Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

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Shadowbreed
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by Shadowbreed »

The CRL's do indeed state that the hem is required "The outer cloak must hemmed to a length that is no more than 1 inch (2.54 cm) off the ground. This hem will be the same length at all points around the cloak."

I have 2 ROTJ guards with imperial boots robe sets that I approved last September, which definitely have the inner robes attached down the bottom edge as well.

Vincent at imperial boots constantly makes adjustments to keep things according to the CRL's so it's possible he has changed this since the earliest versions.
I would just email him at imperial boots and ask, he is quite friendly and responsive :)
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by OCD_Chad »

Shadowbreed wrote:The CRL's do indeed state that the hem is required "The outer cloak must hemmed to a length that is no more than 1 inch (2.54 cm) off the ground. This hem will be the same length at all points around the cloak."

I have 2 ROTJ guards with imperial boots robe sets that I approved last September, which definitely have the inner robes attached down the bottom edge as well.

Vincent at imperial boots constantly makes adjustments to keep things according to the CRL's so it's possible he has changed this since the earliest versions.
I would just email him at imperial boots and ask, he is quite friendly and responsive :)
When I think of "lined" I think of the inside of a jacket with the inner material attached in a way that nothing is loose. I don't think there's been a CRL update so why would they change? I'll ask.

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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by OCD_Chad »

He said "The robes are lined with the burgundy fabric on the sides, the bottom is not hemmed as we shipped these extra long so that each trooper can fit to their actual heights."

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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by LuciousTalvloinne »

I do like that they add a cushion for length. Better to be too long than too short.
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by NZJoshy »

Hi there folks, I have literally just signed up and went straight to this thread after looking at IB page and am nearly about to click the buy now button but will hold off just for now. I have a few questions about them if you wouldn't mind...

Has anyone bought the full set they offer? (https://www.imperialboots.com/product/i ... guard-set/) It looks like it has both inner and outer robes plus balaclava and padding; with option to purchase boots and gloves separately? I have never purchased from IB before but am looking to expand my range from just officers. Does this include everything that would be needed for approval apart from the pike and helmet and any small modifications with length etc...

My second question is are these a particular film accurate one? it just says OT variant. Does that mean it is only acceptable for ROTJ and none of the other variants?

My third question is regarding the IB guard boots. From the photos on the page it looks like they have zips on the back of them, I thought according to the CRL there was not meant to be any visible straps or stitching? (i'm used to double checking boots for my imperial officer so I made sure to look at the boots first off).

Anything I should be wary of or are IB worthy of praise?

Thanks for anyones time to read and answer in advance.
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by Erice3339 »

NZJoshy wrote: Hi there folks, I have literally just signed up and went straight to this thread after looking at IB page and am nearly about to click the buy now button but will hold off just for now. I have a few questions about them if you wouldn't mind...

Has anyone bought the full set they offer? (https://www.imperialboots.com/product/i ... guard-set/) It looks like it has both inner and outer robes plus balaclava and padding; with option to purchase boots and gloves separately? I have never purchased from IB before but am looking to expand my range from just officers. Does this include everything that would be needed for approval apart from the pike and helmet and any small modifications with length etc...
Last time I checked, they offer a full set with the boots, gauntlets, both sets of robes, a balaclava, and an officer’s hat. I’d recommend buying each item individually from their website, minus the balaclava and officer’s hat (unless you want those items, but it sounds like you already have plenty of officer hats). When I compared the cost of the set and the cost of each item individually minus the unnecessary accessories, there was a significant difference in price not only due to the subtraction of the items but strangely in shipping fees as well (~$20 USD more on shipping for the whole set).

But, yes, they offer everything you’d need minus a pike (which is optional anyways but how can you not?) and a helmet.
NZJoshy wrote: My second question is are these a particular film accurate one? it just says OT variant. Does that mean it is only acceptable for ROTJ and none of the other variants?
Yes, the primary difference between the OT and Prequel guards is that the former only has one arm slit on the right side. The IB robes are exclusively for ROTJ. They used to say ROTJ. Not sure why they would have changed that to make it less clear on their website...
NZJoshy wrote: My third question is regarding the IB guard boots. From the photos on the page it looks like they have zips on the back of them, I thought according to the CRL there was not meant to be any visible straps or stitching? (i'm used to double checking boots for my imperial officer so I made sure to look at the boots first off).
The CRL states,

“There are no visible straps, buckles, or ornamental stitching”

Not only does this exclude zippers, but the zippers on the back should hardly be visible anyways. Whereas the front of your boots might show from under the robes as you walk or peek out in length beyond the trim of your robe when standing still at times, there’s no reason the zippers should be visible when simply standing still or even walking. I use their boots and had no issue getting approved. I’ll give you a link to my build thread below.
NZJoshy wrote: Anything I should be wary of or are IB worthy of praise?
As you have alluded to, IB has a good reputation in the 501st community and do receive a good bit of praise. Personally, I found Vincent to offer a quality product at a decent price, but his customer service can be lacking at times. I am not sure if they updated the description, but the IB robes do not require you to consider your height as a measurement. I’m ~5’9 and 159 lbs., and I originally ordered the Small set because it fit all of my measurements to a tee. Yet, when I received them, they were too short by a couple of inches and thus would not hang 1 inch from the ground per the CRL. The description states that the robes should be “extra long” to allow for hemming to the wearer’s height.

