ScarifBeachBum

Good idea about the Level 2. That still will enable more people to do this if they have another variation they want to swap between.

Sorry if I came off that way, Mike. This is my first time helping research a CRL. Thanks for the work that you put in to make this happen!

Thanks for shepherding this across the finish line and thanks to @MikeRadness for putting in the work to get this done!

I wasn't taking issue with the grime but rather the heavy "chocolate chip" weathering that seems inconsistent with what we've seen on screen (and behind the scenes) for Niamos Shoretroopers. That's all that I meant by "pristine." I understand that Mike did this to be consistent with his Grunt kit, but it does not accurately represent the kind of weathering we have seen on screen for this.

Agreed. I think you're right that the channel is Sahara Beige, but the side is painted. I had a hard time telling if you had the sides of the channel painted in that photo. I think the thing that threw me off was how wide the side channels are on that kit.

The blue stripe on this is wrong. The only place where the Sahara Beige intersects it is in the middle (unlike the Specialist Shoretrooper.) I got that from both photos and the Black Series figure. Also, the weathering seems to be a bit heavy for Niamos Shoretroopers which are nearly pristine other than some dirt.

Slowly but surely it is coming together. I need to finish painting the left shoulder bell (I screwed up and painted the whole thing Sahara Beige) and touch up some paint on one of the forearms. I need to paint the undercoat on the belt boxes (not shown), thermal detonators, and the kidney plates. Then I have to prime and fill the helmet, backplate, and rear belt cover. I just need to print the pistol. All soft parts are ready to go. Only question I have is on weathering. The photos look like there is some but not a lot of weathering. It also looks like the weathering is kind of grey, almost like from sea salt. Any thoughts on that?

Latest update. Sanding, priming, painting, printing, etc. Coming along slowly but surely. I still need to print the pistol (already bought the files). Other than that, everything is printed and in the process of being finished. (Belt boxes on the belt are being replaced with upgraded ones.)

Still chugging away with sanding and priming. I'll be gone for the next two weeks, though, so new updates will come mid-July. Hope to be showing a lot of progress by then.

Thanks! Sorry for the lack of updates. I've been traveling for work and family matters the last few weeks but I'm back in the game. Printing Nico's helmet this weekend. Then I'm starting printing the pistol. Everything else is printed and most of it is sanded and primed. I'll be providing more updates soon.

Holster just arrived from Dark Side Closet.

Everything has been sanded multiple times, most pieces have been filled and primed, but still need another sanding then undercoat paint and then the Sahara Beige. Some pieces have been fully painted, though, as you can see with my test using Polar Blue. I bought the files to 3D print the pistol and I'm buying Nico's helmet files to print that as well. I already have the Orca Bay boots and all the soft parts. I've ordered the holster from Dark Side Closet. It should all be coming together fairly quickly.

Not sure if you've already noted this, but the Niamos Squad Leader does not have the shotgun shells or the oiler pouch on its hip plates (I know that you do not list those on the draft CRL, so I realize that you have noticed it.) I guess that's one of the reasons why it can be pulled up higher since those are not present on it. I just opened up my Black Series figure as well to check the back and neither of those are on it as well.

I also just noticed that on the Black Series figure the inset on the chest is painted Sahara Beige as well while on the other Black Series figures the indent is black.

Okay, I was able to paint a shoulder bell and chest armor today with the Polar Blue and it looks like a match. I have photos of it in the direct sun and in the shade / indoors. I also painted the indent Sahara Beige as we saw in the photos. To the naked eye, this looks nearly white / grey outside in the sun. The camera makes it look a little more blue here.