Mobus

I just went to the hardware store and bought wall plate cover screws like those used for a wall outlet or switch plate. They sell them in white and the paint seems to be really durable.

I will be there and also my son Ian both in TK. He's not signed up on here yet, but he is a 501st member.

So is the armor actually made from ABS? I was under the impression that it was made out of that weird hard vinyl stuff that Rubies makes their helmets out of. If it is ABS it makes it totally modifiable, just cut and re-glue to fit like buying any other used armor.

I bought my armor from 333trip on ebay last year and I am very happy with it. I don't know the lineage of the armor, but I will say he does a pretty good job and it is thick and durable stuff.

Man I just saw this. Mark I'm glad to hear you're on the mend. My family's prayers are with you for a speedy recovery. Get well soon! Mark

Those are for sure Disney armor. My wife and I are marching every day of every weekend and see them back stage and also all over the park and at the celebrity interview pre-show. When I inquired I was told they are fiberglass and are designed with adjustable straps to "fit" them to the wearer. Basically a one size fits all armor, Disney however only "casts" appropriately sized individuals (cast members) based on role. That being said the thighs are so big that when they sign autographs they stick their E-11's into their thighs along side their legs. Those are some thin troopers!

Agreed. Have you worked out pigment inconsistencies from can to can of the same brand yet? That is still my biggest irritant.

Gloss fusion is glossy if you know what you're doing. You put two good coats of fusion on, let them cure for 3-7 days. Then you wet sand the finish with 1500 grit, it should be perfectly smooth with a matte appearance. Then you buff it out with polishing compound. You will see yourself in the finish it will be that glossy. After 30 days apply a high quality, clearcoat safe (i.e. non stripping) wax. You're good to go. It's nice to have body shop professionals in the family to get tips and secrets from...

I just used this HowTo thread for direction (thanks Steve!) http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=3176

Jackson 34-42 .040 shield. It's gas welders shield in a medium green. It's never shown through with flash even at close range. It's thin enough to cut with a good pair of scissors, but sturdy enough not to crack or crease. It's what I put into my MR-CE, and my wife's TIE bucket. Any welding supply house should have it, should only run about $15 for a full shield that will yield a few pairs of lenses. It has a crimped aluminum edge guard/stiffener all around the shield that you just pull off. Mark

Thank you all for the kind words. This site and all the great people on here sharing their ideas is why it turned out the way it did. Mark

Well, around a month ago I got one of these MR-CE's and got right to work on it. It's finally done and I'm pleased with the results. It was a full top to bottom re-paint. The frown seam was filled with plastic welder and sanded level. The whole front faceplate is basically one piece of plastic now. The mold lines were all sanded off. Teeth were enlarged greatly over stock. Ears were chopped to make them closer to the helmet. New brow and neck trim. New dark green lenses. And I can't leave out the great decals from Mark, they really set off the whole deal. Thanks go out to everyone that posted the great build up pictures and howto's on here On the left is an untouched CE, and on the right is the modded bucket without the trap / tear decals. Pictures of the completed bucket.

I was just thinking that one could probably do all of the cuts except the small wipers with a good sharp pair of Fiskars. If you hold the trim just right you can line it up against the wide part of one of the scissor blades and then slowly cut. It should cut directly against the side of the rubber because it's using the scissor blade pressed against the rubber as a straight edge. Then the cut down the middle where it's marked out by tape would just be a simple cut along the line. The cut to remove the scrap piece from the flat part would work the same as for the side pieces, just butt the flat part of the rubber against the wide part of the scissor blade and cut slowly. It should make a clean cut. I'll have to experiment with this, but it will have to wait until next week. I'll add updated pics if it works. Mark

If you have any high spots left on the back, carefully use the sanding drum to make it level. Take your time and be careful not to take off too much material. After you're all done you should end up with a nice 'J' shaped brow trim. The MR is on the right, and mine is on the left. The rounded part of the J gets tucked up under the dome and on mine is held in place with just the pressure from the dome against it. I found it goes in easier if the ears are off, but it can go on with them attached. The trick is in how you squeeze the dome. Compressing the left and right sides opens up the brow to insert the rubber, and compressing the front and back opens up the sides allowing the rubber in. Since I only have 2 hands I used my knees to squeeze the dome. The end result. I hope this info has been helpful.

OK, so from reading around I'm not the only one that ripped the brow trim trying to remove it from my MR-CE helmet. I was able to use an item available at most any Lowe's or Home Depot. "Door Bottom" trim. I beleive this item is around $12. This is the label on the packaging. It is a long piece of aluminum with the rubber trim packaged along with it. The rubber seal is all we will be dealing with for this. It looks like this. (mine has some paint overspray on it, otherwise it is totally black). Place some tape on the flat side to protect the trim from scratches. You're probably wondering how this is going to work at this point, read on. You will need to cut off the protruding rubber on both sides like this. Take your time using a very sharp knife and just run along the edge of the rubber. You should end up with a 'D' shaped seal like this. Next, trim off all the little wipers from the rounded portion of the rubber. Again, take your time. It is not necessary to make the cut extremely close in this step. It should now look like this. It has some left over bumps from the wipers. Use a dremel with a sanding drum to smooth out the bumps left over from trimming the wipers off. Keep the dremel moving around so as not to remove too much. You only want to level out the back rounded portion of the trim. After using the dremel I used some 100 grit sandpaper just to make the surface uniform. It is completely smooth only with a matte surface. Now line up whats left of your original brow trim with the new trim and use tape to mark out the new trim. You will need to carefully cut along this line so as not to cut through the front of the trim. Next you will need to cut the scrap piece off the back of the flat portion of the trim like this. I like using the edge of a workbench and slowly working my way across the trim almost like opening a letter. Cut carefully because this will be the top edge of the brow trim.