Shada

In the absence of Trooperbay being a source any more, I've tried trimming off the black edging and re-sticking the decals on. Traps are now all grey - does this work? 3M bolts are on their way from Kevin

I thought I'd try the zip-ties trick to attach the shoulder bells to the chest/back armour. First I anchored the zip-ties to the velcro I'd originally used for the connection inside the bell, then sewed it between the velcro/elastic layers I had at the chest/back connection: then tried it on, adjusting it so it's visible but has that subtle "float" effect (blue shirt for background here just so it stands out):

I got a very cheap set of x-acto knock-off blades from an emporium style shop - cost about $5 for 3 handles and 8 or so blades: With them, I used an angled blade to make the cuts and two flat blades of different sizes to slide under and lift the pieces out: took about 1.5 hours for boot #1 and 1 hour for boot #2 - it's a lot easier than it sounds.

Thanks Retro. I'm tempted to take that option, but will wait for my 3M bolts to arrive first so I can do it all in one hit.

Are there other sources for decals than Trooperbay? I see it's out of action at the moment as the owner is having surgery. Also, the $19 decals will cost me $15 postage, which seems steep (unless I manage to combine other items in to spread the postage costs). If all else fails, is it possible to remove the existing decals, cut off the black lines and re-stick them on? Or will that make it too small (i.e. is the problem that the grey is the right size and the black is additional, or that the decal is the right size but should be grey right to the edges?)

Phew - today I went ahead and weathered my armour. It's very strange that, after several months of carefully looking after it, I've voluntarily made it look like it was dragged behind the back of an AT-AT. It's still white from a distance, but you can see the light weathering when you get close, which is the same effect as watching on screen. As always, I started with research and re-watched all of the Scout scenes in ROTJ, paying careful attention to just how weathered everyone was. I'd previously focused on the reference photos from BSN, so it was interesting to see how some of the Scouts looked in the fight scenes, and to spot just how much spray paint was dusted on various bits of armour - it gave me confidence to got a little heavier than I'd previously planned. I started with knees and boots, putting more paint on these than the rest because they're closer to the ground and the bike, and spending a bit of time spraying then wiping it off/around to get them nicely smeared. (photo is of one boot done, one not, to show the contrast) I also made sure to mask my visor so I didn't get paint in my vision! For the rest, I arrived at a technique that is less about weathering the armour, and more about painting an imaginary object in front of the armour and not worrying about overspray - that gave a nice dusting effect without it looking like it was tagged. I now just need to wait for my DVH blaster to arrive, replace my helmet bolts and traps (which I'm ordering today), and paint the red line on the top of the tank, and I'll be ready to submit for Lancer.

Finished the second boot: Now doing weathering tests - aiming to replicate the light spray can effect from ROTJ, but trying not to look like a spray can ("I don't know, weather casual"). I figure a real speeder bike travelling at 200mph would lead to a lot of dust and grease (and dead bugs?!?) on the armour, and especially the knees/boots, so will try for that. I like the overall gentle spray approach. Also tried spraying more on and wiping it off with a wet cloth to just leave it in the cracks, which is how I've seen a lot of weathering done - that wasn't as effective, although I may use it on the boot cuts.

Begun ... the Lancer conversion has Now that I'm approved, I'm headed towards Lancer status. Starting with the bit I've dreaded most - carving up the boots. As it turns out, much like the stretching of the vinyl in the first phase, it turned out to be much easier than I expected. I devoted a bit of time to marking out, using ROTJ and MOTM reference pics, adjusting them for the size/style of boot (an NZ K-Mart purchase, but not a Texas Steer), and the width of the blades I was using. From this, I started cutting - outlines first, then putting the flat blade under and along, then using an angled blade to clean up any stragglers. Initially, I used a metal ruler to guide the cut, but soon got the hang of it and freehanded the rest. All up, the left boot took about 1.5 hours. I suspect the right will be less than an hour, as I've got the hang of it now (but also have to deal with the holster).

Great - thanks for the info Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi I have an Altmann helmet and am thinking about what I need to do to go for Lancer. I've looked at previous answers that suggest there's a bit to do, but some of them refer to cutting ear holes, which came pre-cut in my bucket, so I figure Spike has modified the helmet since then so I'd like to double check to be absolutely sure what I do/don't need to do. This is my bucket: Looking at the Lancer specs, I think: the ears and most decals are ok (although maybe not the traps as they have a black edging?), the bolt covers may be ok (they aren't dead flat but neither are they very rounded - not sure about the judgement here), and I'm not sure about the snout Can you please give me some suggestions? I think the rest of my build is close to Lancer standards, with the main change I have to make being the boot cuts, but the helmet is the bit I may need to order extra parts for. Thanks

I love the last photo 😀 Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

CA is the fancy name for superglue Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks Retro. It's been good having you guys to follow Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

TB-27138 reporting for duty! Just came through today while I was trooping at Armageddon 😎 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Apparently it's cleared at the GML end so just needs final 501st processing, which seems to be taking some time... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Will weather eventually. First troop is this weekend so I'll see how it all shakes out, then start on adjustments (weathering, carving boots for Lancer, maybe zip tie bells) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've submitted my approval pics, but found time to do one more task: making the TD clips. Used 1/16th inch by 1 inch aluminium, following Pandatrooper's measurements. Rather than spray paint, I borrowed some black nail polish and used that for colouring. Now I'm just in waiting mode for approval.

I'd echo what Retro says above and add Velcro...lots of Velcro! I made my own boots and bund and modified my flight suit (including Velcro to attach the bund too), so went back multiple times to get more and more of the stuff. I also got a lot of different sized rivets as the short ones for attaching the knee elastic, tank and holster weren't long enough to attach magnets to the TD. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I just chopped up the cheapest hard hat I could find - see below. It was relatively easy - I left the outside bits of the hardhat as two pieces, rather than four. (the helmet liner had 6 straps rather than 4. I've just attached 4 to see how they go - may attach the others later or cut them off)

Mine is an SC and was locked into place, while I think others come as a separate part that can be put anywhere in the slot. As far as I can tell, there's no particular place it must be.

Hi again I've made all of the tweaks to biceps, forearms, TD and pouches, so think I'm ready to go - any final tips? Shada Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

In terms of timing, I ordered my SC armour on 13 March and it arrived in New Zealand on 24 March - it's now 20 May and I'm submitting my approval pics tonight, so just under 2 months. Ordered my Altman bucket on the same day and it arrived last week, but didn't need any real effort at that point aside from adding the liner. By the time it arrived, I'd completed everything else. I may have been lucky, in that the armour pretty much just fit me without needing major modification so I was really just sanding and gluing - if I had to shape it a lot (like in the Pandatrooper build) it would have taken longer. I made the boots and soft armour myself (with a little help sewing the suede). So, yeah, Halloween is definitely achievable as long as you order the parts soon.

Looks good to me.

Thanks Retro and Chex. I'll make those tweaks. And yeah, it feels really good to have the whole lot on. (aside from the heat!) Shada

Here are my pre-approval pics: Aside from the bicep pieces being turned a bit too far towards the back, and my left drop-box being a fraction higher than the right (I suspect I need to lower the left rather than raise the right), I think this is very close to being final. I have an Aker in my left pouch, which (according to my family) makes my voice audible even with the helmet on. There's still a bit to do before I'm totally happy, as I need to made some TD clips for extra support, do some weathering and carve the soles before I'm ready to go for Lancer, but I think this meets basic standard. Please let me know what you think. My goal is to go for approval around the end of the week, so I can troop with it at Armageddon (which is basically NZ's version of Comic-con) on 4-6 June. Thanks Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk