SkulShurtugalTCG

Quick update: Turns out Jimm included a holster with the kit. I oversaw it due to a hereditary condition called stupidity. Luckily that saves me from having to dish out another $65+ for a new one. I also ordered my belt kit and belt pouches, and once those arrive, I have everything I need. I've been working nonstop all week priming, painting, CA-gluing, sanding, and final painting all my pieces. I haven't started strapping yet but I already have a good idea of what I'll do when I get to it. I'll probably order a few heavy-duty magnets from Amazon a few days to take care of my thermal det; does anyone have any particular recommendations? All in all, this build is flying by, and I realistically think I can be done within the next 2 weeks. Perhaps even less as long as my belt and pouches arrive on time. I can't believe how much fun I'm having!

Unfortunately he doesn't seem to be selling them anymore - and I've heard a few cases of people who bought one but have yet to receive it.

Okay, another quick update: I decided to patch the holes in my knee plates to see if my method will work as well as I thought. I completely forgot to take pictures of the knees before putting in the glue and sanding it down, but I think you can see the holes pretty well in the first picture. The second is what the knee as a whole looked like after I was done sanding it smooth, but before I put on the last coat of paint. (Please pardon the quality of the pictures; for some reason they are VERY clear on my phone but here they are blurry. Hopefully it's clear enough for you) And then the final product. It's not 100% perfect but, luckily, it's the knee and very few people will notice. I'd rather have some extra bumps in white, than very visible holes in black. Overall I'm VERY happy with this and will use the lessons learned here on the rest of my armor pieces! ... Later.

The handguards aren't flexible, but on other pieces (like the knees), I tried some flex and the paint seemed to hold up absolutely fine. The biggest pieces to worry about are the ab piece and the back/yolk, since those sit on the body in a flexed position. On those, I flexed them into around the right place, and used some temporary velcro to keep them there (and an old wooden chair to set them on) when I painted them. Before the paint had completely dried I took them off and brought them back inside to dry in their "usual" position. I think that was the key to making it work, because there are NO cracks or or anything in the paint.

So, short update. I just ran out of my can of primer, so this is as far as I can go until more arrives. I've managed to paint the handguards, both elbows, the two halves of the left shin, one of the ankles, both knees, the cod piece, the yolk/back, and the chest. So I still need to paint the other shin, the other ankle, both thighs, both biceps, both forearms, the belt pieces, and eventually the holster when that arrives. I'm also tempted to paint my helmet as well, just to make 100% sure the colors match. While I wait for the new can of primer to arrive (which will probably take a week or more; for some reason Amazon is rather slow with these), I'm going to begin strapping my pieces together. I've already decided that most of this will be held together with velcro and magnets, but SOME of it will use snaps. I'm specifically thinking of the shoulder connections to the yolk, the cod to the ab, and the thighs to the ab. Time to get to work hammering new snap plates. EDIT: May as well add, yes, there are a LOT of very small holes on several pieces. Actually, most of them. I think the handguards themselves are the only pieces where there aren't any holes - and that's because they're resin, not fiberglass. I know a lot of people who fixed this problem by using bondo pre-primer, but either I'm blind or Jimm's getting better at making these, because I can't see the holes until after the primer's down. In most cases, not even until after I put the paint on. My solution to this will be to use some CA glue to fill in the holes after the paint is dry (the can says 48 hours, I'll wait 72 just to be sure), sand it down to the correct size, and then apply a third coat of paint on everything. This should not only fix the hole issue, but also make my armor extra-shiny. This will also be a cheaper, quicker alternative to using bondo. Yes, I do realize that CA glue isn't the sturdiest of things, but luckily I'm only filling in very tiny holes where it is of little consequence.

Well, I practically finished trimming my armor to fit me within the same day. It helps that I'm basically the same build as John Boyega, who Jimm based this armor off of. So it was mostly a matter of getting the legs to fit correctly, then cutting out the appropriate chest pieces, and then wait for my paint to arrive. That happened today. I got the paint and primer that I've seen a lot of people recommend here on the forums (Rustoleum 2-in-1). I decided to experiment with how many layers of each were needed, using my handguards since they're small and mostly resin. Below, you can see the pictures I took during the process. First picture: Both with one layer of primer. Second image: Top handguard with a second primer coat, bottom with one primer and one coat of paint. Next up, both with a new coat of paint. Top: 2 primer 1 paint, bottom 1 primer 2 paint. Finally, I put another coat of paint on the top one. Anovos helmet for comparison. After comparing the two, I think the 1-primer-2-paint handguard is the winner! They're both really close, though. Found out that adding a third coat of paint to the handguard with 2 coats of primer yielded an identical result. I'd rather save myself the extra time and coats by just doing the 1-2 approach.

The Stormtroopers are paid actors, just like any other character you see at Disney. Disney splits their actors into two categories: those who can talk, and those who cannot. These fall under those who cannot. I met Kylo Ren at Disneyland last month and he was the same way; prerecorded sound bits that responded PERFECTLY, and right on time, to the situation. As I understand it, Disney had voice actors record about a thousand lines of dialogue for these characters (Adam Driver recorded about 2,500 lines for Kylo Ren). The sounds come out of the stormtroopers' actual helmets, like you would expect from watching the films. Most of the lines are generic, and can easily apply to just about any situation. From what I've gathered (and I could be wrong), they're triggered within the troopers' gloves. When it comes to SPECIFIC things that need to be said, the handlers around the troopers can subtly send the appropriate radio feed - but it happens very, very rarely.

Ooh, I saw a Snow Scout! That's one of the builds I'm working on right now. Anyway, glad you had fun on your first troop! You've just taken your first step into a much bigger world.

Dangit, Jim, I JUST BOUGHT SOMETHING FROM YOU! And now you're going to tempt me with not one but TWO new things? My wallet is only so deep.

