Jump to content

Mark's Death Trooper Build


Recommended Posts

Before I get bogged down with jobs around the house I thought I would make a start on this costume. Clearance from the missus has yet to be obtained but I may just tell her when it's finished. ;)

 

It's not much but this is what I have got so far:

  • New pair of Dr Martin's Mayer Boots which are very similar to, if not, the base boot for the Death Trooper.

Screenshot_2016-07-19-23-03-58_zpsdadjfoxj_edit_1468965948504_zpsaviyof5o.jpeg

  • A mate of mine identified part of the shoulder strap buckle.

20160719_222009_zps90vbpe5g.jpg


  • The shoulder strap buckle is in fact this part with a d-ring attached. Once I have got my hands on the d-ring I am considering casting the assembled shoulder strap buckle as a single piece.
  • I have also managed to determine the dimensions of the Vader like belt buckle, and am currently in discussions about getting one made out of brushed aluminium.
  • I also have loads of heavy weave cotton fabric left over from when I made my Scout Trooper pouches. So I intend on dyeing a load black, creating a pattern for the belt pouches and making a set up.
  • I am waiting to hear whether I have got my hands on a SE-14R kit (the sidearm). If I have then I will make the necessary modes to ensure that it matches the one on the Death Trooper manaquin at Celebration.

Thats's it for now but I'll post pictures and further updates as and when I have them.

Link to comment

Update on the shoulder buckle. I have seen the real buckle and compared it to that used on the Death Trooper. The one on the costume is considerable chunkier than the real thing. Also the photo taken at Celebration shows infilled areas that just do not exist on the real thing. As a result I believe that the shoulder buckle/d-ring combination was cast as a single piece.

 

20160721_101618_zpsy9kpr9la.jpg

 

20160721_101657_zpsuabuabrb.jpg

 

SAM_2077_zpswdvdf4cc_edit_1469108613246_zpsfapm0x7l.jpg

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

 

 

Link to comment

As I mentioned I have used the shoulder buckle to scale and dimension the belt buckle.

 

I have also used the buckle dimensions to calculate the size of the belt pouches which I am going to make from a dyed heavy weave cotton.

 

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Link to comment

I initially thought that you may be right but wouldn't that make them too heavy!? I was planning on vac forming them from black abs and then weathering them :)

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Link to comment

Oh, sorry! Lol. Yeah I agree. It is definitely aluminium. The only thing I wasn't sure of was the coin slots and whether they had rounded ends or square? I went for square.

Have got someone looking at machining some at the moment :)

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Looking at this photo they are square : https://flic.kr/p/JhJCt8

 

Though the bottom of the slots don't look machined so it might be a 2 layer piece?

That is a very clear photo :D The guy I'm talking to about making them is looking at building them up from layers of 2mm aluminium.

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Link to comment

Got my hands on another part of the armour strapping system today.

 

Collage 2016-07-25 20_01_40_zps9l14kaie.jpg

Sadly just the one but because of its weight and the fact the one on the armour is non - functional I am going to cast it.

 

Should have the D-Ring that is fitted to the shoulder buckle on Wednesday.

Sadly I am away this weekend but next week I'm going to prepare the moulds and maybe do a casting!

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Link to comment

Some great research going-on here, and some of the best detailed photos of the RODT I've seen. Keep it coming.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Got any details on where others might find these?

The parts that I have were removed from decommissioned ejector seat and parachute harnesses. I work for a company who has a team that maintains these systems and they had these awaiting disposal. Lucky I guess!

 

Maybe worth trying military surplus stores.

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment

I was convinced that the belt is made from a fine ribbed rubber safety floor mat but was struggling to confirm it as I initially couldn't find any dimensions for the profile.

 

The belt has 28 ribs across its width and scaling from the my buckle dimensions made the total width about 80mm (not the 100mm I first thought!)

 

I have ordered several samples of flooring in order to confirm my theory but they haven't arrived yet! Anyway, a search today gave me the evidence I was looking for.

 

While scaling the side boxes I noticed the profile of the ribs is triangular with curved channels between them so I went on the hunt again for a flooring that matched and found one!

 

Collage%202016-07-27%2020_05_20_zpskbjqjrmr.jpg

 

The lower picture shows both the profile of the belt (above the belt box) and the top screenshot shows the profile and dimensions of the matting. They look like they match!

Furthermore, the spacing of the ribs is a perfect match to the calculated spacing from my belt buckle measurements B)

 

This has now lead me to believe that the shoulder straps may be from a rubber flooring material to!

Link to comment

Well it's happened! I have actually made something for this build! :)

I did a test cast of the lower chest plate d-ring using the mold I made yesterday.

 

20160806_153214_zpsf0xeuxkd.jpg

20160806_153337_zpssayfi0ho.jpg

I didn't get the mold to mate very well so there was a fair amount of overspill to clean off and I have a few large air bubbles on the underside, but I'm pleased with it :D

Just need to figure out how to deal with the air bubble problem before I do it again.

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

 

 

Link to comment
I have been looking into the rubber matting option for the strapping on the shoretrooper. Here is one I came across yesterday. Let me know what you think. http://www.floormats.co.uk/broad-ribbed-rubber-matting 4453c21f453a4dc4be74504a2caa83c2.jpg

 

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk

Sadly the profile isn't right. The Shore Trooper and Death Trooper straps have a squarer profile with much narrower gaps between the ridges.

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

 

 

Link to comment
That's what I thought. I saw it mentioned elsewhere it could possibly be a rubber timing belt but I have still to check that out.

 

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk

Yeah, I started a thread about the straps here and on the R1 armour fb page asking about that. So far I have come up blank!

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

 

 

Link to comment

A little more progress tonight. I've started on the blank from which I'll form the mold for the belt boxes. Going to make them from resin as the ones on the CE dummy had some form of back plate helping to secure them to the belt so I am going to cast some wing nuts into the resin as anchor points :)

Collage%202016-08-08%2023_36_11_zpsoo1mwc1y.jpg

It's intentionally deeper than the reference one as the blank has some fill lines on it, I don't want to overtop the mold!

 

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

  • Like 2
Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.