Dart

Congratulations! Well done!

Donezo!

If I may add, if you're looking at a second-hand machine, the new ones are fine, but older can be better. The reason being that machines from the mid-late 80s to now have a lot of plastic gears unless you pay for a heavy duty machine and they're best for light sewing (which is much of what the scout is). The older ones are physically much heavier but they're all metal inside and some are able to punch through thick layers and even leather. If you find a good deal on a machine that was made either domestically or in Japan from between the 50's to the 70's, you're golden. Most of them are still able to be serviced, especially if you go with a name brand (google search before buying). Good luck and happy sewing!

Congratulations! Great looking suit!

Congrats Mike!

Looks good!

Yup. You can get by on just the speaker to cut down on the wiring. I have an Aker in my left pouch with the headset wire under my balaclava, routed through a small hole in my flight suit and then under my flak vest/chest armour behind the pouch.

Soo, the belt looks 95% donezo (first pic). Just needs some holes and heat and bending. Next up: the back plate. I should also mention that I was kinda surprised at how thick the plastic was on this kit. There's still some thinner spots, but for the most part, it's a good 1.5mm thick. Also, I didn't realize that the back plate was so contoured at the bottom. So used to seeing armour that was flat across the back. Makes sense. Third pic is just me doing my second cut on the bottom of the back plate. I've used my handy-dandy pencil to trace the line so I can cut near it.

First bit: the belt. It comes as a flat piece that will need to be heated and bent, but today's goal is just to get it in shape. The pieces in the kit are all roughly trimmed so I've busted out my lexan scissors, a pencil to mark the lines with and a foam sanding block to help finish the edges after using my 4-in-1 rasp (my favourite tool evar!) First pic is just after I did the first round of cutting. Don't ever try to cut the exact shape right away because you don't want to accidentally cut too much off. The second shot is my marking lines. I take a pencil and find the natural corner and make a line. Due to the nature of this kit, the belt is rather wonky, so I have to make the best of it. I trim close to the lines, but not right up to them. Third shot is a good reason why sanding sponges, or foam sanding blocks, are really useful for cleaning up edges. The bottom part of the photo shows what things look like after using my rasp to get the plastic down to where I want it, but it leaves a rough edge. The top part is all nice and smooth because I used my sanding sponge. It wraps around the plastic and cleans things up nicely.

So, like a few others (including our illustrious DL), I took the plunge and picked up some RS Props armour. I also have a helmet of theirs that needs building so that'll be here too. Not gonna rush this but I will be building to Lancer specs. I will likely update this every 2 weeks, so hopefully I'll get this done sooner than later.

Agreed. I would stay away.

I think he just finished his last ever run, so unless someone doesn't pay from his last run, you may have to entertain other options. Some folks have gone the way of 3d printed blasters and there are a few decent files out there.

Very cool! Always nice to see someone working on yet another Patrol Trooper!

Those are some neat figures, very cool! As for adding the binocs to the CRL, we try to keep that close to what we see for the source of that costume (movie, tv show, etc...), so we're a bit picky about what we add. That said, you're totally free to use the binocs if you'd like, just check with your garrison to make sure it's ok as they typically have the final word when it comes to trooping with optional accessories like these.

Congrats and welcome aboard!

Good times! Thanks everyone for coming out!

I've also gotten the Hobart shields for other kits. As far as flexibility goes, they're 4mm which is probably the thinnest you're gonna find for those things.

That's a good photo to see how the riding patches sit and end above the knee. Good find!

The competition was stiff, but you won. Congrats! 🤣

If I may suggest, don't use the snout sticker that comes with a KS helmet. Just paint it. It'll look better. Also, the KS has a huge return edge, so don't feel like you have to keep all of it. Good luck, fearless one!

Happy BBB day! Hope it arrived safe and sound.

Great chat! See everyone next time!

Except they still had upside down knee armour...

Welcome aboard, Phil! Definitely have a poke around the Kashyyyk trooper forum and read up. As Mickey stated, there aren't a ton of vendors, but it's still a great costume to do. Good luck and if you have any questions, ask away!

Good luck with the print! Just an FYI, if you're going for 501st clearance, that helmet may not pass. Even though some of the features are neat, like the vents at the back and nose actually being vents, that's not true to the original Scout helmet. There's also the issue of the visor not having a return edge on the inside. Check this thread out for how all the available helmets stack up: