woobiee

Thanks for the heads up. I've seen other's endcaps and they were really obviously concave. Mine looks flat in comparison but it does look similar to Harbinger's lvl2 app photo.

Welcome Jorge! We're here to assist in anyway we can!

Took a hiatus with all things 501st while in wedding planning mode -- getting married in a few months! But I'm back at it! After doing a few personal troops I found out some of the rivets that mounted the holsters didn't have the rear washer. Not sure why I omitted some of those washers. Will be remounting the holster properly this time. Besides the new T-bit circle detail that was recently discovered, the only thing left I think I need to modify to go on to Lancer is the Thermal Det end caps being concave. But here is the rub: I'm not really comfortable redoing them without destroying the ones from RS. I recently saw the construction of said thermal det from RS and there is a lot of surface area where the end caps bond to the tube (I thought the tube was hollow at first, making it easier to remove the caps). Unfortunately, I honestly may be okay to forgo attempting Level 2 because of it. I'm going to attempt a hail mary and see if I can order a new tube/caps unassembled from RS.

Welcome! The magnet trick works with my bucket but it's probably because it's RS's normal helmet without any interior padding/lining. If I remember correctly the Red Labels come it, which could just be too thick and heavy for the mags to be ineffective?

Late to the party but thank you for your service Pete! Congratulations Corey! 👏👏

I'm also a fan of UKswrathspecialty system! My only wish was if it were just a bit louder.

Your right shoulder bell may be flaring out a little bit. As a smaller frame myself I had similar issues of the bells resting correctly. It usually requires extra attention when putting them on.

Good to know!

