RS Scout Helmet

[Jagjaguwar]

Yep, wave 1 waiting on that email about my replacement. I feel like we're close though. ...I hope.

[stendec]

If they ever get around to sending me an approval image, the first thing I'l say is my unweathered version should be glossy, not matt white.

[Stroker]

If they ever get around to sending me an approval image, the first thing I'l say is my unweathered version should be glossy, not matt white.

Well that's a topic that's been thrown around more than once. One says matt the says glossy. It can be either way.

[jkno]

My replacement is on its way as we speak. It is one on the FB pics.

 

[Strider]

Yeah, that looks like a decent job. They even replicated the wear and tear of the decals. They've cut out a little too much around they eyes but that's not a biggie. I hope all their future helmets will be up to this standard.

[jkno]

[jkno]

Yeah, that looks like a decent job. They even replicated the wear and tear of the decals. They've cut out a little too much around they eyes but that's not a biggie. I hope all their future helmets will be up to this standard.

 

Some were cut more and some less. This is close to what the RS original helmet looks like.

 

Also compare the cut on these 2 screen used lids:

 

[Nexous]

Excited *awaits Wave 3*

[syllander]

Just hopeful RS will offer this in kit form in the future. Would be a fun and rewarding build.

[Stroker]

Excited *awaits Wave 3*

 

Same here! I'm a little amped now!

[Yorkie Fett]

OK, received my replacement helmet today, and they seem to have dealt with all the original issues that meant it had to be sent back.

 

Upgrades include much better paint job with a clear coat to smooth everything off (no sign of all the bits of dust and thumb marks that were originally there).

 

Lens has been reattached using a screen accurate method used on the originals.

 

Snout that was full of air bubbles has been replaced.

 

Black border round the snout has been repainted and is a vast improvement.

 

Decal placement much better.

 

So is it perfect? Well, there's no doubt this is now a very nice looking helmet. I still think it needs to be glossy, as there's still quite a matt finish (but at least the paint is now nicely done). Another issue that I think we'll have to live with (and I think it comes down to who put the helmet together, at RS), is the visor section and how it fits against the helmet when it's closed. The original (and indeed, Altman and LW helmets) all have a nice snug interlocking fit with minimal gap between the two sections. RS don't appear to have mastered this (despite it all being pulled from an actual ROTJ helmet), and I have seen a couple of examples with gaps so big, you can see the chin cup elastic even when the visor is fully closed. Mine isn't perfect, but it's just about acceptable.

 

RS have definitely dealt with the issues, but it's taken a long time and lots of the usual false promises (still waiting to be refunded for my return shipping costs). Although I now have a great looking (but still not perfect) helmet, the whole experience has not been a great one. I feel it should never have got this far. Hopefully, they will learn from this experience and improve their business practices.

 

Should be interesting to see how the Efx compares (but that's another story!!!).

[Grendel_Blitz]

Glad they came through for you Yorkie. And yes... a LONG time waiting.

I have heard nothing from RS and I am in Wave 2.

 

As for the Efx... I ordered it so long ago that I actually forget about it.

I do give them props for sending us the Vader helmet free of charge.

It is a nice display piece.

 

\m/

[Bobaben]

Yorkie, after looking at all the other pictures of different helmets it seems your visor fit problem might not be universal. Can you identify which piece isn't quite right (the visor or the helmet), and if so can it be tweaked with some heat?

[Yorkie Fett]

Yorkie, after looking at all the other pictures of different helmets it seems your visor fit problem might not be universal. Can you identify which piece isn't quite right (the visor or the helmet), and if so can it be tweaked with some heat?

 

Not sure if I was clear when trying to explain the problem, but when I was talking about the visor, I was referring to the hinged faceplate and not the actual lens.

 

Certainly it seems very much down to who put the helmet together at RS, but on quite a few, I've seen a big gap between faceplate and rear helmet section, where it should be flush (even when the faceplate is in the fully down position). I'm not sure whether this is down to bad moulding, bad trimming or bad construction.

 

If you check out Bikerscout007's RS thread, you can see there is a gap from the side views. I think Jkno also mentions he wasn't happy with the gap on his RS (apologies if I misread that, Jkno).

