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UPDATE: 7/5/08, Making Little Mods to the Armor
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jegner
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Joined: 30 May 2003
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Location: Texas, USA

PostPosted: Sun Dec 16, 2007 10:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mold modifications is an on going process. My original molds were a decent attempt to get some troopers, and they worked, but as time went by I wanted some parts to be more accurate, so as I have time to work on them, I keep upgrading each part. Endless. LOL. As for my back plate, it was approx. 7/8th on an inch raised off the base. 3/4th of an inch plywood, and 1/8th of an inch basswood trim board.

Jim
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TK 109
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Joined: 11 May 2007
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Location: Galena, Ohio

PostPosted: Sun Dec 16, 2007 10:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hmm, that actually makes sense, now that i think about it. the actual back box wasn't very high off the main plate in the movies. i thought it was a bit high when i first made it, but i went with the franco templates. and yes, i argee, this armor isn't going to be a quick fix. i will be modifying this suit for some time! Laughing

ok, thanks jim. Very Happy
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Thu Dec 27, 2007 9:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

got some pics of progress here, enjoy:


the new drop box is on the right. as you can see, it is much smaller than my original 3"x5" box. looks good on the belt.


new TD control plate. just plain makes it look better, more serious, and more accurate.


NEW KNEE PLATE!! thank god this worked. i was freaking out for a moment. looks much better, and matches with the clean armor.

also, i have discovered my parents bough me a high-quality helmet kit on eBay for me, from the UK. acrylic-capped, the whole 9-yards, all hardware included. we e-mailed the guy yesterday, and are waiting for a response, and the helmet was ordered about a week ago, and haven't seen it. i'm not trying to rush the guy, maybe he was out for the holidays, who knows.

also, new boots are going to be ordered from CAboots soon. i hope they have them in stock...

that is all for now. once i get the helmet, i will post the results, the kit, and maybe some progress pics. essentially, it's come down the new boots and helmet on the way. the new parts are installed and ready new pictures, and i'm axious to show you guys my armor! Very Happy it's gone a LONG way from the first pics i posted! Shocked

well, that's it for now... please post comments!

Very Happy
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jegner
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Joined: 30 May 2003
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PostPosted: Thu Dec 27, 2007 9:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Looking good!

Keep us updated!

Jim
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Stomper
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Joined: 01 Oct 2005
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Location: Woodburn, Oregon USA

PostPosted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 1:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Looking forward to seeing it!! Very Happy
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Tony Krewson
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 4:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks guys!

going to be a while, i think. we sent an e-mail to the guy i bough that helmet from. it took him a while to respond, but he said he DID ship it. when is now the question. i'm just looking at another week or more for it to get here, just to be on the safe side.

this hemet's going to be great, i can tell! after this, i think i'll replace my boots with the CAboots... boots ( Confused ). my current boot is a $50 varient i bought on eBay. "ELVIS BOOTS"... as we established in the latest boot post in the costume section, these simply won't do very well. plus, they're falling apart on me! the heels are coming off, the vinyl is peeling off....

i'm also looking at that www.123scub.com diveskin outlined in your site, jim, looks more durable, and long-lasting than anything else.

anyway, thanks for the moral support! Very Happy
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chefhawk
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Joined: 15 Sep 2007
Posts: 56
Location: Redditch uk

PostPosted: Sun Jan 06, 2008 4:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Alex ...any update on the helmet??


dont forget to post any pics when it arrives.


cheers matey
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 3:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

will, do chefhawk...

i couldn't get paul to ship one of his fine pieces out to me... so i bought an acrylic-capped ABS helmet instead off of ebay.co.uk (the uk ebay, is SOOO much fun! i can find all sorts of deals on armor and helmets there!! insane!) anyhow, it's the whole 9-yards, you know trim lens (flat), teeth grill, areators, decals, etc, all partailly assembled in box (trimmed, ect)

i dunno man...

my parents told me that the UK takes holidays MUCH more serious than we do. we ordered the helmet around the 19th, and still haven't got it yet. we sent an e-mail, and he said he shipped it. well, assuming (at the latest) he shipped it on the day he sent his e-mail REPLY, (the 27th), uder normal, holiday-free conditions, i should have it TODAY (today would be day 10, not counting new year's day, sundays, and all other obsticles known to me.) he told me that things would e really slow, so i'm giving the helmet about 5 more days. i'm thinkng i should e-mail him again, and ask for a tracking number.

hey, anybody from the UK...

