Stormtrooper Binders and Holster.

Hello, i recently completed a Stormtrooper Armour kit for halloween and i wanted to make some little props for the armour. i made the Blaster holster following some online instructions and thought to myself that i could make some binders and a holster to hold them.

Stormtrooper Binders aren't featured in the film a great deal so there aren't many screen shots of them. i found one little image on a card from a star wars card game. 

This is how i went about making my Binders and holsters.

i will try and get some in-use photos after my halloween party.

Materials:

-plastic, i used 5mm acrylic.
-rubber seal insulation for windows and doors. (i dont have a photo of this, sorry) draft excluder roll.
-thick wire or thin metal rod.
-leather / pleather / vinyl effect leather.
-press studs / poppers
-rivets

tools:
-saw
-file
-knife
-ruler
-cutting mat
-hammer
-rivet gun
-glues
-paint

i drew up some simple plans in Adobe illustrator, but you can do it by hand. it might be faster that way.

i drew up some rings that would fit around my wrist, i have quite large arms so i made them a little bigger than mine so they would fit most people.

i chose a point on the rings below one of the blocks that extend out of the rings and placed a pivot point where the cuffs will open. and opposite that a cut line where they will open. i chose to put it near the block to hide the line when closed. 

I cut the shapes out of 5mm plastic using a Laser cutter. but you could use a coping saw.

i had four layers to create the binders. the two middle layers had the post with a hole in it for the hinge, also the bar in the center to join the two parts of the cuffs.

the outer two layers have the corresponding part of the hinge.

i drilled a hole through the two sections of the hinge and hammered a thick wire into the hole and through both parts to hold them together and create a hinge. 

Paint the whole binder assembly with a plastic primer and let it dry, then paint it with a light grey, or off white. (it is up to you.)

Then using the draft excluding strip of foam rubber i lined the inside of the binders.

The foam i used was narrow so i needed to have two rows of it along the inside of the binder.

I measured and marked out an upside down T shape that folds up and holds the cuffs.

the size and shape depends on the size specifications of the cuffs you have made.

Trace the paper template onto your chosen material leather / pleather / vinyl  and cut it out.

cut out three more parts. two 11inch long strips one inch thick and a third one inch thick by four and a half inches.

mark down the Short sides of the T the places where you will be stitching it to the back, also punch holes where the back will be stitched to the short arms of the T. this will make it easier when stitching as you wont have to use force to push your needle through the materials. 

i used the end of a rivet but a nail will do.

use a hole punch to make the holes for the rivets and the press studs.

there will be three at the bottom of the T in a triangle shape. Two at the bottom for the straps to attach to the troppers belt and on where the loop that holds the cuff in place will be affixed.  the placement of the third hole will depend on where the top of the cuffs lie in your holster. 

The two long strips have a hole punched at each end and the small strip has one at each end and one in the centre.

the vinyl that i used had light backing so i had to dye it black.

i rubbed an ink into the light side and let it dry. this gave the backing a better look.

this is a messy stage so be careful not to ruin any clothes etc.

i used the fixing tool that came with the press studs i got. this tool needs to be hammered to joint the two parts of the popper.

I put the poppers on either end of the short length strip and riveted it to the main part through the central hole. 

i folded the two long strips in half and riveted them to the holes near the top of the holster.

i used some scrap bits of the vinyl to make sure the rivets didn't pull all the way through the parts.

once all the riveting and press studs have been done i sewed the arms of the T up so it makes the holster functional. i turned it inside out to make the sewing easier. when it was done i folded it the right way out and was done.