Daetrin

Several months ago Brian (TK-2802), Kav (TK-4271) and I (TK-8020) - all in Garrison Titan - decided to move to the dirt-side. After months of work and much help, guidance, and assistance from members of this detachment, we made our first public appearance as a group last Saturday at a QFC Food Drive / EpIII release. Here we are trying to size up whether or not Walter (third from left) is interested in "upgrading" to TD: http://www.hoeffer.com/public/sd1.jpg Here's another that gives at least some view of one of the packs, as we pull guard duty on the florist area: http://www.hoeffer.com/public/sd2.jpg Getting the three of us in one picture - sorry I'm don't have photoshop so it's a rough paste job: http://www.hoeffer.com/public/sd3.jpg We got a lot of positive feedback from not only the QFC customers, but also from the other members of our garrison. Just need to get those BFG's done now! It's been a lot of fun on our journey from TK->TD so far - thanks again to this detachment for leading the way. Paul

Outstanding! Maybe when our kids are older we can dress them like Jawas!

Thankfully not all sandtroopers had BFG's, so while it will delay our MEPD deployment we'll still be canon. Yeah, I think not sealing it and just re-applying it may be best, as it doesn't take too long to do (e.g. can do it while watching TV), and can be done over time between events. Still, not having that pack done is killing me! I have a fever and the only cure is to get that bad boy finished.

Yeah, but I'll (probably) be the only one w/o a pack and ab plate mod, so it will even out.

If you haven't gotten dirty yet because...for whatever reason, let me just say that it's the easiest part of moving from TK to TD. I had a harder time swapping out my decals. I took the plunge with TK2802 (Brian - my apologies if I'm stealing some thunder here) and we spent about four hours using the instructions from The Dented Helmet. The only color I used was raw umber as I like the dark dirt more than the sandy (red/yellows) look. Here's a pic of how he says to start - dabbing: http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20145.jpg Here's a good comparison of the next steps - back parts are Brians where he's dabbed with a paper towel. Front shots are mine after dabbing and then brushing off the excess. http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20153.jpg Three stages of a helmet http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20156.jpg http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20155.jpg http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20157.jpg Getting dirt around the hovi-mikes was the only hard part. Some finished shots http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20168.jpg http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20170.jpg http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20181.jpg The wife was happy, but I think my daughter is worried about the direction the galaxy is taking (sorry - too cute not to post) http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20187.jpg While it looks dirty up close, it's apparent that it looks too clean from more than a foot away and I'll put on another layer this weekend. Thanks to everyone who's shared their journey to the dirt side - I can't imagine going through this process without this detachment as a resource. Now, time to finish that pack! Paul

Looks fantastic! What a great looking job - congrats.

Brian (TK2802) and I took the plunge to go dirty today. All MEPD armor requirements have been fulfilled but I still need to do my ab plate. We followed the instructions posted on the Dented Helmet (thanks!). Here is what it looked like mid-way through: http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20153.jpg Half-way on the breast plate http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20152.jpg Half a helmet away http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20155.jpg Up close it looks pretty dirty, and the back came out fine, but as you can see the rest of it doesn't look that dirty at all. http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20181.jpg The end result (yes, I'll fix the ab plate!) http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20168.jpg Lesson learned for me is that what looks dirty up close looks really clean from far away, and I'll definately have to add more dirt next go 'round. Other lessons... 1) Man, that belt ammo pouch is heavy and really weighs the suit down. I need to replace some elastic with non-flex straps or else belt will be 'round my ankles. 2) Put the pauldron on *after* you put the rest of the armor on. 3) The should ammo pouch makes it hard to flex the arm. Also, need to adjust or be smart and mount it to the pack. 4) The smaller ANH helmet looks great, but fogs up much easier than the FX bucket - time to get some fans! Thanks everyone for posting so many tips & picks of your adventures going dirtside - it gave me a lot of confidance going forward and it turned out to be the easiest part of converting to TD. Any advice on what's a good sealant? As a TK you worry about how to stay clean - now I worry about how to stay dirty! Paul

Will post in moments. Actually it was 1/2 a bottle, but after looking at the pictures I realize I need to do more. Here is one shot of the end result - it looked a lot dirtier earlier. http://www.hoeffer.com/public/picture%20168.jpg

Just got done with my first pass. In the end I just used one bottle of Raw Umber and nothing else, as I didn't want the red/yellow colors. Will troop in it this weekend and see how it goes.