Nevertheless, when I contacted Vincent, the owner, he was indeed quick to respond, which was nice, but he also put all the shipping fees (~$100 USD) on me for return shipping claiming that he was making an exception for me and that I didn’t technically qualify for a return even though I had received an item not as described. The robes were not “extra long”, and he even told me that, when he spoke to his tailor, the Small robes do have a maximum height of something like 5’6 or 5’7 but that’s not mentioned anywhere on the website (or wasn’t). I’m a thin guy of average height, so I fit all of the other measurements, taken as instructed by IB three times each, but was still too tall.

I think my experience is an outlier and shouldn’t influence your decision much. The quality of the robes, for the price, are nice, and it is convenient to get much of the costume from one place. He does build to the CRL, as he is a 501st member himself. I would just contact him first to confirm which size you should get based on your measurements to be extra sure. In truth, I did that as well but still had the issue that I had; I guess I just have a weird distribution of my body weight... Anyhow, you can see pictures on my build thread along with where I got everything else. I’ll also link a comparison I did of the IB and Original robes that has probably collected alot of dust by now. Mind you, Vincent could have updated his product by now.

Build Thread
https://www.forcepike.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3399

Comparison Thread
https://www.forcepike.net/forum/viewtop ... =97&t=3508

At the end of the day, I’d recommend either him or Gio of Crowprops (on Facebook) for your robes. Both are good options and should pass approval rather easily.
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by NZJoshy »

This was a very helpful read, I will definitely be taking your advice on the sizing and can understand about the boots now, makes a bit more sense to allow them if they are not as visible compared to our riding boots for line officers. I think I will also take your advice and buy the items separately if the shipping is a little less, I'm from New Zealand so shipping to the far corner of the South Pacific is always costly but will do a comparison first just to double-check. Thanks again for your detailed help and hasty reply! I will be sure to let you know how things go.
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by Erice3339 »

NZJoshy wrote:This was a very helpful read, I will definitely be taking your advice on the sizing and can understand about the boots now, makes a bit more sense to allow them if they are not as visible compared to our riding boots for line officers. I think I will also take your advice and buy the items separately if the shipping is a little less, I'm from New Zealand so shipping to the far corner of the South Pacific is always costly but will do a comparison first just to double-check. Thanks again for your detailed help and hasty reply! I will be sure to let you know how things go.
Please do and best of luck, future guard! If you have any other questions, feel free to drop me a message.
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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by iceknyght »

As you have alluded to, IB has a good reputation in the 501st community and do receive a good bit of praise. Personally, I found Vincent to offer a quality product at a decent price, but his customer service can be lacking at times. I am not sure if they updated the description, but the IB robes do not require you to consider your height as a measurement. I’m ~5’9 and 159 lbs., and I originally ordered the Small set because it fit all of my measurements to a tee. Yet, when I received them, they were too short by a couple of inches and thus would not hang 1 inch from the ground per the CRL. The description states that the robes should be “extra long” to allow for hemming to the wearer’s height.
Not sure when you got your robes, but when I got mine (around September/October of last year), they were probably 4-6 inches too long! Definitely no problems getting mine hemmed... My size was a large (I am 6', 195 lbs) and the inner robe fit perfectly (other than needing to be hemmed) and the boots, sash, and gloves were great! The outer robe, as mentioned, was about 4-6" longer than I needed, but I definitely would rather have too long than too short! That's for sure!

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Re: Is Imperial Boots "Guardian Robes" 501st approved?

Post by Erice3339 »

iceknyght wrote: Not sure when you got your robes, but when I got mine (around September/October of last year), they were probably 4-6 inches too long! Definitely no problems getting mine hemmed... My size was a large (I am 6', 195 lbs) and the inner robe fit perfectly (other than needing to be hemmed) and the boots, sash, and gloves were great! The outer robe, as mentioned, was about 4-6" longer than I needed, but I definitely would rather have too long than too short! That's for sure!
Like I said later on in my post, my experience is probably an outlier and should not influence his decision much. IB is a good vendor but, in my case, mistakes were made. I’m simply sharing as much. I ended up getting a Medium after returning my Small, and it worked just fine for approval and trooping. The robes aren’t perfect, but they’re still high-quality.

I ordered and received mine in Nov.—Dec. 2018.
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