Iron's ROTJ WIP

[hvacdon]

Then I started receiving my metal components I ordered from QuestDesignCanada - A seller on Etsy. I received not only those...but as well as my first Boba Maker Armor The COD/Kidney Armor and Gauntlets!

Here are QuestDesignCanada's Gauntlet Darts...
View attachment 194784

....and the Gauntlet Rocket and Metal Collar Stud that I compared to Boba Maker's Resin version....
View attachment 194785

And the Cod/Kidney Armor from Boba Maker...
View attachment 194787
The one thing that I really love about Boba Maker's Armor is that it is pretty much all prepped and ready to go! Holes drilled, all sanded and primed! Ready to Paint, and the fact that he doesn't nickle and dime you for silly things like Cod/Kidney and Collar Studs, which I'm upgrading to metal ones anyway, but still! .


....and Boba Maker's Gauntlets! (Truly a thing of beauty!)
View attachment 194789
Lady Luck adores me so in that the holes for the Gauntlet Rocket holds from QDC didn't match up with Boba Maker's variant! I had to drill in new holes of my own to get it to fit.

When I received my Gauntlet Rocket from QuestDesignCanada, I was faced with the question of "How do I make Brass look darker, or more like Copper?" I know that Machine Craft offers a Copper variant of his Gauntlet Rocket, but that really didn't do me much good as I had already purchased QDC's. BUT.....I found a solution!
View attachment 194788
I found it at my local hardware specialty store (You will NOT find this at a Home Depot or Lowes - Big Box Stores), you can also find this stuff on Amazon, here's a link.

Amazon.com: 2oz (Ounce) - Brass Darkening Solution antique vintage old dull ager patina copper tin bronze: Home & Kitchen

Buy 2oz (Ounce) - Brass Darkening Solution antique vintage old dull ager patina copper tin bronze: Wood Polish - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

Be very careful with this stuff because I'm not too sure if the effects it delivers are reversible. It only took one min to darken the brass piece to make it appear more along the lines of a ROTJ Gauntlet Rocket. Here is a before and after.
View attachment 194790

I think after some black soot and weathering effects it should look pretty close to the ROTJ Gauntlet Rocket!

-Iron

I'm sure you an always get the darkening effect off....with sand paper!!

 

[hvacdon]

For an accurate attachment of the cod and kidney plates you can use this image as reference. That rectangular cutout on the kidney plate (possibly on both sides) will allow you to tighten or loosen the pieces:
View attachment 194811

Your the Man Raf!!

 

[Irongladiator]

At this point in my build I got my Fathers Day gift from my Wife and Daughter....

I got an iWata HP-CS Airbrush and a Master Airbrush TC-40T Compressor! Now I can officially start hitting my gear with paint! (After some practice first)

Next in the line-up of items that I received was Boba Maker's Chest, Shoulders, Knees, Collar and Back Armor and Helmet!

First the Collar and Back Armor...

Not much to say about these pieces other than WOW! They look really good! Can't wait to start hitting them with paint!

Next up, I have Boba Maker's Helmet...

Such an exquisite bucket.....only......

As you can see there are a couple cracks on it. While disappointing, it is understandable that this stuff happens during shipping. I will say that Boba Maker makes every effort in packing his items very well. All items are heavily bubble wrapped and well padded. But......things do happen and again totally understandable that the shipping is out of EVERYONE'S control. Take for example my Gauntlet box that I received (Shown Below).....

When I got this one, I totally thought the worst. I imagine the shipping services played a full game of soccer with this box! However, after careful inspection, you can see those gauntlets in the above posts arrived to me in immaculate condition! (Thank you Baby Jesus!) And as stated above after reaching out to Daz, he made every accommodation to make it right, he initially offered to pay to have a local shop that specializes in fiberglass, repair the work. But as stated before I declined that offer and requested a re-cast, which he had NO problem in doing.

Next up are the Shoulders, the Knees and the Chest. As stated earlier I paid Boba Maker to fully finish these as I personally felt that the painting and mixing of the paints seemed a bit difficult and was not super confident in placing the decals.

First the Knees!

Which look great! Pretty outstanding work done by Boba Maker.....but do you notice something? Here is the 501st's Reference pic.

Yep......missing the colored rings on the Knee Launchers. Not a huge deal as I pulled out my shiny new airbrush and got them painted on very easily, afterwards I hit them with a matte enamel sealer....

Next up is the shoulders....

See the issue here? Hehehe! Boba Maker gave me a set of Hybrid ESB/ROTJ Shoulder Armor! At the same time as our Helmet discussion I brought this to his attention and needless to say he was a bit embarrassed by it. Saying that after 20 years of doing Boba Stuff he never made that mistake before. I think this guy deserves a round of applause though......he's the only one working in his shop (Due to COVID-19), and rushing to get orders met on time! But what happens when you rush? Sometimes mistakes are made. We're only human. I told him this was forgivable, and with my helmet I sent back my shoulder, he said he'd get the correct decal on there and have it shipped back.