 

If you check out pictures of the actual ROTJ helmets (RS used an actual non screen used helmet as a mould), you will see there is no gap between faceplate and rear helmet, it's a smooth transition from front to back.

 

To be quite honest, I wouldn't want to start messing around with a heat gun- too risky on what is very thin plastic.

 

Hope that's a bit clearer. It's something that I'm not 100% happy with, but now this saga is over, I'm going to accept it (unless of course Efx nail it!).

[Yorkie Fett]

Glad they came through for you Yorkie. And yes... a LONG time waiting.

I have heard nothing from RS and I am in Wave 2.

 

As for the Efx... I ordered it so long ago that I actually forget about it.

I do give them props for sending us the Vader helmet free of charge.

It is a nice display piece.

 

\m/

 

Hopefully, yours shouldn't be too long and at least you should get a good example now RS seem to be addressing the issues (They do say never buy a V1 of most new items like cars, electrical goods, etc. as these are the ones with all the problems!!)

 

Glad you got the Vader helmet, but if I read it right, it seems they are not honouring this deal with customers outside the US. Apparently the shipping is too expensive, plus you would still be stung with import duty. I believe they were discussing this in a thread over at the RPF.

I can't speak from experience as I haven't ordered directly from Efx on this one.

[jkno]

Glad to hear your helmet arrived in a good shape now. My old one, besides the 2 chin cracks, had indeed a badly fitting visor. Hopefully the replacement will be here this week, and by looking over the pics here I think the face plate finally fits reasonably well on the helmet. I already have black material from LW to add inside behind the ears.

Didn't even talk with RS about refunding the international payment until I see how the helmet is

 

And you are right about EFX, no international customer received their free Vader PCR helmet. I think the shipping cost is so big that it would bankrupt EFX LOL. Look how much it costs if you want to order a Vader PCR helmet directly from EFX, freaking insane:

 

[Yorkie Fett]

Glad to hear your helmet arrived in a good shape now. My old one, besides the 2 chin cracks, had indeed a badly fitting visor. Hopefully the replacement will be here this week, and by looking over the pics here I think the face plate finally fits reasonably well on the helmet. I already have black material from LW to add inside behind the ears.

Didn't even talk with RS about refunding the international payment until I see how the helmet is

 

And you are right about EFX, no international customer received their free Vader PCR helmet. I think the shipping cost is so big that it would bankrupt EFX LOL. Look how much it costs if you want to order a Vader PCR helmet directly from EFX, freaking insane:

 

 

I have to say, that faceplate fitting is the best I have seen on a RS helmet. Just goes to show, they can get it right.

Unfortunately, I didn't get them to look in to the gap when I sent my helmet back (wish I had now, since they do appear capable of a flush fitting).

Like I said earlier, mine's not perfect because of this issue, but it's just about acceptable, so I'll be living with it!

 

BTW, Rob just refunded my shipping costs, so might be a good time to ask for that refund.

[Nexous]

This is really hyping me up.... ugh.... I love my SC because it was my first step into 501st / Costuming, but this is such a massive upgrade

[jkno]

I have to say, that faceplate fitting is the best I have seen on a RS helmet. Just goes to show, they can get it right.

Unfortunately, I didn't get them to look in to the gap when I sent my helmet back (wish I had now, since they do appear capable of a flush fitting).

Like I said earlier, mine's not perfect because of this issue, but it's just about acceptable, so I'll be living with it!

 

BTW, Rob just refunded my shipping costs, so might be a good time to ask for that refund.

 

I asked them about the visor fitting because it was bad initially. Had to be addressed. I might ask them for a refund or maybe a t-shirt, because the one they sent some time ago fits a kid

[Jagjaguwar]

Very nice, that looks great Sergiu. Anxious to hear what the packaging material is like. Also haven't gotten any email yet... Hopefully this week.

[Spanky101]

So Yorkie Fett, knowing what you know now, is the helmet worth it? It sounds like you are somewhat happy with it, but if you could go back knowing the ordeal you and everyone else endured to get it, would you have ordered it? Would you ever consider ordering from them again?

 

I wouldn't wear it for trooping, but would it even be possible or is it to thin?

