Stormtroopin'

Welcome

2025-01-30T00:47:00.001-06:00

Welcome to my Stormtrooper blog. My name is Eric. I have always found the Star Wars universe fascinating. I purchased my first set of FX armor in October '03. I sold it about a year and a half ago. I am getting back into the Stormtrooper costuming scene and I have came across many great Stormtrooper costuming resources while browsing the internet. So many, in fact, that I decided to create this site to keep track of them all and to log the progress of my own Stormtrooper armor build. Check out the links section to the right or view the progress of my build below.

Going slow

2008-02-25T18:24:00.002-06:00

Before I started this project I told myself I'm going to go slow as I put my first FX suit together in a single day. I haven't been working on it much as I started another project.... Halo Spartan Armor. I did however get the tube stripe decals put on and re-shaped the green flat lenses that I won off ebay as they didn't conform to the curves of the eyes. I having the following left to do:

Glue & velcro calves & theighs
Snaps & straps
Finish lens bracket
Make canvas belt & shoulder straps
Dirty up the armor

Then once I get my ROM-F/X and Stomper's Hovi Mic Tips -w- speakers I can work out the details for the inside of the bucket and paint it black. Once I get done with that, I can start with the backpack.

Paint

2008-02-07T00:43:00.000-06:00

I did alot of taping and painting today. I pretty much finished up the paint on the helmet today. I taped off all areas that were to be painted gray and sprayed them with Testor's Gloss Gray #1238. After spraying the paint I let it sit for a couple minutes and then removed the tape while the paint was still wet. If you wait too long, you might pull up the paint with the tape. With the frown I left small white area for the "fifth tooth" much like the "move along" trooper's helmet. As for the black areas, I hand painted them. I took a plastic bowl and sprayed some Rust-oleum Painter's Touch Semi-Gloss Black into it. I then used a small paintbrush to paint the "mouth" and lines around the traps and ears. The hand painted lines are far from perfect, but the original helmets were far from perfect.

I am going to paint the inside of the helmet black, but I want to get all of the other details worked out before I do that. I plan on making a custom enclosure for the fans, mic, ROM-F/X, etc. Enjoy the pics below.

Forearms

2008-01-31T12:08:00.000-06:00

My forearms are trimmed and fit pretty good. I clamped them together and using Dave's method I used blue painters masking tape to mask the area I don't want glue on. I will only glue the top of the forearms together as they will be the most visible. I will use velcro on the underside so that I can get them on and off a little better. My arms are skinny enough that I could glue both sides and just slip them on, but it's a little tough getting them out like that.

Update - I've got the biceps trimmed and ready to be glued. They will be glued on both sides as they can just slip on and off. I started with fitting the legs. I think the legs are the weakest part of this armor (not weak as in thin material, but weak as in they suck). On the legs, the lines don't really match up all that well if you followed the trim lines when cutting them out. The calves aren't as bad as the thighs in this regard.

Ears are a PITA!

2008-01-30T14:56:00.000-06:00

Today I decided to work on trimming out the ears. I once again traced out a line on the ear where I wanted to make the cut. I then followed that line with an x-acto knife and snapped and scored what I could off of it. I then took a dremel -w- grinding stone bit and trimmed it up with that. This is where things got fun. I drilled out the top hole of the ear and mounted it where I wanted it on the helmet. I then pressed the ear against the helmet and marked the spots that were touching with a pencil. I then unscrewed the ear and dremeled off the spots marked to help level everything. I did this for a good hour on one ear before I was somewhat satisfied with the fit. I also trimmed out a little more of the eyes and frown. After looking at the pictures of the frown, I still need to take a bit off of it.

Update - I got the other ear fit this morning. This one took no time to get it fit as I learned from my mistakes on the first one. I also filed down the frown some.

I Can See!

2008-01-27T17:04:00.000-06:00

I trimmed out the eyes just a little while ago. I followed my pencil lines with an x-acto blade. I then trimmed out the middle of the eyes with my dremel cut off wheel in order to give myself a way to get some pliers on the ABS to snap the eyes out. I then went over the edges with my dremel grinding stone to smooth them out. I might take a tad bit more off in a couple areas, but overall I'm pretty satisfied. I was going to trim out the frown, but I did not have a dremel bit small enough. I taped the crappy lens material in so I could better see the cut.

Update - I picked up a smaller grinding stone bit for the dremel and got most of the frown trimmed out. I need to get a set of small files to detail it a little more.

The Frown

2008-01-26T14:35:00.000-06:00

I drilled out part of the frown earlier today. I'll drill out as much as I can and then move on to "dremeling" out the rest.

