Death Trooper REVISITED

[Chaos[CMD-DCA]]

@nanotek and @RogueLeader  so both of you have your forearms attached on both sides so no "clamshell" effect?  Rubber is a finiky component to work with. 

Here are two solutions to the bands that I know work. First off, for anyone reading this who uses the "clamshell" method on the forearms and whose hands are too wide and can't have the bands tight and permanently affixed to the forearm, attach only side of the band to one half of the forearm and place a couple of the small earth magnets in the band and into the forearm where the clip greeblie is, this holds well and allows you to open the wrist area to slide your hand thru.

For those who have the forearms closed, scuff up the underside of the rubber bands and also the area they cover on the forearm. E6000 them in place with clamps and allow to cure fully. then take a small 1 inch picture hanging nail with a small flat head, heat it and push it into the band from the outside into the forearm. The head should be pushed just enough to be recessed into the band. It will leave a small hole/indentation but this can be covered with black silicon caulking or filler putty and painted with a rubberized paint. As for the nail protruding thru the forearm, use a pair of needle nosed pliers and bend the nail 90 degress. Cover the bent end with gaffers tape or E6000. Do this in several places around the circumference of the bands.

I have mine clam shelled but fortunately, the rubber coupler that I cut my bands out of has enough give/stretch to it that I can slip my wrist thru even with my gloves on (no hand plates) and it snaps back into place. Best of luck finding what works best for your solution.  

 

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

@Chaos

First of all, I am so sorry for my late response. Secondly, thank you so much for your detailed description of how to permanently attach the rubber bands. Haven‘t tested your methods yet, but will do so in the near future. My forearms do not use the clamshell method but its ends are glued together. I‘ll keep you updated on how it has worked out. Lastly, your DT looks absolutely phenomenal! ?

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

To everyone here:

I just started to rework some parts of my DT, but since Level 2 requirements will be released in the near future, why not go straight for making everything as accurate as possible?

A few things were already pointed out to me (leather pouch has to move to the front a bit), but others weren‘t. Whatever It is that you see on my DT that isn‘t accurate, please let me know! It‘ll probably hurt, but there‘s no other way to improve it. (Only exception: The undersuit. No criticism here as it is very dear to me. Please limit the feedback to the armor.  )

Things I have to improve that already catched my eye:

1. The belt canvas pouches are sagging a bit. I‘ll have some new made as the fabric isn‘t accurate either.

2. I‘ll repaint the gun metal parts on the torso. That color is from the time when I didn‘t have an ANOVOS helmet, so I‘ll match the colors to the helmet‘s.

3. New E-11D on its way.

I‘ll post more detailed pictures, if necessary.

 

Thank you all in advance!

[Chaos[CMD-DCA]]

32 minutes ago, RogueLeader said:

@Chaos

First of all, I am so sorry for my late response. Secondly, thank you so much for your detailed description of how to permanently attach the rubber bands. Haven‘t tested your methods yet, but will do so in the near future. My forearms do not use the clamshell method but its ends are glued together. I‘ll keep you updated on how it has worked out. Lastly, your DT looks absolutely phenomenal! ?

Thank you but your's is way more detailed than mine, I have  quite a few things I am going to do to mine as well. Especially with the weathering. Its about three years old and has been trooped in quite a lot so I have the dings and scratches covered just thru normal wear. What I am going to do it use your talc and hairspray method. Thank you for sharing that. I have recommended that technique to others on here and I think that is probably a better way to go than dry paint brushing. At least with your method you can change it up if needed.

[Chaos[CMD-DCA]]

25 minutes ago, RogueLeader said:

To everyone here:

I just started to rework some parts of my DT, but since Level 2 requirements will be released in the near future, why not go straight for making everything as accurate as possible?

A few things were already pointed out to me (leather pouch has to move to the front a bit), but others weren‘t. Whatever It is that you see on my DT that isn‘t accurate, please let me know! It‘ll probably hurt, but there‘s no other way to improve it. (Only exception: The undersuit. No criticism here as it is very dear to me. Please limit the feedback to the armor.  )

Things I have to improve that already catched my eye:

1. The belt canvas pouches are sagging a bit. I‘ll have some new made as the fabric isn‘t accurate either.

2. I‘ll repaint the gun metal parts on the torso. That color is from the time when I didn‘t have an ANOVOS helmet, so I‘ll match the colors to the helmet‘s.

