ANH TK Stunt - My first suit!

[Scout_Troop3R]

I got the last screw and rivet in for the right ear and it looks great with only a small thing or two to be fixed, mostly just that gap by the ear, which will be easy to mend.





Tomorrow I'll see about getting the left ear and the visor done, then all the basics will be ready for Comic-Con and I can spend the last two days on the extras. (Audio, padding, etc.) 

Painting will come later when I actually get my paints in the mail.

Edited September 3, 2024 by Scout_Troop3R

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

3 minutes ago, Scout_Troop3R said:

I got the last screw and rivet in for the right ear and it looks great with only a small thing or two to be fixed, mostly just that gap by the ear, which will be easy to mend.

Reducing that gap will be difficult with what you have, but worth a try. I would trim the top of the ear first and see how that looks. It may also have to come down on the sides a little, elongating the ear holes is not a problem if you need to.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

 A few references of ear gaps

 

[Scout_Troop3R]

12 minutes ago, gmrhodes13 said:

Reducing that gap will be difficult with what you have, but worth a try. I would trim the top of the ear first and see how that looks. It may also have to come down on the sides a little, elongating the ear holes is not a problem if you need to.

I was just planning to cut a piece to fit that gap and ABS paste it on but trimming and then doing that (if I need to) is probably a better idea lol.

I don't mind having the little gaps, it's just that big one which bothers me.

Edited September 3, 2024 by Scout_Troop3R

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

44 minutes ago, Scout_Troop3R said:

I was just planning to cut a piece to fit that gap and ABS paste it on but trimming and then doing that (if I need to) is probably a better idea lol.

I don't mind having the little gaps, it's just that which bothers me.

Really depends how it would look after you filled and sanded. ABS paste can take some time to look just right, many layers of sanding and polishing, only apply thin coasts as air bubbles can form if too thick. The other issue with ABS paste is the color can change once it is sanded and you may need to touch up with paint.

 

Personally I would try to trim the ear a little more, it is a time consuming job and many find the ears the worst of their builds.

 

At the end of the day it is entirely up to your GML (garrison membership liaison) as to what they will accept for base approval, you can check with them 

[Scout_Troop3R]

I did some trimming and I think it helped but I'm not sure.

For tonight it's good enough.

[Scout_Troop3R]

Just now, Scout_Troop3R said:

I did some trimming and I think it helped but I'm not sure.

For tonight it's good enough.

looking at these now I see where I need to trim more
trim trim trim

[Nairy[Staff]]

These things are also what creates character between troopers! I doubt that a GML wouldn't clear you, but at the end of the day - you should be happy with it!  

[Scout_Troop3R]

I got the left ear installed in record time with zero problems, good day!

I also got the visor finally installed, no more tape, better day!
And man is this awesome.







Aside from painting and fixing the right ear piece all that's left is installing padding, electronics, and the s-type neck trim.

Edited September 4, 2024 by Scout_Troop3R

[Scout_Troop3R]

And huzzah! I think functionally it is complete! (aside from paint and fixes of course)

Yes it's a bit of a mess but hey it works, and I can make it pretty after comic-con.

Really happy with it, it's a good fit, and it stays on my head properly.







That other velcro patch is for a battery pack that I have charging currently, and I definitely need a new microphone, the current one is crap.

Edited September 5, 2024 by Scout_Troop3R

[Scout_Troop3R]

Hey there, been a little while!

Not much to say about my absence other than it's been a busy 2 months, but now I'm back with a quick question.

I wanted to start painting the vocoder today and I'm just unsure if I should use the glossy or satin black (I think it's satin but I'm still not sure after looking around some other posts), so I figured I should get some answers.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

29 minutes ago, Scout_Troop3R said:

Hey there, been a little while!

Not much to say about my absence other than it's been a busy 2 months, but now I'm back with a quick question.

I wanted to start painting the vocoder today and I'm just unsure if I should use the glossy or satin black (I think it's satin but I'm still not sure after looking around some other posts), so I figured I should get some answers.

Time has a habbit of slipping away at times with real life.

 

Correct satin black is best, doesn't hurt to check  

 

Vocoder should ideally be painted black using a satin finish, but gloss is acceptable.  Lines should be crisp, clean, not extend beyond the ridges and symmetrical on both sides .

Some references

        

 

[Scout_Troop3R]

Decided to get some painting and some minor repairs done today and yesterday on my bucket after doing nothing for a while, feels good to work on it again.

My speaker system's audio jack broke so I tried soldering a new one on the end, electricity can flow through it but I must've screwed up the audio connections or something because when plugged in they do nothing, still it was fun learning how to solder and attach different kinds of wires together even if it didn't work, I'll fix that another day.



A while ago I painted out all the base black lines on my helmet aside from the ears, and today I masked over them (not sure how thin the black surrounding stripes had to be so I just eyeballed it from the photos gmrhodes13 sent earlier) and added the first light layer of grey, I'll probably only need two layers and then I'll clearcoat it, so far I think it's coming along pretty good, painting is fun too.





Anyway that's all for today, peace out.

[Scout_Troop3R]

Today now that it's warm out I cleaned up my garage, got my paints clean, and got to work.

Cut out 2 stencils for the blue helmet stripes, 12 bars each, they're probably a bit rough but I'll make the curves nicer tomorrow or something.