I am also working on making a custom frown vent piece to help clean things up on the inside of the helmet. I cut off a piece of the extra ABS that comes with the kit. I heated that piece up over my heat gun (wearing gloves of course). After about 15-20 seconds, the ABS starts to flex pretty easily. At this point, I pressed it in against the inside of the frown. I had to do this a few times to get it formed to the shape of the helmet. From there, I outlined where I wanted to cut with an ebony pencil. I then used my dremel to cut out the frown area. Plastic coated screen material will be glued to this custom piece. I still have to clean up the piece, but you'll get the general idea by looking at the pictures below.

Helmet Fit

2008-01-26T12:29:00.000-06:00

I decided to start working on the helmet a little bit. As you can see, there are three dimples on the sides where the ear pieces go. I drilled out the one that is offset from the other two with a 1/8" drill bit.

I then ran the bolt through and connected both halves of the helmet. The bolt acts as a pivot point and allows you to position the brow where you want it. The brow is a piece of rubber channel that slips over the edge of the helmet unlike the FX kit where it is a piece of self-adhesive foam that sticks on top of the helmet. As I am going to make this a Sandtrooper, I want the brow a little higher. Here's some pictures of the mock up.

As you can see from the last photo, I penciled out the trim line for the eyes.

Trimming Update

2008-01-20T16:10:00.000-06:00

Well, I started trimming the kit this morning, and I must say that it's more work than I thought. Trim lines on this armor are some times not very apparent. If the lines weren't very visible from the outside, I could usually see them from the inside of the piece. On some spots, such as the top or bottom of the legs, there were no visible trim lines. I don't know if it's that way so that you can decide how tight or loose of a fit you need, if it's a bad pull, or if it's a problem with the mold.

Right now with the rough trim, I am outlining the trim lines with an ebony pencil. I am then scoring a little outside that line with an x-acto knife. I then bend the plastic at that line to break it. I will then go over the edges with a dremel. In a couple of hours, I've got the arms, ears, and some of the leg pieces trimmed out.

My AP armor kit is here!

2008-01-19T02:13:00.000-06:00

Well, I received my AP Stormtrooper armor in today (well, actually yesterday as I am posting this very late). I was expecting it to arrive on Monday, so this is a pleasant surprise as I'll get to work on it a little bit this weekend. Here are my initial thoughts / concerns with the armor:

There was no padding / packing material in the box, though no armor was damaged.
The armor feels pretty durable and looks great.
The "aerator sections" of the helmet are very thin and one of the "aerator sections" has a crinkle in the ABS (I'll use some "ABS Goo" (ABS scraps and acetone) to fill it in and to thicken the inside of the helmet's thin areas).
The lens material is crap (it's not reflective to where people can't see in). I'll get some better lens' off of eBay or make my own.
There are a few "dents" in the abs, mainly a small one of the "Sandtrooper ab plate" and another on the side of the ab section near the kidney.

I will start trimming ASAP. Check back soon for more updates. Here's some pictures of the untrimmed pieces.

Stormtrooper Costuming

2008-01-12T20:42:00.000-06:00

501st Legion - The world's definitive imperial costuming organization
Dagobah Swamp - Stormtrooper resources and a step by step build of FX armor.
Dave's Garage - A series of YouTube videos documenting the assembly of a set of FX stormtrooper armor.
Forgotten Force Ultimate Resource Guide - Stormtrooper Rank Pauldrons
First Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment - The white armor devision of the 501st.
Got Armor? - Features a detailed build log and armor modifications
Imperial Surplus - Shows the creation of his ANH armor. Home of the "One Stop Clone Shop". Also has a good tutorial for modding your FX armor's ab plate from a clean TK to a dirty TD.
Jedi Academy - Stormtrooper armor assembly tips.
Look Sir, Droids! - A David Felth sandtrooper webpage.
"Mike's Pen" Stormtrooper - Pictures of his FX armor and ANH helmet. Also on the site are some armor mods.
Mos Eisley Police Department - Sandtrooper detachment of the 501st.
Old Sarge's Stormtrooper Armor Modifications - Modifications for your stormtrooper armor
Ooh Yeah Zone - Comparisons of FX and AP armor.
Star Wars Helmets - Reference photos of authentic, fan-made, and replica star wars helmets.
TK0166 - 501st member Ken VanLyssel's website containing stormtrooper costuming resources.
TK0300 - 501st member Tony Barnett's website with armor assembly tips, reference photos and more
TK0409 - 501st member Chris Bartlett's website with many stormtrooper, sandtrooper, and many other costuming resources. Chris also sells neckseals and other stormtrooper gear from time to time.
TK0487 - 501st member Matt Nargi's stormtrooper website with a step-by-step assembly of FX armor.
TK0769 - 501st member's website with armor modification tips.
TK0861 - 501st member Jim Tapp's website with assembly and modification tips.
TK0899 - 501st member Dean Plantamura's website with armor modification and assembly tips.
TK1336 - 501st member Mike Gordon's website with info on the different types of fan-built armor and more.
TD1043 - 501st member Chris Rhodes's stormtrooper website.
TK1536 - 501st member Mike Harrison's stormtrooper website with a ton of info on stormtrooper armor, sandtrooper conversions, and much more.
TK1823 - 501st member Jan Erik Ingvaldsen's stormtrooper website with armor assembly tips.
TD2241 - 501st member Rachel Smith's website with some armor modifications.
TD2479 - 501st member Marcus Simon's website with pictures of his SDS armor and more.
TK3386 - 501st member Paul Andrews' stormtrooper website with step-by-step assembly of FX armor with sandtrooper mod.
TK5271 - 501st member Keith Henry's website detailing armor modifications.
TK7606 - 501st member Jorge Candelas' stormtrooper website. Photos of his FX armor and mods (the website is in spanish).
TD8733 - 501st member James Ross' website with great pictures of his sandtrooper armor.
Vader Painter - Sells Pauldrons and Neckseals for your stormtrooper armor

