Tusken Raider turned Biker Scout

[Cat]

Mini update- I decided to sew the pouches first because I wanted to start off easy and tackle the undersuit after. I'm in the process of sewing the 2 pouches, and they're looking pretty good so far! It was my first solo sewing project ever, so, as it normally does, it took longer than expected.. Haha. I look forward to finishing the 2 pouches tomorrow, and possibly tailoring the undersuit. 

 

Thank you so much for your advice @Retrofire @AradunFF! After I finish my undersuit modifications and pouches, I'll do another tape prototype of the cummerbund and cod to make sure everything fits as it should, but as you have suggested, I'll probably decrease the 8 inch measurement by a few inches, and lower the belt as well. If @Zeronin could provide me a picture on how his pouches were sewn onto his bund, that would be awesome, but in case he can't I've found this thread by Christina which does an amazing job talking about the attachment tabs, or lack thereof in this case. I think I'll be doing something similar to what she did, in that I'll have an attachment tab but it will just be folded down, out of sight behind the pouch. I don't think I'll sew it to the back of the pouch like she did though, since I want my pouches to flop over the belt.

I'm so excited!! I'm making progress!!

[MandoScoutQC]

They're velcro'd on actually. I have a strip sewn in the back of each pouch and one on the bund. I followed Christina's recommendations. It's pretty straight forward but if you want me to provide photos as well I'm more than happy to do so. 

[Cat]

PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE!! 😄😄 Thanks everyone for your help and support! 

My pouches are DONE! Personally, I don't think the pictures do them justice, haha.

 

I'm currently working on Red Kap undersuit modifications. I just wanted to verify- I'm supposed to take off both the butt pocket and the weird little pockets under it, right? Neither of these are mentioned in the CRL, or seen on the CRL model, but I just want to be 100% sure. Thanks! I'm going to use these fabric pieces to try and make the front leg pockets, the mandarin collar, code cylinder pocket and right sleeve cargo pocket. If I don't have enough material, I'll probably cut off the chest pockets and use those to make whatever else I need to make.

Also, @Zeronin thanks for the response! Could you please provide me with close-up pictures of the left bicep code cylinder pocket and the right bicep sleeve cargo pocket? Many thanks! No rush  

[Chopper]

Hey Catherine, because the Mando Scout undersuit uses a Tie Pilot flight suit, any pockets not mentioned in the Mando Scout CRL, or not covered by armor/bund, should be removed. In other words, yes, I believe those pockets should be removed from the RedKap coveralls.

[Cat]

Progress thus far:

All armor - Studio Creations B grade, purchased, unassembled

Balaclava - Purchased ✔️

Flight Suit - Red Kap purchased, modifications in progress

Neck Seal - will be making myself... If I can figure it out, haha.

Gloves - will be making myself

Cummerbund and Codpiece -  will be making myself, materials purchased

Pouches - Made myself, complete ✔️

Boots - purchased vinyl and work boots, will be making myself

Bag - will be making myself, want to purchase button greeblies

Baby Yoda - purchased, will be punching it myself 😉✔️

[Cat]

Hello all!

I have tailored my undersuit (I still need to sew on the leg patches and arm details and mandarin collar but I'm sick of working on the undersuit so I'm going to do other things for a while) and am now going to sew the cummerbund and codpiece. I did additional prototyping, and this is the size I'm going to run with for the cummerbund and cod. If anyone has any comments or concerns about the sizing and placement of everything, I'd be happy to hear your thoughts! 👍🙂

After considering how pretty the white unweathered armor looks, I was thinking about pursuing ROTJ Lancer instead of a Mando scout, but I'm not sure... I'm somewhat conflicted. My armor is B-grade though, it has some dimples, so I feel like it would disqualify me from Lancer anyways. Not sure. Also, I don't know how many modifications my old Studio Creations armor would require in order for it to qualify for Lancer.

[Retrofire]

While not the most desirable B-grade can be approvable if you’re willing to put the time in to bring it to Lancer standards. I can see the conflict within you young Sky.... sorry where was I? I can see that crossroad before you Cat and it’s something you want to give some serious thought to. You’re talking about a whole new flight suit and a different bund assembly altogether. If it’s something that you are thinking of post some pics of your armor that @Chopper and I can take a look at. Chopper is an ROTJ armor expert and he can give you the straight skinny on whether the armor is Lancer approvable. You can take it from there and decide which route you’d like to go. Either way we’re here to help you so we’ll support you whichever route you choose.

