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[Kol Varek]

Nice to see you're making progress again! Can't wait to see it all come together!

[Straka Zulu]

Really coming together nicely!
Just curious,  how are these being mounted?  Making them one piece that you can just take off, or are they going to be able to shift and move, like medieval lame?

[Evad]

Post Party Progress


Resin Reconstruction

First off I'll start with the bad news; that occurred over Memorial Day Weekend.  While attempting to install the darker shaded visor, I attempted a test fit before it was fully trimmed.  The stress that the visor material put on the tabs included on my helmet's mask was too much strain for it.  The resin cracked, and ruined my evening.

Thankfully two weeks later I went to an armor party hosted by people from the Rebel Legion and the 501st.  They were able to assist me in using some CA Gel glue to repair the damage to the mask.  I'm still letting it dry for several days before I attempt to do anything with it, but it seems to be holding quite well.  There's only a little bit of a crack showing, but that just means I'll have something to weather later on. 

Armor Shaping

The armor party went well, and I made some headway on my armor plating.  The pieces were already cut out, but I needed to make some adjustments and trimming.  The collar plate needed the corners hacked off to allow for movement so it wouldn't bite against my shoulders.  The chest plate also needed a reverse cut on its edges to ensure I had more freedom of movement.  Then it was onto heat shaping them to the duct tape dummy.  This is the third iteration of the armor plates I've dreamed up.  I found that going with three scalloped plates would make it too long and unwieldy on the front, so I opted for two plates.   Some of these pictures were taken before I had done a little more heat shaping and sculpting of the edges.   The blue tape kept falling off because of the humidity, but I finally got a mock up. 

Looking for advice on the shape of the plates, where they lay now how they separate from the collar piece.  I plan to use bookbag straps underneath the shoulder curve of the collar plate, and then attach nylon strapping from both the back and front and form that into a harness that can have the plates chicago screwed onto, and give me a single harness that can carry all the plates as one unit.  Suggestions are very much appreciated!

[Evad]

Shoulder Cape

One of the main components of the Mandalorian armor I'm working to create is the homage to both Corsec and to the Imperial Guard.  The shoulder cape for me is being sourced from the same material as the Imperial Guard's crimson cloak.  A small call back to a previous life in the Star Wars Universe utilized for a different purpose.  I reached out to Kat @ Serenity's Revenge in getting some of the fabric setup properly.  She's known for her capes in the Kyrimorut clan of Maryland. 

In Progress Photos

These are some of the pictures from her shop that she sent me before getting the cape sent out.

Final Product

I'll be working on trying to find a good way to attach it, either to some armor plating or to the flak vest itself.  It does fall correctly with the pleats, but it may need some extra weight to it, that I'll work on as well. 

Helmet Repair

I haven't touched the helmet since I showed pictures from the armor party this summer.  It's been sitting in the case and waiting until I had the opportunity to look into it further.  Thankfully I have plans to meet with a seasoned vet from Rancor that's willing to help me work on reinforcing the helmet to make sure it's sturdy and to help install a new visor.  I don't want anything close to a repeat of what happened when I first tried that.  This should happen over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Updated Checklist

• Helmet - Mostly Finished! Needs reinforcement and visor Installation
• Flight Suit - Tailored, but needs embroidered
• Vest - Velcro Patch needs moved.
• Armor Plates - Partially cut and molded/Other parts in design phase
• Gauntlets - Roughly formed and shaped, with hinges attached
• Girth Belt -  Pre-Design Phase
• Cape - Received from Serenity Revenge Cosplay
• Boots - Obtained
• Gloves - Obtained
• Kama - Re-Design Phase
• Harness - Design Phase

[Straka Zulu]

Really good to see you still at it!
Love how the cape is progressing, vod.

[Kurshi BeJahaal]

That cape looks extremely regal! I love it!

[Tek Sa'an]

Great progress! The helmet will be an easy fix. Hopefully you can get together with some local members so they can assist. If not, patch it up with Bondo or fiberglass. I like the look of your amor. The sharp lines are fantastic. As far as the harness goes, I based mine off of TK409’s. Lots of great tutorials on that website. Good luck with your build progress over the holiday. Hopefully we can see some pictures of you in your kit soon.