Stormtrooper Forums

2008-01-11T20:50:00.000-06:00

501st Forums - 501st Member only forums
BBC Forums - Blaster Builder's Club forums
FISD Forums - First Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment's forums
MEPD Forums - Mos Eisley Police Department Forums
The Replica Prop Forum - The Replica Prop Forum

Stormtrooper Blasters

2008-01-10T20:50:00.000-06:00

Blaster Builders Club - When a $300 piece of cut-up junk just won't do.
Blast-Tech - Blast-Tech specializes in the reproduction of rare, hard to find, or out of production parts.
Parts of Star Wars - Info on Blasters and other Star Wars weapons. They also sell resin castings of an M40 scope.
Sci-Fire - Hyper-firm resin blasters for sale
Sterling Blaster Conversion - Converting a Sterling L2A4 MK4 into a Blastech E11.
The Ultimate E11 - Another Sterling L2A4 MK4 to Blastech E11 conversion.
TK412's Kenner Blaster Conversion - 501st member Arturo Delgado's step-by-step kenner blaster conversion.
TK821's Blastech E11 Stormtrooper Blaster Guide - A 501st Member's guide to building your own blaster.
The Dromund Kaas Sith Temple - A very detailed step-by-step tutorial for creating a metal blaster.

Stormtrooper Electronics

2008-01-09T21:03:00.000-06:00

Hyperdyne Labs - Makers of the Trooper Voice Amp, a realtime voice changer and effects board
ROMFX - Realtime voice amplifier and voice changer with automatic static bursts.
Skullworx - The complete helmet electronics system. Pre-wired fan, voice amp, mic, and speakers for your bucket.
Trik Toys - Makers of the Trikboard static burst sound effects module and other stormtrooper accessories.
Trooper Comm - Voice amplifier with automatic static bursts.

Stormtrooper Accessories

2008-01-08T20:53:00.000-06:00

123 Scuba - Good source for wetsuits to go under your armor.
Caboots - Stormtrooper ankle boots and other star wars boots for sale.
Cop Quest - Hatch SWAT Nomex Flight Gloves for your stormtrooper.
IMA-USA - Good source for military pouches and Sterling L2A3 MK4 parts.
Marstar Canada - Military Pouches for your sandtrooper.
Motor Cowboy - All leather stormtrooper boots.
Nyght Craft - Leather holsters and pauldrons for your stormtrooper.
Renaissance Dancewear - Under-suit for your stormtrooper
Sweet Black Vader Electorbinocular Tutorial - A guide to making a set of Electrobinoculars on the cheap.
Tandy Leather Factory - Good source for leather for creating a holster, belt, or dyes for your military pouches or boots.
Team Wendy - Zorbium Foam Pads for your stormtrooper helmet
Trooper Decals - Accurate decals for star wars character costumes.
Under Armour - Good source for two piece under-suits.

Armor / Prop Building

2008-01-07T21:35:00.000-06:00

Imperial-Armor - How to make your own stormtrooper armor and other cool science-fiction props.
Studio Creations DH2 - Definitive how-to costume and prop building.
TK560 - How-to guides for making your own movie props and costume replicas. Plus a few surprises.

Purchase Stormtrooper Armor

2008-01-06T13:04:00.000-06:00

Authentic Props - eBay site of ANH accurate armor also gives you the option of making a sandtrooper with the kit. You can also email Authentic Props here.
FX Armor - Fan made armor from "The Fancave". This is the most common armor available.
RTMOD - Fan made armor that is more ANH accurate.
SDS Props - Creators of the original stormtrooper helmets and armor