Thoughts on 850 Armor Works?

[bluebantha]

Hi all,

I'm just finishing up a Shadowtrooper, and am on a spec ops high at the moment. I'm a taller guy, 6'2", and this being the case, a Death Trooper seems to be a logical option. Rogue One is in my top 2 Star Wars movies, so its something I'm very interested in pursuing. In my research, Jim's kit seems to be the best option, but the price and the lack of a contaminant free painting space just makes it impractical at the moment. I have experience working with ABS kits so 850 was my next choice. There seem to be mixed reviews however on the quality of their kits, which concerns me a bit. I'm willing to put in effort, so if any of you have experience with their kits, and can recommend them, please let me know! Also, if someone could point me in the direction of one or two quality build threads, I would greatly appreciate that!

[wook1138[TX]]

Hi Carter,

So, I have an 850 DT kit.  Now, any kit you buy will have its challenges/quirks to deal with.  I felt the 850 had a lot.  That said, they have updated their kits since I built mine. 

I went with the ABS because, like you, I had worked with ABS and I also have some limitations on the space that I can paint and trim fiberglass.  After really getting into the details and what makes a DT kit look good, I have to say the ABS vacuum-forming just doesn't quite do it for me.  Those painted fiberglass kits just look, for a lack of a better word, sharper. 

At the end of the day, if you can manage to deal with the fiberglass (after looking at a garrison mate's ROTK, it doesn't seem that bad) then I would suggest to go the fiberglass route.   If not, the ABS will do the trick to get you out there trooping.

Either way, at 6'2" you are gonna make an awesome DT!  

[Chaos[CMD-DCA]]

If I'm not mistaken, Jim Tripon makes a tall kit, if you send him your measurements he can make sure the kit pieces match your body needs. His is a fiberglass type resin kit that is really easy to work with. My kit is from him, and a lot of others on here have his kit. I agree with Greg, the details are more crisper in a cast kit than they are in ABS, even with the resin add on details in 850's latest kit, the ABS pulled biceps, shoulder bells, forearms, etc, lack the crispness that is the DT appearance. 

[nanotek[CMD-DWM]]

If it helps @bluebantha I am 6'1" and went with 3D printed armour and I definitely did not have contaminate free workspaces when working on it  

The complexity of this costume is definitely a reason why the costume is more expensive and time consuming and it's really up to you which path you're going to take. I wrote a pretty good explanation of the different options here:

 

As with all projects the "Scope Triangle" applies where time, quality and cost will always have an impact on what you are trying to achieve (scope):

Have a think about what is important to you and see how you can balance out your build