Thanks guys! Hope you all enjoy a wonderful Easter.

Check out the forum site - it's an incredible resource and community. Whether you post your build or not it can be used to ask questions and get tons of visual advice from pictures/threads posted by other builders. I've stolen several techniques over the years! I particularly recommend the CTD Animated Clones forum section for S4-7 builds.

https://501stclonetroopers.com/forum/

Hey guys!

My name is Josh and I'm a native of Charlotte, NC. I've been a fan of Star Wars for a very long time (yes, I'm a product of the prequels and the early 2000s EU) although it was in sophomore year of high school that I really set my sights on making a costume of some sort. It came down to Iron Man, my favorite Avenger at the time, or a clone trooper since they were the good guys and in my opinion had much better looking gear than stormtroopers. Since I didn't really do anything with electronics (and that's all Iron Man was about) I went with a clone suit and eventually stumbled across the CTD forums in 2012. I decided I wanted to built a suit and to use it to visit kids or anyone who needed a bit of cheering up in order to produce that same excitement I felt on seeing pictures of real, live action figures that I had so long dreamed of imitating!

After obsessively reading all the build threads I could find I eventually saved up piece by piece for a movie-style 212th trooper. After building it for nearly a year I ended up selling it right after I 99% completed it and opted instead to go for a S4-7 Captain Rex. Once again, I went through the arduous process of fitting and building the suit and ended up selling it again before I ever joined the 501st. In 2020 I started collecting pieces for a S2 Mando and once again got everything in place before deciding to start a Bad Batch style Commander Cody.

I've always worked on my suits in a vacuum without ever connecting to anyone in person, which is something I've always found a shame as the Carolinas are the birthplace of the 501st! While my friends love Star Wars, I have yet to connect with anyone who has also built a complete costume outside of my travels on the internet. I know Cody is going to be a long build with work and life hopefully taking precedence but I really want this 4th one to be the charm and eventually fulfill my decade old goal of joining the 501st!

Hey Josh! What a coincidence... my name is also Josh, I live in Charlotte, and this is my first day/post on the forums as well! I also am looking to do a clone using an Imperial Surplus kit - from my name you might guess who it is (in a certain drab gray color scheme). The stuff is currently being shipped as we speak... I've done one OSCS movie clone while I was still in college and built an animated Rex back in 2018 which I sold without ever becoming part of the 501st. Like you, I would really like to be able to get involved a bit with the community and fellow members around Charlotte!

Good luck on your build. Are you planning on starting a build thread on the CTD forums? I lurk on there all the time and it's such a great community. If you don't mind me asking, what area do you live near? I know the 501st has a presence in Charlotte but I've only ever pursued this hobby in a vacuum and have never met another person IRL who's built a set of armor before.