Thanks for sharing your experiences, however painful they may have been.

 

I get that there is going to be some delays with these high end helmets, but there had to be a point where the company realized enough is enough and either hired some extra staff to complete them or threw some money at the problems in order to get them fixed(hired more customer service reps or a proper consulting firm or individuals that help companies deal with these types of issues)...in other words, whatever it took to get them out(and still get them out apparently). And I mean that for both of these companies. No chance that they lost money on these helmets, so the least they could have done was acted like they cared enough about taking people's hard earned money? I have never in my retail experience heard of anything remotely like the situation. And certainly not one as badly handled as by these 2 companies. You'd have better odds waiting on an Organ Donor's list, than you would in getting these helmets in a timely fashion. They have the single biggest captive audience of buyers for the Scout helmets on this forum, I don't know the percentage of buyers that are members of this forum, but it has to be substantial, no? What better way to show them that it is unacceptable, than to put them on the Vendor Problem list? If nothing else, there should be a warning to new members so they at least know what to expect? That way in the future, if they add another wave, people are aware of what they are getting into and can ask the hard questions to these companies before putting their money down. If I hadn't come here and done my research and learned from your many experiences dealing with both Rs and Efx, I would have had no clue about all these many, many problems? It will give everyone a reference point of the problems involved, both with the time frame and the deplorable customer service. Regardless of whether they advertised here or not, there should be something done. As I said, this is their single biggest customer base, has to be. Shouldn't this be something everyone on this forum, both now and in the future, be made aware of? Just my 2 cents, for what it is worth.

Maybe you guys that have been waiting for a year or 2 can chime in???

[BikerScout007]

We are not putting RS on the problem vendors list as they are not vendors here on bs.n

 

Also, I have an RS props and I am quite happy with it, a few minor details aside. It is also my sole trooping helmet

 

http://forum.bikerscout.net/index.php?showtopic=15122

[Spanky101]

We are not putting RS on the problem vendors list as they are not vendors here on bs.n

 

Also, I have an RS props and I am quite happy with it, a few minor details aside. It is also my sole trooping helmet

 

http://forum.bikersc...showtopic=15122

 

Oh, ok...as long as you are happy with it.

 

Ok, well how about pinning a warning or just a recommendation about ordering helmets? It doesn't even have to name them. Just a brief paragraph letting people know that there have been some very long waiting times, sometimes years. The slow and often poor customer service in relation to answering emails or responding to queries. The problems involved in getting refunds. That they should do their due diligence before ordering a helmet and research them and the companies they are ordering from.

I never said or implied that the quality of their helmets was in question, just their business practices. Perhaps you should put it to vote? Again just my 2 cents, as I just ordered one and I haven't endured anything near to what many of you have. But I am guessing a lot of people who did order these helmets, including yourself, would have liked a bit of information about what they might have to go through to get these special order helmets prior to ordering them?

[Nexous]

Oh, ok...as long as you are happy with it.

 

This doesn't have anything to do with if Mickey is happy with his and others are not. This has to do with what is considered a Vendor Problem --

 

 

"This section is to be used to resolve issues with vendors who sell goods and/or services on BSN".

And neither eFX or RS Props sell directly or through BSN.

[Spanky101]

I wasn't only suggesting it be put in the Vendor Problem list, I also suggested an alternative. If you don't think it should go in the Vendor Problem list, then ok, I understand. But how about putting it under the Helmet listing as just a heads up for for people to do their research before buying from any and all helmet vendors? As I said, it does not have to name any company. I just thought it is something that new people like myself or the first time helmet buyers might like to know before putting down a fair amount of money and expecting to get what they pay for in a timely and professional time frame? And as I suggested, perhaps get the opinions of those more knowledgable and that have been dealing with it for a long time? If you and everyone else does not think it is worthwhile and logical solution, then I am happy to let it go. I just thought it was an important enough matter and that enough people had been affected negatively to voice a helpful solution. Like I said, just my 2 cents...you can simply choose to ignore it or offer another solution, it was nothing more than my opinion. If someone has a better one, then I am more than good with whatever helps this type of situation not happen again, to so many people.