skitchie98
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Posts posted by skitchie98
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Well, my foray into trimming to my skinny heart's content was for naught, haha. I consulted a couple other people and what I've walked out of this knowing is that 'trimming' means taking off 1/8" or so and not 2" on each side.
While it looks fairly harmless in the photos I got tipped that while the trimming isn't inherently bad per se, with a lot of the trimming would come a lot of reshaping with heat. While water baths and whatnot don't sound terrifying by themselves, this is my very first costume of any kind so I feel a little more comfortable just going by the book and working from there.
My build philosophy from here on out is gonna be to build everything to standard and just pad whatever needs to be padded. I'll probably end up doing this with the other bicep and then re-ordering the one I trimmed the life out of. -
Gotcha gotcha. I still have some sanding to take care of on the biceps, I keep procrastinating using the dremel cause I had a close call that potentially could have screwed things up real bad. Luckily we're all good.You should be OK leaving the outside return edges on those biceps, but I would be more concerned with the insides. Remember, you will bending your arms most of the time while trooping, and leaving too much edge on the inside bottom and top ("scoop")canwill cut into you ("armor bite") over time. The same goes with the scoop on the tops of the forearms. This thread will provide some more insight.
But yes, those return edges on the scoop and the inside are on the docket for sure. I think I'm probably just gonna take off all the return edges and trim more if needed for symmetry's sake. Thanks!
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Well I got impulsive and went ahead with trimming the biceps. I initially planned to trim about an inch off of each bicep but got conservative and started with 1/2" and thank god I did! It fits MUCH better. However I do wonder if the return edge on the top of the biceps is gonna push the shoulder bells out? If that's the case I'll probably get rid of the return edge and trim a little bit more off, or alternatively add some padding on the inside, not sure which at this point.
I'm sure you can guess just by looking which one is trimmed and which one isn't!
Just for some perspective as to how big of a difference that trimming made. The trimmed bicep now fits much more snugly and still gives about 1/2" of wiggle room which is what I was aiming for.
Anyone who has finished TK's, does the trimmed bicep look like it will still appear proportional to everything? I don't want to trim the rest of the arms and legs like this and find that I look something like this
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Ok, finally I have a little bit of breathing room! On the tail end of school things and am beginning to get a bit of free time so I'm probably going to be going to make some initial fitment cuts on the biceps today. I'm not gonna lie, I'm shaking in my boots about these initial cuts, but a rolling stone gathers no moss, haha.
I went and took some measurements and came to an odd conclusion in that my flexed bicep diameters are different between my two arms--I dunno, maybe that's more common than I'm making it out to be, but I found it rather strange. My left bicep clocked in at (please be nice to me) 10 3/8" and my right bicep measures in at a whopping (not) 10 6/8". I referred pretty heavily to Cricket's TK-S build thread because her bicep measurement was pretty close to mine and her final results looked pretty good. I'm adding about 1/2" to give the arm some room to move around in and (after evening out the measurements for consistency's sake) I think I'm gonna shoot for a diameter of 11 1/4" on both bicep pieces. Obviously quite a step down from the original ~16" diameter, but seeing as Cricket cut her pieces smaller than that and it looked kosher I'm not too worried. I just wanted to throw my hat in the ring with these measurements and double check that my logic checks out with y'all.
Also Cricket if you see this, thank you seriously for your build thread. I'm probably gonna be referencing it all throughout this build of my own!
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57 minutes ago, CableGuy said:
Hi Dixon,
I’m not sure quite how slim you are, however, it might be worth aiming for screen armour sizes first and see how it looks on you. TM’s armour looks spot on when at movie sizes.
If it looks a little big, you can then scale it down. I started with screen sizes and ended up removing just 5mm extra to fit my frame better.
Here’s the biceps, for example.Thanks Dan! I went and joined stormtrooper armory on FB as well, now there'll be no escaping TK knowledge, regardless of what social media I'm browsing!
I keep hearing around about a coveted Troopermaster tutorial on his FB but I can't seem to find it. Do you what I'm talking about?
I apologize for the real basic question incoming but as I have zero costuming experience up to this point I'm afraid this thread will be littered with them; when making cuts for sizing on pieces like the biceps and forearms, am I only to make cuts on one side? So, for example I wanted to take off 5 mm on the biceps, would I take off 2.5 mm on edge of each bicep?
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16 hours ago, ukswrath said:
Learning curve, we've all been there. Pace yourself.
