troopermaster

Shawn, I'm pretty sure they didn't used these brads on ROTJ armour, just regular pop rivets. Just an FYI

The rivets used for the helmet are totally different to the kind used for the belt. Another kind was used on the armour too. Care to tell what they are Vern?

Looking good there, Jim I especially like this shot. I love it when you can hardly see any black showing between the armour parts.

This is the best ROTJ replica helmet I have seen so far! Well done Great job on the decals. If the frown was a bit thicker it would be perfect.

My ABS shoulder straps are flexible The Centurion standards need to be changed if that's what they state. The idea (as I understand it) is to have a replica of a screen used suit (or as close as). With that in mind, you need to have the ABS straps velcro'd to both your chest and back plates.

ROTJ shoulder straps are vacuum formed ABS. The flexible rubber type shoulder straps are found on tour suits or any suits made after ROTJ.

Only the armour is a Sandtrooper. The helmet is a Stormtrooper and here it is before the paint was removed. And to prove this is the same suit as Simon's, check out the hand plates (taken froma pic I am not sure is allowed to be posted?). There are other tells too.

I'm glad you like it Jason Just so you guys know, this armour is made from a new glossy 1mm ABS and definately does not need painting. It is just as flexible as the old ABS I was using but it is glossy and brighter in appearance.

I prefer Humbrol #48 Mediterraniean Blue for the tube stripes, but sometimes use #14 french Blue as well. I don't use #15 Midnight Blue anymore.

Looking reall good so far! Good to see you are not going ballistic with the paint chips

Simon told me personally that the armour was to be cast from the outside, same as the helmet. Hopefully that will not be the case and he does cast everything from the inside. That will not be easy to do seeing how most of the torso brackets are riveted to the pieces. No matter what they do, I think there will be some work needed to be done to moulds in order to make them into vac form bucks (or ruin the original strapping stripping the pieces down) Joe, You know for a fact that Mark has had to do work on these 'Cast From Oakley' moulds. He has been quite open about the fact whether you like it or not. I have shown proof that the majority of the CFO parts don't match the suit it was cast from. That is why I can say with confidence what I said above. But that is not the subject matter here, Simon's suit is.

If you think the CFO is untampered then think again. I would wait and see what this new kit from Simon will look like first before making these kind of comments (I know you don't mean any harm). Especially if they are casting it from the outside and forming over those moulds, just like CFO, and I don't see any show-off threads anywhere. This is not the way to make an accurate replica as you know. Remember that these guys bringing you this ANH stuff have no love for Stormtroopers and no knowledge. It is purely business for them, nothing else. I can see that unless they listen to what people want then this whole project will be a complete flop (like another I can think of). I hope I am proved wrong.

Almost, Karin Seriously, they are the same hand plates I have been using for a long time now, just trimmed differently. Latex ones will be available again shortly Looking good, Varg You'll have to get some clearer shots showing all those lovely details of the suit and the new ABS

Short, just like Noel's.

The first pic in your link looks like an AP with the exaggerated stye, and in the second one the helmet looks like some kind of FX.

WOW!!! Looking fantastic I have to get one of those shocktrooper uniforms one day. Those were always my favourites back when 'V' was on the telly in the 80's.

The armour in the link is a GF and the photo belongs to KL. I remember visiting his site many times back in the day checking out his GF kit.

I think if you are a 32" waist then the side gap will disappear once you fasten your belt. I'm a 34" waist and don't have a gap

1. Side gap is fine in my opinion. I wouldn't waste your time shimming it when it looks perfectly good as it is. Keep the elastic straps and don't use webbing. Your armour will be much more comfortable using elastic and it's accurate too 2. Button plate could do with trimming down a bit. You want to the see the 'fork' or 'prongs' at the bottom edge, so I would trim a bit off all the edges so you can see the raised block the plate attaches to. Centre button plate looks fine

And your cod strap is probably too tight as well. The armour should be loose fitting, so don't try to tighten your belt too much either.

Looking very nice there Dennis I like how you have a nice taper to the shins and the belt is in the correct position now. The canvas belt doesn't want to sit just above the butt/kidney joint as most people try to do, but slightly higher as yours is now. Good job!

I am talking about an FISD award for a screen accurate suit. I think you are missing the point here. I was thinking of an award for people to aim for by building their armour 100% as the screen used armour. I realise this is not for the majority of people on here so they can be happy with their EIB if they choose to aim for it. Maybe I am wasting my time again......

This program is an excellent idea Paul, but I personally think that you could have another where only screen accuracy is allowed. There are a lot more people out there nowadays that are striving for prop forgery, so maybe it might be a good idea to have another award strictly for the FISD and not specifically the 501st. There are some things in the 501st EIB requirements that are not screen accurate and therefore go against what we are trying to achieve. Things like the side gaps, no holsters or tube stripes that you have mentioned are all seen on screen and there is no denying they are screen accurate, yet the 501st doesn't allow it. I realise that this forum ultimately is a 501st board and the Centurian program is aimed at taking your costume to another level which is great, but for the guys who want to go beyond this I think it might be a good idea to have another award for them to aim for. Just a thought

Well I would try them for that price. I haven't got around to actually buying any brads yet but I do know that when you are looking for certain materials or hardware, you need to be preparred to try several brands. These things don't just fall into your lap

Excellent job on the assembly Dennis It looks like you didn't have to go ith the shims after all. Eveything looks to fit you just fine, but I would just like to point a few details that could be more accurate for the sake of anyone who tries to copy your build. 1. Snaps inside the canvas belt should be central. 2. Pop rivets to fix the holster to the canvas belt. 3. Pop rivets to hold holster straps. 4. 02 canister brackets are screwed on with same screws for strapping brackets. 5. Ear caps should be trimmed down more and cut off at the bottom. You seem to have left the 'flashing' in place same as Dan did.(Note to self: I really need to start adding trim lines ) These are just very minor issues but they are the correct way to do it.