CableGuy

Hello world. Just logging some armour build progress on here. Aiming for original suit sizes (based on RS suit). Sized-up and glued the biceps. Still a little large so trimmed down another 5mm Aiming for high levels of accuracy.

If it helps, I find a free app like LiveCollage helps to get parts right. As below, put a picture of your progress again screen used examples to see how you’re doing and if adjustments are needed. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi Carter, Photos have come out great on this new thread. :-) I’ll copy and paste my feedback below, then hopefully some other troopers can chip in with their suggestions, too. Especially concerning ABS paste as I’ve not personally made or used this before. Hi Carter, Great to hear that you are looking to join when your are a little older. You’ve done a nice job of fitting the armour to your frame - it mostly sits really well. While you are waiting to join, there are some changes that will be needed for clearance. I’ll show them below; From the top Blue; I’d suggest shortening the strapping from the shoulder straps to the shoulder bells. This will bring the bells in a little. Yellow; The ammo belt is missing the three covers that go over the fixings. Green; the coverstrips on the thighs should stop at the ridge. From the back, I’d suggest that you try lowering the back plate to reduce the gap. The left side is a little more tricky. Unfortunately, (green) it looks like you’ve put the side rivets on the right hand side of the armour, not the left. There should be 6 split rivets on this side Blue; this looks like the “Han snap” and should be on the right hand side. Yellow; your helmet is a Stunt helmet so the belt should match the Stunt appearance. As such is should only have e two fixings. Belt holster reference Side rivets reference As above, on the right side we should not have rivets - just the one visible “Han snap”. Blue ; some white paint should be applied to the thigh ammo pack fixings. Right side reference Most of these are quite easy to change and it’ll certainly give you a bit of a project. If you have any questions about the above points, or how to remedy them, don’t hesitate to ask. Best wishes Dan

Hi Carter, Great to hear that you are looking to join when your are a little older. You’ve done a nice job of fitting the armour to your frame - it mostly sits really well. While you are waiting to join, there are some changes that will be needed for clearance. I’ll show them below; From the top Blue; I’d suggest shortening the strapping from the shoulder straps to the shoulder bells. This will bring the bells in a little. Yellow; The ammo belt is missing the three covers that go over the fixings. Green; the coverstrips on the thighs should stop at the ridge. From the back, I’d suggest that you try lowering the back plate to reduce the gap. The left side is a little more tricky. Unfortunately, (green) it looks like you’ve put the side rivets on the right hand side of the armour, not the left. There should be 6 split rivets on this side Blue; this looks like the “Han snap” and should be on the right hand side. Yellow; your helmet is a Stunt helmet so the belt should match the Stunt appearance. As such is should only have e two fixings. Belt holster reference Side rivets reference As above, on the right side we should not have rivets - just the one visible “Han snap”. Blue ; some white paint should be applied to the thigh ammo pack fixings. Right side reference Most of these are quite easy to change and it’ll certainly give you a bit of a project. If you have any questions about the above points, or how to remedy them, don’t hesitate to ask. Best wishes Dan

No worries. In theory, when you attach the chest to the ab plate, this should hold everything in place. As such, you shouldn’t really need separate side straps.

Hi Jonathan, Good progress. :-) Is your chest strapping “pulling” the chest in at the bottoms? It looks less flared than usual. For those back tabs, you could consider reducing their length a little. They are currently protruding above your natural shoulder line.

Great job on the helmet painting, Cory. An excellent improvement, especially those black stripes in the tears. Great stuff, trooper. :-)

Well done, Roy! :-) Great review, Sha Sha. :-)

Hey trooper, Great work. I’m sure you’re not far from basic approval. :-) Just to add a little something to what others have said. Personally, I’d consider refining the shape of the butt plate. As below, the originals had a distinctive shape; You have a quite a lot of excess return edge on the side of your back plate. You could consider removing some return edge and adjusting the strapping on the the back plate - this could help get the back plate sitting nicely on the top of the kidney plate. Approximate suggestions below; Closer photos would help be sure, but, It looks like your thigh ammo pack might be protruding beyond the ridge on the thigh and the fixing (rivet) is currently perhaps an inch from the edge. You could consider trimming this down to nearer the ridge line. This would also put the fixing nearer to the ideal position. Note that the top corner on the thigh ammo pack is not rounded - only the bottom corner. [emoji1303] I’m sure you’re not far from basic. Great job on your build. :-)

Willkommen bei der FISD, Jakob :-) I’d suggest checking some build threads and finished kits from each maker. If one really stands out to you above the others, that’s a good start. Also, they might occupy different price points so your budget will also play a part. Personally, I’ve built an RWA kit (up to Centurion) and am currently building a set of TM armour. They sit at different price points but are both great for the relative price bracket. Any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. Best wishes Dan

Many congratulations, Ty!! Great job! RWA Centurion number 11, I believe. You’re now entitled to your Centurion RWA Gold patch. :-)

Lovely work. I’ve seen this on Facebook, also, and it’s brilliant. I’m all about fully painted helmets these days for people looking for an authentic appearance. Great job, trooper. [emoji1303] Best wishes Dan

The other side looks quite high, however, it doesn’t look like you could have done much differently. The moulding of this make of helmet looks like you didn’t have much choice. Honestly, what you’ve done seems to be okay for this helmet. If in doubt, check some other builds of this maker and see how they positioned the ear caps. [emoji1303]

The gap is fine. Just like those reference photos I posted, many have a similar gap.

By the way, if you’re worried about the little gap above the ear, don’t be concerned. Many originals had that, to, as below. See trooper, left

Looks okay, Trooper. As last time, do you have a couple more angles from a few feet back?

No worries, brother. What you have is a greaet start and I'm sure you'll be joining the ranks VERY soon!

Hey Cory, Overall, that looks pretty good. Seems well fitted to you mr frame. [emoji1303] Just a couple of key things I’d look at, if it were me. Shoulder bells; Ideally, these would sit much closer to the chest plate. Helmet details; If you can, I’d try to tidy the painted black lines (traps and tears) and the tubestripes a little. Ear alignment on this side might also be questioned at the higher levels, but not likely at basic. :-) Ab buttons; Ideally, the painted buttons would be a little smaller. The outside of the plates could be trimmed down a little. Calves; The coverstrips on the calves should not pass beyond the ridge. I’d imagine you’re not far from basic, and with a few tweaks, could likely progress to EIB and Centurion. :-) Best wishes, Dan

Welcome aboard, Andy. :-)

Looks good, so far. Do you have photos from around 5-6 feet back? It’ll be easier to gauge from there. :-)

Do you have clear pictures of the eyes?

Here’s a nice example. Each was slightly different so don’t be too worried. Check out the FISD image library for more examples. :-)

Hoi Domingo, Welcome aboard. :-)

The ears in that video are a little thick compared with the originals, however, the method is workable. Personally, I prefer to do an approximate trim with scissors first, then fine tune with a Dremel (or sandpaper). Remember, they don’t have to be seamless. I’d just suggest using screen shots available to help you gauge the thickness and positioning. :-)

Another option is a popper/snap on the back (inside the calves, of course). Personally, I attached velcro to the front tab of my boot, then a popper on the rear tab. To allow a little wiggle room, I used some spare elastic to Attach the popper to - this allow flex when moving around. Here’s what I did to start; Velcro front, poppers rear Then, I realised that if I moved my angles too much, like going up stairs, the rear popper could in-pop. So, I added a tab of elastic to give it some flex; They now stay perfectly aligned and have not un-popped since :-)