Here to answer so please ask anything!
On the kit.. I have an ABS original trilogy trooper, and I will say I am never going back. Is it heavier, yes, is it more prone to slight cracks, maybe, maybe not. But, the ease of working with it once you get used to it is second to none. I found that it was easier to cut and sand as you are not fighting it melting.. I also think it is more comfortable which trades off for the weight and more easy to repair. There are no pinches anywhere and I love how flexible it is. SOmeone said that it becomes more wearable with time as your body heat helps to mold it a little. I think that is true. Plus the details are crazy good.
Yes we knew we would have to trim... and remove seams..... and paint.. All things we have never done before. We started cutting right away and it was so much easier than we thought. Cut about 3/4 inch abs strips to close the seams from behind then bondo'd over. Really easy. Cutting the height of thigh and leg armor was equally as easy. Depending on your build (measurements) you should not have an issue finding 3 more inches. My wife has super skinny arms, we may have pushed the limit on how small the biceps could go. Assuming your arms are more proportional, should be ok... We fit arms and legs first. THen we did the ab armor. Used hot water to get it super bendy then taped off and cut up the middle in the back. Naomi has a fairly large chest and the ab plate flexed around there well. What I was super nervous about was cutting the chest. Cut some from the top and bottom and it was actually very easy with the dremel cutting wheel.. Just draw good lines and it cuts very easily. Look at the shots of fitting 1 and 2 for the before and after. I wanted her phasma to have a more feminine line to it. I think it helped.
Spaz and Allclad, relatively the same beast. Spaz half as expensive and easy to get on amazon prime, so I tried it first. Loved the result, stuck with it. I prefer the "dirty" phasma look over the pure mirror, so I love the results. If you want mirror, and have the budget, go with VM or spectrachrome.
I hate the fingers! We are looking to get smaller fingers from someone.. Naomi has small hands. Yes it hampers handling, but you wont be handling much when dressed up.
Blaster is Justin Branfhur on etsy. HIGHLY recommend.