So I found a souce for teh Woodland Scenics tempura paint that has been recommended before. Um, about how many bottles of each color does it typically take for one suit/boots/pauldron? One bottle of each color, or more? And yes Guns, once I've completed getting dirty I'll post pix along with a pack update.

What did you do for the frame - possible to get some pix of that? (e.g. did you buy or build, how did you do the straps, moutings, etc.) Overall I think it looks pretty good - you have some nice greebs on it. Is the omission of the little solar dish on the bottom of the mortar tube intentional? I'm in the middle of building by pack now and it's been the hardest piece to find.

Yes, I mean the mandible. While a painting PITA for lesser mortals like me, I think most folks will do just fine - there are some very talented people in this detachment. Paul I went sandy because I made too many mistakes buildng my armor.

Actually I have FX armor and an FX bucket. I was lucky to grab one of the authentic ANH helmet kits while they were still available on Ebay. But I'm unlucky enough to have a big shnoz, so have to put it on sideways. My dream is to some day have a set of TE armor that I'll keep clean and white, but like many I can only afford one suit right now and so it anticipate being dirty for some time to come. Back on topic - is there a reason why the ANH helmets have the goatee integrated instead of a separate piece to facilitate easy painting?

Updated: Meant to say chin, not frown The only thing I hate about the ANH mold is the chin (goatee) being integrated into the helmet. Maybe it's just me, but painting that sucker was a real PITA. Perhaps if I had used a really fine brush and a magnifying glass (I'm an old man) I could get really nice straight lines on that puppy, but alas trying to finish the helmet in the early mornings before my family woke up...suffice it to say the helmet will look better once dirty. Other than that it was a breeze to build and IMHO more comfortable to wear than the FX buckets. Oh, it looks sweet btw! Paul

Not at all. They were enjoying a nice ride in an air-conditioned prisoner containment unit to the nearest processing center, where they will enjoy a delousing and three squares a day - all on the Emporer's tab!

Could be worse. I bought my kit back in 2001 and never fully completed it until March of this year. How's that for procrastination? (And why yes, March of this year is when I discovered the 501st and had a good reason to finish it).

Absolutely. I'm done but dirt and am a good chunk through my pack. I wish I had taken pictures along the way, but now it's too late. I know there's a made rush before Halloween, but taking those few extra moments to capture it will be worth it.

Thanks Mike - this is *exactly* what I was looking for. I'll be heading over to the craft store tomorrow to pick up some pack parts & tempura anyway, so will be a good time to get some strapping material at the same time. Back to my original question - is there any disadvantage to doing this / anyone regret it?

In most FX suits - like mine - the belt is bolted to the lower ab plate. In the ANH there were lots of shots showing that the belt is not so attached and free floats, e.g. it's not connected to either back or front plate and is not part of their structural integrity. That being the case I've decided to go the the leather belt route through a mix of tk1536 & tk409's instructions. Also, like most folks, I'm going to do the cod-piece mod. But I'm not sure whether or not to also free the bottom butt plate. In a lot of shots it looks like the lower back plate (butt piece) is a separate piece and not part of the lower back plate like many FX kits. While I realize this is really in the realm of ultra ANH/TE armor realism, has anyone does this with FX armor? Are there any disadvantages to doing so? Thx, Paul TK-8020 I had to go TD 'cause I'm too lazy to polish my armor.

Mebbe we should use light green and loam to dirty our armor - e.g. sandy's who were sent to Endor to put down the Ewoks 'cause the scouts couldn't handle it. See what happened after we left? We wouldn't have gotten beat!

Sending you a PM now...

I'm at a loss for words - it's beautiful! Makes my FX bucket look like a POS...

Well they do have .50 cal sniper rifles. IMHO it's all about range. On the M-249 and M-60 we practiced out to 1000m. I found the M-249 more amicable to aiming, but for the M-60 had to walk my rounds in to target. Yes, they can be used for spraying lots of bullets over and area (covering fire) but you can also just ping at a single location. Perhaps the MG34 & MG15 are considered such weapons where you can aim to some degree - perhaps the MG15 has an even longer range than helmeted eyes through a leaf site can perceive and thus having a scope works well. We can imagine that the Lewis Gun has more kick, more powerful energy bolts, and is this considered more of a short range / close quarters / shotgun type weapon. The nice thing about fantasy is that we can make up whatever we need to fit the weapon.

Yes, this helps tremendously. I've already started on a Lewis, but - hey - can one really have too many BFG's? The pix really help in setting a goal for what it should look like - many thanks! TK-8020

Tai bang le! (excellent) What lengths did you cut the various pipes? I never thought of doing an MG-15, but it seems like a neat project.