Peregrinus

I've been at the extreme far right of that scale since somewhere in the late '80s-early'90s. Of course, what is my ideal or impression of the Stormtrooper as icon... probably won't be everybody's ideal. My philosophy has always been "more accurate than the film version", no matter the genre. Basically, making the "real" item the prop was a quick-and-dirty representation of. Of course, my Stormtrooper armour won't be made of plastoid composite, but you know what I mean. --Jonah

From where I'm standing, there are several things abou tthe currently accepted costume standards that need revising, but as with most things of this nature, there's a difference between passing an updated standard and enforcing it. The intervening time is spent educating the public (as we're doing here and on other Detachment boards). Part of the reason it took me five years to get my initial 501st costume done is that I didn't want to waste time and money on a "passable" costume that I'd end up either discarding once I got the one I wanted, or discarding once I upgraded to a higher-quality version of what I had. I'd rather wait twice as long and get a TE2 than get an FX sooner. This is not a hobby for the impatient, and I'm more than willing to delay gratification if it means I am able to do the best damn costume I can when I'm all done. --Jonah

I find it rather -worthy. Stormtroopers are shock troopers. Creating another level of double-dog-shocktroopers is just silly. --Jonah

Like wearing a bullet-proof vest. It may stop the bullet from perforating your thorax, but it still has all its energy. So no collapsed lung, but it's still a lot like getting hit in the chest with a Buick. Yer gonna be smartin'. As for it being called an energy sink... A lot of people misuse the term "sink" in that context. I think what they mean is dissipater or disperser. A "sink" is an attractant, and I've never seen Stormtroopers having blaster bolts arc toward their hip joints. Unless they mean they somehow magically pull the energy from a blaster bolt through the material of the armour after impact. I still prefer some other function for those things. --Jonah

You're not 501st until your armour's done, right? Hm... Send an e-mail to Cris Knight, the Garrison CO. He should at least be able to tell you what's going on. --Jonah

Holla at the SoCal Garrison. --Jonah

Well, yes, but the "A" and "B" make for a completely different molecular structure than straight polystyrene or even HIPS (although added "B" helps with the "HI" part), hence this thread. --Jonah

I would like to add----------- so there's a bit more weight to it than just my opinion. Basic styrene isn't as resilient as ABS. HIPS is better. Especially stuff that has the rubberizing compound mixed in. The numbers are on that site. --Jonah

Also, there's HIPS, and then there's HIPS. *heh* For a bit more one can order HIPS extruded sheet that's had a rubberizing compound added to the initial bead mix, and ends up with impact resistance comparable to ABS. I prefer the sharper detail and lighter unit weight (HIPS is inherently lighter than ABS), and I'll take my chances with damage. --Jonah

Home Depot recently stopped carrying it. I asked. I prefer going to Ace anyway. Closer, friendlier, and better paint selection. As for the painting question... A very fine-grit sandpaper or sanding film would be a good idea, after youve masked off the area to be painted, so you don't mar the white finish. Anything above 600 should be okay. You just want to give the paint more of a substrate to adhere to. Even a plastic-bonding paint will have a hard time sticking ot a polished surface. The other thing about Krylon and RustOleum's plastic-bonding paints is that they are self-priming. For the chin grille, you could just do a couple coats of gloss black. The ears would take a couple more steps, since the right shades of grey aren't available as plastic-bonding paints. I'd recommend Fusion in flat white as a first coat for the ear details, before painting them your chosen grey. And be sure to finish them with a clear gloss sealer. --Jonah

Sorry, was responding to kiyotei's painting of his helmet. I saw t test-assembled the day before, and know how eager he is to have a finished suit. Your overspray is an unfortunate event, but not unrecoverable. --Jonah

Woot! Nice feeling isn't it? --Jonah

I will add to that to say the extras cast for that movie were about 5'10" and about an inch or so either way. So as long as you get one of the accurate builds, you ought to be able to get it fitted correctly. --Jonah

That's basic Testors flat Gray -- or more precisely what they call internally "Battle Gray". It's probably the closest Testors colour fit, although there are a few right around there. --Jonah

That first one, of the gun crews, is so important. --Jonah

That's what we're shooting for. The route doesn't matter, but having more options always helps. --Jonah

I think the "liederhosen" approach works best. A good harness system wide on the shoulders, attached securely to the abs, kidney, cod, and butt plates. The best connection I think would be at the inside and outside of the thighs, hidden by the cod/butt and hang boxes (obviously need to rethink for TD). Velcro down at the bottom of the thighs will help keep them in position. --Jonah

Careful application of paint thinner to the outer areas. Clean with lots of soap and water. Touch up inner and outer paint as necessary. And remember to mask EVERYthing when spraying. --Jonah

The acrylic works better in airbrushes than the enamel. Guards Red is available as both, so be careful. As for not being a modeller... Well... Nobody's perfect. --Jonah

I'll agree there. Having a model shop handy is a good thing, but in a lot of places they're hard to come by. An airbrush and full range of Tamiya, Testors, Badger, et cetera, paints are ideal. Control of both colour and application is to be desired. I was quite giggly when I discovered Testors' Guards Red is indeed the perfect shade for my Royal Guard bucket. *heh* Suited my sense of irony. There may even be a Stormtrooper Grey out there. --Jonah

Ew. I try my local first, Ace these days since the indie closed down. After that, I try the Home Despot, but they've recently narrowed their paint range. Lowe's is a last-ditch for me. Ace has a much wider available range, between Hammerite, RustOleum, Krylon, and Ace, among others. --Jonah

Hell of a continuity gaffe, though. Isn't there someone on set assigned ot make sure these things are right? Shouldn't he have been bumped ot the back of the shot in favour of another trooper with stripes? But they gave him lines in ANH. Foreground focus. No one noticed this while setting up the shot? --Jonah

Where are you looking, Apone? I don't know if the Stormtrooper and Scout Trooper use the same grey, but for Jen's Scout it was recommended I use Ace's store brand of Machinery Gray. Which works nicely. I don't know who makes Hardhat Gray, but Ace is a great place to find paints. --Jonah

There are a lot of pics out there of Han and Luke with their buckets off. The height of the seal is quite clear. Same height all the way around, snug to the corner of your jaw. Any higher would be awkward. --Jonah

I don't think the same stripe-less guy could have been present for each of those altercations. One was blasting at Han, for example, whilst another was blasting at Luke and Leia. So the same realworld prop was being used to depict different troopers in different situations, just like the "Look, sir, droids" guy is also at the Mos Eisley checkpoint with different kit. I'm almost tempted to do ten or eleven on one side and none on the other, just to shake things up, but with no screen evidence of such, that stays in the idea bin. --Jonah