Building the Shin Tools

I have been sitting on these parts for awhile. I had just recently ordered replicas of the Michell Engineering Stylus Brush that was used on the Anti-Security blade of Fett's shin tool. They are machined aluminum and are near identical to the real thing.
To get started I used my small hobby saw to cut the Paterson squeegee’s end off, the third finger grip off, and the end of the Paterson stirring rod off. Now I just need to get a sheet of plastic cut to shape to finish off the Anti-Security blade, paint them up, and done with set one. Minus the unidentified part.

New Pre-Production 1 & 3 Flame Unit Connector

Here is another of Boba Fett's Rocket Pack greebles. It is seen on the bottom of his Rocket pack in the Pre-production 1 costume. The same Rocket Pack was used again in the Pre-Production 3 costume. In the Pre-production 2 costume this greeble was moved or removed altogether, as it is not seen with the others on the back of the pack. It is still unclear where this connector is located on the ESB or ROTJ Rocket Packs, or if it was on them at all. It is an ITT Cannon XLR-3-32 3 pin male socket connector. The female connector is an ITT Cannon XLB-3-110, however it was the silver end version that was used. This electrical connector is typically used for Audio equipment, but was used as the power source for the flame unit on Fett's left gauntlet. I've been on the hunt for the correct manufacturer for awhile. Once it was identified, I was able to track it one down and picked up a set. XLR-32 3 pin is pretty generic and you can find a lot of very similar style connectors, but ITT Cannon is the correct one with its logo stamp on the bottom and Part No. stamp on the top. It's all in the details.

New ESB & ROTJ Right Gauntlet Switch Button

These two switches are on the right gauntlet. They are Alco switches by Tyco Electronics. There are several models that are practically identical. These are still pretty available by searching the serial number.

New ESB & ROTJ Right Gauntlet Darts

Up next is a set of Gauntlet Darts. There are four located on the right gauntlet. These darts are from a JA Michell Engineering sweep arm brush. There is only one of these spindles per sweep arm brush. I was fortunate enough to make a trade for them. These are no longer being made by JA Michell Engineering. The second set where machined by RBReplicas.

New ESB & ROTJ Rocket Pack Stabilizer

This is the Rocket Pack Stabilizer (or Missile Targeting Range Finder according to the Visual Dictionary). This is a found item that comes off a vintage JA Michell Engineering Hydraulic Reference Turntable Sweep arm assembly. This little guy, and I do mean little, is the stand or base of the sweep arm. It comes in variable sizes. I was able to obtain two machined replicas that were made to match the originals precisely.

New ROTJ Wookiee Braids Version 1.0

This is my first set of ROTJ Wookiee braids, or 'scalps' made by Julie. They are braided from horse hair to closely match a diagram that I drew up based on the available reference photos. I placed an order for them in February of 2007 and they finally arrived! They are still missing one braid that I will have Mary-Frances braid for me. I will then tie them together and add a snap to the vest where they will attach.

New ESB EE-3 Blaster Greeblies

I have actually had these parts for several years now. The first one is part No. 65, Connecting Rod on a 1977 Revell Visible V8 Engine kit. These kits are very popular, making them on the pricey side, if you can find one. The second part is a set of Tyco Electronic 6-pin Molex Connectors. They normally come in 'white', but the individual selling them was able to 'dye' them black with a plastic dye that chemically bonds to the plastic, altering the color. Don't ask me about how to exactly do this, as I have no idea. But it's not painted black, which makes them all the more cool.

New ESB Helmet Range Finder View Screen

This little guy is the lens seen on the bottom of the Range Finder. It comes off a Polaroid SX-70 Camera. The lens is the View Finder Lens on the camera, so it was ideal to be used where it is on the costume. The Lens itself is Magnifiying, so and Image I put behind it, is 'blown-up' on scale. The lens so far only appears to be on the ESB costume.

New ESB & ROTJ Helmet Key Slot Circuit

This is the circuit board that is found inside the MQ-1 Casio Calculator. The calculator keypad was used for the left gauntlet, while this little guy was glued to the inside of the helmet. You can see it through the 'key slots' in the back. Just click on the images to see larger photo.

Updated All Photos

Well Rumor had it that my photos were not visible to all since I was linking them from Flickr.com. So I reloaded every single photo, plus some new ones straight to the blog itself. So hopefully, they should all be viewable. Minus two.