Dart

Yup, the top of the t-bit is from the MPC Tie Advanced model kit (the piece on the outside of the wing). The bottom bit, to me, looks like it was mostly scratch-made. I've been working on one to offer up here that's been modeled in CAD by a garrisonmate. There's actually a better photo of the top circle. It's actually a hex shape, not circular... As for the thermal detonator, the model bit shown by Rob is from the 1:12 scale Tamiya Ferrari 312T4 kit. The rest of it... big question mark. Some of it's just too generic (the cylinder) to pin down. I think it was mostly scratch made and the above piece was the only "bling" added to it. The other model pieces that we know of are the circle greebs on the thermal detonator (same piece is the knob on the tank topper). That's from the 1:35 scale Tamiya Gepard tank kit. There's also a couple other bits on the tank topper from the same tank kit. I think the rest of it is just scratch built.

The only flaw I can see in your estimation is that the types of webbing you list aren't designed to stretch like elastic. The thigh straps, to me, look like elastic. I can see the resemblance in weave pattern, but the actual type is off. I've seen heavy elastic like that, but it's usually for something heavy since it's thicker and needs to be more durable. I keep thinking back to my hockey days when I had similar strapping (in thickness, not colour or width). It's gotta exist somewhere, just a matter of finding it, ha!

Hmm... That's true. So we're basically looking for some sort of squarish hose or wire that's super tiny. Maybe it's another piece of tubing that was cut and put on top? I know the usual thing is to use the washer hose, so maybe this was another type of hose that was sliced around and fitted on top? If so, that'd be such a weird thing to do, and not time efficient at all. You've given us a stumper, Gino. I know I'll be thinking about this all weekend, ha!

I think that's what Gino's getting at. So the flak vest has both the bund and cod attached to it, but the cod and the bund aren't attached to each other.

Interesting. I know the cabling you're talking about. Wouldn't that stuff be too narrow? You'd have to wrap it on the skinny side but I'm not sure how easy that would be to achieve the above effect. Still worth an experiment. I think I have some of that at home somewhere too. There's also this stuff... Maybe it's a U-shaped edge trim? The ROTJ Stormtroopers had edge trim on their armour, perhaps this stuff is similar or the same? Certainly has a good profile to it...

The cord almost looks like electrical cable that can be split down the middle. Something similar to this, perhaps? Note the profile of the cable (flat sides with slightly rounded edge). Slitting it along the middle seam could give a similar profile to what was actually used. I'm just thinking about all the different stuff that was used, and even with a large budget that they probably had for ROTJ, I'm sure that if they could find a simple, cheap item that they could get in quantity, they'd use that over something more exotic. We know they used parts from Thorens and Mitchell Engineering turntables, so it's not too much to think that they had some spare electronic cables lying around. I thought it might be phone cables, but the spiral stuff is too wide and too narrow. Looking more closely, it looks more like tubing than wire. We know that Boba Fett had a piece of a dental tool on his helmet (Borden connector), so maybe the hose is something related to that? I seem to recall going to the dentist and them having a similar tubing attached to their tools for cleaning teeth.

Cool. Any chance you have any photos or can tell us how that part of the suit connects (are the straps velcro'd into place on the inside of the chest or do they secure the chest/back another way?)

I'm also interested. My biggest question related to the above quote is: Is the drop box webbing the same as the webbing connecting the bottom of the chest/back pieces? To me, it looks exactly the same, but I know the question's been raised before without a really solid answer. Thanks again for posting this info up. To say that the past week's worth of information hasn't changed things is an understatement.

That separation is probably a shadow instead of black costume. My only little niggle is the shape of the cod. In the full-sized and the image above, the cod isn't triangular, but (geometrically) 2 different shapes with a corner at the boomerang seam. If you look at screen caps (blu-ray or otherwise), this isn't present. Also, the image above is of the pre-production (straps on the boot are a dead give away). Seeing as I'm re-doing them anyway, I'm really looking forward to re-designing my bund/vest!

So far, so good. If you're unsure where the line to cut is, cut less and use a larger round file or sandpaper to get the edge down to where it should be.

I think it's a real helmet. However, I think maybe it wasn't finished when it was originally sold and whoever bought it added the snout piece. I wish I had the cash. This is only the 2nd helmet, that we know of, that has made it out of the archives.

I dig the life-sized scout! As for found parts, the only ones that are not known are some of the parts on the tank topper, some of the bigger thermal detonator greeblie, and the lower (square) part of the bicep T-bit. Any original shots of those from a primary source with good lighting and a scale of reference would be so sweet.

These really aren't the best type of boot, in that the shape is kinda hard to work with. Ideally, you want a boot that's flatter on the top of the foot, with the laces farther back from the toes. Also, you don't really need laces for the bottom part. You can always just stitch the eyelets together where it's comfy for your foot. The thing you want to avoid when you're building your own boots is to have a HUGE barrel. Even if you taper it at the top to fit your leg, it just looks weird. Ideally, you wanna have the barrel of the boot pretty straight and fitting over the boot just in front of your ankle.

Definitely interested in the end quality of these things. My boots are going on 4 years and I really liked the idea of making them from leather instead of vinyl. Joe, please take lots of photos. For that price, and some do-it-yourself sole cutting, these could be really nice.

So how does the weight of this stack up to the Hyperfirm? Is the composition similar or totally different?

Mike, I don't think anyone knows for sure what the original material was. To me, they look like they're leather because of they way they crease and hang, but vinyl's so much easier and cheaper to work with. That said, I think I'm gonna try to make my next pair out of leather. I'll see how that goes, ha!

At one time, you could order direct from Mardon (MLC), but I don't know if that's still the case. Can't hurt to ask...

For those who are experiencing the velcro falling off, be sure you clean the area first with rubbing alcohol. You'd be surprised how much crap is on the plastic when you first get it. I use some foam knee pad inserts with velcro stuck to those. The fit nicely and the velcro mostly doesn't peel off, but that's just part of the maintenance routine.

I know there was a discussion earlier this year about amending that width. I thought it had been changed.

Technically, the drop box straps are 1.5". I thought the requirement was made smaller than 45mm for the chest/back junction?

The LW bucket is a bit of a "Great White Buffalo". I think he kinda burnt himself out a bit when he initially did them. You can always try contacting him and see what he says.

Yeah, Mike always seems to have a ton of stuff on his plate, ha! Good to see you joining the true elite troopers. Y'know, the guys and gals who actually hit what they're aiming for (not including trees).

Is it just me, or does the visor of the NI have a weird taper? Also, it looks like the top front edge of the visor is actually more concave than straight. Maybe it's just the angle or the photo...

Aker amp in my left pouch. Scouts didn't have any voice processing, so there's no need/precedence for it. That said, go nuts.

Matt, if you haven't purchased anything else yet, I'd put the money towards the rest of the suit. There's plenty of people who make trooping helmets for a third of the price, that are widely accepted for 501st clearance AND Lancer. Of course, if you can afford it all, go for it. Just my buck oh-five...