TheDecisiveRaindrop

An update is long overdue. Current progress is that I got the sniper knee glued and attached, much of the armor trimming is done as well as snaps I’d be willing to bet you guys can figure out what I am gonna do for my helmet A bit nervous because I plan on working on the belt soon, so I guess according to the reference I need to completely get rid if the top up until the boxes, so closer to the second line I started. Also going to attach the ammo thigh belt to the right thigh soon. I got the rivet pos marked in pencil, and trimmed the top and bottom to a 3mm height Progress on the sides. I thankfully will not need to do shims, and the length is just right to where I don’t need to trim. As per the level 3 specifications I have the three rivets on the abdominal armor’s left side, equally spaced and 1cm away from the edges. These ones are not functional and will probably re-do them to be able to fasten velcro that will help ensure the abdomen and kidney are always lined up. (As a reminder I am shooting for, so do not hesitate to suggest changes that may or may not be listed on the CRL!) The kidney is not quite done yet so I will be sure to add velcro to make sure everything is fastened. The velcro I’m using is the real heavy duty stuff. You can also see the notch cut out from the kidney, I trimmed the return edges from the abdomen to line up with the notch.

With the strapping for my build, I doubled up on the fabric. Basically taking a 2x2 in nylon piece, glue it, fold it, and have the folded edge face the direction where it will have the most stress. Also glad I could help with your build by providing the link, it is a very good thread

I have this thread always open on my phone since I am in the process of my first AM build lol

To the future troopers like myself who are building their first kits and to the members trying to get approved, remember that being in the first 1k for EIB is not something to worry about! Rushing to get the job done goes against the spirit of why EIB exists in the first place. It's supposed to award patience and attention to detail. Something that I feel many people (including myself) are forgetting, and rushing our first builds/making changes to our armor just runs the risk of doing something dumb in the name of saving time and cutting corners... sometimes the wrong corners! We may not get in the first 1k, but the real important thing is the experience of building the armor and take the time to really learn it and appreciate it. If you are not within the first 1k EIB but really wanted to get in that bracket, don't be disappointed. Instead, look at the next step. We have what, 500 more centurions to go for 1k? Now that is a bracket everyone reading this thread can strive for. We got so many people pumped with this competition to reach for EIB, why not continue the momentum and make for 1k Centurions! Now that would be a truly amazing milestone not just for FISD, but to the entire Star Wars costuming community! TL/DR: Don't rush it, don't worry about it, just focus on getting to Centurion

Super excited to see you start your build! Something I recommend doing is checking other people’s build threads. AJ’s thread is basically the go to at this point because of his very in-depth process of recording and describing things in great detail. https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/40831-ajs-of-am-20-build/ I’m still working on my first set of armor, but something I’ve been doing as is looking at pre-approvals for all levels. That way I can more easily see where people go wrong and how to fix them.

Understandable, I've been teaching myself 3d modeling using Blender and it takes a fair bit of practice. Currently working on a backpack for a costume, and it's already taking over 100 hours for just a backpack! I'm still pretty new to it all, but at least you got the printing side of things down! That's an area I'm still struggling with, especially with my dinky little Ender 3 Pro.

Been following this thread for a while. I think it is really cool that the armor designer is so open to suggestions and follows the CRL. I'll continue to follow this thread with great interest

Thighs and shins trimmed/glued, gonna probably use velcro for the back if the shins. Now for my next conundrum, the sniper knee. I am having a hard time trying to figure out how best to place it. I’ve glued a scrap piece of plastic to the knee itself as others have done, and even trimmed a bit of the botyom to help make it flush with the shin. My host believes I may need to add another piece of plastic to the knee to let it sit right. Here are some pics with a two piece spacer. The last pic shows just how high off the knee is from the shin. Here are the pics of 1 plastic spacer. Any and all feedback welcomed! I haven’t fully committed to the knee yet, and I’ll be taking a break from the legs for a day or two and get started on chest trimmings/strappings.

I’ve already accepted the fact that I will probably not make it in the first 1k, still got a long ways to go before I can even get basic.

Ok! Got the cover strips glued in on my arms. So far so good I think! Now onto a dilemma I have, I noticed that I got two of the same legs, is this typical for AM kits? I reached out to Dave yesterday and still haven’t gotten a response.

Not a problem guys! I am now really happy with how the arms now fit with out the return edges. I think I am ready to start gluing! I have my 501st host with me to make sure I don’t balls it up too badly.

Definitely! Sorry, I’m not entirely here right now. Spent the entire night doing research on the forums and checking pre-approvals and going over centurion submissions. I need sleep lol. I’ll be sure to make another progress update before I do anything too drastic. Slow and steady wins the approval.

I guess the best thing for me to do is to get rid of most of the return edges then, except for the bottom of the chest piece though. Pretty sure I need that thickness there lol. Sounds good! And apparently according to Joseph’s link, I have the option to trim the knee for a better fit should I need to.

One last question for the time being, did I do the left leg correctly in terms of correct halves and knee placement? I believe the inner side is the one where the calf protrudes more, and I know the knee needs to line up with the top ridges, but do I need to trim the knee return edges? I see reference photos of it done so, but I’d like to be sure.

Alright, so I was able to get pictures of my arms. Do they need to be trimmed down further? I’d also like advice regarding the return edges and how much I should take off from them for the sake of mobility/looks.

My current plan is to have any foam padding be attached via velcro so I can replace them if they get too smelly.

Yeah, I’m happy withthe way my arms are currently, a little room in case I get a tad bit chunkier, but I also still have the return edges still in place on the top of the forearms and on the biceps

Ah, well I’ve continued trimming the arms and biceps, I’ll wait for my host to get back so he can take a picture of how they fit. I guess it’s time for the legs!

The shape of the left forearm is a little weird and one needs to be trimmed down

Sounds good! Centurion is my main goal, but for the rime being, I’m trying to focus on getting this to EIB status first but I’m still trying to get it as close to centurion as I can while doing so. Once I get my EIB, hopefully I won’t be needing to do all that much more.

Is something like this acceptable? I’ll still sand it down to make it smoother though.

Will do!

Well, it’s not exactly an original idea, I saw it in someone else’s build thread, and I think you can buy pre-made binders Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sure, I got it from Dave’s Darkside Depot, he’s one of the vetted sellers for the AM line of kits. Although I could be wrong with regards to the extra sheets being from different batches, I’ll wait for my host to get back and get his thoughts on it since he’s ordered from the same guy in the past.

I have hit a slight snag though, I’m pretty sure only one of the sheets I received from the kit are from the same batch as the armor, the others seem to be an off white. I’ll wait for my host to get back from work before I do the cover strips, I do have a lot of trimming to do in the meantime. So while I wait on that, I’ll go ahead and trim the return edges from the front of the vambraces.