Brew12

Yesterday was the first of 2 BBB days. The armor came and everything looks great. The box with the helmet materials should be here Monday. Looks like it is about time to start on the biceps!

You nailed it, the backs aren't sticking to the gloves nearly well enough. Not a big deal. The goal for tonight will be to take some pictures to make sure the placement is correct. Then I will clean them up and use some superglue to more permanently affix them. In other news, I did get my boots ordered from IB. That leaves my last planned purchase as the belt. I won't order that until I'm done with the torso part of the build so I can get an exact measurement. And, lastly, ATA expects my armor to be finished up tomorrow. My BBB day is rapidly getting closer!

Progress is being made. The 3d printer is setup and working. I think my workspace is well stocked for the build and just needs a little more organizing before it's ready. In exciting news, ATA informed me that my armor is being made this weekend. Since most of my prep work is done, and I've gone through what was a miserable time setting up the 3d printer, I haven't done too much build related until this morning. Right now the E6000 is drying on the flexible guards for me gloves. I also started the mannequin stand early in the week and hope to have that finished and painted today.

After many hours of troubleshooting, I know the problem at least, if not the cause. When I tell the print bed to move to the Home position, it should extend the BLtouch probe and raise the bed until the print bed hits it. Mine is extending and immediately retracting without contact so it thinks the board is already there and then lowers the board to adjust. Not sure if it is a hardware problem with the switch or a software problem though.

I had 3 things related to this build that I wanted to get done this past weekend. 1. Glue backings onto gloves. Status? Gloves got cleaned, that was it. 2. Build and paint PVC mannequin. Status? Got parts, that was it. 3. Assemble 3d printer. Status? Let's just say it's the reason nothing else got done. Ordered an Ender 5 plus and then ordered some upgrades for it that were supposed to be plug and play. Figured I would put the upgrades on as I built it. The build itself was straight forward but I just can't get the darn thing to work. The symptom is that the the base won't get within 2" of the print head as part of the calibration. The problem? I'm hoping that the issue is the firmware on the new control board I installed. I've pretty much ruled out everything else that I could think of. It could be a faulty motherboard because I also couldn't get my PC to connect to it properly. Ah well... at least I have a few weeks to get this resolved before BBB day is here.

Today was another LBB kinda day. Some stuff I ordered from Trooperbay has arrived!

Highly accurate custom fit. For Dizzy Gillespie!

Thanks! A few weeks without the good stuff will give me time to practice my forum skills!

It seems a little early to start a build thread since my armor is still a few weeks out but that doesn't mean things haven't been happening. Besides, starting early will make sure I can figure out how to add pictures and understand the formatting for when everything does get here. The BBB may be a few weeks off but today was officially LBB&E day. As in Little Brown Box and Envelope day. I've actually been ordering supplies for the last 2 weeks and organizing it in a work space. I have a completely empty bedroom I am using for the build so I never have to worry about putting things away and getting them back out again. Hopefully this will make things go easier. I also got my iComm kit and fan cooling kit in! Thank you Ukswrath!

Perfect, thank you!

You are my hero today! I couldn't find the instructions for the magnetic closures on the shins.... then I remembered you put them here. Thanks!

Reviewing the EIB and Centurion request threads has been a tremendous help as I get ready to start my first build. Can't thank you guys enough for making these public and providing such thorough comments along with reference pictures. Incredibly helpful! I do have a question about the shoulder pieces and it isn't addressed in the CRL. I'm not sure I would expect it to be mentioned because it is an "extra" piece that may not be needed. It seems like in some requests I have seen the large block at the end of some armor sets needing to be removed but other times it doesn't seem to get mentioned. Can someone provide clarification please?

Probably still a little premature for a build thread, but I'll share a quick update. Still on the ATA wait list and should be 2 to 3 weeks out before I'm up. I have a completely empty/unused bedroom to use for this build and have set up a 30"x72" table as a work space. This past week I have gotten all the elastic, strapping, and velcro I should need for this build. I have also picked up a bunch of snaps, rivets, tools for both, clamps, new razor and hobby knives, steel rulers, Goo Gone, E6000 adhesive, china markers, and acrylic scissors. That table is filling up fast! Things I have on order: Hellhound: E-11 blaster so hopefully that will be here in a few weeks. UKswrath: Audio system with voice modulator, cooling fan system and TD clips which should get here this week. Trooperbay: Paint and paint brushes, helmet decal templates, holster, gloves and hand guards and a neck seal have also all shipped I believe PilotBay: TD kit (wanted one larger than the ATA 2" kit) Applied Magnets: 20 each of 2 sizes of rare earth magnets. Should be here this week. Thinking I might need more if I do magnetic closure on the calves/shins. Amazon: Airbrush kit - Delivery tomorrow (Yes... I know it isn't needed, but I don't want to use decals and my painting skills are sadly lacking) At this point, the only things left that I know I need to order are the boots which I can order March 5th apparently and a canvas belt but I want the waist measurement from my armor after it is cut and shaped so that will wait. Might also order a garter system... still mulling that one over. All in all, I think I'll be ready to hit the ground running once BBB day arrives.

Perfect. I probably should have asked if airbrushing was considered the same as hand painting or if the brush strokes were necessary.

Great, thank you for the help!

I am gathering tools and supplies for when my ANH Stunt armor kit arrives. I'll be shooting for Centurion. My painting skills aren't exactly the best and I want it to look as good as possible. My question is this. The regular level build requires the tube stripes to be "hand painted, decals, or decals that replicate hand painted". I've seen some photo's of helmets where the tube stripes were airbrushed and they look amazing. Is airbrushing an option for Centurion level? I want to avoid decals. I would assume this is acceptable but I'd rather not make any assumptions. I appreciate any guidance!

After years of making excuses to not join the 501st I've finally decided to take on the challenge. Life long Star Wars fan so mixing that with doing charity work is too much to pass up. I've decided to go with ATA ANH Stunt armor and am on the waiting list now. I've been going through the different guides and am stocking up on all of the recommended supplies and tools that I should need to make everything happen. I'm lucky enough to have an unused bedroom in the house that I will be setting up as a work area. Hoping to have the build done and approved in time for the world to open up again. Huge thank you to everyone that has worked to put all of the guides and links together. Without all this information I wouldn't have the courage to even attempt a build like this!