I'd love to share my experience with these two often talked about offerings of ready-made biker boots, how they compare to each other, and ultimately how they align with the current CRL. I apologize if this comparison has already been made in the past and if it is the case, I hope this can add to the dataset. Preface I am not endorsed or affiliated by any company or anyone that would give bias to one over the other. This is a personal writeup to share with the greater community and hopefully give additional insight. These boots are not cheap and if it helps you decide on one over the other (or none at all): mission accomplished! I am comparing my set of Imperial Boots (IB) Biker Boots w/ their new 'accurate soles' from late 2020. It's possible they have updated their design since. My CROWPROPS (CP) Biker Boots were from late 2021. It's also possible they have updated their design since. Because my CP set is custom made from home it will ultimately be more accurate (more on that later). I used the excellent Boot tutorial by @cheesewhoopyas my starting point. http://forum.501stpathfinders.com/index.php?/topic/19708-biker-scout-boots-tutorial/ Lastly, I will be aligning with the current Scout Trooper CRL (2022 year). IB Boots https://www.imperialboots.com/product/bikerscout-boot/ I first started with a pair of IB Boots in late 2020. Coincidentally, this was when IB released their new 'screen-accurate' soles and I was lucky enough to be one of the first customers to get my hands on it. The quality is superb with excellent materials used. And it's made well! At $270 USD, this is the more expensive offering of the two. After about a year getting my costume in order, it was determined that the IB boots won't pass Basic approval based on a few things. First, there is a horizontal stitch on the back near the heal that needed concealment: an easy fix. Second, the color of the sole is precariously dark (note: I did pass Basic without any modifications, though I have a feeling it probably won't pass now). And third, the dog bone on the top isn't shaped correctly. After carefully attempting to cut and reshape the dog bone, I successfully passed Basic. After dog bone modifications However, I wasn't satisfied with my work and to go further for Lancer requires a rethink. CP Boots Long: https://crowprops.bigcartel.com/product/biker-shadow-scout-boots-accurate-soles Short: https://crowprops.bigcartel.com/product/biker-base-boots-accurate-soles Which lead me to CROWPROPS, which has an interesting set of offerings: they give you the choice of either a completed, ready-made boot, or a short version where they essentially sell you a short white boot and leave the rest up to you to finish (adding the vinyl covering etc). Both versions include their 'screen-accurate' soles. The ready-made version is $200 USD and the short version is $100 USD , both significantly cheaper than IB. I decided to go with the short version, not because it was half the price, but I found their ready-made version looked a little frumpy. And at least from photos, it looked aesthetically worse than my IB boots that I already had. The quality is equally superb to that of the IB offering though. And if that wasn't enough, it is softer and more comfortable! Though we shall see how durable these will be in the coming years. So a few months of on and off being a junior cobbler and using the CRL religiously, I'm proud to say I produced a boot that I think is more accurate than what I started out with with the IB Boots! Detailed Analysis As mentioned earlier, because I custom wrapped the CP boots using the latest CRL, it is no contest that my finished CP boot is more accurate than the IB pair. In addition, the following photos show the post dog bone adjustments to my IB boots, which isn't the most pretty to say the least. I'd say the following comparison is to compare how the soles of the boots compare with the CRL as well as the areas where the IB boot needs improvement to align with the CRL. Boot Soles Strictly in shape and design, they both look quite similar and closely aligned with the CRL. Interestingly, the narrowest part of the IB sole is 2.5" wide whereas the CP sole is 3.0" I did not find the fit any different between the two however. I can only conclude that it is probably only an external design choice without really altering the interior space. The CRL does not specify this highly specific measurement so no worries about it! Another interesting detail that the CRL photo illustrates are these tiny stitch-like detailing along the perimeter of the sole. IB does not represent these at all, whereas CP does! IB left. CP right. The color is where the IB boots fall short. I think they are too dark and brown. Looking at reference photos and it's clear, they should be tan. CP's sole color is much more aligned with the CRL. Another weird thing about the IB sole is how the front dramatically ramps up like a banana. CP has more of a conservative ramp, which to my eye aligns better with the CRL. Toe Strip Moving up from the sole, we arrive at the toe strip. Please not this is a Lancer requirement only! The CRL states "The toe strip is approximately 1/2 inch in height." Unfortunately, the IB Boots uses 1" strips. Dog Bone Next is the dog bone. This is the area that I had issues with getting Basic approval and ultimately pushed me to redo my boots completely. For the IB boots, the shaping was more like a sanitary towel vs a dog bone. Even though the CRL doesn't specify the spacing of the stitching detail, IB's stitching is spaced out to 1/16" which to me is too close compared to the reference photos. I opted for a 1/4" spacing which I believe aligns better. To illustrate this point, I approximately distilled the two shapes to it's fundamentals. Rear There are a couple items to address in the back. First, the IB boots have a horizontal stitch near the heal that needs to be concealed. Some white paint, or if you go for a dirty look, just some grime can work. The next item I think is either for Lancer approval only, or just good to have: IB boots come with a vertical vinyl trim piece along the spine of the boot for decorative/finishing purposes. I actually quite like it as it gives it a sharp, finished look. Unfortunately I think the proper method is to not have this extra vinyl piece and only have stitching detail along the spine. Top IB boots also have stitching along the top edge of the boot, at about 1/16" away from the edge. No specifics in the CRL but the reference photos indicates this stitching is a bit further away from the edge, 1/8" perhaps? That concludes the analysis. I hope it is useful in some way! If there are anything I missed, or is incorrect please let me know! -------------------------- The next few things are added tips, tricks, and additions that I found useful while working on my boots. Some are already well known but it's nice to reinforce! * @Chopper's great idea of sewing an elastic band inside the boot behind where the holster is located. The elastic wraps around your calf so the boots don't droop while you troop! * Doubling up the vinyl material (or another sturdy material) for the tube portion of the boot. This also helps prevent droopage. * Adding loops at the top opening of the spine. It doesn't use a lot more vinyl and gives you a nice, finished look. * Adding pull straps to the tongue of the boot to help ingress. The pull strap can easily live within the boot velcro to the inner wall when stowed.

Used Chopper's calf strap method And all done! On to the TD endcaps!

Here’s mine. It’s about 2 3/4” on each side. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

2" may be too short per side but I'll measure mine when I get home to give you a ballpark. It seem the CRL doesn't really specify a length though. Hmm

Thanks Chopper. Yeah I don't know how CrowProps assembles the toe strip but it looks too flat/bubbly looking. It's very unlike the screen used one/CRL photos. When I made mine, I literally just glued a strip without any special treatment and to me looks much better!

It might be okay with the width. My chest is small and I was also worried but after putting on everything, the jumpsuit plus the flak vest and the cummerbund really do fill that area up.

I am currently finishing up a second pair of boots after my first pair of IB boots wasn't up to snuff. I'm also writing up a short review showing the side by side comparisons. Hoping to post that up in about a week. I'll say here that the IB boots seem accurate by themselves in a vacuum, but once you compare them side by side to the screen used ones, the little details start to come out. It's a shame because they are really well made!