[Evad]

Visor Installation 2.0

Over the Thanksgiving Weekend I worked in my Dad's shop with him to figure out a way to strengthen and seal the cracks in my helmet that got damaged during the Memorial day weekend.  I had already used CA gel glue on the chin, but the cheek was also cracked.  We used a drill to dig out a little of the resin where the crack was and used bondo to fill and sand it down.  The crack is barely noticable from the front, so I think that worked well.  The only concern I have is the ugly bit of glue residue I see on the chin.  This is not something I can just easily repaint however because I had an autobody place do it for me. 

If you have any suggestions on how to better mask this ugly chin issue, I'm interested to hear.  I know most are going to say to weather it, but the clean look of the visor was something I was trying to keep. 

The only other issue I have is keeping the visor in place.  I tried using velcro, but it's too bulky and doesn't lay right with the visor.  I know I could use some of my E-6000 or some more superglue, but that wouldn't let me ever take it out again either.  It doesn't look bad though if the visor is attached and I'm just wearing the bucket.  Thoughts and opinions are most welcome.

[Novoc Mereel]

The only other issue I have is keeping the visor in place.  I tried using velcro, but it's too bulky and doesn't lay right with the visor.  I know I could use some of my E-6000 or some more superglue, but that wouldn't let me ever take it out again either.  It doesn't look bad though if the visor is attached and I'm just wearing the bucket.  Thoughts and opinions are most welcome.

What about visor clips? I bought these from Etsy and used them to install my visor. They worked like a charm and were super cost-efficient.

[Tek Sa'an]

Visor clips are a good idea. I myself used hot glue. I replaced my visor once and just melted the hot glue out. It's a pain, but it can be done. I vote for the clips because you can switch out visors easily.

[Evad]

So there's two issues with clips that I see.  First of all my visor already has clips to keep it in place; except right at the chin.  There's not enough space for a clip, even of the small size I have - or the size that was shown in the link.  Hot glue may be the only solid option, so I might have to consider doing that, since it's a very thin ridge on which that bottom part rests on. 

[Evad]

Oya ner'vode! 

It has been a hot minute since I've posted anything, been on the forums, or really been looking at my kit building.  From my last update with actual armor plates, I haven't been able to move on any of that since COVID struck.  However after some conversations with Kelan Ord Creations - I've decided to custom commission the plates as an order from him.  I just don't have the ability to work with anyone local during this pandemic, and I'm just wasting time with it just sitting in my garage.  So I'm hoping this route will really speed up the process of getting me ready to present to the app team.

[Kol Varek]

Let's goooooo!! Kelan's an awesome dude and a fantastic craftsman, can't go wrong with him!

[Evad]

Checking In

It's been a while vod'e, and I'm just checking in to let you know I'm still here, and still working on projects a little bit at a time.  Since my last update, the kind and crafty Kelan Ord has taken up the task in helping me realize my dream design for the armor plating.  They are still being worked on at his shop, but I wanted to give you all a sneak peek as to what is going on over there. 

Chest and Back

There are still trauma plates to consider and some more shaping and sanding to be done.  He'll be attaching them to nylon straps with chicago screws so that the harness will carry the front and back plates off my shoulders strapped underneath the single collar plate. 

Pauldrons and Shknees

The pauldron shape will have the point facing towards my forearm, so that it can safely be underneath the wider shoulders of the collar piece  and still allow me a good range of motion.  Decided to forego the separate Knee and Shin guard, and make it a single piece altogether.  I'm digging the design and the folds in the sintra though. 

Still to Come

There are thigh plates, the cod piece, hand caps and boot caps also to be done.  Trauma plates on most things will be coming as well, so that it will give the pieces much more definition. 

Another update is that I found a place to help me reinvent a way to add blood stripes to my flight suit since the iron on presses weren't cutting it.  I'm excited to see it, and should be able to do so in the coming month. 

Until next time vod'e!  Oya!

[Straka Zulu]

Awesome update!  Can’t wait to see it in paint!