And lastly my Chest Armor......

A work of art! These came out great I thought! I tossed on my red transparent film on it with a few drops of superglue....

Whew.....this was a long post. But it's coming along! More to follow.

Thanks,
-Iron

 

[ShortFuse]

Live look at Iron’s postman.

 

[droidbait]

Live look at Iron’s postman.
View attachment 194825

Lmfao #accurate

 

[Irongladiator]

Next up is my Fettronics Chest LED and getting them attached to the Chest Armor. This is my first time in attempting something like this. I've heard of various methods in which people go to attach this. I landed on something a bit more permanent - Hot Glue. This is what I'm using for the Hot Glueing....

Again, this is my first time even using Hot Glue. So I clamped it down and started the process. Unfortunately, I was so excited to see it and didn't give the glue enough time to harden. Needless to say it slid outta place and totally ruined the Red Transparent film......doh!

And now..... I was tasked with finding a replacement Red Transparent piece. Trying to find it locally didn't go all that well for me. I tried Hobby Lobby and Michael's and few other smaller hobby shops. I ended up finding this online....

Not being able to hold this and see it in person, I knew was a risk. Thankfully when it arrived I was surprised. It was pretty darn close, so I opt'd to use it!

I then equipped myself with more patience and proceeded to apply the hotglue.....

This second time around went way better and am happy with the end results it produced!

I had to layer on Hot Glue, doing a line of glue.....let it harden and then do another, and another, etc. But it came out great and I can attest....it's not going anywhere!

And the Chest LED's look great too!

The one thing I loved about Fettronics was that I could configure my own LED Sequence, which I've done. Again, I'm NOT looking for 501st approval but I think it looks pretty awesome. Let me know whatcha think!

Thanks,
-Iron

 

[Lazerjock]

I know it's a little late, but the red transparent film is used in the lighting industry. If there is a music store near you like Guitar Center or Sam Ash music, they would have several shades of red to choose from.
Like the custom sequence too.

 

[FettHam]

Those LED's are really nice, really jealous
Real shame about the helmet, I would have been in tears.

 

[Irongladiator]

Lazerjock - No worries! I think what I have is good and it was about the same thickness as the Boba Maker one.

One thing I did forget to mention is that when I took the opportunity to paint up the Red/Black on the Knee Launchers is that I did the QuestDesignCanada's Gauntlet Darts at the same time.

...and a closer shot of the Gauntlet Darts.

And again after hitting them with paint I followed up with a Matte Enamel Sealer.

-Iron

 

[Irongladiator]

Those LED's are really nice, really jealous
Real shame about the helmet, I would have been in tears.

FettHam - Yeah, it totally sucked, but what can ya do? It happens. Again, I'm just glad Boba Maker stands behind his products and actually cares, and was able to provide a solution. I appreciate good customer service! I mean not only on TDH but other forums as well, you hear of folks getting cheated, ghosted or ripped off. Yeah, Boba Maker coulda told me to go pound sand.....but he didn't. Yes his stuff is spendy, but I'm a huge believer in you get what you pay for, and in my case it showed!

-Iron

 

[FettHam]

Irongladiator Totally agree. I've been dealing with BobaMaker myself the last week and he's been stellar.

I got ripped off on a MQ-1 (twice now I've been stung) and he's saved the day. I've got another piece coming from him, so this was bolted to the order.
Gauntlets look fantastic! Something I'll be buying from him definitely. My 3D printed one's landed today, they are great but the work I'll have to do pre-painting isn't going to be worth it I'm feeling now. Trying to do this at budget isn't always a good thing as I'm finding out fast

 

[Irongladiator]

Irongladiator Totally agree. I've been dealing with BobaMaker myself the last week and he's been stellar.

I got ripped off on a MQ-1 (twice now I've been stung) and he's saved the day. I've got another piece coming from him, so this was bolted to the order.
Gauntlets look fantastic! Something I'll be buying from him definitely. My 3D printed one's landed today, they are great but the work I'll have to do pre-painting isn't going to be worth it I'm feeling now. Trying to do this at budget isn't always a good thing as I'm finding out fast

FettHam - I feel ya! That is why my initial price tag jumped from about the $1500 mark to nearly $4000 Once I really started looking at the stuff and what it took to get a good costume. I knew I had to jump. My '95 Don Post was NOT gonna cut it! I'm not saying anything is negative or wrong about the Budget Boba's, they have their place. For me, I was in a pretty good position to financially take on this endeavor. My job was safe, even during COVID-19 (I even landed a huge raise during - Cha-Ching!) However, I know alot of folks out there are really hurting because of it - I really feel for them and it really stinks. It is the only reason why I'm able to get some of these upgrades.

