dcarty

Precisely, comparisons to Nth generation fan copies is a bad place to start.

It is a little wonky and, in comparison with my RS, it is certainly distorted but it is not without precedence. If you look at my RS from a certain angle you see a similar kink:

Just for the heck of it some shots of the Anovos next to my RS HDPE Stunt Dave

Mine just arrived too! No notification that it had shipped just a pleasant surprise knock at the door :-)

I got that update in my email as well. Interesting news about the molds as well as the replacement program. Nice to see that things are still on schedule. Fingers on one hand crossed that they remain on schedule. Fingers on the other hand crossed that I am one of the two "David C's" picked to get free shipping!

Ordered one

Been a while since I posted, lol. I couldn't resist the price either and ordered a kit on payday. I was fortunate enough to be part of the team that built the TFA Armor for one of the 501st members here in Colorado. Based on that experience I had no hesitation in ordering and can't wait until "Christmas" either! Oddly, after all these years, this will be my first full set of armor and I'm glad I'm finally able to take the plunge that I've dreamed of since 1977. At some point I really want a set of RS Props armor but this will get me rolling

I concur with Evilboy. From what I can see in the pics you've posted I would be thinking $450-$500. Do you know where he got it? To my eye that looks a lot like one of the Sterlings sold by Unique Canes but the Unique Canes Sterlings were really slopped together. Do you have any pics from the ejector port side?

efx hasn't updated their site evidently. It was in one of their product update emails earlier this year. I've tried to find the copy they sent me but it looks like I deleted it. I think they haven't made a firm decision yet but the email said that they were switching to fiberglass which raised more than a bit of an uproar causing them to back-pedal a bit saying that they were evaluating materials. There are lengthy threads about the subject at both rebelscum and the rpf. They're also doing their Biker Scout helmet in fiberglass. If they do switch back to ABS I would re-examine my stance but would probably pass based on my experience with the Vader helmet. Quoted from Gino, who is their artistic director, from both threads: "As you know, the only criteria for an EFX product to quality for Legend Edition status are that it must be primarily created by either : 1. directly molding a screen-used/production made original or... 2. utilizing original production molds from the LFL archives or ... 3. a combination of the two. When it comes to finishing a Legend piece, prop accuracy will not always necessarily extend into areas that you cannot see from a display standpoint, such as the interiors of the pieces, (like for example under the dome or inside the face mask of the Vader helmet). It also may not always apply to the original materials of the screen-used piece. Every situation is unique and evaluated on a case by case basis. Some of these aspects are mass-production prohibitive and some are just not practical when taking into consideration the product's durability, consistency from item to item, or any miscellaneous aspect that we feel would be counter productive to providing what we consider a quality collectible that would satisfy the greatest number of our customer's expectations. We try to find the right balance of complete accuracy and what makes strategic sense all things considered (and there are a lot more things to consider in mass production vs when we are making a prop for ourselves out of our garage). Our goal is to as much as practically possible, create the visual appearance of screen accuracy when viewing the item from the outside (ie when being displayed). For those unaware, the original Scout Trooper helmets were vac formed in 6 pieces, fit together like a puzzle, and then painted white. At this point in time, out plan is to make the Scout Trooper in fiberglass. Reason being that several of the the Scout Trooper helmet pieces were created in vac formed halves that were glued together with scrap strips of ABS and hidden with body filler spread on top of the seams then sanded down to a flat finish, then painted. These seams were very fragile and would not hold up to general consumer handling over a period of time (you can even see the seam line broken though on the originals). For the Scout Trooper molding masters, we had to form, assemble and finish a helmet in ABS just like the originals so that it could be molded for fiberglass production. This way it would still have the proper look of an ABS formed helmet...but in fiberglass. I can say first hand that creating the helmet in the same manner of the originals in ABS was EXTREMELY laborious and time consuming. Upon making the master, it was immediately apparent there was a total lack of confidence in a factory performing this task with a high level of quality, with any sort of consistency, and in anything approaching a timely manner (ie time spent working on each unit). Switching from ABS to fiberglass for this item was for certain the only way to go. For the Hero Trooper helmet, we are in the process of evaluating what is achievable in a factory setting in terms of quality/consistency with making them in vac formed ABS. If we find that we cannot guarantee consistent parts (ie, some being sharper/softer than others or trimmed/assembled differently than what we consider ideal) then we would opt for doing them in fiberglass. At least that way, we could guarantee that each item would be representative of our original vision of how the product should look vs. some product turning out better than others. It could end up being a quality control nightmare that we would like to avoid. We realize that there is a small percentage of our customers who are the hard core prop guys (like myself ) who would be disappointed in a materials change, but there are also a larger percentage of those who would actually prefer a fiberglass version that still retains the complete look of the originals via being cast from original - Legend."

I do not doubt that efx has access to the props and molds that they have publicized. What I do doubt is their advertising copy claims that the end product we will hold in our hands will not be substantially altered from the original they are copying. I hate to be a wet blanket but I own one of their "Legend" Edition Vader helmets and while I am certainly happy to have snagged one it is not the be-all and end-all of Vader helmets that I had hoped for and that their advertising copy would have us believe it was going to be. It is unquestionably the finest licensed Darth Vader helmet that has been released and it's lineage is certainly without question making it a great "collectable". But, in my opinion, it still falls short because it has had much more than the minimal clean-up that was promised as well as suffering from minor issues of geometrical distortion. I think when compared with available fan-produced castings the efx Vader is really just another option rather than being "the" helmet to have. The "Legend" title is just marketing hype. efx has already stated that their Hero Trooper helmet replica is going to be made in fiberglass not ABS. While I completely comprehend the decision from a business standpoint (perceived value vs price tag and all that) their decision to alter the original materials means that I won't be buying one. How much clean-up will be done to it in addition to that remains to be seen (though I do not expect them to go all "MR" on it). As far as efx making a stunt helmet goes, folks, we have RS Props making the helmet of any serious trooper fans dreams. We need look no further.

Excellent thread--I've added my request to them as well.

Here is a shout out of thanks to Joey "vecspeed12" for our transaction on the ABS Hero helmet! You could not ask for better service. He is a true gentleman and an asset to the board. Thanks man! Dave

Interesting, I'm looking forward to your build! It looks like there is a least some teardrop detail in your helmet. I was under the impression that Gino was going to remove that detail from the helmets he sold which is why I decided to pass. Maybe he just softened it a bit instead of removing it? Cheers, Dave