Regardless of your body size don't trim off too much. If you do the arms and legs might look skinny in comparison to the torso which can only be cut so much without looking off.
Your best bet is to trim all the sections to the same measurements mentioned in other TM tutorials. Afterwards perform a fitment check (tape sections together) to see what areas need to be fine tuned. Most troopers may need to add fabric foam to some part of their interior to stabilize the area. This is very common.
When it comes to trimming I use scissors, exacto knife, Dremel and belt sander. Whatever you're comfortable with and have the best control over is what I recommend.
Hope this helps
Good call on the trimming with moderation; didn't even occur to me that with enough trimming it'll look like an imperial stick figure. I've been referencing Cricket's build a lot as she and I share some common woes and, while not as short, am in about the same area weight wise so pieces like the forearms might need some special attention. Going slowly but surely, just sanding things down right now. I haven't made any fitting cuts yet as I'm still putting together the actual process on making fitment cuts for the biceps and forearms but once I have those written down I'll get to fitting. Thanks for the info!
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We decided to take a crack at it right off the bat today with some rough cuts to separate the arms and biceps. We learned right off the bat that we drastically overestimated the size/strength of the lexan scissors we ordered as they were tiny and, well, not strong whatsoever. We ordered a new pair that should be in soon. Also, thank you to whoever it was (I honestly forget) that recommended the snap+score technique, it saved a lot of time on some parts of the armor, not to mention it feels so satisfying to break a chunk off precisely where I meant to.
Initial observations: we will be doing mucho resizing on the arms, especially the forearms. I'm skinny as all hell, but my girlfriend just says I'm "lean". Either way it's gonna take a hefty amount of cutting and possibly some heat, who knows. I'll probably post some fit pictures of the sizing here once they are all trimmed down to get your input.
Question--on the perforated edges of the arm pieces, is it easier to cut them off by hand or can they get sanded off with a rotary tool? I'm guessing the latter but I just wanted to check.
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IT'S HEEEEEEEERE!
BBB has arrived!! It had to sit for a little longer than usual since it came from overseas but man oh man was it worth it!!
You know that scene from A Christmas Story where Ralphie sees his coveted official Red Ryder carbine action, 200-shot, range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time? That's how I felt. It felt great to be able to unpack and see every little piece there and accounted for, just like the rest of y'all in your build threads. I got one of my own now :')
Sure enough, everything's accounted for, with some extra ears and drop boxes to boot (thanks Paul!).
I'm debating when to get started on trimming and sizing up the arms; I'm in the home stretch of school this semester and I'm just finishing the process of moving out, so I may be going at a snails pace the first couple weeks or so--then again, nobody has anything but time on their hands so what's the rush, ammirite?
CAN'T WAIT to get going, I'm sure I'll have a ton of questions to ask and pictures to link as the days go by.
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Well folks, we are on the event horizon.
BBB is in my town and just waiting to be delivered any day now.
I think my girlfriend is going to kill me if I ask her to check the tracking status 1 more time.
In other news, I just placed the biggest Amazon order of my life for the materials/tools, but I do have a quick question regarding split rivets. I was browsing around various retailers for them, and couldn't find any that had the washers included. Are there any good/go-to retailers for the split rivets and their washers?
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Just now, gmrhodes13 said:
I believe a winner was found, you also had to post in this thread not in this newsletter thread
It's been one of those days, you know? haha, sorry for that.
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Linking my first ever build and hoping to snag that package! My number, you say? Come on, need I say it?
.....
fine.
66.
Update: Drastically overrated how long ago I started my build thread. Drats. Feel free to delete this if need be!
Update 2.0: Didn't look 2 inches down and see the proper linked thread. Oy Vey. Not a strong night for me apparently.
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Fantastic! Just what I was looking forFor even better pictures, check here;
https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43516-tk-61276-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-tm-361/
STUNNING!
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Thanks Dan! I'd be lying if I said I haven't been watching your build with great interest. I'll for sure be looking at your threads as a resource as yours looks great and there's not a ton of in depth TM build threads floating about.Great choice of armour, Dixon. :-)I’m currently building my TM armour too and can vouch for the quality and beautifully sculpted parts. If it helps, I’ve been documenting my build here;
Admittedly, I went to town on the helmet with a full respray, however, the construction elements and comparisons to screen used helmets might be useful.
