GrandMoff501st

Hey everyone! Wow, it's been a minute since a status update. Thought it high time to get back on here and let everyone know that their advice was not in vain. Thrilled to say that I was approved last week and am now a TX! As many will know all too well, the DT is a pretty daunting build, and the Type 2 Specialist even more so with the chest rig and everything that comes with it. I was lucky enough to get to attend some events as a test troop while things got finalized between Sept and Nov 2023, and received approval a few days ago. Will be applying for the Spec Ops forum access permissions etc. shortly, but in the meantime, wanted to provide some pics showing off the finished product. Will be attending a high-profile NHL troop in the coming days and should have some gnarly action shots to share. I have the voice scrambler kit and used it at a troop once, but removed it for the time-being until I can optimize the wiring, helmet placement, and a sound glove, but that can all wait. Also, will be putting in an order for the DLT heavy blaster rifle, too, but the E11D and my "Stormie" wooden doll for the R1 opening will get me through until then haha.

Hi Paul; I'm thinking I *may* be (3 months) late for your question, and my apologies for that. Was offline with work. Hopefully you've already ordered and received your boots, though! Just for the record, I'm a size 11 US, which is technically a size 44EU, but I ordered a 45EU, just for a better fit and in the event of wearing warmer/thicker socks for cold troops. They fit very good, super snug and comfortable even with 5h+ of trooping. Definitely recommend, but since EU sizes are have more increments compared to North America, would suggest sizing up just slightly.

Thanks, Daniel! It was a great day and definitely a deep-dive into my first "test" troop considering it was Comic-Con So about the E-11D! It's weird. I was with the military, and relative to the way my carbine was built, it makes more sense for the butt/stock to be reversed -- the way you said -- with the thicker/wider part at the top. However, I poured through the R1 Ultimate Visual Dictionary and my DT 1/6 from Hot Toys, and about 80% of the depictions of the carbine butt show it the way mine is, with the narrow part on top. Again, it doesn't make sense, but it seems to be a weird production/continuity issue. I'd like to redo it anyways at some point, since the manufacturers built it with the butt permanently extended, which is understandably a pain when you're trying to change positions or shoulder the carbine.

Alrighty folks, so thanks to the sorcery shared by Dropkick, here are finally some actual photos of my Sunday at OCC 2023.

That absolutely helps! Thanks, Shane. Much appreciated.

Scratch that - 1 pic* lol. It says I can only upload 22 kB now, so I'll try later when I got my tech guru hat on.

So, just two quick pics of the (almost-) end result of the last five months' work. I was able to attend the Con on Sunday as a "test troop," and it was naturally a ton of fun. The build was a huge hit and I was on my feet for about five hours on the floor. The "Stormie" wooden doll was by far the most popular aspect of the whole vibe haha. I wore the pauldron and MP40 ammo pouch, but not the specialist chest rig and grenades, as I had only worn the costume three times before for 20 mins, so I didn't want the strapping and different elements to get too overwhelming. I had the voice scrambler on for the first half, but definitely need some improvements for the wiring going from the speakers and battery pack inside the lid to the activator in my hand. Definitely the most important modification is going to get a fan system, which I'm on top of now. Anyways, though, just wanted to share the below since the forum here has been so helpful over the past few months. An incredible start to the costuming career, for sure. A big thanks to everyone and I'd be more than happy to help provide the same guidance I received to other acolytes. (Wish I could attach larger/better res photos, but have to make due with these shots for now. 78kB is so tiny lol)

Really good, actually. On Sunday I was standing in them for six hours on indoor concrete and only had mild soreness at the end of the day -- to be expected, obviously. The insole is quite thick and comfortable and so long as the basics of laces and the tongue are taken care of, they have great durability. They look great, too, and KeepTrooping provides the top-of-boot padding with velcro on three sides. It takes some manipulation and weight to get the bend right, but they look great once you do. Fully recommend, especially as the original Doc Martins are so tough to find and are most likely used, anyways. Hope that helps, Paul.

Hey gang! Long time no post. Hope everyone is doing well. Just thought it high time to send a status update, since there was some interest back in spring time. My build adventure has been quite the whirlwind but it's on track! I got the undersuit/soft parts from Jim Tripon last month. A bit weird to put it all on without armour haha, but it fits perfectly. Lots of goodies like the chest rig, spare pouches, and the black pauldron. The man was receptive to questions, explained everything really courteously, and delivery was bang on and in great shape. 5/5 From KeepTrooping (formally Imperial Boots), I got the "Killer" boots that look like the classic Doc Martins, and the DT gloves, as well as some other stuff for other builds. Everything shipped exactly on time, they responded extremely quickly to questions, and most importantly, everything fits just perfect. 5/5 850ArmorWorks is currently finalizing the hard plates, helmet, carbine, and pistol. I may be repeating myself here, but these folks communicate rapidly, are super witty and patient, and are extremely fast at some pretty incredible work. I have to say by far the best thing is that they've been keeping me in the loop with the progress as things go, including pictures and explaining the process. Delivery date is early September, but I can safely say so far the experience has been 6/5 Beyond the meat and potatoes above, I went to Etsy to get the adorable "Stormie" wooden doll from Rogue one, three additional grenades with flashing LEDs when primed, and just purchased the voice scrambler audio kit from UkswrathsSpeciality (Tony). Reviews were all exceptional and he came personally recommended by 850AW. I hope this helps the folks interested in this build and I look forward to showing off the finished product down the line.

