Hi Star Wars Oregon! My name is Brian, and I am hoping to eventually join the 501st once I complete my ROTJ Biker Scout costume. I've met a handful of you during meetups and events, but have only just started commissioning components (soft parts) for the costume. A little about me: I'm a longtime Star Wars fanatic. I worked for Prop Store for a number of years and got to interact with a number of original props and costumes that we put up for auction, and got to meet and work with some of the team that worked on the original trilogy. My girlfriend and I moved up to Oregon in 2018 for a stint I did with Laika, and we have been hoping to put together screen accurate costumes for a while now.
I'm currently sourcing soft goods from Steph's Imperial Outfitters, and my friend from Laika supplied 3D printed EC-17 blaster components that I need to clean up and assemble. Hopefully it's 1:1 size and accurate, but I'll have a better idea when I am done assembling.
What I am most concerned about is armor as I want to get it right and not plunk down hundreds of dollars on an inaccurate kit. I am not sure if I want to commission armor from a reputable builder like RS Propmasters, or if I would be better off attending armor parties once they resume and having my hand held as I ask basic construction questions. If any Pathfinders have recommendations, I am all ears. I went through the Pathfinder forums and saw mention of a number of armorers in addition to RS Propmasters (Moncal and Striker) but I was unable to find links to the actual stores.
Any help would be super appreciated. I imagine the Forums have answered my questions have a billion times, but there are so many threads it's a bit hard to find the information I am looking for. Thanks! Hope you hear from you guys and gals!