netslave

I took spike's advice. Just need to get it on the cummerbund and see how it works. At least I have options if it doesn't work as well as I hope.

How do you attach your pouches to the cummerbund? I'd like to keep mine removable to wash and stuff. And I'd like to lee them usable, for stuff. I'm afraid Velcro won't be good enough. So, snaps? Buttons? Hooks?

Thanks. I'll probably just be making one of each.

Hmm, is it ever acceptable to put a scope on an DLT-19 and call it a 'sniper' rifle? I'm trying to figure out what big gun to make, and I'd like it to be useful in multiple suits (TD, TK, TS, etc...)

No, not without it looking horrible. I glued the uppers too close to the heel too, so it would be almost impossible to pass it though a sewing machine. I'll just end up using these as a backup, in case something happens to the boots I'm ordering now. I feel like I made 3 sets of boots with the time I spent on them, so I just gave in and bought a pair.

I went for it and just sewed them. They ended up pretty good. But then, after I had everything glued and was about to attach my holster, I realized I had upper boot parts on backwards (swapped the Left and Right).... ugh... stupid oversight, and with them attached with GLOO, it wasn't coming off. Sad because the boots really turned out well outside of that ridiculous oversight.

What's the difference between these? Is it basically that the DC-15x has a scope on it? And maybe the lack of the bipod?

Working on getting it all on the circuit board: First workable prototype finished: I've already decided that I need to use 1x 4 pole connector for my walkie that has both mic and headphones. That'll save a LOT of space. But I'm happy that I can get it all into a VERY small package.

I'm working on my boots, and before I waste a lot of material trying to sew on the details of the bone strap, how do people do it? I've tried a few pieces, and the problem I face is following the line I draw. It's hard to see under the foot of my sewing machine. Even though I'm manually turning the wheel on the machine to make it easier for me to do it, I still can't see the line very easily so it's coming out a bit off. Are people just good? Or is there a better way for me to use a guild line? Any help would be great!

Yeah, this was just one of those things that once I got the bug to do, I had to see it through. I'm surprised it isn't used more! I assume it's because each trooper's voice system varies so one setup may not help everyone. Knowing Chef had a similar system, I poked him for advice. I'm not really looking to produce this for sale, just mainly posting the setup for others if they wanted to do something similar. If it's easy enough to produce, and versatile enough, I may offer a couple up.

So I had this nifty idea to make a setup that lets you switch between external communication, and internal communication via a walkie talkie. The idea was for when trooping, I could speak to people using a Push to Talk button on an external amp or speaker, but then easily switch to an internal channel, while also turning off the external speaker. I'm using a walkie talkie pair for my external speaker, so I needed a setup that would activate the PTT on the Midland radio. So, here's what I've come up with. It uses a magnetic reed switch in the glove to activate the PTT function and allow external sound. Then, when you lift your hand to your helmet, there's a switch in there that turns off the external output, and also acts as the PTT for the internal channel (direct communication with wife, family, troop, etc...) The end result is going to be a module that you can plug any mic into, as well as any output you desire. Here's a pic of my bread board setup, as well as the wiring diagram. *note - the Midland PTT calls for a 2.2K resistor, but I use 2k and it's working just fine. My circuit boards are coming in next week, so when I get it all wired and pretty, I'll post more plus a video of how it works.

I saw these on Etsy. $165 isn't bad. Anyone use them? https://www.etsy.com/listing/195575782/star-wars-imperial-biker-scout-trooper?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_us_clothing-shoes-mid-other&utm_custom1=0b15fca9-785e-ce68-137c-000009453416&kpid=195575782&gclid=CNbru7rUsMUCFQJufgod2A8AhQ

Getting close on the boots. Just a little tip I picked up regarding sewing with vinyl. Since I'm a sewing noob, I messed up my first boot leg because the vinyl bunched up on me while I was sewing it together. This happens because the metal foot on the sewing machine sticks to the vinyl while running stitches. The solution I found was to put some blue painters tape on the bottom of the foot. This allows the vinyl to slide under without getting caught and I gotta say, it works beautifully!

Cool. Since I'm using slightly taller boots than I've seen others use, I can probably put some velcro on the top of the boot as well, to keep it solid. For that matter, I guess I can just GLOO it all the way up in the back/sides.

