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[Demaroy]

For too long, this has been a concept, obsession and a dream to make a neo crusader.
After much brain-storming, planning and praying to the manda, I have begun!
It will be a Rally Master(Red and white paint scheme) and the plates were purchased from The Mandalorian Arsenal(TMA SHOUT OUT!)

So far, only have the chestplate, gauntlets and thigh plates trimmed, sanded and primed. The mask and helmet is complete, just needs the cowl and visor.
Now for pictures!

Evolution of the mask/helmet. Last pic is the cowl material to see how well it goes with the mask. Red Neoprene; Fits the CRLs to a "T" at the cost of being a little toasty.


Only pic I have so far of all the armor plates/pieces. Sorry for the poor quality, my phone's camera decided to rebel after I broke the glass covering it(Accidental, of course)

My progress will be slow on this due to post-Hurricane Michael repairs and work, but I do plan on finishing.

As always; questions, comments and critiques are always welcome.

[Carnorjax]

Your paint job on the helmet is pretty OP Vod, if the rest comes out as good you will have a great kit, will be marking this one to watch progress.

[Wyn Starhawk]

In my opinion the paint chipping is a bit splotchy but the overall detailing of it is great. I myself would add some smaller weathering areas around the mask to make it look a bit more realistic but you've got a good start so far! Always nice to see more Neo-Crusaders!

[Demaroy]

Your paint job on the helmet is pretty OP Vod, if the rest comes out as good you will have a great kit, will be marking this one to watch progress.

Thanks Carnorjax! I aim to please!

In my opinion the paint chipping is a bit splotchy but the overall detailing of it is great. I myself would add some smaller weathering areas around the mask to make it look a bit more realistic but you've got a good start so far! Always nice to see more Neo-Crusaders!

The first two pictures of the mask were only an hour or two after the paint dried and the weathering wasn't finished until the last picture where my camera sabotaged me and didn't do the weathering justice. These pictures are clearer:

I added the scuffs and scrapes last so they would show up better. Drybrushing with silver didn't cut it for me, so I used 80 grit sandpaper. Much more pronounced and realistic scrapes(because they ARE real. )
Also, Finished the painting and weathering on my gauntlets. Same weathering techniques as on the helmet.


And a little sneak-peek at my arsenal; Blaster pistol and 3 grenades!

[Wyn Starhawk]

Those smaller scratches do look great! Personally the large blob of weathering looks rather off to me, but that's just my opinion. Can't wait to see the rest of the build come together.

[Kol Hokan]

Absolutely great work so far!  I love that you're going with a Rally Master and with realistic weathering to boot! 

I love your grenades, what are you using as a base and to light it up?  Fantastic feature!

[Demaroy]

Absolutely great work so far!  I love that you're going with a Rally Master and with realistic weathering to boot! 

Thanks, Kol! My all-time favorite character from Kotor2 was Kelborn from the Dxun jungle.

I love your grenades, what are you using as a base and to light it up?  Fantastic feature!

I believe the base is from a sprinkler part. They were a gift from my Alor'ad last Life Day(aka Christmas). The light is just a small flashlight you twist to turn on and change the battery.

[Demaroy]

Okay, finally have something to report;
Flightsuit has been aquired, cowl has been sewn to shape(Thanks again, Eitanya!), visor cut and installed(purchased from Kalevala Visors here on the forums), main belt has been made and finally, chest and thigh plates are painted and weathered


Lay-out of everything(chestplate wasn't finished yet)


Cowl was cut long to give me extra material to roll the edge after I line up where the cowl ends. The ribbing in the throat section is the start for that "vent" looking section in the references, not sure yet on the best method to finish that. Haven't dulled the red down nor weathered the cowl.


Visor installed with Chicago screws that were installed previously.


Chestplate looking pretty and dinged up.


primary belt and 3 pouches. Only one pouch is complete, the other two need dye and velcro

[Demaroy]

Okay, lots of updates...
Chest, shoulders and backplate have been attached to the vest. All secured by snaps(backed with scrap leather to reinforce against tearing the fabric)
Belt, pouches and holster are finished. My original blaster warped in the Florida heat so I got a new one "bernie approved" and holstered.

Acquired boots....doesn't sound like much, but finding cheap, laceless boots in US 15 has not been easy.

Cowl has been dirtied up to better match the mask of the helmet and a picture of the arsenal made for this kit, not sure if I'll include all of it, but the blaster is guaranteed.


I'll post more pictures soon.

EDIT:
My leather parts have not been weathered....So proud of how they came out, I'll save the weathering for later.

[Demaroy]

Pictures of the helmet and cowl. The cowl still hasn't been trimmed, but this is progress.




Due to my truck needing work, I decided to weather the cowl with the dirt/grease I got on my hands while working under the hood....
Just wipe my hands on it, instant weathering!
Added some shots of black fabric paint for blast marks, kinda over did it so I'll add more weathering around it after I do an oil change. XD

[Demaroy]

Girth-belt is made. I possess no sewing skills so it's made completely of leather. terrible at sewing but I can stitch like a machine....weird

Anyway....
Grenades have been added to the belt. The beskad, shown earlier, will be on my modern kit when I start re-fitting it.

Advanced notice: Some of the following pictures are of low quality due to a dirty mirror.


I didn't have a large enough piece of leather to make the belt from one piece, so the two halves are snapped together on one side and connected with stud buttons on the other for adjustability.






I removed the shoulder plates to make it easier to get out of the vest. Thigh plates have been mounted since these pictures, and the codplate still needs some touch-up and paint but atleast it's mounted.

Currently working on the greaves. Need to make a template from cardstock before fabricating those. The TMA greaves were to short for my legs.

[Naran Baatar]

Well color me impressed. I honestly never thought I would see the day that another Neo build got this far along. Keep up the good work!

[Demaroy]

Due to life and work, I've been blockaded from working on my beloved Neo.

I got some reinforcements at work, so I'll be continuing this Rally Master.



I've PM'd the App team and made some corrections to my design since my last update;

As cool as the 'belt/girthbelt' are, it was unnecessary and over-complicated for the build.
I'll be removing the grenades until after approval. Not necessary and they pulled my belt down.

I've decided to never again use a single-piece flightsuit. Scrub life for me.

The vest was well made and beautifully stitched....but Neo CRL's don't require a vest at all, so I'll strap the chest and back plates for easy dressing and washing.

in 2020, I intended to try fully enclosed greaves, because they were recommended in the CRLS, but not required; That was a nightmare to design and get the geometry right, so I scrapped the plan and will use belts to connect the shin-guards to my legs.

[Karl Dha'Werda]

Due to life and work, I've been blockaded from working on my beloved Neo.

I got some reinforcements at work, so I'll be continuing this Rally Master.

Just came across your amazing WIP Vod.  Glad that you are continuing this Rally Master and I look forward to following along as you continue with future building.

[ValinKrai]

So glad to see someone making further progress on a Neo. It's probably my favorite niche kit. Hope to keep seeing more.