Thanks,
-Iron

 

[FettHam]

Irongladiator sadly I'm getting finished in a few months, not covid related but general redundancy. Hey ho... I'll bounty hunt!
Mine will look at right eye sore when I'm done . But once done, I'll replace the donkeys with better parts and relegate the old to my 2021 post apocalyptic build chap.

Just noticed, I also bought katarra8’s ESB variant of Wookie Braids. So when they arrive... I'll follow your tutorial.

 

[RamSkirata]

FettHam - I feel ya! That is why my initial price tag jumped from about the $1500 mark to nearly $4000 Once I really started looking at the stuff and what it took to get a good costume. I knew I had to jump. My '95 Don Post was NOT gonna cut it! I'm not saying anything is negative or wrong about the Budget Boba's, they have their place. For me, I was in a pretty good position to financially take on this endeavor. My job was safe, even during COVID-19 (I even landed a huge raise during - Cha-Ching!) However, I know alot of folks out there are really hurting because of it - I really feel for them and it really stinks. It is the only reason why I'm able to get some of these upgrades.

Thanks,
-Iron

Hey,
I'm almost to slow at reading to follow your progress in time! Man, you're fast!
I really liked all the updates you provided since the last time I stopped by. The metal parts look awesome and again I appretiate getting an in-depth look at BobaMakers products. They do look fantastic.

Once your new helmet arrives, I'd be happy to see a detailed rundown of that one, too

Your hot-glueing stories remind me of myself when I used it a lot. I burned myself sooooo many times. By now my hands should be complete pain-insensitive, lol. But yeah, its useful stuff with things that dont flex or see vibration. If you ever find yourself wanting to remove the board, you will see that hot glue is relatively reasy to pop off of a smooth surface. At least thats my experience. I dont know the specific brand you were using.

 

[Lazerjock]

I've been using hot glue since I was a child. Burns are part of the fun. I still have and use my glue gun from 1986. I'm guessing it is older than some of you. LOL

Ram is correct it will pop off of smooth surfaces somewhat easily if you pry at it, but if it won't a heat gun can be carefully used to reheat the glue and remove the part. Just be very careful not to melt the armor.

 

[Irongladiator]

Hey,
I'm almost to slow at reading to follow your progress in time! Man, you're fast!
I really liked all the updates you provided since the last time I stopped by. The metal parts look awesome and again I appretiate getting an in-depth look at BobaMakers products. They do look fantastic.

RamSkirata - Thanks! I'm not that fast, it's just a culmination of whats transpired over the last 8 months. I've had pictures, just didn't think of doing a WIP till now.

I've been using hot glue since I was a child. Burns are part of the fun. I still have and use my glue gun from 1986. I'm guessing it is older than some of you. LOL

Lazerjock - I've got yer glue gun beat by 11 years. (Well, 11 years next Friday. My birthday is on the 31st!)

-Iron

 

[Irongladiator]

Past couple of days I think finally catches me up with the build. First off my Delta Leatherworks Belt arrived! All I can say is......my god, does Delta Mike know how to work himself some leather! The craftsmanship this guy puts into his pieces is outstanding. And whats really cool is that the ammo pouches are functional! I mean I knew they were functional and just looking at his stock photos on his website I totally thought they woulda been stiff as heck......Well I'm here to report that they are not. They open and close pretty smoothly! I can't say enough good stuff about this belt!

...And on to my first "Armor" painting experience. I started with the "Collar" as I felt like I had to mimic Boba Maker's Chest Armor paint job. I gotta say I was quite nervous about hitting it with paint. And so I setup my painting station.....

Using my new Airbrush (After practicing it with it for a couple weeks) I then I hit it with Chrome Silver Tamiya Acrylic Paint (X-11)....

And following the 501st's reference pic of the collar armor I proceeded to mask it up with Humbrol's Maskol.....I then sprayed on my a mixed version of Tamiya's Deep Green (XF-26). I mixed in not even a drop of white, I more or less just every so slightly touched the brush into Tamiya's Flat White (XF-2) and then mixed it in. It seemed to lighten it up to what Boba Maker used for his greens. I then sprayed it on. Once dried I pulled off the Humbrol Maskol and topically applied some Tamiya Dark Yellow (XF-60) with a very small dry brush. I also applied via dry brush some Tamiya Gray Green (XF-76) in a few areas for that kind of that lighter green scuff markings. I also took a very tiny screw driver (Like the kind you fix reading glasses with) and gently scratched off some green for additional scratch markings I then sealed it up with a matte sealer and this was the end result......

Let me know whatcha think!

