MaskedVengeance

OP Post #4 Progress continues slowly, and since my last post has consisted primarily of the acquisition of components for my HWT build. BBB day came a couple weeks ago, and you can see my full post with armor unboxing photos on my ANH Stunt thread. Here is a preview! I also had a medium brown box day with the delivery of my orange pauldron from Trooper1 (Jay), and it is gorgeous! Seems a bit of a shame to have to dirty it up a bit for my heavy. Pics incoming. I also completed inking all the white threading on my MP40 pouches black with a Pilot G2 1.0-size black pen, which I already had at the house. It was very tedious, and for some reason I found it appropriate to have some WWII TV documentaries playing in the background. It was cool to see some MG-34s in action! The photos below don't do my thread paint job justice, as some of the lighting and texture differences with the leather make the threads still appear to be white. I also want on a paint binge and purchased many shades of black and gray to use on my T-21 and DLT-19 builds, when that time comes. Social distancing may make supply runs difficult, and potential shelter-in-place orders could even make it impossible. I've also acquired gloss white (for TK rivet heads), Model Master 1923 Gunship Gray, and some Rust-oluem gray primer and black. I'm not really sure why I got the Testors thinner, since I already have Gamblin Gamsol mineral spirits, but I suppose I could use it on non-ABS areas. At some point I suspect I will create dedicated threads for my T-21 and DLT-19 builds, but for now I'll leave that related content on this thread, since I haven't made much progress yet. I do have a couple questions for those of you with blaster build experience: Does the ACT cap (shown below) appear to be the correct proportion for the PVC bunting I purchased? I opted for the "smaller" sized bottle since I saw that mentioned on another thread, but it wasn't clear what the exact bottle oz size was, or the dimensions of the flash suppressor itself. Is there a way to coat a thick paper/cardboard tube to provide it with moisture protection? The tub itself is already very strong, but I would worry about it losing form if rained on. I'm asking because the outer diameter of the tube more closely matches the the size of the reduced T-21 barrel than standard 2.5" conduit or the vacuum tube extension wand. See the comparison below. Finally, just another T-21 component I acquired--the phone line cable. I still need to find some blue wire, so any suggestions for the proper gauge would be helpful. Thanks, Joseph, for your automotive windshield washer tubing suggestion in your post above. Hopefully I'll have more updates soon, especially if I'm kept home from work during these uncertain times. Stay safe, heavies.

Shaky, cracked, duct taped, misaligned. It’s true. All of it. [emoji12] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

OP (MV) Post #15 Another update folks, with some questions and photos. First some questions, so they don't get buried later in this post. TK frown mesh/screen. Is there a particular mesh pattern or size which is most appropriate for Centurion approval? Must it only be a single layer, or can it be doubled, and if so, would there be any benefit? If there's aren't any restrictions I'll likely just pick some up at a hardware or home improvement store, rather than at Trooperbay (product). What black paint finish should be used for the mic tips? Should it be a gloss, semi gloss, or matte? The same as the vocoder? In regards to the vocoder, I've seen that it should be a semi gloss black, but my local craft stores only have Testors in gloss (not semi). Does semi actually exist, and if so, must I use that instead of gloss? Finally, respiration PPE (personal protective equipment). When sanding ABS is it important to wear a respirator or mask of some sort? I had planned on purchasing a 3M respirator but alas those are now hard to come by. Would a simple shop/mowing mask suffice? I have a stockpile of these Walmart "Hyper Tough" masks from lawn mowing. Now finally on to the photos. As previously mentioned, I received my holster and neck seal from Darman this week. I got the heavier 8oz holster which is quite firm, and will require some breaking in for use with my Hellhounds rubber blaster. If I end up trooping with a DLT-19 instead I may just use a modified rubies blaster in the holster and semi dual-wield like the Death Star scene (I forget if it was Han or Luke when they were approaching the detention block elevator). The neck seal also seems very nice, and I opted for the larger bib for ease of tucking into my undersuit. I simply noted my neck circumference (15.5") and Darman size it to fit me comfortably! I'm sure I'll eventually get the hang of setting and pulling the zipper, but for now my strategy has been to put in on backwards so I can see the zipper, then swivel it around once zipped. Are wearing it some more I'm sure the neck area will adopt a more rounded shape, after having been flattened inside the holster in the shipping package. Finally, on to the 120 magnets I purchased. Per Joseph's Magnet 101 recommendation, I purchased 20 of the N40 7/8" x 1/8" disc magnets for general armor application. I also purchased 50 of the N52 12mm x 3mm disc and 50 of the ring magnets which Christine recommends for her magnetic shin closure design. I figure I can use the extra ring magnets for thinner and tighter areas of the armor some as arm pieces, and the cost difference between purchasing 25 and 50 was insignificant. I plan on making sachets for the magnets to protect them and the armor, and for ease of use. Thanks for these tips, Justin! Your cutting and sanding strategy is pretty similar to what I'm planning on, although I don't have any tin snips or a belt sander, although I have considered purchasing the latter to use on some woodworking projects. I figure I could probably just clamp a sheet of sandpaper to a flat table surface and rub the straight armor piece on top of it, similar to this shoulder bridge strategy. As for some metal rulers... I'm all over that. As an art/engineering student in College I wanted nothing to do with plastic or wooden rulers, so I have an entire metal collection ranging from six inches to a yard, some cork-backed and others not. I'm definitely going to try out the magnet/ruler technique!

