DoggyDoc

So after 3 troops, I have noticed that the D rings are not holding up well. I bumped a shoulder one with my blaster and snapped it off, and the side straps also came off as the glue did not hold. I am reprinting the buckles with a 1:3 Siraya Tech Fast:Tenacious resin mix the tenacious resin is flexible, so it should still be fairly firm but at least have a bit of flex if it gets pushed against. ‘For the side straps, I dremelled out pockets in the underside and embedded Chicago Screws using plastic weld. Then I drilled holes into the chest piece to secure them. I also am in the process of moving the hole in the neuro-Saav as it is in the incorrect location. Original location new location

Here are the dimensions of the d rings as promised. The shoulder ones are 48.6 mm wide by 45.6 mm long The side ones are 66.4mm wide by 60.6mm long

I haven’t got much experience working with metal but maybe you can figure out how to polish it if it isn’t too diffivult and avoid buying a new set. Maybe they will just refund you without-t sending it back and you can order the new set as an alternative.

Here are a couple photos of the pieces that I didn’t use. I just found out tonight that the neurosav that Jim does has the light for the LED in the wrong spot. it is however fixable. The hole just needs to be moved. Not shown in the photos were the armour plates for the belt pouches and the belt boxes. I was not happy with the quality of Jim’s and 3D printed them they were accurate with respect to looks but every time I sanded them, I got new pin holes. I will need to measure my buckles for you tomorrow as my kit is currently packed away for a weekend troop.

@Mal86 do you want me to post pictures tonight when I get home if the accessories that come with Jim’s kit?

@Lt. Dan I was speaking about Jim’s straps not being approvable, I didn’t have any knowledge of Mr. Paul’s and hoped that someone that did would chime in which you did. I think my wording may have been confusing because Paul was asking about Paul’s straps. Kind of like Who’s on first. LOL

Jim’s shoulder straps are not flexible, nor are they curved. I printed mine using TPU filament and they turned out very well. I don’t know much about Mr. Paul’s straps and buckles. Jim’s buckles were ok but I snapped one. I reprinted in resin but found it brittle as well. I finally went with tenacious resin which gives some flexibility to the piece, so it won’t break.

I have bought 3 pairs of boots from crow props for my costumes and have been very happy with them. I think keep trooping May be a bit better quality but they don’t have boots big enough for me.

I used a bit of Bondo on bigger spots and gaps on seams but most of the pin holes were filled with the UV resin

Congratulations

I used UV resin to fill my pin holes. It works well just brush it on thin and hit it with U V light, then sand out the brush strokes. Just be careful using over areas with details as it can fill them in. Bondo filling /glazing putty is easy to use, it dries fast and sands easily.

Hi Paul. great start. Looking forward to following your build.

8 months and it is finally finished and my application has been sent. For some reason, the tusks show up bluish in the photo when they are lit up but they are really green

I did not have any reference or guide for the wiring, I just used LED bulbs and wired everything myself.

There is actually no stitching on the leather pouch. It is just 2 pieces of leather glued together. The front piece that is molded around the wooden form and the back/flap which is glued to the back of the front piece and folds up over the top to create the flap.

Yes. I have both filament and resin printers. The shoulder straps and the barrel of the E 11D were printed on the filament printer. I used TPU for the shoulder straps as the Tenacious flexible resin was not soft and flexible enough. The barrel was printed using PETG and I used the filament printer as the pieces were too big for the resin one. Everything else including all parts for the SE-14R blaster were printed on the resin printer.

Getting close. Just finishing up the helmet and hopefully will be doing submission photos in a few days. Did an upper body fit test today and was happy with everything.

Hi Paul. Great initial research so far. I think your evaluation of 3D printed and fibreglass are acurate. I am just finishing a Jim Tripon kit and have been happy with it. The 3D print files from Martin McLean (MCM designs) are also very good. I am 5”10 and 120 pounds and had to enlarge both the shin and thigh pieces which was a challenge but ended up working out. None that I am aware of other than vacuformed 3D printing can be more expensive in the end and take a lot more time. There is a learning curve to it and results can be amazing but expect some failed prints and setbacks early on. I also used my costuming to buy a 3D printer but have used it mainly for blasters and making greeblies. Looking forward to seeing your build.

I agree. This looks a lot better, thanks for the recommendation The 3 cm button EL panels came today and they work much better than the previous ones. I have a green gel filter over the EL panel to deepen the green.

Blaster is complete, please let me know if you see anything that looks incorrect.

They are pretty matte actually. I think the light just caught them and is making them look shiny.

I decided to go with metallic black instead of weathered silver. I may weather them later.

Ok, the 1/8” pinstripe came today and I am much happier with this result. I also redid the red highlights on the barrel.

I was not going to weather the armour.

How does this look for the weathered silver? Did I over do it?