Best wishes with the build. As others said, any questions just shout. :-)
Best wishes
Dan
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Thanks for the kind words guys! Believe me I've been pouring over all the build threads as well as the pre approval threads throughout the past month and a half, haha. Luckily due to a snafu on FedEx's part I have some extra ABS to work/practice with before I touch the armor
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Hiya folks! My name's Dixon, posting from sunny (not really) Nashville TN. Within a week or two now I'll have my first kit coming in all the way from the UK courtesy of Paul (Troopermaster). I have absolutely zero costuming experience, and my construction experience is limited to an eagle scout project done many many moons ago, so I figured it'd be good to get this ball rolling early as I have some questions before BBB day arrives.
My girlfriend and I are in the process of getting supplies together beforehand; we're going to be getting some E6000 pretty soon here, but I just wanted to confirm: about how many bottles I can expect to use throughout this process?
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Awesome! The fitting is what I'm the haziest on so that's perfect.
Thank you kindly. :-)
I’ll be documenting the armour build soon. Not quite as many videos (like the trimming) but more of the construction, strapping, fitting and light weathering. :-)-
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Awesome stuff! Starting a Troopermaster build in a few days myself so I will be eagerly watching for that armor build!!
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Likewise! I'll keep a watchful eye out for your build thread!
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Greetings. I'm a newbie here in Nashville. I came primarily to find resources on building. Reaching out to my local 501st, browing the site, and trying not be overwhelmed by all of the information I stumbled into here haha.
I'm most interested in a TFA build (love the riot gear), but I'm also just considering ANH as there seems to be more available.
I teach here in Nashville, play recreation hockey, and have absolutely no crafting experience so I'm doing a lot of stuyding and researching. Cheers!
Hey man! Fellow Nashville newbie here as well (also huge hockey fan [go sabres])! I literally ordered my kit a few days ago (ANH Stunt from Troopermaster) so if you end up going with an OT TK I'd be down to help each other out on our builds! If you haven't already make an account on the MidSouth Garrison forums and make an introduction post, that's where you can get info on local members, events, troops, etc. Look forward to hearing more about your progress!-
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I'll make sure to keep all of that in mind! I appreciate the wisdom, the knowledge that there's people who know what they're doing I can use as resources means more than you can probably imagine, haha!
Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk -
Welcome to the FISD, Dixon! First, congrats on your TM armor purchase.. you are going to be more than happy with it I promise. While you anxiously await BBB day, I recommend getting all of the supplies you will need in place. Also, I would definitely look over some of the existing build threads. This will give you an idea of what you've got yourself into, lol.
As Tino mentioned, I always suggest starting your own build thread. That way, you can ask all the questions you want to (the more the better) as well as post lots (and lots) of photos during your build. Photos are especially important if you run into an issue.. they really are worth a thousand words.
I have some tutorials under my avatar below that may help, but always feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here for ya'!
Fantastic! Thank you for the helpful info. I've been pouring through other build and TK pre approval threads to help prepare, as well as watching a myriad of tutorials on YouTube.
Since neither me nor my girlfriend have ever done handiwork aside from assembling a bed frame, we're in the process of getting all the tools and whatnot that we'll need in the meantime.
Thanks again for reaching out, in the meantime I'll be a good trooper and (im)patiently await BBB day! Can't wait to report future progress. -
Congratulations on this Stormtrooper kit, Dixon. In my opinion, the best one you can get. Good choice.
Don't worry about being skinny, indeed that is an advantage if you aim to look screen-accurate when wearing your OT TK armor.
Feel free to start a build thread once you received your BBB (big brown box) and we will help you with your build.
In the meantime, ask any question you have.
Thank you! I can't wait, looking forward to the coming weeks!! -
Preciate it guys, thought I was further out of the norms for the build than it would seem. Thanks for the clarification!
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Skitchie's debut build thread ( ANH Stunt TK-Troopermaster)
in ANH Build Threads
Posted
Well, it's been a hot minute! It's been the better part of a year since I was able to get anything done on this armor. COVID of course didn't help but on top of that I was working full time and at school full time...
that, and I finished getting my pilot's license! (woo)
But now I'm taking a break on flying, and since school is winding down for the semester I've got a ton more time to work with! My partner and I are getting a membership at a local makerspace since we live in a complex that is rather DIY unfriendly. I feel bad for my poor armor--it's been sitting in a closet for all this time just collecting dust. I'm beyond ready to break it out and start making some progress on it! Starting with where we left off: biceps. It's great to be back. Can't wait for the next update!