[Cat]

Thanks for your help and support, Retrofire! I really appreciate it. After giving it careful consideration, I'm going to proceed forwards with the Mando scout. Today I'll be finishing the cummerbund, tomorrow I'll try to finish the cod. Actually, I'll make the cod tomorrow for sure. (The words of a wise alien echo in my head: Do or do not, there is no try...)

Also, in my search for a cheap neck seal, I found this awesome tutorial over on the white armor forums. Andrew made his neck seal for only $10, using some stuff from Home Depot. I definitely recommend going this route for anyone that's trying to make this costume on a budget.

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/34548-10-diy-neck-seal-v1/

This is also a really good DIY neck seal resource, but the process is more intense than that of the first link:

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/4467-howto-make-your-own-neckseal/

 

In case anyone doesn't have access to the White Armor forums, Andrew basically used rubber weatherstrip tape and wrapped it around a black sleeve that he could fit his head through. A black turtleneck could have also been used.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Frost-King-5-16-in-x-1-4-in-x-17-ft-Black-EPDM-Cellular-Rubber-Weatherstrip-Tape-V25BK/202844545 

Depending on the pliability of this material, I might also use it for the ribs when I'm making my gloves.

 

Also... Happy New Year's Eve everyone!! Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday season. 

[Cat]

Progress thus far:

• All armor - Studio Creations B grade, purchased, unassembled
  • Use Panda's awesome build to ensure armor fits properly 
• Balaclava - Purchased ✔️
• Flight Suit - Red Kap purchased, needs modifications
  • Need to sew on the leg patches, arm details, and mandarin collar 
• Neck Seal - will be making myself
  • Using https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/34548-10-diy-neck-seal-v1/ as a tutorial
• Gloves - will be making myself
• Cummerbund, Codpiece and Pouches - Made myself, done ✔️
• Boots - purchased vinyl and work boots, will be making myself
  • Use cheesewhoppy's boot tutorial 
  • Use Steph's video as a guide
• Bag - will be making myself, want to purchase button greeblies
• Baby Yoda - purchased, will be punching it myself 😉✔️
• Finishing touches
  • Look at Chopper's awesome guide and slap velcro supports under the armor

I initially wanted to get this entire project done in 1 month, but I realize now that that goal was unfeasible for me, especially since I'm doing as much sewing/building  as I can myself. I'm happy with how much I've progressed and learned with this project: I've gone from 0 sewing skills to tailoring an undersuit, making a cummerbund, making a codpiece and making pouches. Sadly, my next school semester starts soon so I will be unable to dedicate large amounts of time to this project for the next few months. We'll see how things go.

 

Thanks everyone for your help and support! I'm excited to join the ranks.... One day, haha! 

[Aradun]

Cat, you’ve made great progress for someone with no sewing skills, and while disappointed to have to readjust your time frame, you should be proud of what you’ve accomplished in such a short time. Kudos. You’ll be a Scout before you know it!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Cat]

As the semester winds down and my workload decreases, I find myself with the opportunity to take up this project again. This weekend I aim to do finishing touches on my cummerbund/codpiece/pouches (put velcro on the cummerbund so I can attach the pouches to the cummerbund via the velcro), sew the front facing vertical lines on the cummerbund (apparently I forgot to do this, lol), and work on the dreadful flightsuit. I need to sew on the leg patches, arm details, and mandarin collar to the flight suit, and I'll be using Wampa Wear's listing of their flight suit (https://wampawear.com/product/black-flightsuit-medium/ ) as reference, since I am finding it difficult to find clear images of these flight suit details elsewhere. 

Although the CRL states "The right sleeve has a cargo pocket, approximately 6" (152mm) wide and 5.75" (146mm) on the bicep:
The pocket has a 2" (50.8mm) flap. (2) leg pockets with flaps, similar in proportion as the right arm sleeve pocket," I am going to probably decrease these sizes by a bit since I am quite small in comparison to the normal trooper. I hope that's okay.

Hope everyone is doing well!  

[Retrofire]

Hey Cat glad to see you back at it! Hope the semester is going well for you.

