Lenses for ANH Hero costume

[MariaB]

I am confused as to whether the Hero costume can have a flat lens or needs bubble lenses? I am also wondering how anyone has made or bought the flat lens?

 

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

1 hour ago, MariaB said:

I am confused as to whether the Hero costume can have a flat lens or needs bubble lenses? I am also wondering how anyone has made or bought the flat lens?

 

 

Hi Maria, Welcome to FISD.

 

According to the CRL for ANH HERO TK, for basic level you can use flat or bubble lenses., for higher levels, of course, we would like you to aim for higher level of certification 

 

 

CRL BAsic Level

• Lenses may be flat or bubble, green or smoke, sufficiently dark enough to obscure the costumer's eyes.

 

 

CRL EIB AND CENTURION LEVEL 

 

• Lenses are green bubble or smoke bubble only.

 

 

When you buy a kit (for helmet only or complete armor), the armorer usually include the lenses .  Another option I have used is to buy an acrylic sheet and trim to give the shape for the lenses.

 

https://www.trooperbay.com/collections/lens-material

 

or buy the bubble lenses

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/144455574816?hash=item21a2392520:g:EsoAAOSwjjpbGBy-

 

 

Bellow a couple of methods for mounting lenses

 

 

 

 

good luck with your project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Note although accurate the bubble lenses are very hard to see out of, I have only two small areas I can look through with my hero bubble lenses the rest is just distorted.

 

Also note there are other differences between the Hero and Stunt versions, great comparison sheet here so make sure you check those out  

[DohF4[TK]]

On 6/13/2022 at 4:44 PM, gmrhodes13 said:

Note although accurate the bubble lenses are very hard to see out of, I have only two small areas I can look through with my hero bubble lenses the rest is just distorted. [..]

As I am finishing my armor (I am super excited; I will post pictures in the Pre-Approval thread hopefully soon) I am also wondering if there are ways to improve vision with the bubble lenses?

Has anybody tried to play around with attaching lenses/glasses on the inside to neutralize the distortion caused by the bubble lenses? It would be nice to see things. 

 

The more I finish my armor and wear it the more I appreciate the actors and stuntmen in the movies who wore them.

Edited August 23, 2025 by DohF4

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

49 minutes ago, DohF4 said:

As I am finishing my armor (I am super excited; I will post pictures in the Pre-Approval thread hopefully soon) I am also wondering if there are ways to improve vision with the bubble lenses?

Has anybody tried to play around with attaching lenses/glasses on the inside to neutralize the distortion caused by the bubble lenses? It would be nice to see things. 

 

The more I finish my armor and wear it the more I appreciate the actors and stuntmen in the movies who wore them.

Firstly bubble lenses are only required for ANH Hero or ROTJ 

 

I don't recall anyone attaching lenses/glasses to help vision, not much room in there. 

 

Some information

"I do seem to remember Troopermaster TM selling bubble lenses that were flatter at the point directly in front of the eye so there is less distortion."

 

 

 

 

 

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

6 hours ago, DohF4 said:

As I am finishing my armor (I am super excited; I will post pictures in the Pre-Approval thread hopefully soon).  GREAT news, Dorian!  Looking forward to seeing your armor. 

 

I am also wondering if there are ways to improve vision with the bubble lenses?  None that I have ever heard of, sad to say.  

 

Has anybody tried to play around with attaching lenses/glasses on the inside to neutralize the distortion caused by the bubble lenses?   I believe the issue is caused when the plastic (usually polycarbonate) is heat bent.  The center of the lens stays "fairly" clear but the outside gets distorted, so it's just the nature of the plastic.  Unfortunately since there are just 2 costumes that require this type of lens little (or no) research has been done that I am aware of.  I suppose it could be accomplished, but it would probably be cost prohibitive.   Our field of vision is bad enough with a bucket on, so I had to change the lenses in my Hero back to flat ones once I reached Centurion (sshhhh) just so I could see clearly.

 

The more I finish my armor and wear it the more I appreciate the actors and stuntmen in the movies who wore them.  Yeah, it's definitely not built for comfort, lol, but it still looks cool!