3. New E-11D on its way.

I‘ll post more detailed pictures, if necessary.

 

Thank you all in advance!

Dániel, I have a request. When you get a chance Can you take good quality and well lit pictures of your armor again just as if you were submitting initial approval pictures. I am impressed with  your work on it and I could use some good quality photos. You are correct Level 2 is coming along with the updated CRL and I will be looking for (if needed) photos of basic and Level 2 photos and I would like to check out yours and possibly use them for reference material. If you can do that I think we can also provide you with some feedback. 

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

14 hours ago, Chaos said:

Thank you but your's is way more detailed than mine, I have  quite a few things I am going to do to mine as well. Especially with the weathering. Its about three years old and has been trooped in quite a lot so I have the dings and scratches covered just thru normal wear. What I am going to do it use your talc and hairspray method. Thank you for sharing that. I have recommended that technique to others on here and I think that is probably a better way to go than dry paint brushing. At least with your method you can change it up if needed.

Mine is already showing wear and tear, as well. Particularly the inner areas of the thighs are losing most of their paint, because they are grinding quite heavily at each other while walking. The thinner parts of the back piece also have a crack or two already ...

 

You are more than welcome! I am glad that people consider this method appropriate for their armor, since actually weathering a perfect paint job always hurts. ?

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

On 3/9/2020 at 3:47 PM, Chaos said:

Dániel, I have a request. When you get a chance Can you take good quality and well lit pictures of your armor again just as if you were submitting initial approval pictures. I am impressed with  your work on it and I could use some good quality photos. You are correct Level 2 is coming along with the updated CRL and I will be looking for (if needed) photos of basic and Level 2 photos and I would like to check out yours and possibly use them for reference material. If you can do that I think we can also provide you with some feedback. 

Thank you very much for your request, @Chaos. I feel honored!
I'll be able to take well lit pictures within the next few days, but for now I am only able to upload the pictures attached to this comment (poncho isn't equipped at the moment).

Guess there's even more that I have to fix:

1. The belt canvas pouches are sagging a bit. I‘ll have some new made as the fabric isn‘t accurate either. (request sent)

2. I‘ll repaint the gun metal parts on the torso. That color is from the time when I didn‘t have an ANOVOS helmet, so I‘ll match the colors to the helmet‘s. (will take the ANOVOS bucket to a paint shop so they can mix exactly that color)

3. New E-11D on its way.  (ordered)

4. The end caps of the tube on the lower back have to be swapped.



Some new pictures - and as I said earlier: Any feedback is welcome!

TROS premiere

TROS premiere

 

A Death Trooper in the wild enjoying the first sunbeams of the day.

 

 

 

 

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

On 3/9/2020 at 3:47 PM, Chaos said:

Dániel, I have a request. When you get a chance Can you take good quality and well lit pictures of your armor again just as if you were submitting initial approval pictures. I am impressed with  your work on it and I could use some good quality photos. You are correct Level 2 is coming along with the updated CRL and I will be looking for (if needed) photos of basic and Level 2 photos and I would like to check out yours and possibly use them for reference material. If you can do that I think we can also provide you with some feedback. 

So, we finally had time to take some pictures of my Death Trooper (it takes about 20-30 minutes to dress up).

A few things that caught my eye:

1. Love handles (I don't have them), but my undercut puffs at the sides. I'll find a solution for that as soon as possible (maybe installing a corset like setup beneath it), however, the entire COVID-19 situation makes it hard at the moment to run around and buy the things necessary. Furthermore, my mom is not able to help me out in the near future, since I do not want to pose a risk for my parents' or grandparents' generation. That'll have to wait for a bit.

2. We can't close my shins. Two possible reasons here: (1) The shoes have to much stuffing, which spreads the right shin apart at the bottom. (2) I have been working out lately and even though it's not visible while wearing the armor, I have gained some muscle/mass. However, I can wear the shins without any problems without the shoes, so maybe I'll remove some of their stuffing...

We will take more and also more detailed pictures when I have fixed the already existing problems as I don't see my costume fit for anything more at the moment.