I can see what you saying regarding sizing but you’ll want to tread lightly when thinking about modifying measurements in the costume requirements. I would very much recommend that you reach out to your GML there in the FL garrison before committing. 

[Cat]

Update: I was able to finish my cummerbund, codpiece, and pouches. They're 100% done, I'm so happy! I've measured/sewn all the pouches, flaps, and accessories for the undersuit but have yet to attach them. Despite my small size, I have chosen to just follow the CRL measurements.

Tomorrow's goal: Hopefully finish all flight suit modifications.

Also, I'm heavily considering dropping $60 for the Wampawear gloves... I just don't think I'll be able to make a pair nearly as nice as those. Sigh.

[Cat]

Hello there! 

Happy to announce that I am DONE with the cummerbund, codpiece, pouches AND ALL flight suit modifications! So excited. (Ignore the pouches in the upcoming photos, they were smashed and not in their correct positions since I was trying to adjust the armor.)

Here are some INCREDIBLY ill-fitting armor pictures haha.

 

I was trying to do test fittings with the armor to try and figure out what I should modify first. I know most people start with the chest, so I figured that would probably be a good place to start... However, I've come to understand that this armor was not exactly made with the female figure in mind, lol. I'm trying to figure out what would be the best way to shape this armor. In this picture, I have the armor attached (by tape) so that it hangs down from my shoulders, but this would require me to bend the large bottom piece of chest armor in order for it to sit properly on my chest https://photos.app.goo.gl/i8rYDxBxw9MU2ihy6 . I can basically fit my hand into a gap that's created when the chest armor is lying like this ( https://photos.app.goo.gl/retjySfiKiwJ8knx7 ), so I don't think this is a good way to go about it at all.

 

Instead, I think I'll try to position the armor by holding it against my ribs ( https://photos.app.goo.gl/q9XueH6Xfmdp1r4B7 ) and then dunking the upper chest armor parts in hot water in order to bend them to fit my body more appropriately. The gap is much larger this time when I hold the bottom of the chest armor flush to my body, but I think it would be easier to heat and form the top of the chest armor than the bottom of the chest armor, so I think I may want to proceed forwards with this version ( https://photos.app.goo.gl/ornyK4ANnXsxjNr97 ).

 

Lastly, I'm trying to figure out how much of my shoulder armor I should cut off, as well as how I should fit my upper arm and forearm armor.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/MspodcGAzmSBkcbd7

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kXUuNNJgpXqyhawo8

https://photos.app.goo.gl/RwnHqhz3STHxt2pB8

My hands and arms are incredibly small so I think I may also have to dunk the arm armor into hot water in order to shape it better for my body. This image shows the difference in width between my forearm and the forearm armor https://photos.app.goo.gl/APsYcBPCVAWA3rVt9 .

 

I'm pretty nervous to start cutting this armor, and would really appreciate any tips/suggestions. I tried to mark how much I thought I might need to cut off for my shoulder armor with tape, but I don't know if that would be too much.

 

[Chopper]

Hi Cat, between the strapping and heat shaping, I think you'll find that the bicep and forearm armor should end up fitting reasonably ok. The biceps may be a bit too tall, but hold off on any trimming there until we get your shoulders set up.

I do think you should start by taking off less from the shoulders than you have marked. I would start about where I've marked in green and see how it looks.

 

[M.J]

Hi ya Cat, I'm under 5 foot so it was a challenge to make the armour look like its my size not me looking at needing to  growing into it

I spoke to my GML at the time and we did a guild line on how much I could take off before the CRL becomes void, I do agree with Corey with the green line, dont make the bell that small, remember you can always take off but cant add. I also added foam under the shoulder pieces, my arms are small and skinny so placing a little foam helped them sit better under the bell. Which included adding foam under. the bell too.

[Cat]

Minor update, I've had several exams this week so I haven't been able to make much progress.

 

I cut the bell the way Chopper recommended, and have tried to heat up the arm armor with both hot water (should it be boiling?) and a hair dryer, but nothing seems to shape my armor. I tried heating the armor with the hair drier about an inch away from the armor to see if it would have any effect, but nothing happened. I also tried heating it from several inches away, but still, nothing. I tried shaping it with hot, but not boiling, water as well, but again- nothing. Any recommendations? (Should the water be boiling, should I heat an individual piece with a hair dryer for over 5 minutes in order to see anything happening?)

