BH-32700's ESB Boba WIP

I submitted my 501st costume application a couple of weeks ago, and have been tweaking stuff based on the feedback.

- Gloves:
I've added new cuffs on the gloves. The CRL states they need to be white, so a seam ripper and a sewing machine was needed. My mother had both of these things, and wanted to help. Who am I to deny her that? Oh, and the white fabric was just 23 NOK at a local yarn shop.
gloves-cuffs.jpg


- Ammo belt:
I have done some weathering on the ammo belt. I can't see much weathering on the ESB belt in the references, but some was needed to make the belt look a bit more aged. I went over with a fine grit sandpaper on the edges, made some nics and scratches with my finger nails, and rumpled up the belt, twisted and bent it. The garrison membership liaison (GML) suggested using hairspray and sand/dirt. Since the references doesn't show much weathering, I was unsure of how much was needed. This is where I'm at right now:
ammo-belt-weathering.jpg


- Armor plates:
The armor plates is my biggest worry. I am happy with the placement on the vest. Everything looks fine when I only wear the vest and plates. But there have been some issues and head scratching.

First: The nuts I have are really lousy. The threads keeps ripping, and I constantly have to replace them. I had 20-30 spare nuts when I started. Now I have 2 left. New (and hopefully better) nuts are in the mail, but shipping these days takes forever. Because I have to make due with the nuts I have for now, I left them loose fitting when I mounted the armor plates. And, of course, I forgot to thighten them I did the photos for my submission, making the plates move and look aweful.

Second: When I mount the backplate and jetpack, the collar gets pulled up and start digging into me. It is very uncomfortable, painful even, and it messes up the vertical distance between the chest plates and the collar. I have reposition the screws a bit and added some padding under the vest. If I'm correct (and if those blasted nuts can hold on!), this should keep the plate from getting pulled up too much. But I won't know for sure until I can wrangle in some help putting on the jetpack.

Third: The collar studs is not very practical. There must be a better way to do this?

- Upgrades:
Even though I'm confident that basic approval is within reach, I'm looking ahead at things to do after approval. I have finally found the Paterson parts needed for the shin tools, so that's a project I'm looking forward to doing. I have ordered metal parts for my jetpack, which will be fun to tackle. A rangefinder light kit is also on the way here. And then there's the rifle and the sidearm.

Lots left to do! :D
 
for the jet pack collar pull problem, here is what i did

stick some the soft loop velcro to the underside of collar and back plate, you'll
attach them with a strip of the hook velcro.

hook on jetpack before you velcro together the collar and backplate
then kind of pull up the back plate closer to the collar, the JP will keep it
there, then attach the velcro. also, sometimes the bars at the bottom of the harness
will pull the vest downwards if you got it going thru the slits of the vest

hope this helps
 

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I've assembled and weathered the Pulce 40 replica. I'm pleased with how it came out, but I might do even more weathering later.
I did have some trouble when assembling it. The trigger snapped. But that was fixed with superglue and silver paint.

pulce-4-afterweathering.jpg
 
I've spent the last couple of days installing electronics in my helmet. I had to swap out the solid stalk with a hollow one, widen the rangefinder topper LED holes to fit the light kit, carve out space in the ear for the honeywell switch (scary!) and drill holes for the servo motor.

I've posted a quick test video of the electronics if anyone wants to see:
Question: How do you solve a side heavy helmet? The weight from the extra equipment makes the helmet slide down and sit askew.
 
Hi, Nice setup...
First of all, I don’t have a helmet (yet) but my logical thinking is try to place the batteries for servo on your left side as a balance or/and add a chin strap. Hope that help.
Stay Healthy and Success.
 
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