Jeffnmar

Well good news , I was able to get ahold of DDD and after reviewing some of pictures there are some 'tweaks' that need to be made to the arms and legs. I cant speak highly enough of DDD and the customer service he provides with his products , it's a rare thing to find someone like Dave that takes pride in his work and stands by his product. Big shout out to Daves Darkside and the work he does. Will post a few more pics when things get trimmed up.

Daves Darkside Depot is now selling the AM 4.5 versions , you can find him on Facebook. PM me if you would like his phone # , just got a commission build from him. Extremely durable and shiny ABS , recommend. Take a look around there are several nice builds with his armor.

For this post I will be referring to the thigh pieces . These seem to me to be a bit long and 'big' . To wear these I put on a belt , put on both thighs which have a snap at the top with along piece of flexible fabric that winds around the belt to hold things in place. The legs have room in them when wearing them , in these pictures I have them hiked up as far as I can go (comfortably). I am not sure if these need to be more 'form fitting' or if you are supposed to have excess room. I can lift my leg but only barely until it hits and becomes uncomfortable and digs behind my knee cap.

Had some time today to take pictures of the examples I mentioned above. This particular posting sf or the forearms and biceps. a) are the biceps supposed to have so much open area at the top when your arms are at rest? When I do this it tends to push the bells out since the bicep is under the bell housing. Does this look correct or does it need to be brought in more? b) Are the forearms looking long? When my arms are at rest it feels pretty good but when I try to raise my arms ( say holding a an e11 blaster) it catches at the elbow and is painful , I have to 'push down' the forearm a bit to be able to move my arm up and down , and when that happens it hits the glove and armor piece. Normal or no?

BBB finally arrived , good things come to those who wait, or do they? Finally got around to getting everything unpacked and laid out , took inventory and decided to get suited up ( after watching a few helpful YouTube videos on the subject) Now I know this is my first time trying this armor on and did expect to have a few tweaks to ensure a good fit , but not quite sure I was prepared for the fit I got for a commission build. "I don't know what I don't know" so I am reaching out to the team here in the hopes to get this dialed in and help answer the myriad of questions that I currently have. Will be showcasing some pictures below to help illustrate some of my questions / concerns . I have the CRL open and compared my current fit and there seems to be some work that needs to be done to get things correct , I have an email out to DDD as well on the subject to get his take ( super helpful thus far , great customer service so thumbs up!) I have followed build threads for the last 6 months while waiting on the armor so somewhat versed on what a good fit would look like. Name: Jeff Armor: DDD AM 4.5 commission build Height: 5'9" Weight: 205 Concerns: - The bells , biceps and arm pieces are not comfortable , hard to articulate my elbow and wrists when worn. The bicep portion is extremely uncomfortable and seem to interfere with the bell making it not sit correctly. When the Bicep piece is on there quite a bit of space like it was built for a larger arm. The arm piece seems to be too long , when at rest I cant move my wrist as the piece interferes , I feel if I move the snap it will the lift the piece up to much and I will not have motion with my elbow at all. - Thighs - I can swim in these things, I was expecting a tighter fit , these things are quite large and I have to hike them up pretty good to get the bottom of the piece at least even with my knee. normal? - Chest / Cod piece is OK but seems to ride up and not "sit" on my shoulders , in fact when I put the helmet on I cant even turn my head as it 'bumps' the top of the chest piece. I would think the helmet would have sit higher, eyesight and view out the eyes are perfect, so good fit on the head. Looking at the pictures below this suit seems to be built for someone taller , or no? Weight wise I am rocking the 'dad bod" but this thing makes me look huge :-) , I can submit a picture of myself without the armor if needed to help with reference if that will help. I look forward to your critical eyes and help on getting this suit up to par and ready for approval, thanks in advance for your time and help! ( I do have boots and chose not to put them on , also decided not to put on the thermal detonator for this first fitting). I plan on adding more pictures and fittings of each piece in the morning for reference , take things one piece at a time :-) ...

Nice job Brad, donning my Dave’s dark side AM commission build in the morning and hope to post some pics as well , BBB day was Monday ... Wishing you much success

Brad, I just received my commission build from Dave as well , I plan on setting everything out Wednesday morning and see how it fits.. i look forward to seeing your postings...

Congrats on pulling the trigger on an AM build and kudos on getting healthier. I ordered a commission build from Dave back in February , and then Covid hit. Needless to say good things come to those who wait ( correct, its been 8 months of waiting ) and BBB day should be this week or early next week. I'll follow up with you as soon as the armor arrives and let you know how things look. Several good builds with the AM line.

Garret, just throwing out a quick shout out. I live outside Oregon City and should be receiving my commission build this week. Joined cloud city garrison right before Covid hit and have been lurking on the boards there. a well. Good to see another PNW TK on here:-) ... Looking forward too trooping soon I hope!

I have the funds and am ready ‘ to pull the trigger’ LOL ... I saw the RS propmasters as well but wasn’t sure about durability for trooping . Either way going for a rubber one for the same reasons you mentioned.. Thanks again for all the advice , you all rock as always !!! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Perfect ... I have a message out to praetorian , will check out the others .. thanks for tips [emoji106]...

