Chopper

Hey, we're more than happy to give you feedback and guidance, but it'd really help if you could show us some photos. Otherwise we're just speculating.

While Chris' bund does appear to be sitting low and will need to come up once his armor arrives, I think he'll be OK with what he's got right now. If the bund is around 8-9" then he should be just fine with the bund sitting just above the belt. A slipping bund can easily be addressed by adding some velcro and attaching it to the flak vest.

You'll need to size it to your body, but in terms of proportions, this photo might help. The height of the bund is about the width of the codpiece. The cummerbund ribs are 1" wide and, in general, most bunds measure 8"-9" in height. See also: http://forum.501stpathfinders.com/index.php?/topic/19967-soft-parts-best-practices/

Hey Andy, you're build is looking really solid. The front neck line looks good. As you said, I think you can bring the back up a little bit more and then you should be good to go. What method did you end up using to adjust the chest plate to fit better?

Hi Scott, overall I think you look pretty good. The only big item that might come up for basic, and I'd check with your GML first, is the dogbone on the new Imperial Boots scout boots. There's been some recent issues that have come up in that it's more of a "flap" vs a "dogbone". See this thread regarding some of the issues and the quote below for a potential fix, if it's an issue at the local level: In addition, I think part of the issue with your shoulder bells is that you might need to trim your shoulder bridges a bit to fit your torso better. Once your bridges are better centered, that'll help your shoulder bell positioning. Before doing any trimming on the bridges, I would recommend repositioning the bridges by overlapping them a bit and affixing them with tape until you can find the right position. Also, it's hard to tell from where the shoulder bells are right now, but they may need to come in closer to the bridges a bit. I'd focus on getting them centered first though. Your bund should come up maybe an inch or so. You can help hold the bund in place with some velcro on the flak vest. And once the bund comes up, the belt should come up as well. Ideally, you should try to but the top edge of the belt just slightly below where your belly button is. When you put on your forearm armor, try and put them at the 10 and 2 o'clock positions, with the biceps at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions. Basically, the biceps should be straight out towards your sides, and your forearms canted slightly forwards. You flight suit is a little baggy in the legs, but that's a Lancer/Level 2 issue. Unfortunately, the IB soft goods are not clearable for Lancer/Level 2, as we've found that they use either a canvas, or a twill fabric for the cod bund and faux suede for the riding patches and flap. Please let us know if you have any further questions!

http://forum.501stpathfinders.com/index.php?/topic/10270-fs-accurate-tb-helmet-hardware-kit-headband-kit/ or https://www.amazon.com/Fibre-Metal-Honeywell-FM4001-Quick-Lok-Adapter/dp/B002BUMS8Y/ref=psdc_7491811011_t1_B015MG1SMK

Nice work. Scout helmet build can be very challenging, depending on the maker. We look forward to your progress on the rest of your scout.

Sincere condolences. RIP.

Check this post, it'll show pretty well how the zip ties work. http://forum.501stpathfinders.com/index.php?/topic/17305-lancer-build-tutorial/#comments

Here's some examples, taken by our DL, from SWC 2017 of the Gino Scout. It's a good example of weathering and nicking/wear that I was talking about. From what you've shown, I don't see anything in terms of weathering that would disqualify it in terms of a Level 2 review. Just be careful with the chest, back, and helmet. Those are the parts that can really make or break a weathering job on the scout. Remember, when it comes to weathering, less is more!

That looks alright to me. I would do a little scratching/scraping with steel wool or a sanding pad along some of the armor edges to show some wear, but what you've shown looks ok. How'd the chest and back turn out? Let me find some example photos of what I meant wrt the scraping.

Ah, yes I see what you mean now. There's a bit of an optical illusion with the light in the photos. I know that finding ideal boots has been a bit of a struggle where you're at, so just try to do the best you can and hopefully it won't be very obvious with only a little careful sanding.

I would start by trying to rotate the armor forward by about 3/4" to 1". In the front facing photo, the chest armor looks like slightly high. We can continue to tweak it though.

Hi Arne, I think that, given the way that vinyl tends to lay when using a work underboot, those bumps on the top of the edges of the sole would be visible and should be trimmed flush -- at least for Level 2. You should be able to carefully trim them with a sharp exacto blade. I would also consider trimming down that small ridge that runs around the sole of the boots as well. I think your red outline from the sample is fine. And you shouldn't need to cut all that deep into the sole when you do your cuts -- I'd say no deeper than approximately 2mm is all that's needed.

The CRL doesn't specify, and we've accepted it either way for Level 2 reviews. Most indications point to having it go over all three sides, so that's the way I would go if you have a choice.

For my sandtrooper I use a cloth neck seal from darnan props, which has a zipper in the back. It's far more comfortable and fits better, but one from Steph would be more accurate.

Where'd you get the neck seal that you're using? Can we see a photo of you wearing it without your helmet on?

Yeah you should be able to. I think with some of the films, you can move it into position with a bit of soapy water in between and then you can trim the edges -- you'd need to look at the specific instructions though.

I don't know about a spray, but there's automotive window tint film that you can apply. Since it's already dark, you could prob add some minor tinting to further darken it.

That's awesome, Eric. I love it.

Well, it's a good thing you asked them directly, hah.

Frankly, I would reach out to RS and ask if they can tell you what type of paint was used for the scout weathering. ABS paste isn't a commercial product. You make it from armor trimmings + acetone in a glass jar. I would also hold off on any reinforcements until you get your armor fit properly. https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/42866-how-to-make-abs-paste/

I'm not certain what kind of paint they used for the weathering, so I can't say for sure. If they used enamels or lacquers, then it probably won't have any effect. If they used acrylics, maybe, but then again, I've dipped acrylic painted action figures in boiling water to remove parts and the paint was unaffected.

Great progress as usual. It's pretty common to have to trim the shoulder bridges a little to make the armor fit better on the torso. You can overlap the bridges and use some tape until you get the fit right. Then give us a look, mark it, and then you can trim. I need to adjust the chest on my RS scout too, as it's a bit wide as well. You can dip the sides in hot water and mold them by hand, as it's a bit easier to control the heat and shape that way. You can also bring it in a bit by heating up the center seam with a hair dryer. Either way, be careful and go slow, as that's a significant stress point and you don't want to weaken it.

I think you're in solid shape with your soft goods progress. Yes, I agree that you could bring in the thigh straps by 0.5" to make them a little more snug. They don't need much. The dimensions of your butt flap are pretty good, remember there's no exact measurement, as people's builds differ, but the alterations you mention are ok as further refinements. I think the back patches are a little big by maybe an inch or two in the back. I did some approximate marking in the attached photo to try and give you an idea of what I mean.