HOW DO SHIPPING DELAYS (I.E., HOLIDAYS) GO IN THE UK? just wondering, maybe i can more fully understand why it's taking so long... not trying to offend anyone, just wondering... Very Happy

so, yeah, going to get it sometime (it's been a year Wink ).

also, i've ordered some plain ole' CAboots trooper leather on ebay for $75. i'm expecting that sometime this weekend, as i ordered it last night. nice and plain, better that my vinyl cheap-o go-go disco boots. oh well. i'll keep them, just to wear them at school. Laughing i wore them to homecoming this year, and to school mulitple times. people love them!

also, to pass the time, i tried my hand at replicating those... garage kits:




the infamous "trooper factory" shots... once, again, i was on top of the workbench when i took the last photo...


best pull i've ever done so far. nice and tight, no webbing, and everything released fairly well! even the belt! so, that's the whole belt done....


and so i cranked out a nice little kit. notice the thighs are a bit rough... but it'll work for skinny ole' me.





and this is what i had to recycle:



once again, did relly need to do that, just something to pass the time. (?)

waiting, still waiting, and hearing sounds of the UPS truck pulling up the driveway...

will post pics of the kit when i get it, and the boots, too, just for fun!

and then... another photoshoot...

i think i'm going to modify the ab plate a bit more. there needs to be 4 buttons on the left stip on the abs. i have 3. easy fix, without vacuforming a new one. i cleaned my armor off with some lemon-oil (works REALLY WELL!!), and the stuff makes styrene look nice and shiny. now, i have to remove the excess oil (when i touch the armor, a nice smear is easily seen. ), after the photoshoot. that way, i can look my best, latest, and hopefully greatest.

glad to have so many onlookers and supporters...

thanks. Very Happy
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 4:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

updates:

got boots:








by far, best boots ever. they smell like copenhaden, though... Confused Shocked Laughing

also modded my ab plate for 4 buttons, instead of 3:





no news of helmet today. it's been two weeks or more. i think i'll e-mail him again. maybe he shipped it with a slower method, or stuff is REALLY backed up! Shocked

ok, that's it, gotta eat dinner, smells like meat loaf!! Very Happy
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 10:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

it's gonna be a while on the helmet. the ebay-seller sent me an e-mail, wondering if i had recieved it yet. he said that shipping over there is REALLY backed up, and things ordered in early december are just now starting to emerge out of customs, and other shipping and processing stations. i replied back, telling him i had not recived it yet, and also requested a tracking number. i hope he can get one to me, otherwise it's 10+ more days of waiting and false alarms... Shocked

in the meantime i continue to do mods to my armor! i've gotten to the point where i kinda look like a mish-mash of an AP suit combined with a TE suit... kinda...:

THIS IS NOT ME


TE armor






i think that's what i'll look like with the helmet... only with a slightly bigger chest, and back. i kinda have an fx armor shirt.... Confused
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 11:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

figured out a voice system late last night. it utilizes a newton voice amp. i put the batteries and circuit stuff in the back plate (after taking the main casing off), using elastic hot-glued in place to hold it in, and ran wires up, following the collar strap, to the chest-plate, where the newton speaker is. the speaker is attatched via 2 more pieces of elastic, in a cross-pattern, with foam around the edges to reduce vibrations. everything fits well and normally, but with the batteries and speaker, the armor shirt now weights twice what it normally would be! Shocked

ok, now for some pics:


here's the circiut stuff in the backplate. this is when i like the depth of my backplate, because everything is nice and flush, and it's like nothing is there!


and the speaker. you can see the cross-elastic bands here, and the foam.

nothing big. it works, though. i get almost no feedback with this set-up. i imagine that, with the helmet, feedback may be reduced further. when i do get feedback, it's kida just a little warning that it's just a bit too loud. works out really nice for a newton voice amp.

waiting for word from that ebayer, other than that, nothing much is going on.

if you wanna see what the helmet looks like:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Star-Wars-Stormtrooper-Helmet-Armour-Prop_W0QQitemZ300190060881QQihZ020QQcategoryZ60361QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

that's the one! nice find, eh? when it comes to buying stormtrooper helmets, i reccomend www.ebay.co.uk !

Very Happy
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jegner
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 8:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Looking good! I like the idea of the newton amp. I'm still not happy with my amp system. Either too much feed back or not loud enough.

Shocked

Jim
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks jim!

you should give this method a try with a radio shack amp (the little white box). that, with a good mic should give you some good results. i'm going to tinker around with smaller speakers today to see how that would go. i would probably get less bass, or higher sound. if it works, that would be really cool.

just yesterday, i bought some fan stuff, and made 2 little fan systems, ready for the helmet.

the helmet.....

i should get an update on its whereabouts today. that's what he told me in a previous e-mail....

it's funny that i'm kinda dancing around the helmet: amp, fans, mods to armor, cleaning armor, polishing armor, more mods... Smile
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chefhawk
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Joined: 15 Sep 2007
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Location: Redditch uk

PostPosted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 7:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Alex ...any news on the helmet?






cheers
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TK 109
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 25, 2008 2:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

i see you're just as antsy to see it as i am... Wink

it's got a max of about 5 more days. i recieved an e-mail monday, telling me that there was a mix-up at customs, and that some forms weren't signed correctly. he told me he filled out all forms, and is on it's way over here! he also noted it shouldn't be long, which is telling me that customs took shorter, or something. i just assume 10 days at most for it to get here, and once it does, don't worry. i WILL post pics. Very Happy

5 days left....
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