[Chopper]

ABS as a material has a melting point of around 200 degrees. So if the water you were using wasn't even boiling, then it probably wasn't hot enough to bend the material. A hair dryer will get it hot enough, but you need to be close-ish and it will take a little while. Heating and bending plastic is tricky, as plastic can lose it's shape entirely once it gets past a certain heating point -- there's no harm in being conservative about it.

Oh also, just to be sure -- if you're boiling plastic, make sure that you do it in a pot that you don't plan on ever eating out of afterwards.

[Cat]

WOAH! It has been a long time but I am back. Let's get this thing DONE- advice please, continue reading below!

I am planning on buying WampaWear gloves.

I would like to also buy boots. (Although I had originally bought the work boots and vinyl, I don't want to go through the process of using E6000 if I can avoid it). I was recently trying to speak to Steph from Steph's Imperial Outfitters, but I don't know if she is active anymore. Does anyone know what might be happening / if she has stopped sales? I am open to buying boots from other vendors if so.

Lastly, is the neck seal for the scout troopers (Mandalorian variant) the same as the original stormtrooper TK neck seal? I'm willing to purchase the neck seal for the right price, but if it's simple to sew, I'm also willing to sew it. If anyone has a tutorial on how they made their cloth neck seal, that would be awesome.

Thank you!

 

 

[Aradun]

Hey Cat! Great to see you back at it! You can check out Crowprops for boots too as well as Chrisx909x here in the forums.

http://forum.501stpathfinders.com/topic/23318-rotj-biker-scout-soft-goods-ongoing/#comment-219611

[Aradun]

For the neck seal, if you’re looking to make your own, connect with [mention=87834]Larcwide[/mention] he has some mad skills when it comes to sewing patterns. He made a neck seal for his Shore, but it can easily be adapted for the Scout with a change in fabric.

You can purchase a typical TK neck seal, but I’d advise going with the fabric seals and not the vinyl or leather one’s. You’ll find them much more comfortable and they’ll dissipate heat better.

[Larcwide]

Hey there! As Aradun mentioned I sewed my own neck seal for my Shore. I’m not familiar with the Scout but a quick look at the CRL and from what Aradun said it should be the same sort of pattern.

It’s a fairly simple pattern, you can just take a t-shirt pattern (or measure/cut an old one and trace it) for the bib part, with the back cut in half.
 

Then just a rectangle the length of the neck hole for the ribbed part. If you’re going fabric on the outside you can just double the height and fold it, or if you want leather/vinyl cut one in that and one in soft fabric for the inside and stitch together. Add something between the layers - I used batting/quilting, but I believe people have used 3mm airline tube if you want a more defined curve (but stiffer neck). Stitch the ribs, then stitch to the neckline. Add the zip and you’re done!

Hopefully that makes sense, but let me know if not and I’ll be glad to help.

[Cat]

Hello again. I'm back and this time IT'S FOR REAL!!!! I'm aiming for level 2 scout certification on the Mandalorian scout.

How do these earholes look (I know I need to cut them, just want to make sure I'm cutting the right amount before I actually go for it: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Vvqmx4FT2a13Ucwd7

https://photos.app.goo.gl/dio5ueneufPEsiJu7

My goal is to crank out 95% of this costume this weekend. The time has come. I'm commissioning the boots. Current status:

Armor is purchased, unassembled - all holes have been drilled, I still need to assemble helmet

Balaclava - Purchased ✔️

Flight Suit - Completed modifications ✔️

Neck Seal - Purchased ✔️

Gloves - Purchased, Wampawear ✔️

Cummerbund and Codpiece -  Made myself, complete✔️

Pouches - Made myself, complete ✔️

Boots - Commissioning

[Chopper]

Hiya, the ear hole placement looks fine.

[Cat]

I am having difficulty figuring out how my Studio Creations helmet fits together. There are 2 holes drilled into one of the pieces, but when I line them up to the dimples on another piece, the profile of the helmet looks incorrect. Has anyone done a step-by-step how they put together their SC helmet? I'm trying to figure out which gaps should be there and which shouldn't. A view from the top of the helmet would be great- I know the CRL has both sides, back and front, but there is no top view. Thanks!

 

Also, how are people filling their seam for the "back and cap" styled buckets? Is the goal to make the helmet look like the entire back part is made from 1 piece of plastic?