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Nicky's ANH build [*T/MC]


Nicky

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Why hold the cod piece and ab with elastic? Have you tried plain webbing that gives you no elasticity? This is how I hold my kidney to butt plate, and for my harness. There is no elasticity so it gives you a rigid hold but also flexibility.

 

Ultimately the best thing is to reconnect.

 

I don't know, for peeing breaks? :) I know elastic seems dodgy to the ear but the way i put it the elastic is constantly pulling the piece back so it snaps into place either way, I didn't think webbing straps would give me the same flexibility but when I think about it I realize I don't need elastic so I might as well try webbing today!

 

So I was reading some kind of trooping-only build threads and not tier 1,2,3 approval builds...oh.. well I was very confused then. I thought saving and bookmarking all the guides and tutorial that looked legit would save me trouble.

Edited by Nicky.the.hutt
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Not all TK's cut their cod. Only a vocal few of them that thinks it's the holy grail of trooping comfort. Aside from the accuracy standpoint, you won't be going to the bathroom as often as you'd imagine while trooping. Most of your fluids leave your body as sweat, just like in sports. But also, don't go to the bathroom in armour. It's not very hygienic, and kind of gross. Kids will be playing with your armour, and you don't want pee all over it.

 

It's also partly because of the way you cut your cod that's the problem. Yes, it's a clever solution, but the angled cuts show up a lot more than just a straight horizontal cut across the cod would have, which is easily hidden by the belt.

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Yeah haha I understand but I was merely kidding. And my sweat does smell like pee! :P

 

I think the mold itself is sized so that this cod mod isn't leaving much margin. I see too much of the cod with the belt slightly higher, and too little when it's lower. Many times I felt like this armor was made just for my size but not for anyone shorter or taller than me.

 

Split cod is not the holy grail to me either, it just feels better than without, and right now I've got it. I tested just by taping the ab piece around my body tight before cutting the cod piece, I could walk but you know. A bunch of things happen. But this isn't a debate to me, I know what I'm asked, and I'm considerng my options.

 

One of them is buying another ab plate of the same ABS, that would fix at least three issues and add a money issue. I could have the belt right on top of the buttons if anyone asked and not do anything to the cod piece, and be able to swap for when I feel like sitting down or dancing a lot :)

Edited by Nicky.the.hutt
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I think the best way is to align it back to it's original position, and glue cover strips on the inside across the cut line like you do in the arms and legs and then fill the cut with silicone.

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Alright, I'll think about it :) But now I'm in France with limited hardware and off to North America tomorrow so I won't have the tools to make big fixes and have photos done until after the CVI in Florida. We'll look at it in 4 weeks when I'm back home!

Edited by Nicky.the.hutt
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Happy update! Diana (TK5027, FG) and I started testing our costumes in North America, in downtown Montreal just walking around unannounced taken in photo by friends and people walking by. One of our friends tried to imitate a certain rebel princess looks despite a lack of black danish raisin bun hair ^^.

 

People and kids in the streets were very open and cheerful when seeing our costumes and wanted to pose with us, take pics, joke around. Very nice attitude here! Except one guy who knocked on my sister's helmet and ran away, I hear this is common. But overall a very cool experience with crowds, a rare occasion to have pics of both me and sis as troopers (we live in separate countries) and it was free :) And last but not least: there was a cool breeze.

 

 

Later we went to the Star Wars Identities exhibit, visitors may not have helmets within the center so it couldn't work for us. But during this unofficial trooping we did some shots with our swedish friends living in Montreal. So the next step will be CVI Florida where I hope to meet lots of the people who helped and inspired me!

 

Cool shot of my sister (left), our prisoner rebel friend Cecilia (middle) and me (right):

DSC_4573_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/lqcnj1t2n/

 

We are guided down the stairs because we have special needs xD

DSC_4598_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/o2tu84kfj/

 

Me (left), Diana (right) who got my back as she doesn't trust my stairs survival skills.

DSC_4621_smell.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/gviykrur3/

 

Same place, me (left), sis (right)

DSC_4648_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/ymukz8a5r/

 

Nicky (left), Diana (right)

DSC_4641_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/jv3nd48dr/

 

 

Avenue Maisonneuve I think, me(left), Diana (right)

DSC_4662_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/x92y3xawf/

 

Cecilia, me, Diana (left to right)

DSC_4697_small.jpg

http://postimage.org/image/ut14q2str/

 

Updates and fixes with the costume: glued the shoulder bridges (they are awesome now, thanks for the advice!), added the white Aker amp to the right side of the belt, and tested the fan. I haven't figured how to quickly hide the mike cable yet, I have to pull on it at a certain point after which I can't see with the helmet on if it's properly stuffed behind an armor piece.