Looking to do the same, any ideas?

Paul, any luck getting your commission build? I ordered my commission build from Dave back in February and have yet to receive any notification if the build is done , I email him about once a month , last email stated I should have before end of October. I know he was busy gettig his shop in order and then he was hit with Covid which put him out for bit. Did you ever receive yours and how did it fit? Just curious , as I placed a chunk of change down on this thing and it's been over 7 months. I have talked to Dave over the phone a few times and seems to be a very stand up guy, just getting a bit concerned.

Looking at the build threads today , but not finding a lot about blaster of softwoods but getting some ideas :-) Found the on ETSY as well , looks liker it is a better build quality --------

Found this the looks good? ----------

Doing a search on the this website and our local forum with Cloud City Garrison , looking to complete my build with an E-11 blaster. Looking to " pull the trigger" ( pun intended- see what I did there :-) ) for something robust to keep up with the rigors of trooping ( prefer rubber but may get heavy after time). I see a bunch of ETSY type blasters but not sure of their quality or if they will suit the need for a centurion build down the road. Saw the sheppeton designing studios one , not sure on those. Any recommendations , I will continue to search this forum and others for insight. Thanks everyone.. This type of thread has probably bean beating to death , ideally I can read some other threads on the same subject, not getting much luck right now.

I just talked to Dave his weekend and pulled the trigger on an AM 4.5 TK set myself. I am calling him this week to determine which build I am going with but thinking the stunt as well ( centurion) . Dave has been super helpful, his customer service is top knotch! Cant wait for BBB to arrive , lets keep in touch with regards to our builds!

Thanks for the info Mark , sent a PM .. still haven’t pulled the trigger yet, was getting close and talked at length with Dave on the AM builds . would love some info on the AP kits , really appreciate the feedback and thanks for replying and helping this FNG out.. LOL

Have narrowed down my choices to two options, either RS or AM for my first TK build. Both kits are available at the time of this post and both seem to suitable for building my first TK, reaching toward a centurion level outfit form the get go if applicable. My research and feedback is leaning me more toward AM for the reasons below - New run is about done , Dave will be sending out a new batch out shortly so timeline is good - I am 5'9" / 205 lbs ( dad bod) and the AM from what I understand may fit better when trimmed - Thick ABS plastic is used and is very durable -Can work toward centurion level pretty early out of the box following directions. Would apreciate a last round of advice or feelings on both sets , any experience with builds are welcome and possibly why you chose the kit you did when you did your build ( with regards to RS or AM ). I continue to read and read the build threads form others as well.. Thanks again for ALL the wonderful advice , this site is the best!

Dave did get back to me with some prices , if you don’t mind me asking which kit did you end going with? I am thinking the AM 4.5 TK armor kit , not entirely clear on his email on the other builds and prices though . Have not done blaster research as of yet , nailing down my armor choices and then will look at blaster and soft goods while I wait. Might be nice if we end up getting the same kit and work alongside each other , that would be fun ! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks you and glad to hear that, looking forward to making contact...

Thank you , and thanks for the links, SUPER helpful! I live in Oregon ( just outside Portland) , already joined a local garrison , their website is semi active but getting a few good pointers already.. Looking forward to spotting at their next event, get to know a few people and get some build tips first hand!

Thanks everyone for the warm wishes , still reading, reading and reading and getting my inquiries out. One bit of advice that I received form our local garrison here in Oregon is join in as a spotter at a local event, good advice! Be nice to see this armor up close and get ideas and reference points before I pull the trigger, that's coming up in March. Still awaiting responses form TM / AP and RT on kit builds, seems doing my research and from some feedback that TM and AP might be the ticket to help out with the "dad bod" LOL , I am 5'9" and 205 lbs. Appreciate the support, you all are AWESOME!

Thanks for the support and the info on the sizing. I have received responses from AM and ATA , still waiting to hear back from TM , AP and RT. From what I read the sizing might be better on the TM / AP outfits to help make things 'more comfortable ' so thats good advice thank you. Still researching, actually built a quick spreadsheet to keep things straight ( yep , I won't have a problem with attention to detail :-)) ....

hello all , and a BIG thank you for all the information provided here, I have definitely gone down the rabbit hole ... I already joined our local garrison here in Oregon , and have emails out to several vendors on prices and options. I currently have it narrowed down to ATA / RS Prop / TM , still awaiting a few replies back before I pull the trigger for my first TK build. ( 2 days ago I would have looked at that sentence thought WTF) ... LOL I am not very 'crafty' so I am leaning toward a more trimmed version ( like an RS prop) , but I am looking at local build parties and frequency so I may go more DIY, time will tell. Availability will also play a part in my decision, willing to shell out a few more bucks for a lesser wait ( amazon prime has spoiled us). Cant wait to get by 'big brown box 'and start a post for my first build , thanks again for all the great resources this site provides! Keep you all posted! Any comments or recommendations for a more a completed TK build for a 5"9" 205 lb male ( rocking the dad bod!) , open to to suggestions!