Take care, fellow troopers!

 

PS: Sorry for the bad image quality, but I don't want to put humongous pictures into this thread.

[darthRivera[TX]]

Great job on your armor. What height and weight are you?

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

7 hours ago, darthRivera said:

Great job on your armor. What height and weight are you?

Thank you for your compliments on my armor!

 

My height is somewhere between 6‘2“ and 6‘3“ (~ 190cm) and I weigh 180lbs (~ 80 - 81kg). Hope this helps.

[DarkPhoenix[TX]]

It has been quite a long time since my last post.

To briefly update my... well, should I call it ongoing build, even though, it is already finished (at least officially)?
Since COVID has caused mayhem around the globe, I haven't been able to either work or troop in my Death Trooper which is why it has certainly gathered some dust. The only new thing is the work on the updated CRL but that is pretty much all when it comes to the last three years. With my PhD program almost finished and a new chapter of our live starting, I figured to finally get back to it and go for the Specialist version - both in terms of accuracy as well as visuals.

In order for getting my costume to Level 2, I have the following things to tackle:

To-Do list for Level 2:

1. Adjusting the concealed overlap joint on the neckseal: 
   For this I will need some help - preferably my mom, since she created my entire undersuit. And yes, she is a seamstress which comes in really handy when working on costumes, hehe. I can't say for sure when we can get this done, but I hope in the course of May.

I think this is pretty much it when it comes to the things that need adjustment before applying for Level 2. My DT hasn't much changed since I last posted pictures here, so if you are interested and would like to help out a fellow Death Trooper, you may certainly take a look at the images above or the CRL and point out any inaccuracies you can find. The Death Trooper has definitely become part of my identity with many wonderful things that have happened in regard to it, so I do feel the obligation to make the best out of it.

To-Do list for Specialist version:

1. Have the chest rig plates printed (and painted). Any recommendations are more than welcome, however, they have to be 3D printed to match the rest of my armor.
2. Open up the Condor chest rig and re-sew it correctly. I have seen quite a detailed post on fb about this a few years ago, so I will dig that up again and modify the rig accordingly.
3. Finish the C-25s: I had them printed a few years ago and have already finished one. Apart from that, I will also need to install the electronics.
4. Order the little buckles that go on the straps right above the rig itself. Thinking about ordering them from BlasterFactory.

 

Apart from the above mentioned tasks I would also like to up the accuracy of the undersuit itself. I still haven't found a solution for merging together the suit with some kind of rubber matt for the sides and will definitely look into recent posts and findings in that regard.

 

Very much looking forward to again start working on this wonderful character and hope that you can join me in that journey by reading my posts and/or looking at the pictures here.

Edit: I just scouted through the specialist threads. To any admins/mods/detachment GMLs (sorry if I got any of the official positions wrong): Should I go for Specialist? I really want to be sure and do it right the first time.

TX-24156 | Dark Phoenix

 

 

[Lt. Dan[501st]]

On 4/14/2023 at 6:39 PM, DarkPhoenix said:

To any admins/mods/detachment GMLs (sorry if I got any of the official positions wrong): Should I go for Specialist?

Hey Daniel,

I really don't see why you shouldn't go to level 2 or Specialist? Dude, you're the CRL model, step on it!😅

 

[Mal86]

On 8/15/2019 at 12:24 PM, DarkPhoenix said:

Well, well, it has been a while since I last posted pictures of my progress regarding my armor.
 

Having said this, I have finally managed to acquire several aluminum parts that I deemed necessary to have on my armor.

1. The D-rings that are installed beneath the chest buckles.

2. The D-rings that can be found at the side of the upper armor (between the chest and back piece).

3. The three "stabilizers" located on the left forearm.

Also, I sanded, painted and weathered all these parts. As a matter of fact, I thought about creating this effect with something different than spray paint, but decided to stick with this more conservative method. Being very pleased with the result, I am more than grateful for any feedback on this matter.

Now I it is all about installing these parts.

 

Before painting and weathering:

 

After:

 

The finished chest buckle-D-rings:

 

The finished between chest and back piece-buckles/D-rings:

 

The finished forearm "stabilizers":

The whole outfit looks great.  I really like the weathering.  Where did you find the aluminum D-rings?