Gadgetory

like so many of you admit it I have more than once burn the midnight oil looking at stormtrooper armor online and waffling over the purchase it's either quite expensive or it's a lot of work usually both and one of those things where you're unlikely to make the decision lightly with its factory tuning and data center DNA and Intel 730 series SSD is an amazing choice for gamers and performance enthusiasts personally I couldn't justify it for cosplay since I really just don't get out that much which means that the wearability of the armor was less of a concern for me than the collectability of it but I'd also feel stupid for buying a full life-size kit of collectible armor that I can't actually wear so in an ideal world I would want both and the place I always ended up at was original stormtrooper comm which is run by Andrew Ainsworth of shepherdson design studios yes the makers of the stormtrooper costumes among other things from Star Wars a new hope they've got affordable stuff in their battle spec lineup but the one that I always really lusted after was the original line the website boasts that the original line is made from the highest quality materials and is suitable for display or for trooping but most importantly to a collector the original line is hand made by the original prop maker himself Andrew Ainsworth oh and they're signed to so having spent a fair amount of time on their site when those guys reached out to me out of the freakin blue and said hey we'll send you a full set of everything armor helmet boots blaster and all you have to do is film a guide on how to put it on I just about crapped my pants which is nothing compared to my reaction when it finally arrived something we actually had the pleasure of capturing live I can't promise that on that occasion no pants crapping occurred so having cleaned myself up and calmed down a little bit I've collected everything together and it's time to get started now I've unboxed a lot of really cool stuff in my day but in spite of the DIY packaging this was among my best unboxing experiences ever the meticulous care that went into protecting each piece the discovery of each signature as I went through the packaging and even the manual itself was an experience I mean do you guys remember when manuals were one of the most fun things about getting a new video game they'd have instructions some great illustrations and concept art they'd have some cool lore and maybe a note from the lead game designer well this one really took me back I think the inkjet printing and hand bound construction actually add to the experience of reading about the humble origins of the project and help you appreciate the preservation of the original molds that these pieces are made from even more the armor was made for a 165 pound 5 foot 10 inch person but the website says it can fit anyone from about 5 6 - 6 - I'm at the very bottom of that range so I weigh about 145 pounds so we'll see how it goes suiting up can sort of be done alone but if you have a friend to help you it's a lot faster and easier you start with the black bodysuit and at this point I would recommend laying out all of the pieces where you can reach them easily without bending over if you're going to gear yourself up the abdominal front and back have adjustable straps that go over the shoulders and cross over in the front with velcro straps on either side for narrowing the gap between them for shoes the pimp 50 model from Fantasma is popular because Shepperton design studios doesn't actually provide shoes and I'd recommend putting these shoes on now before the calf and thigh armor starting with the calves for each piece open the velcro at the back identify which side of the body it goes on red dots for the right green dots for the left then clamp them onto your legs you should adjust the velcro overlays for the tightest possible fit the thighs are then attached to the abdominal front with the included snaps that hang down the chest and upper back comes assembled in the box so you just slide it over your head then fastened at the sides with the velcro straps the shoulder bail and bicep molding are suspended from the chest piece with two more snap fasteners on each side again you're going to want to make sure that you're watching the color-coding or it's not going to fit together correctly the forearms clamp on like the legs but make sure that you're optimizing the velcro here for comfort as well as tightness the kit includes gloves in my case rubber dishwashing ones that have hand Armour on the back but I think I'll get some leather gloves to use for this instead in the long run and the good news is that because they're just attached with Velcro you can easily swap the armor pieces onto something else the shoulder straps can now be adjusted to ensure that they overlap the front of Domino's section well and now it is time for the finishing touches wrap the belt around with the two hanging pieces down then cover the overlap at the back by clipping on your thermal detonator canister the finishing touches are the blaster and the helmet the blaster is an authentic replica made in the same way as the stormtrooper blasters from a new hope it uses castings from sterling submachine gun parts includes a power pack and is personalized with a unique serial number it's made from lightweight composite materials so carrying your 11 around all day is no problem when you're not keeping it on the display stand that comes with the collector edition the helmet is available in a few styles I opted for the Hero version worn by the leading actors that is handmade and detailed and come signed by Andrew Ainsworth but the other premium option a signature regular trooper helmet that's actually cast from the original molds and also hand detailed is a fine choice as well there is a more value oriented battle spec one that isn't handmade or signed but is able to be delivered at a much lower price while maintaining Shepherdsons quality standards but I wanted the collectability so I opted for the signed one time to put it on if you have a large head you may find it easier to put the helmet on sideways then twist it into the correct position for me I found the helmet very big and I had to get a a bit creative with some foam pieces in order to get a more snug fit so this is the part where I talk about the overall fitting finish out of the box and during the gearing up process I was excited but I had a hard time picturing how these pieces of funny well plastic could really make me feel like a stormtrooper once it all comes together though it's hard to imagine they were wearing anything else on the set of the movies which you won't have to because this is pretty much it I had one complaint about my experience with the armor and it was that for the first time in my life you know I don't really have any self-image issues or anything I wished that I was about four inches taller and that it fit me perfectly but if I can't feel more like a stormtrooper at least I can feel like Mark Hamill getting burned by Carrie Fisher or something like that that's all right by me now some of the stuff I'm showing here is extra like the bust the holster the neck guard and actually the 11th Blaster but that's the beauty of what original stormtrooper comm is doing their stuff is only to go together so your battle spec line armor will still color match your more expensive original line helmet if you want to mix and match if you do decide to take the plunge guys let me know and post a picture on the Linus tech tips forum if you can it up in your Armour because at that point you are a certified gink badass you can find full pricing and availability for all this stuff on original stormtrooper comm and I'd like to extend a huge thanks to the folks there for sending me this amazing piece of memorabilia I will absolutely treasure it forever and thanks to you guys for watching the video like it if you liked it dislike it if you disliked it and leave a comment letting us know if you think we should do more stuff like this maybe it's I mean it's a little bit less techy but it's definitely geek stuff oh and we have a new t-shirt design it's a holy balls and it's got like cats on it stuff so you should check that out at the merch store in the support link below the video and as always guys don't forget to subscribe okay here's the real sound effects off tonight but don't worry it's okay