mr paul

I was thinking about the braces yesterday and referred back to some images that surfaced in the groups a while ago. There has only ever been a couple of images that show what appears to be light grey coloured straps over the shoulders of at least 2 displayed costumes. There was originally talk of these being something to do with the mannequin or they could also be braces that are integral to the armour itself maybe to hold the ab section up. Looking at he screen used trousers in the leaked picture it was always evident that 2 buttons were sewn into the back which one could assume are for the attachment of button braces. One could also assume that 2 more pairs of buttons would be sewn either side, inside the front to attach the other end of the braces. I have been working on a new pair of breeches recently (Steven Walker is currently making those up for me) and it occurred to me that the undershirt was of course a onesie style shirt/short combo. This would mean the trousers would have to pull up over the outside of them and any braces would have to be worn over the top of the shoulders and shirt. So I think these light grey straps seen peeping out in these pictures are the braces for the breeches. I have sourced some military braces that match what little detail is visible.

Thank you for following and I appreciate your comments. Cheers mate.

Update pic of commissioned pants from Steven Walker. Fantastic. Updates include sourced heavier fabric, coloured thread, bias tape, brace buttons, correct amount, size and positioned eyelets, reinforced eyelets, bar clasps and zipper.

W.I.P picture courtesy of Steven Walker at Rebel Base Art. I have commissioned him to make me a more screen accurate pair of breeches and so far he is knocking it out the park. He has been very cooperative and patient with my requests and very open to upgrading the breeches for me. Love the look of them and cannot wait to get them in hand then break them down with some ageing/weathering.

New moulds for the new shoulder buckles. They had to be cast in a 2 part mould for the new kit to capture the details on the underneath of the buckle. Turned out very good indeed.

Boom! Happy with these. Easy to assemble. End caps I decided to get printed in resin so the sharpness was not lost and I think that was wise. The cylinders were printed in PLA and in white so when they are weathered and scratched the white is revealed as seen on the screen used cartridges.

These resin printed parts from JJ Industries are fantastic. Practically no clean up and perfect for the what I need.

Some w.i.p renders from our designer of the new abdominal armour.

Finally found a fabric I am happy with. Good count, heavy and the colour looks right under different light sources.

Version 2 of the rear cartridges. Thanks to our talented designer this time they have been slightly tweaked in shape and have been adapted so they are now separate from the main body. A lot more accurate I believe and assembly will be hassle free. I have had my prototypes printed in resin with help from Luke Daley over at JJ Industries. Really great work.

As sharp as this looks we have a version 2 in the pipeline that will not only make it easier to print, finish and assemble it will also, I believe, make it screen accurate in the way it goes together. Thought I would throw some paint on it. V2 on the way. To be continued.

I am waiting on a couple more fabric samples however I am very happy with what arrived this morning. Good colour and count. Very excited.

My new Rogue One E-11 blaster from Praetorian Blasters arrived today. It is everything I was hoping for. The attention to detail is there. The casting is profound and to top it all off it is cast in rubber as the stunt versions were for the Shoretroopers in Rogue One. Exactly what I wanted for my costume! I cannot fault it. It is cast in black rubber and unpainted so it leaves room for a potential paint app when I eventually decide how I want this blaster to look. In the meantime I will live with it as I need to research the weathering on the screen used guns. It comes with a rubber tactical light but I have already switched it out with the working tact light that I already owned. I will let the pictures do the talking.

Although a rough print for scaling I am very happy with the new cylinders. They look to be scaled perfectly. Sourcing some new fabric for the breeches. A sample arrived today and it is not too bad at all. Colour is very good. I have a bunch more on the way so will wait to see the rest of them before I hand it over to Steven Walker of Rebel Base Art. We are going to try and get these pants nailed.

Work in progress 3D render of the abdominal armour. Teaser.

I would like to say end of the year however it may be a little longer. We have not set a deadline as the focus is on getting them right rather than rushed out.

Finally getting round to adding this detail. Sewing is not my favourite pastime. That is probably evident.

Hi and thanks. I print in the best quality I can so either 0.06 or 0.1 layer height. Then I sand using 80 grit then a medium foam sanding block down to a fine. I also use emery boards (nail files) I do not bother with any spray fillers instead I opt for cheap matt black paint and use that to fill a minor defects and car filler for any deeper/bigger gaps where parts were joined for example. Take the time to sand it back and as I said having a good quality print to start with is key.

I have the resin prints in hand of the new shoulder buckles. The new versions although identical in scale and dimension now have details added underneath that aid in mounting and fixing them to the chest plate similar to the screen used. I will have to remould them using a 2 part mould so all the details can be captured and it also means there is now a left and a right shoulder buckle.

These STL files are put together by an artist I have onboard for this project. I cannot take credit for those. I am involved in an advisory capacity and i am responsible for printing, finishing and prototyping the parts. The research I have accumulated over the last 2 years combined with the input of a 3rd party who is not only a reliable source but has access to behind the scenes intel means we can accurately recreate this armour as best we can. Once these files are proved to be good and fit for purpose they will be shared freely within the community for personal use only so anybody interested will be able to download and print this armour. The helmet we will not be reproducing as ANOVOS and Haskell Mackowski/ Nico Henderson already offer the 2 best helmets available today. I will continue to make and sell the some of the smaller parts needed to complete the costume and will also offer switch out parts cast from alternative materials.

Once again bare in mind the pictures were taken under different circumstances with different camera settings. A good overall likeness from a side elevation.

Obviously work in progress. Bare in mind the 2 very different circumstances under which these 2 photo's were taken I do not consider it a bad likeness at all. Image on the left taken at the Los Angeles Auto Show Nissan Rogue One display.