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Just after a little advice on finding steampunk bits for an upcoming Imperial knights idea.

Buy some second hand clockwork alarm clocks and broken watches. Unscrew everything. Cogs, interesting panels, tiny screws and springs. Jackpot.

Another option is to have a look at Hasslefree, they do packs of cogs: Steampunk Stuff.

Those are pretty much from the aforementioned method but work out pricier for convenience. Though well worth doing if you're picking up other tools at the same time.

Oh I agree completely, it would work out more expensive that way, however it is a lot more 'Hasslefree'.

(Sorry I couldn't resist, please don't hate me).

Plastic pipes and joints from a hardware store are also good, can't have steampunk without some steam pipes.

I noticed a company called Green Stuff World the other day who have quite a lot of Steampunk bits, but again you'll pay for the convenience of not striping down watches etc

http://shop.greenstuffworld.com/steampunk-beads-accessories

I can vouch for Green Stuff World, great guy and cheap shipping to Australia

That place looks awesome. What are some suggestions for pipes/chimneys etc. Any models to look at for bits?

Oh. God. No.

Why does everyone believe that "Steampunk" means "Get a load of gogs and stick them all over your project?

Steampunk should reflect the Victorian design style. Decorative ironwork, rivets. OK, that doesn't preclude cogs, but only where they have a PURPOSE!. And even then, that doesn't mean safety goes out the window. Most (if not all) geear trains would have been covered by something solid. Belts were more likely to be external to things as they would require access due to needing more looking after or replacing than chains.

Take a look at pictures of old steam trains, the 'Flying Scotsman' and others of the era. The engineers hated the ones like the Scotsman that designers wanted the cladding on. It streamlined the train and enabled it to go that little bit faster, but it covered the moving parts and made it harder to maintain. [and a lot of the time it didn't go faster due to the extra weight of the cladding, but there you go.]

Also look at old steam engines for functional steampunk. Maybe add some electrical components such as valves - depending on the scale and what your project is, of course. For a knight titan type of thing ,grain of wheat bulbs would look the part for huge electronic valves [I just wouldn't wire them up as they heat like crazy and could end up warping the plastic they are near.]

I wouldn't go all GW Flying Buttresses on it, but some decent decorative edging will go a long way. Then go for a predominance of copper and steel colours for the metalwork, with golden gilding on the decoration.