I've been slowly getting together my stuff for a First Order Stormtrooper, and today I received the piece de resistance: the BBB from Jimmiraquois! http://i.imgur.com/YbgKkOA.jpg I made a video showing myself unloading everything. It's mostly an information video for new members who don't really know what to expect from these kinds of kits. Afterwards, I sanded and washed down everything, then left it all out to dry in the Texas sun. http://i.imgur.com/G97XnNq.jpg And finally, the last thing for today - trying everything on! http://i.imgur.com/bC8gQCA.jpg Things worth mentioning: I am specifically building FN-2199, otherwise known as TR-8R. The Stormtrooper in The Force Awakens who fights Finn at Maz Kanata's castle. Luckily this will be easy enough to do, since there's nothing that sets him apart from the other Stormtroopers except using a riot baton instead of a blaster. I am still missing the riot baton, belt kit, and pouch. I may or may not be missing the holster; I am having a hard time figuring out if it was included with this kit. (Odds are, it's not, and what I think might be the holster is just another part of the belt.) I will also eventually get accurate boots, but for now, my TK Boots work just fine for approval. The parts I have: this kit (courtesy of Jimm), the helmet (Anovos standard), neck seal (re-using my ANH neck seal made by Darmen here on the forums), gloves (Endor Finders) and gaskets (FN Armory). If I am still in need of something, please feel free to let me know. Anyway, this is it for now. I hope to document as much of this build as possible. Any and all feedback is appreciated! Thanks for your time! ~~Skul

I'm working on my FOTK. I'm specifically building FN-2199 (TR-8R) and, let's face it, it's gonna be incomplete without the Z-6 Riot Control Baton he uses to fight Finn. I've researched as much as I can but I'm having a hard time finding many options for this. I've found two kits (including one made by a company that doesn't exist anymore; the other by Peter White) and I'm wondering what other options are there? Ideally, I'd prefer to just buy one complete out of the box. But I'm open to anything, really, even a DIY thing using PVC. TL;DR: What options are there?

Now THIS is the Star Wars game we're looking for.

Considering this kit is fiberglass, not ABS, would "sludge" thus just be fiberglass scraps and acetone instead of ABS and acetone?

I hope people aren't getting tired of consistently seeing me in these newsletters. Nonetheless, thanks for featuring my Comicpalooza photos!

Figured I'd have to paint the armor anyway since that's what I've seen most other builds do. Is it NOT required to match the Anovos helmet?

Did a search, didn't find an answer, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask. I just got a Jim FOTK kit. It's not here yet, so I'm taking the time to research everything I'll need to put it together. I've seen practically everyone say that you need bondo for the kit. The problem is they don't specify what kind; I looked it up and there are about a jillion bondo types. Does anyone have a specific recommendation? Does it even matter? Thanks for your help! ~~Tk-69004

Thanks for the approval! I was expecting lots of suggestions and things required before aiming for Centurion, so no problem there. I agree; the fact that so much of the armor overlaps is a big concern for me as well. I personally like the look but I do understand it's not movie-accurate. I'll fiddle around and see if I can make something work, but if I can't, I'm just happy to be EIB. Thanks so much!

Name: Jack Sauder Forum Name: SkulShurtugalTCG Star Garrison Height: 5'9" Weight: 185lbs 501st profile - http://www.501st.com/members/displaymember.php?userID=21082&costumeID=124 Armor: RS Prop Masters Helmet: ATA Boots: TK Boots Canvas Belt: RS Prop Masters Gloves: RS Prop Masters Neck Seal: Darmen Holster: Darmen Electronics: Aker Blaster: Hyperfirm Front: Back: Left: Right: Left detail: Right detail: Action shot: Abdomen detail: Cod & Butt attachment: Interior strapping: Helmet front: Helmet back: Helmet left: Helmet right: Hovi mic tip detail: Lens color: Blaster left: Blaster right: Blaster back: Neck seal: Thermal detonator front: Thermal detonator back: (CRL does not specify that screws are needed; held with velcro for now) Holster attachment:

The 501st Legion had a MASSIVE presence at Comicpalooza in Houston last month. Before the floor "officially" opened, a few of us had already dressed up and decided to wander the floor. Those involved: Me (Jack, TK-69004) Ray, TK-72187 Jason, TX-71117 (handler) ^ Is THIS the droid we're looking for? ^ ^ In front of a boilerplate of Orion, the next-generation manned spacecraft ^ ^ We have captured a princess! Nothing to see here! ^ ^ Since when did Jason become an astronaut? ^ ^ I....don't trust this. ^ ^ My favorite photo of the lot. We met astronaut Shannon Walker, veteran of a 5-month mission to the ISS. ^

Featured not once but TWICE? Wow, what an honor for a first-month Shiny. I loved reading this newsletter! It makes me even more excited for the next one! Keep up the great work, all!

This is the ABS plastic version of the Anovos helmet, and the start of my FOTK build. If you're on the fence about whether to get one of these, I hope this video helps you make the decision easier.

I know, but extra money...

Tickets bought! Still deciding whether to bring my armor or not. I probably won't decide until I figure out whether I'm driving or flying. That will be the decision maker.

And it arrived today! It's 100% Anovos (it even came in the original box, sealed and everything). The mold isn't 100% perfect, but the imperfections are so small that I didn't notice them until looking REALLY closely. The only thing that I actually didn't like was the mic tip wasn't glued on properly and fell off right after I took it out of the box. A quick dab of insta-glue and it was fixed, though, so I can't be mad. Plenty of room inside for fans and maybe some fun stuff like electronics. I'm hoping to make TR-8R with this, and from what I've seen, it fits the bill. Thanks everyone for your help!

This definitely looks like something I need.