 

I hope you enjoy the pics and update!

Edited by Nicky.the.hutt
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Yeah, I know it stings. TSA/FAA allows weapon replicas to pass through check in but I have to side with people who feel discomfort when someone unannounced swings a gun toy around. And we don't need the blaster to look tough we boss people around through the voice amp ;)

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  • 5 weeks later...

Like it says on my sig, TK 54321. Since today!

 

 

What I've done in addition to the stuff above:

-Glue the shoulder bridges

-Improve the strapping around the trunk

-Paint the ear screws (lol ear scr...uhum.)

-Tried webbing straps for the cod piece, switched back to elastic and fastened with duct tape.

 

I happily trooped 30+ hours at CVI in Florida, volunteered or helped many times at 501st booths and Shoot-a-trooper (you don't know about sweat drowning until you've done 2h at shoot-a-trooper), marched with fellow troopers, hung out with cool costumers, played around with kids. The armor is rrrreally comfortable :) I found out I could kneel, sit down, run (the white armor panel :) ) in it quite easily. Had trooping been a job well I must say I love my new job. :smiley-sw013:

 

I met so many 501st members from all around the globe, great, fun, nice people! Received plenty of armor tips and feedback from FISD members and staff, it's such a great opportunity to see so many armors and have yours checked out IRL. If you want to test drive your armor, CVI is really the place! You guys all seem to love newbies :)

 

Let's light this post up with photos from CVI where I appear (look for the "Matt Dillon brow" trooper):

265337_10152107911565226_1458313005_o.jpg 271537_10152107919050226_1346858145_o.jpg 293157_10151029088338870_2068961641_n.jpg 322190_10152107910755226_1774211212_o.jpg 202734_10152104187105226_336864405_o_1.jpg 418716_10151029084163870_1293818216_n.jpg 574641_10151029084243870_611255384_n.jpg 265459_10151038017753870_1659180892_o.jpg

 

Takes about a month to hunt down all your CVI photos around the net :)

 

 

 

Next to-do:

-Hasbro conversion, got all the parts waiting.

-Split rivets on ab/kidney plate for accuracy. (Thanks Tom!)

-Lose my tummy and add tabs to reduce the side gap to less than 1 inch (goodbye pancake tummy).

-Attach icomm unit that's being delivered soon, inside the chest plate.

 

Excitement to improve improve improve!

Edited by Nicky
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Is the full resin kit potentially much better looking and EIB-able?

 

I don't intend on spending thousands on a real steel de-armed or smuggle a metal replica haha... but the plan was having a cheap hasbro for a first one as I happened to be at Disneyland, and then a full kit for accuracy and gear love.

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Ahh! Well good then, the plan was two kits, I'll make the second one a full kit. (to lend out to visiting troopers taking the plane without their piece)

 

I can't see the difference yet on photos :P

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That'd be a great solution yes!

 

Hey Nicky, as for amp - put it in your chest and you can tuck the wire under your armpit from behind and into your chest.

Ah! That's good thinking, after awhile trooping I had too many cable showing failures it just makes me angry haha

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What the hell is this trigger. And where's the bolt lever. Ok, that was easy to sort out :)

 

UK is kinda slow so we'll see when the full kit shows up, I was in back order for awhile. I'll have to troop in Helsingborg with the Hasbro.

 

I have to ask since you're swedish, what would you call, in shopping swedish, the primer paint and "gun metal" lookish that is most suitable? And maybe specific label names wouldn't hurt :)

Edited by Nicky
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Alrighty, after 3 hours work on the hasbro:

-Standard prep

-Installed a 19mm wide rail

-Moved the LED to the back

-Modded the front sight

-Modded the hengstler counter

-Quick epoxy on the doopydoo parts.

-Forgot the cylinders.

 

DSC00768.jpg DSC00769.jpg DSC00770.jpg DSC00772.jpg DSC00774.jpg DSC00778.jpg DSC00779.jpg DSC00784.jpg

 

 

Let's not derail the ANH TK build topic, here's the thread with the rest of the blaster story :)http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=21245

Edited by Nicky
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  • 1 month later...
Now check it out, I painted with enamel paint, humbrol. And although I did use masking tape, I didn't use T/MC's enclosed masking lines for the teeth, that was probably a mistake, or it was just a mistake to use that kind of paint and expect it not to leak around.

 

See my nice surprise after letting it dry for 3 days:

 

Just a footnote regarding the before-mentioned minor crisis: It is always a good idea to remove masking as soon as possible...especially with slow drying paints. The reason for this is because capillary action will draw the paint under the tape. That is also why they make painter's tape. Normal masking tape is prone to doing that.

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