests I had to keeping trimming the return edge down to get them in closer to the chest. I did leave a bit of return edge to give them some depth though. You might also want to move your shoulder bell snap base from the center of your shoulder strap to the inside edge (closer to your neck), that will help pull the top of the shoulder bells back up & in and assist with closing that chest/bell gap too. Doubling up the elastic for the shoulder strap can help too, makes it stronger and keeps it from pulling out from under the shoulder bridges. Good luck with approval!

Congrats in this thread too!! I really need to get some spare time to submit my own EIB application!

Congrats Lou!!!

I definitely don't have as an experienced eye as many of the folks here, but I'll echo the above, should be an easy approval and quick steps to Centurion. Everything looks great Lou! Good job!

Thanks a lot fellas!! I'm definitely enjoying it so far!! I appreciate it! It'll get a lot of use! ----------------------------------- Troop #: 2 Date: September 30, 2018 Location: Roswell, GA Event: Aurora Cineplex and The Fringe Miniature Golf 8th Birthday Bash! Event Charity: N/A Second deployment went just as well as the first! This was a much larger event with hundreds of attendees and we had 25-30 participants show up ranging from Jawas to the boss himself. Lots of smiles, hugs, high fives, pictures, videos and explaining to kids that TK17529 really is my name. Oh, and that I wasn't a robot. I started the event by commandeering a SWAT Armored Vehicle, no easy feat in armor! Great spot for targeting Rebels, not so great for getting in and out of: Second we arrested a scavenger who was attempting to steal an orange and white BB unit: Got some pictures with the boss and his daughter: Pretty sure Leia is looking for a weak spot in my armor: And a group shot because a handful of us ended up together:

Shout out to @zv288bot for the two challenge coins!! Thanks for helping to feed my coin addiction!! The patch came from a Kylo Ren in the GA garrison (IG21826) who actually lives in my neighborhood and we had no idea until Cricket's armor party. Haha! He made sure he gave me my first Georgia Garrison patch. This community is nothing short of awesome! Troop #2 yesterday went flawlessly and I had zero issues with the armor. As soon as I get some free time I'll be shooting my EIB application pictures.

Thanks everyone!! First troop last night went great, I started a log in the Field Training Exercises section to keep track of them there. I didn't have any issues with the kit until I was taking it off, the cod snap came off the split rivet. I thought this might happen as the snap was pretty cheap/thin (it was installed before I had Tandy snaps), so it's getting replaced with a new split rivet and Tandy snap. Easy fix as soon as I get a replacement rivet tomorrow from Cricket (thanks!!), this one weakened and failed after trying to straighten the posts back up for the new snap. Then it's off to another troop! I realized I had forgotten to run a couple strips of soft side Velcro on the back of the thermal detonator straps, so I had to polish out a few scratches today and then I took care of the straps. Also seen are my Nomex flight gloves that just arrived, so once I trim down and install the ABS hand guards I'll be using those when I can. The rubber gloves aren't terrible with liners, but the Nomex gloves are so much more comfortable. Especially in the humidity we have here.

I give permission for FISD to repost my photos on social media. Troop #: 1 Date: September 28, 2018 Location: Fayetteville, GA Event: Pinewood Studios "The Last Jedi" Friday Night Movie Event Charity: Armed Forces Mission - Intervention of local veterans at risk of suicide First deployment went perfectly! A little rain reduced the expected turnout a bit as it was an outside event, but it was perfect for shaking down the new kit and lots of fun was had regardless! There were a ton of smiles and high fives and people asking for pictures. I'm already planning to attend Trooping Anonymous as I now understand why this is so addictive. Next troop is tomorrow! Pictures: Someone gave this Rebel a blaster! The crew: And my daughter got to meet Leia. She was so excited! I'll edit this post if/when any more pictures are posted.

Shiny reporting in and requesting access please! https://www.501st.com/members/displaymemberdetails.php?userID=29061

I am now officially TK-17529!!!

Nothing yet on my official approval but I did get permission to participate in tomorrow night's troop, so I'm excited for that! Last night I got the Velcro in place on both boots and shins and then I figured out how to pack everything in the tote. Should be all ready to go now! Running To-Do List: Drill/install snaps in ab for belt Build Belt Glue on Shoulder Bridges Velcro Shoulder Bridge elastic in place Glue in snap plates for Shoulder Bell to Shoulder Strap connection Glue in snap plates for Shoulder Bell to Bicep connection Reposition Bicep Hooks Reshape Shins & Back Plate at Shoulders Glue in Shin Magnets and Covers (Temp. Countermeasure for Covers in place) Final thigh test fit for upper thigh trimming Glue in snap plates for Thigh Garter System Glue on Silicone Hand Plates Install Sniper Knee Plate () Submit Application/Pictures to GML Submit Member Application Hopefully be able to sign up for 9/28 troop () Make any necessary changes & submit EIB Application Make any necessary changes & submit Centurion Application  Start next build 

Thank you!! Hopefully the EIB application won't be too far behind this.

Can you drop the outside of the bicep down (not sure if it's strapped inside the shoulder bell yet)? That should get you just a bit more downward travel on the forearm when your arm is straight, because you don't need much. Like Cricket said, the gloves/hand guard combo makes a huge difference in the appearance, just taping the guards onto the gloves where you want them placed will give you a much better idea of what you're working with. I saved gluing them onto the gloves for last just in case I needed to make any more adjustments to the arms, which I did, going from the 1/4" gap to 1/2" gap between the bicep and forearm.

Thank you!!

Thanks Greg! It's exciting to finally be to this point! And that's what I'll do.

And... I have submitted my pictures!! Now I anxiously await approval. I still need to secure the Shoulder Bridge elastic in place (decided to do that with Velcro instead of glue) and I need to add some Velcro to the right shin and boot, it stays put until I do an action pose. It comes back into line but just not all the way. The left shin doesn't move but I'll add some Velcro to it too. Running To-Do List: Drill/install snaps in ab for belt Build Belt Glue on Shoulder Bridges Velcro Shoulder Bridge elastic in place Glue in snap plates for Shoulder Bell to Shoulder Strap connection Glue in snap plates for Shoulder Bell to Bicep connection Reposition Bicep Hooks Reshape Shins & Back Plate at Shoulders Glue in Shin Magnets and Covers (Temp. Countermeasure for Covers in place) Final thigh test fit for upper thigh trimming Glue in snap plates for Thigh Garter System Glue on Silicone Hand Plates Install Sniper Knee Plate () Submit Application/Pictures to GML Submit Member Application Hopefully be able to sign up for 9/28 troop () Make any necessary changes & submit EIB Application Make any necessary changes & submit Centurion Application  Start next build