Haha here is hoping we're both on the parade square in due time! SO. Everything is measured, ordered, and paid for, folks. Now it's the waiting game. So just to hash it out again for any curious lurkers for where I got what, as it was understandably a lot of chasing around and researching over the last three months! All of the outfitters were beyond helpful, courteous, and responded very promptly throughout the process. - 850AW: Ready-to-wear two-gone gun metal grey armour, the helmet with optional rangefinder, as well as the SE blaster pistol and E11 blaster carbine, painted - Jim Tripon: Undersuit, specialist pouches, cauldron, chest rig, and some straps and the black pauldron - KeepTrooping (formally Imperial Boots): "Killer" DT boots, gloves, balaclava, and some additional strapping (as well as the ISB officer set) (So many measurements, too!) Anyways, the hard stuff is all done... I hope. I'll let you folks know as the pieces come in and how they shape out.

Thanks, Gerald! Looking forward to showing it off in a few months and trooping together. This is great; danke, Daniel! Very much appreciated. Email sent out to them already

Heya fellow Imps, Didn't want to leave everyone high and dry, so just wanted to say a huge thanks for the engagement and the information. It's good to know that I'm not the only insanely anxiety-prone person when buying all this stuff from third-party vendors and wondering what kind of accountability and checks and balance there are in balance. Sometimes you just have to trust the community and take a leap of faith, eh? I've placed my order with Jim for the "soft parts" this week (undersuit, specialist pouches, and pauldron) and am just completing the 18 different measurements for him. Meanwhile, I'm going with 850AW in FL, USA for the hard armor parts in grey gunmetal two-tone and the helmet. They provided me some additional photos of their latest updated kit and it looks amazing! Only other thing (besides the blaster carbine and pistol obviously) are the boots, gloves, and balaclava, and so for that I'm thinking KeepTrooping is the best option. They have that "wave" system, and the next wave starting up on 5 May, so this Friday, and it should last for seven days. I wouldn't suppose anyone has a contact email for them, eh? I've checked their site up and down and back again and somehow can't find any, but just wanted to ask for some more pics before I spring for the ISB officer uniform, as well, but I don't see any way to contact them, unfortunately. Here is hoping I can get everything set to go for September, when Moff Giancarlo pops in for my local Comic-Con (doubtful, but possible)! Thanks everyone; it's insanely appreciated!

Yeah, for sure. It wasn't noticeable off the bat (mainly because I didn't know what to look for!), but when you realize the difference between solely glossy black and the upgraded version, you can't see anything but haha. Looks great; alright so I'll go for the gunmetal two-tone variant from 850. Meanwhile, I got in touch with Jim via email (thanks, Chris!) and since he doesn't currently offer finishing/painting services, I'll just get the soft pieces from him. - Undersuit/soft shirt and pants - Specialist vest - Pauldron - Some specialist parts, including pouches and spectrascope (asking him what that means exactly haha... maybe the helmet rangefinder?) Jim also listed some references for other DT pieces and I'll check those out. For the E-11D and grenades, he recommends Roman Bela or Wayne Laagewaard on FB (if anyone has experience with these folks?), so I'll check those out with a friend's FB. Otherwise, getting in touch with 850 Armor Works this week and waiting for this next "wave" on KeepTrooping for the gloves/boots/balaclava in May. #progress.

Hey Chris, Thanks so much for the contact info for Jim. I sent him an email outlining my situation and inquiring about pricing, products, etc. I used a third party's FB to check for his work online, but couldn't find much in the way of detailed DT stuff, so I'll be looking forward to having an exchange with the legend himself. I've seen Anovos pop up a lot on the forums and in my in-person chats and heard there was some messy stuff involved, but I forgot/didn't know that Denuo Novo took the helm from them. Their helmet looks really great and, considering it's on sale from USD$926 to $787, that might be a great option. I'm tempted as a newbie to want to buy as much as I can from one outfitter just to keep it streamlined, but trying to get into the habit of getting particular kit from the best outfitter instead of trying the road of convenience haha. I like 850's aftermarket addition of the rangefinder, and would just have to make sure the glossy black of DN's helmet goes with the "gun metal two-tone" of 850's armour. Looks really nice... Unfortunately the only DT in my area purchased both his armour and helmet from Armory Shop, which is out of business, but did get his undersuit and some misc stuff from Jim Tripon, and he's been a huge help, already. Okay, so, we're narrowing things down really nicely here, folks! I'm not even thinking yet about the pauldron/MP40 pouches for the specialist version, as I'm trying to keep my sanity by just starting on the basic version haha. Also keeping up my search for a quality E-11D and SE-14R, but having a few road blocks in finding viable options (i.e. quality ones that are available haha). So: 850 - armour/possibly helmet Denuo Novo - possibly helmet Jim - undersuit and other misc stuff once I'm touch with him Keep Trooping (aka Imperial Boots from what I gather... if someone might confirm this?) - boots, gloves, balaclava This is definite progress in a short period and really opening my eyes to the industry. Thanks everyone for your ongoing assistance/wisdom.

Looks like you're bang on, with the side paneling being that metallic off-grey instead of uniform glossy black. Great call. I'll have to ask 850 for some pics showing the difference between the two features as I don't recall seeing a DT either on screen or as a costume with any kind of discernible metallic/gun metal grey highlights (or if there was, it wasn't noticeable), so $300+ for the added feature seems a bit steep without some substantiation. Thanks for the reference point, Gerald! For sure! I've only been to fan expo once and it was... big. Back in 2011. I saw on 850 that they say "minimum" 6-8 months for shipping a ready-to-wear kit, but if I do put in the order in the coming days, here is hoping the Force will be good to me haha.