pandatrooper

Yes, but just because you work in a Ferrari factory doesn't mean you can easily own a Ferrari.

I believe front and backs of thighs and shins are 20mm - 25mm (depending on what fits you, but I think the screen accurate guess is 20mm) The arms are 15mm.

Looks good, glad the shoulder straps worked out for you. Now I'm running strapless! I know this doesn't affect EIB really, but it would be nice to secure the ab / kidney connection at the sides. Looks like it's coming apart there?

Or you can use rare earth magnets on both sides too

I usually just clamp the stuff overnight. By then the bond is good enough to hold the parts together. I wait 24 hours before I stress the parts too much (eg: open the shins and stick my leg in). I bought enough clamps to work on 2 pieces of armor at once. one set makes the build go really slow otherwise!

I'm so jealous of those long C-clamps! Those would have made my build much easier! Nice work so far! Before you get too far, make sure to wear socks and your TK boots for test fitting. I did that with my right shin and assumed the same measurements would work on my left shin - nope. I had already cut them and glued them, so I had to do a lot of heating and shaping with a heat gun.

Thanks Deckard! When my E-11 article is complete, I will add this as a reference in the article. Thanks for posting it and offering us permission to use it as a reference!

Most people hot glue them in place.

There's a few threads discussing this topic as well, might be some useful info there ---------

Brian, what a slave driver!! I haven't done too much, other than sorting through all the pieces "test fitting" them on my body. I can see I'll have to modify quite a few areas as I'm a slim build and only weigh about 150lbs. The hand plates are HUGE on me!! Not sure if I'm going to cut them down or how to approach that just yet. I sized up the chest plate and found it's a bit long, so I'm going to trim the neck opening lower, and will likely trim the bottom edge too, and give it a return. I know there's "shoulder straps" molded into the chest and back, but I'm not going to use them. I have a different way of attaching the chest now, so I'll cut those off as I don't need them, and to make it a bit more screen accurate. I've also been sizing / marking areas for the abs / kidney as there's tons of material there (I've got like a 31" waist, so I'll need to trim a lot off) No pictures yet. I like to post updates when I have a "good amount" done, so it's likely I'll finish the torso, then post images. I've ordered an AP lid to go along with the AM kit, so I'm waiting for that too. I'll be hand painting everything (including cheek tube stripes) on this lid, I've had good practice and I'm confident with the skills required there. In the mean time, I've been working on a T-21 blaster / tutorial (it's going to be a big tutorial, fairly detailed). I'm on the last few scratch building portions, then I'll paint it. I've also been working on FID tutorials, so that's taking a bunch of time.

Searching FISD, and Google is your friend as is Youtube ----------- The Dented Helmet and RPF (replica prop forum) are also good sources. Check with your Garrison too, as they may have more info locally for you.

To be honest, you can get good armor for about that price, and some armor is even less. AND you can get it from reputable dealers. FX, ATA, and AM armor fall roughly within that price range. I would suggest looking at the various build threads and see which ones you like, and approach the sellers directly, not on Ebay, etc.. Most reputable sellers (mentioned) are on FISD. You could also look into used kits that people are personally selling, and upgrading. They may sell their older assembled armor for cheaper. Again, just shipping plastic to armor makers isn't going to make your project cheaper. Remember, you buying armor supports those that support the hobby, so trying to short cut that isn't the best way to approach it. OH, and "want to buy" threads for armor are not allowed on most forums. Contact should be made via PM or e-mail, as there are certain legalities, LFL, conduct to respect.

So are you asking for armor that's been pulled but not trimmed in order to make a buck, or asking to borrow someone's bucks? Either way, you're recasting someone's armor and if it's not with their blessing, that's considered a no-no in the costume community (especially if you intend on selling it). You have access to a commercial vacuformer which is great, but the best way to make your own armor is to make your own molds by sculpting it yourself. Recasting will lead to a lot of drama, and you don't want to go there. There's a good amount of info online on how to make your own molds. If you're asking someone to pull plastic for you, you sending them plastic is not going to save much cost, and most armorers wouldn't likely do that anyways since they might have high standards for the plastic they choose to use.

There's a few images in people's AM builds, maybe check those out? I know the AM kit is designed to overlap, but I'm going to butt seam mine ANH style. I can't see what that wouldn't work.

Very good point too. Where I live, it's colder and wet / humid, so it makes spray painting a bit tough. on several occasions, I'll put a portable heater in the garage to warm it up, and put fans in to vent the fumes outside. This keeps the rain / moisture outside, and raises the temperature. I also find it helps to store your object to be painted and the paint at room temperature. Don't paint with cold paint (stored in a cold basement) if you can, you will have lower pressure in the can. You can increase the pressure slightly by submersing the can in warm water for a few mins.

Looks great so far! Looking forward to seeing the rest of it! I'm working on my T-21 now, and it's going to be a fairly detailed tutorial too. If someone makes a good DLT-19 scratch build, we'll have BFG tutorials on the FISD!!

Check the cracked areas. If the cracks reveal primer, then the bond of the primer to plastic / previous silver paint wasn't a good bond (washing would prevent this and or using a paint that's compatible with the previous paint. If you laid on the new paint too thick, it can also react with the layers underneath. It's all about using light, overlapped coats.

Michael's has it.

Oh, and here's another diagram from the friendly folks at MEPD http://forum.mepd.net/index.php?showtopic=2061&st=0&p=24106entry24106

Some good info here as well (German manual of some kind) -----------------

Did you wash the helmet with detergent and water to remove the oil / residue before painting? Did you primer it?

Have you tried these? Some good reference and line drawings here http://forum.mepd.net/index.php?showtopic=2061 Blaster builder club tutorial and templates http://www.imperial-fleet.com/BBC/mg-34.zip http://www.imperial-fleet.com/BBC/community/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=5 http://empireprops.freeservers.com/mg34rifle.html http://empireprops.freeservers.com/mg34break.html

very nice work. Are you building an MG-15? Are you documenting it? Making a tutorial perhaps?

Sand both surfaces, clean off the dust. Lay down a "squeeze" of glue the same width at of the tip of the tube. Then use a popsicle stick or whatever to spread it evenly over the area you want to bond. Do NOT spread it right to edge, leave about 1/8" space at the edges so that the glue can spread a bit once compressed. If it's a big area I like to apply some masking tape to mask off areas I don't want the glue to spread. After it's cured, i can trim the glue off with a razor blade. Apply E6000 to both surfaces, wait a couple mins, then clamp. Let cure overnight.

*BTW: I moved this topic to the "assembly" forum rather than tips (as that's saved for actual tips, not so much questions about assembly). My first "moderator" attempt. Thank god FISD didn't implode.