OP (MV) Post #14 Well, it's been a crazy two weeks since my last post, to say the least. Local schools have closed and the College (University) I work at has transitioned to distance online learning for the remainder of the term. It's hard to know if these changes to life due to COVID-19 will result in me having more time to work on my build, or less, but either way I've been attempting to collect the last couple of supplies needed for the project so I can minimize shopping in the near future. Social distancing. Weird times. With both my builds (my HWT being the other), I've been posting photos of my collected supplies for two reasons. One, to enable experienced builders to provide feedback on the items, and two, so that future buildings can have a visual representation (along with purchase links) of the exact items they may need to purchase themselves. First up, gloves and lexan scissors. The 3M chemical gloves came from Lowes, while the straight and curved scissors were from Amazon. Has anybody had any experience with the MPI Maxx Products curved scissors? They were supposed to be the Excel brand, but the seller shipped me these instead, so I'm wondering if I should give them a go or return them. I've also just received my 8oz E-11 holster and neck seal from Darman today, and will have photos of those up by the weekend. 120 magnets, yes you heard that right, are also in-hand. Joseph recommended at least ten (10) large discs on his supply list and Magnets 101 thread, so I got 20 of them plus 50-packs of the smaller ones recommended by Christine (Cricket) for her shin closure design. I also have needle files, mineral spirits, and acetone in the mail. @justjoseph63 - Can you send me a purchase link to the "Sandblaster Pro Flexible silicone sanding sheets from 3M" which you recommend on your Supply List? I'm not sure if what I'm finding is correct; perhaps it's no longer sold any more. Stay safe and healthy, friends.

This is why, in the photography industry, zoom lenses (or high mm primes) are used for portraits. To minimize distortion. Luckily many smartphones now have multiple camera lenses to capture different focal lengths. Use the zoom one. Another pro-tip: Do NOT use any portrait-type mode on smartphones when taking photos of builds. The false bokeh (blur) can be applied incorrectly, and in general will hide details which we might want to see. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is definitely going to be printed and put in my resource folder! As are many of Joseph’s tutorials! Thanks for your awesome work! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Back in 2009 or 2010 I got into playing the Battlefield series games online, and wanted a new screen name which wasn’t related to my previous Lord of the Rings obsession. At that time my go-to name had been “darkelf,” but I wanted something less fantasy-like for my WWII and modern warfare gaming. I decided on a variation of my last name (Mask), and thus became known as “MaskedVengeance.” Fast forward to a decade later in 2019 and I figured the same name, though a bit lengthy, would work for Legion purposes. From time to time I may also refer to myself as “MV” for short. Or you can call me Caleb. =)

Oh man this makes me nervous since my BBB Day was last week and I have all the Billgrams printed and ready to be used as references. I had planned to post photos with questions on my build thread before making unrecoverable cuts or hole snap/rivet holes, so maybe I’ll still be ok. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Your quick work on this continues to impress me, and makes me think my 9-month TK build is as slow as your extra 100ml of cured resin. Looking forward to seeing the progress, but more importantly, I wish you the best this week with your treatment. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sounds about right to me. The guest bedroom and living room get overrun with WIP props... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was actually just checking our your thread earlier today before your update and was wondering what your recent progress had been! I just received my ATA armor and will be making my first cuts soon. Your probably already had plans to do this, but be sure to scuff up the cap rivets on your knee with sandpaper to give the paint some texture to hold to. Keep up the great work! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You can also give the shoulder bridges a boiling water bath. Just be careful not to burn yourself. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

OP (MV) Post #13: BBB DAY ARRIVED YESTERDAY! Unboxing and obligatory laid out photos incoming. Yes, I'm wearing rebel scum "It's a trap" socks. Note that, as is the case with all my photos posted on FISD, they may appear a bit fuzzy embedded in posts due to poor web and forum compression. Clicking on each image will open them in a high resolution format for maximum clarity. Initial thoughts. These pieces are larger and more firm than I was expecting. Of course that will change a bit once I trim them and remove many of the return edges. Now where to start. I'm not sure I want to tackle the helmet first since that's such a prominent piece with tiny details. Perhaps I will go with taking off the return edges on the wrist side of the forearms, since that will be a requirement for level three. Are there any other suggestions for starting points? Perhaps the chest, back, or ab pieces? I tried to lay the pieces out in the fashion I expect them to be upon assembly, but the shins were the only ones labeled, so I may have gotten some of it wrong. Am I correct in understanding that the biceps (both with thumbprints) and forearms are interchangeable? If I recall correctly, the shoulder bells are to have the swoosh facing forward, correct? I believe the left side thighs are also intended to be a little shorter than the right, to accommodate the sniper plate, but please correct me if that's not the case. That's all for now. The journey is finally getting real!

Congrats Robert! I look forward to following in your footsteps, and using your submission as a reference! As Joseph pointed out, your paint job is AMAZING! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

GUYS. THERE IS A STORMTROOPER AT MY DOOR! I might need to leave work early to let him in. Obviously, to be continued...