 

 

I also cut out that missing piece on the right ear, so hopefully I can finally fix that gap.

 

also woo progress

Edited May 6, 2025 by Scout_Troop3R

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Some threads on fitting ears, add a step to the top portion so the rear can sit closer. It's all about fine tuning and sanding, going slow and rechecking. 

 

[Scout_Troop3R]

8 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

Some threads on fitting ears, add a step to the top portion so the rear can sit closer. It's all about fine tuning and sanding, going slow and rechecking. 

 

Yeah I'm fine with a few small gaps, adds character and whatnot, it's just that really big one that definitely needs fixing (it's probably big enough to prevent my certification), did a whole lot of slow shaping to get that, all I have to do now is bend it to match and attach it.
Honestly aside from that when it's all screwed down the ear pieces fit great, that second picture was after I'd taken the screws out.

[Scout_Troop3R]

On my first version of the bar stencils I totally forgot to account for the curved surface it's going on, and it totally didn't fit lol

Therefore I made another version, which ended up having too much of a curve, and then the third version which I'm satisfied with.

 

 

 

I also got to work on some definitely not basil (ABS) paste to attach that part to fix the ear piece, and anything else that gets messed up badly enough to warrant it.

 

It's not quite at mayonnaise consistency yet but I have it just where I want it for now, it's gonna sit overnight and I'll check on it in the morning.

Good day today I'd say.

Edited May 7, 2025 by Scout_Troop3R

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

A tip is to paint white first, that way if you get any paint bleed through it white and not blue 

 

You can find some tube stripe templates here, you will note they aren't very curved, it's when you apply them you can pull the sticker so it curves.

When printing these out, they should be 13/16" (@16mm) tall.

 

 

Modified version, front stripes fall forward

 

 

[Scout_Troop3R]

1 minute ago, gmrhodes13 said:

A tip is to paint white first, that way if you get any paint bleed through it white and not blue 

 

You can find some tube stripe templates here, you will note they aren't very curved, it's when you apply them you can pull the sticker so it curves.

When printing these out, they should be 13/16" (@16mm) tall.

 

 

Modified version, front stripes fall forward

 

 

Yeah I'm definitely going to be doing that painting tip, local garrison members have also been quite sure to remind me of that lol

As for the stencils I made sure to only slightly curve them and keep the stripes in-line with the helmet while also actually being able to press it flat, before with my first version the paper around the stripe cut-outs was totally straight so it didn't want to conform to the helmet's shape and wouldn't do it's job correctly, second version was too curved but this one is just slightly so that the stripes are still straight and that it actually fits.

[Scout_Troop3R]

Today was pretty good, I'll start with the small thing.

I got the three screws that are loose for the moment in their second layer of white paint, they're coming along fine.


 

Now for the good stuff, the ABS paste after a bit more meddling got to the consistency I wanted, and I was able to attach the part back to the ear piece, very happy with that.



I haven't done any sanding or polishing thus far so the area doesn't shine like it should but that's a tomorrow problem, found a nice tutorial that I'll have a look at for it.

First thing I did was secure the piece to the front with tape, and pasted on a piece of scrap support ABS on the inside to keep things stable.

 

Then going slow with a toothpick I put on about 3 (or more) layers and without sanding or anything I'd say this looks pretty clean, pretty darn good for my first time using this stuff I'd say!

 

Anyway that's all for today.

Edited May 8, 2025 by Scout_Troop3R

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looking good so far. Sanding will take a while, I use wet and dry with warm water and a few drops of dish washing liquid, helps the sandpaper glide a little easier and doesn't clog as quick. One of the biggest issues with ABS paste is you can get air bubbles, hence why using thin layers of paste. 

 

Using some cutting compound should bring the shine back 

[Scout_Troop3R]

Well I got back into this a few days ago and got some painting done, did the right side tube stripes the other day, started with a base coat of white and went over again in blue, real happy with those, and started on the tear stripes.

I think I made the paint a little too thin because it leaked just a bit, but overall it's came out great, I just have to go over once again with grey on the smudged/chipped bit and boom.

 

 

Working on getting the ear fixed still, I'm fairly certain I have to make another batch of ABS paste (I think it's dirty, definitely gonna wash everything before I make the next batch.) because this one is just slightly darker when it's dry and leaves a visible line, oh well.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

To prevent bleeding give a coat of white paint first, this will fill any areas which may bleed and you will only see white.

 

Border around your cheek traps are a little thick, lines are a little short too.

 

[Scout_Troop3R]

2 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

To prevent bleeding give a coat of white paint first, this will fill any areas which may bleed and you will only see white.

 

Border around your cheek traps are a little thick, lines are a little short too.

 

yeah.. i'll probably have to redo the whole tear
and I think for the bleeding I just added too much paint thinner

Edited June 17, 2025 by Scout_Troop3R

[Scout_Troop3R]

Went and redid the tear paint on both sides, they look way better now! (just one spot of white paint there on the left side that needs some black)
 

I also started on the stripes for the right side, the white paint layer for that is just drying for now, gonna put the blue on in about 20 minutes.
The ear is just taped on for reference while I fix it, didn't want the hassle of screwing it up all the way just to unscrew it right after.