Oh, and I started the boots. Question about the top part, does anyone find the vinyl to be too flimsy at the top of the boot? If so, what can I do to reinforce it? I've only dry fitted the top part, but it seems like it would just fall down. Should I include a thin piece of plastic or double the vinyl to make it stronger?

Just an update to where I was on the Rubies hat before going with the SC hat. It was looking pretty good shape-wise, but was still needing some work to get things to fit exactly how they should. I had decided to just glue the hole thing solid, instead of allowing the face plate to flip up. This way, I could shape it better, but not worry about the plastic being too thin to use. As I said above, I'm still going to use this for a snow scout as I'm currently making my own snowie suit. So this scout will be for the wife, and I'll have a snowie/snow scout.

The helmet here is an SC helmet. I'm still going to use the rubies for my snowscout, but I wanted this done faster so I broke down and purchased the SC hat. I'll get better pics out when I get closer to being finished.

Made a ton of progress (thanks to SC). Here's me making my cummerbund. First time sewing!! And here's my suit so far. Just need some touch up on the helmet, finish the belt, make the boots, paint the blaster, and I'm home free! Almost there! blurry pic... what-are-ya-gonna-do...

I finally started reinforcing the faceplate. Here you can see the milliput covering the steel bar I put in the snout to hold it's shape. Here's also where I'll end up putting the rare earth magnets. I'm thinking 4.6 lbs each. That should hold pretty well. Next, I need to redo the top of the faceplate. It got a little wonky after working with it. Then I need to start cutting down the bucket where parts are too big to fit together. That'll be a big one...

I'm having an issue with the faceplate on the rubies. Since it's so flimsy, to really make it fit tight to the bucket, I'm contemplating just fastening it all together. In other words, not have the faceplate/visor able to move up. Is this necessary for approval? I do have one idea though, and that's to insert some fairly strong rare earth magnets to make it 'snap' together. I'm curious if anyone has any suggestions. I'll try and post a pic later this evening to explain what the problem is.

The milliput seems to be holding strong, so I went ahead and filled in the bottom of the helmet, completely hiding the steel rod. and then I added the steel rod to the forehead: What I didn't show before were the holes that I drilled through the helmet, to give the milliput something to grab onto and bond with. I don't know if it matters, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. Next, I'm going to harden up the faceplate, and also add some inserts to the visor to even out the insides.

I worked on the bucket some tonight. I chose to use a steel rod to hold the shape, and sealed it in with milliput. I'm waiting until tomorrow to take the clamps off. Hopefully it will stay solid. If it does, I'll fill around the rest of the rod with milliput, then put a rod in the forehead of the crown, and give it the same treatment.

Here's the Rubies helmet starting to take shape. I've reshaped the visor and took out the old goggles. I'm going to reshape the faceplate and cut out the old snout tomorrow. Then I need to work on the bucket shape some more. I've got a heft piece of steel rod that I'm going to use to hold it together. Definitely need to work on the sides/cheeks a little though.

I've been busy modding the Rubies helmet. I've got the parts separated, and reshaped the bucket and the visor. I need to reshape the faceplate next. Once that's done, I'll be filing in the visor with milliput/spare styrene and installing the new snout (from Jeff at SC). Hoping to be finished with the helmet in a week or two, but I'm also working on my snowy on the side so it may take longer. I'll post a pic or two later this evening. I need a good lead on the new goggles material though.

Originally, I was going to make all my stuff from scratch. I still intend to do that, just for fun, but I'm also building a Snowy from scratch. I'm under a time crunch so I decided to buy my armor from StudioCreations, and I'm glad I did. Jeff is awesome to work with, his price is spot on, the quality is awesome, and I got it within 2 weeks of ordering. Anyway, this build is actually for my wife, but I plan to get my own cloth parts and use this armor as my own TB suit when I can. So here's the obligatory box shot as well as all the pieces I received from SC. I'll be modding the Rubies helmet. I'm having Cathy (linked from SC's site) make the vest and I'll be making my own cummerbund. The material is on it's way. I'm making my own blaster as you can see here. It's taken me just about 4 hours of work to get this far so I'm hoping to be complete really soon. Looking forward to finishing this build as well as my snowy! Hoping to be approved to troop at Celebration VII.