Darth Vader Supreme Costume

Hey - I just saw those new posts!

Yup - the x-acto method is potentially hazardous; a dremel is much safer. I don`t have one and just sat down one evening with the knife until I was done. Thankfully I didn`t cut myself.

Bill`s modded Rubies is the best there is. It really looks like the movie lid. And apparently, when he wears the suit he does some awesome yoyo tricks so yes, it is very cool!

Huzz

 

Here is the chain:

http://cgi.ebay.com/DARTH-VADER-PROP-REPLICA-CAPE-CHAIN-ROTS-ARMOR-RARE_W0QQitemZ220262103817QQihZ012QQcategoryZ83719QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I've boldly posted the link because this chain is off the shelf stuff that the fellow found at a hardware store in Australia. There are no licensing toes to step on by posting this link.

Huzz

 

Here is another good spot for info:

http://www.darthlarsen.com/sithlords/forum/index.php?sid=1ff7b5d7bb91e22e2032d29d2da8eb5d

Bill, Lan and I are all members there. Join up and tell Offworldimports that you are a membe of that board and that the three of us sent you!

Huzz

 

Hey Huzz! Your humor never disappoints my friend! Thanks for the comment on my Rubies. You're like my own personal public relations agent!

Anyone constructing a ROTS Vader would be very wise to scoop up some of that chain Huzz mentioned. Also, hit up Sitharmor for his parts before they're all gone. I just bought a pair of his shins after I heard he was selling out his inventory.

 

Whoa, thanks for all the suggestions, advice, pics, and links - I definitely owe you guys!

I went at it again tonight on the helmet and despite a couple setbacks it went fairly well.

First, the dremel worked great on trimming those daggers - I was able to round them off really well.

However, the eye sockets were incredibly hard to work on. Even keeping it set on a low speed the dremel was melting the edges rather than cutting them. Throw in working around the tabs and it led to some pretty rough edges. In the end it was definitely worth it as my vision was way better.

I did run into a couple minor problems. I managed to damage a tab on each of the lenses, which leaves me no choice but to buy new ones. Probably for the better as I didn't notice how distorted vision is with the rubies lenses.

I also made a couple minor scuffs while working on the eyes. The're barely noticable but I'd like to fix it if I could. Can someone recommend a wax or touch up that might help?

I used the industrial strength velcro and air conditioner weather seal to pad the helmet and now it fits like a glove. The breathing box control has been rewired to the top of the helmet and it's coming together nicely.

I'll probably be ordering a the new lenses this week along with a new suit from LA (Thanks Huzz & Seduced). Any recomendations on the LA suit as I'm leaning toward the feaux leather one piece as the price is right. Anyone like the two piece better or is there any other reason I would want to steer clear of the feaux leather?

Silversun913

 

Hey Silversun913!!

I think the one piece suit is correct for a ROTS Vader whereas a two-piece suit is based on one of the original Trilogy suits.

On the replacement suit itself, I don't yet have one but Lan and Seduced do; they are your experts there. I have seen comment that either is a big improvement over the Rubies. I also believe that the quality and workmanship of both are very good. Folks have commmented that the real leather one is more comfortable than the faux leather one. I guess whether or not the extra cost is worth it comes down to a personal decision and how much you`ll be wearing the suit, outdoors in the heat or inside etc.

Lan and Seduced should be able to assist you with how to do your measurements so that, whichever suit you get, it fits you properly.

One comment - these suits will likely be available for a while. But Sitharmor is retiring soon. If it came down to one or the other, well, Sitharmor may not be in the business soon!

Cheers!
Huzz

 

the lil extra cash spent on the real leather over the fake one is money well spent. mine is great, just spent 3 hours wearing it yesterday at that company fun day event for work. many great compliments were thrown my way.

when takin measurements for LA add 1 to 2 inches on all circumfrence measures he asks for. dont know why it is, but it comes out right if you do.

his straight line measures are dead on so be accurate on those. hes makin me a new cape and robe set as i type, alpacuna rots in fact.

 

Lan said it all about the suit. The one piece version is what you need and be sure to add an inch or two on the circumference measurements as he mentioned. I would definately go with the leather version. While the faux suit is tempting because of the price, it won't last as long, breath as well, or look as good as the leather suit. The leather suit may very well be the last suit you'll ever buy. Oh yeah, be sure to get some Under Armor to wear under your suit. It will keep the suit off your body and you will sweat much less. A long sleeve shirt and long pants set up is what you'll need. It makes a big difference.

Since the stock Rubies is unpainted, touching up your helmet might be a little tricky. Novus is a good plastic polish but I would think any car wax that doesn't contain abrasives would be suitable for removing scuffs.

I have to ask though, how far are you willing to mod your costume? If you are just a casual costumer and have no aspirations to join the ranks of the 501st, then subtle, less costly mods would be in order. However, if your endstate is a highly accurate set up for serious costuming, you might want to think about the quality of your upgrades. For example faux vs. leather suit, mounting snap-in lenses on the front vs. acrylic pieces mounted from the inside, Rubies breathing module vs. high quality audio setup, repaint and mod the Rubies helmet vs. replacing it with a Master Replicas helmet.

I know I would have done things differently from the beginning if I'd known what I do now and saved a lot of time and money in the mean time. The accuracy/upgrade bug will eventually eat away at you and rather than just settle for a cheaper modification, you're better off getting the best upgrade available off the bat.