Thanks,
-Iron

 

[RamSkirata]

Past couple of days I think finally catches me up with the build. First off my Delta Leatherworks Belt arrived! All I can say is......my god, does Delta Mike know how to work himself some leather! The craftsmanship this guy puts into his pieces is outstanding. And whats really cool is that the ammo pouches are functional! I mean I knew they were functional and just looking at his stock photos on his website I totally thought they woulda been stiff as heck......Well I'm here to report that they are not. They open and close pretty smoothly! I can't enough good stuff about this belt!
View attachment 194949
View attachment 194950
View attachment 194951

...And on to my first "Armor" painting experience. I started with the "Collar" as I felt like I had to mimic Boba Maker's Chest Armor paint job. I gotta say I was quite nervous about hitting it with paint. And so I setup my painting station.....
View attachment 194952

Using my new Airbrush (After practicing it with it for a couple weeks) I then I hit it with Chrome Silver Tamiya Acrylic Paint (X-11)....
View attachment 194953

And following the 501st's reference pic of the collar armor I proceeded to mask it up with Humbrol's Maskol.....I then sprayed on my a mixed version of Tamiya's Deep Green (XF-26). I mixed in not even a drop of white, I more or less just every so slightly touched the brush into Tamiya's Flat White (XF-2) and then mixed it in. It seemed to lighten it up to what Boba Maker used for his greens. I then sprayed it on. Once dried I pulled off the Humbrol Maskol and topically applied some Tamiya Dark Yellow (XF-60) with a very small dry brush. I also applied via dry brush some Tamiya Gray Green (XF-76) in a few areas for that kind of that lighter green scuff markings. I also took a very tiny screw driver (Like the kind you fix reading glasses with) and gently scratched off some green for additional scratch markings I then sealed it up with a matte sealer and this was the end result......
View attachment 194955

Let me know whatcha think!

Thanks,
-Iron

Irongladiator
honestly, thats really really looking good to my untrained eyes. Id love to see it closer to the BobaMaker armor, but from what I can tell, you achieved a really good match up!

Im following multiple build threads going on at the moment and I am more and more tempted to actually try my hand at painting a Boba at one point. Watching your work here is inspiring!

 

[Irongladiator]

Irongladiator
honestly, thats really really looking good to my untrained eyes. Id love to see it closer to the BobaMaker armor, but from what I can tell, you achieved a really good match up!

Im following multiple build threads going on at the moment and I am more and more tempted to actually try my hand at painting a Boba at one point. Watching your work here is inspiring!

RamSkirata - Thanks a bunch! I tried to take my time with this one and match it up as best as I could. Again this is my first time painting a prop with an airbrush. I also noticed a couple spots of Humbrol Maskol I forgot to peel off, so I just did that and then re sealed it with that matte enamel sealer.

Tomorrow I'll tackle the Back Armor! I'm hoping for the same kind of luck!

-Iron

 

[Lazerjock]

Past couple of days I think finally catches me up with the build. First off my Delta Leatherworks Belt arrived! All I can say is......my god, does Delta Mike know how to work himself some leather! The craftsmanship this guy puts into his pieces is outstanding. And whats really cool is that the ammo pouches are functional! I mean I knew they were functional and just looking at his stock photos on his website I totally thought they woulda been stiff as heck......Well I'm here to report that they are not. They open and close pretty smoothly! I can't enough good stuff about this belt!
View attachment 194949
View attachment 194950
View attachment 194951

...And on to my first "Armor" painting experience. I started with the "Collar" as I felt like I had to mimic Boba Maker's Chest Armor paint job. I gotta say I was quite nervous about hitting it with paint. And so I setup my painting station.....
View attachment 194952

Using my new Airbrush (After practicing it with it for a couple weeks) I then I hit it with Chrome Silver Tamiya Acrylic Paint (X-11)....
View attachment 194953

And following the 501st's reference pic of the collar armor I proceeded to mask it up with Humbrol's Maskol.....I then sprayed on my a mixed version of Tamiya's Deep Green (XF-26). I mixed in not even a drop of white, I more or less just every so slightly touched the brush into Tamiya's Flat White (XF-2) and then mixed it in. It seemed to lighten it up to what Boba Maker used for his greens. I then sprayed it on. Once dried I pulled off the Humbrol Maskol and topically applied some Tamiya Dark Yellow (XF-60) with a very small dry brush. I also applied via dry brush some Tamiya Gray Green (XF-76) in a few areas for that kind of that lighter green scuff markings. I also took a very tiny screw driver (Like the kind you fix reading glasses with) and gently scratched off some green for additional scratch markings I then sealed it up with a matte sealer and this was the end result......
View attachment 194955

Let me know whatcha think!

Thanks,
-Iron

Looks like you nailed it!!!