Morning mate, so now I know you're interested in looking into a Vader I wanted to be sure to post up the advice to provide a decent foundation of info. This is the same info I give any that post an Intro thread over on the SLD Forums to help get them started on the right foot. I've also tried to include some Aussie specific details for you
Please don't let the amount of info discourage you, I just want to make sure that you have a solid foundation of info to go on having been through it all myself about a year ago
And Phantom is absolutely correct, you'll want to head over to our Detachment Forum (The Sith Lord Detachment)
http://forum.501stsithlords.com
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Building Vader:
General Tips and information:
Looks like you've decided which version of Vader it is you would be interested in, that is out of ANH, ESB, ROTJ or ROTS versions. Each are different in their own unique ways and the costume reference library ("CRL") will help you determine what you need for 501st clearance. Make sure you read this top to bottom, inside and out as this will become your guide to building your Vader and the key to getting approved. CRL’s Here:
http://www.501st.com/databank/Costuming:SLD_CRL
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Patience and research are the key to building Vader and your best friend. This build not be quick or simple, there’s a good reason there aren’t many Vader’s in the Legion. The best way to describe it is that building a Vader is like a marathon, rather than a sprint. If you do build Vader it WILL take anywhere from 1.5 years to 3 years. Pretty well all the Vader’s end up at around just a under 2 years from start to finish. It’s not an all in one instant build due to needing multiple vendors all with different runs and multiple wait times. Most Vader Vendors have wait times ranging from 3 months to upwards of a 1-1.5 years (one vendor which I suggest you avoid has 3 year long wait list.
Make sure you ask plenty of questions on the SLD Forums, members of the Sith Lord Detachment are always willing to answer them and help you out. Before starting the build or buying anything, I highly recommend that you research other Vader build threads to get an idea of parts, suppliers, process and the challenges of building Vader.
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Research:
Did I mention how important research is? Well you should research research research and then followed by more research!
The best way for you to conduct your Vader Research is to read through other members WIP (Work in Progress) Build threads. This way you can learn what vendors and parts are generally being used, things to watch out for when doing your own build, and perhaps the most important thing is you can learn from the mistakes of others. You can also see some very detailed builds that chronicle every step of the build, those in particular are vital reading
This research will allow you to understand the reasons for purchasing the parts you want to buy. Reading WIP threads will grow your knowledge on the subtle things about building Vader and allow you to craft a truly awesome product in the end!
Also please DO NOT buy anything with out seeking advice on the forums since you don’t want to end up with a part that won’t be approvable, and end up wasting money in the long run. Just make an intro post and WIP Thread where you can post all your questions and myself and others can answer them
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Building Vader’s Downunder:
As I said above, building a Vader is a lengthy and costly process. Due to exchange rates and shipping costs, it's only realistic to expect that we will need to pay more. However you can get around that by researching, planning and buying parts one at a time to spread the load
For my build I've spent upwards of $4000 on my costume (and I built a lot of parts myself). If you are looking to keep costs to a minimum you could do what I'm doing and scratch build the parts yourself if you've good with the hands on stuff, or you can get parts in kit form from reputable vendors on the SLD. For instance I built the buckle, belt boxes and Chestbox, I kept detailed build threads for each that you may find helpful if you decide to go down that path. It just depends on how confident you are with getting hands on.
There is no one supplier is a one stop shop for all the parts. For my personal Vader I ended up using a total of 8-9 suppliers/vendors and It would have been more if I hadn't built the majority of the parts myself. Another tip from my experience building Vader so far is to keep an excel spreadsheet with your budget and the cost for parts. That way you are able to work out what is reasonable to buy next and how you're going budget wise
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Information Resources (WIP/Work In Progress Threads):
I kept a pretty detailed work in progress thread for my build that you might find interesting being from an Aussie Perspective, I pretty documented everything so it may help answer some of your questions, and there's plenty of other excellent WIP threads over on the SLD.
I know some of these WIP Threads are long reads but if your serious about Vader reading plenty of WIP threads is essential as I mentioned earlier in regards to research
Plenty of guys keep nice WIP threads for their builds.
http://forum.501stsithlords.com/index.ph...904&page=1
http://forum.501stsithlords.com/index.php?showforum=37
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Vader is one of the most expensive costumes in the Legion (apart from maybe Fett edging it out as most expensive) and one of the most time consuming and among the more difficult to build. Please don't be turned off by the vast amount of info above it's not supposed to scare, the intent of the info above is to help get you thinking in the right direction to avoid any potential costly mistakes and the like
We'd love to hear from you over on the SLD, so please do post up an introductory thread in the new members introductions so other experienced members can provide insights and advice DarthV
With all that said I'm sure I'll see you at the troop tomorrow so I'll be more than happy to have a yarn with you and answer any questions you may have
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