Just some food for thought. Either way you decide to go, we can all help you here as we've pretty much experienced both sides of it. I just want to give you the best advice for your modifications based on where you want to be in the end.

 

I'm not a looking to join the 501st but want a costume that really makes an impact. Enough so that I would consider buying the MR helmet and displaying it when it's not being used for the costume.

I plan on wearing the costume to plenty of parties and want to be somewhat comfortable. Which is another reason I was asking about the two piece over the one piece. For that type of use is it really worth the extra cash for the leather?

As always the feedback is greatly appreciated.

Silversun913

 

I've heard some people have had issues with the two piece suit where the top half will slip out and ride on top of the cod piece. I would recommend the one piece suit all the way.

I would still suggest you go for the leather suit. If you want to be as comfortable as possible, that would be the way to go. Not to mention that the faux suit can dry out, peel and flake over time.

 

as i said, LEATHER, and as also stated, 1 piece suit.

best there is, and the ONLY way to run if you dont wanna die from heatstroke in a vader costume, point blank, nothing more to say.

seeing as want you wanna do with it, i would just do the extensive modding to the rubies.

1st, finish the lid mods, lots of helpful info for that around, then, depending on whether or not you wanna sound the part, you can try out the cheapo vice units, and i know for some fortunate few, those work well for them.

or, you can go with a mp3 player, and record some voice and breath clips and just play them whilst costuming.

the armor, well, theres a definate must do mod there.

doesnt involve any real hard modding just a repaint.

youll have to sand off all te old crappy color, prep it good, prime and repaint.

theres a couple options there, get ahold of the real deal valspar paints, or go cheaper, which isnt bad at all, wally world or whereever carries it, duplicolor T-100 universal black, and T-177 gunmetal grey, and also your clearcoat.

i did mine with these, and it turned out nice, its goin on the manny, since i use a Porty FG armor now.

and then theres the bodysuit we have told you already which to get.

do these things, and youll have a comfy party hearty costume that will serve you well.

 

Ok - I'm sold on the leather. I'll be sure to bump up the round measurements 2" and keep the straght ones. I can't thank you guys enough for the advice.

Silversun913

 

That'll be eight dollars, please.



Huzz

 

your quite welcome bro, you wont regret it on the LA leather suit, we can pretty much guarantee that, none of us who have one regret it at all.

1 to 2 inches on diameter measures, i think i went with 1 inch, 2 should be just fine.

one thing to remember, when you put it on, it will be snug, as it should be, if you feel a lil constricted, dont worry, the suit will stretch out where its needed. LA told me this himself back when i got mine.

 

I took the plunge - just ordered the 1 piece leather suit and the lenses. Funny thing, it wasn't LA who sent me the confirmation email it was someone with a different name - is that normal?

 

Congrats on the purchase!

Lucas has an assistant now that handles all of his business. I went direct with him when I ordered mine over a year ago but no worries, the suit will have Lucas' fingerprints all over it. If there are any issues with the suit when it arrives, rest assured that Lucas will make it right. He's a good person to deal with.

 

Seduced - Thanks for the info, that definitely puts me at ease. I'm all fired up to get the new suit. What's the turnaround time like?

 

Mine took about 3 weeks for him to make and only 4 days to ship. I think Lan had a similar turn around. It could be faster now but I would send an email just to ask.

What other mods are you considering?

 

his mew assistants name is Ed, i had to go through him too just recently on the new cape and robe set LA is makin me. Ed seems to be just a good a guy to deal witrh as LA. he just handles all the details for LA and LA still is the maker so no worries bro.

yea, somewhere round a month till i got mine maybe a few days less.

 

The guy I'm emailing is Claudio - I'm assuming LA has a few people assiting with the operation now. I made query as to whether there was an LA affiliated with the ebay store.

I also asked a question about the chest box hole/slot placement and am waiting to hear back. I'm going to stick with the Rubies box and perhaps mod that as it doesn't seem that difficult.

Silversun913

 

if your dealing with claudio, then your not dealing with LA. they split up a ways back, and it was due to claudio selling lower grade materials than what LA wanted. therefore, they split up. Claudios store is customprops, LA's store is fenixprops.

 

Lan and Bill;

Isn't Customprops the guy that makes the faux leather suit? If that is the case, this is not the fellow Silversun (or me in the future) would need to talk to!

Huzz

 

Man, this really sucks - I used the link Seduced gave me for the auction. I was totally under the impression it was LA. Is this guy any good or should I try to back out somehow?

 

well i know that LA told me in a email from him that they had split up due to "differences" and explained what theat was, which is what i stated. CP still does decent stuff, but my moneys with LA.

if i was you, i would dump CP, and go with LA directly, either via his ebay store, or email him with your request. myself, i delt DIRECTLY with LA personally when i got my bodysuit.

both vendors do fake leather, but real leather is the ONLY way to fly, IMO!

 

I dealt directly with LA through the email address I sent you but the ebay link I now see was wrong. The pics on that auction were the same pics that Lucas sent me when I was inquiring about his suit so when I saw the auction, I assumed it was his. I don't know what to say other than I feel like crap for screwing that up. Lucas' ebay user name is TK_2111 and his suit is now over $500 shipped.