justjoseph63

I think your best be may be to actually stretch out the spring a little at a time to reach the desired number of coils showing, which is what I did. I would heed Steve's advice, after all, he is the one who approves EIB and Centurion levels.

Thanks for the heads-up, Brandon! Duly noted and changed.

I decided to work out a complete, comprehensive list for those about to start an OT TK armor build (ANH Stunt, Hero, etc,) to help get everything in place for when "Big Brown Box" day arrives! This list does not include soft parts, (neck seal, boots, etc.) but focuses on the hardware and supplies for building the armor itself. However, a list of soft parts can be found HERE I believe I have covered most items, but would appreciate additional suggestions/corrections to add, and will keep it updated as such. Yes, it looks a bit daunting, but some of the items you will already have, and the rest can be purchased at major home improvement stores, online, or borrowed from a TK friend! Plus, it gives you something to do while you "hurry up and wait" for your kit! This list is includes items used for the EIB and Centurion programs, (marked with double red asterisks)**. These items are not required for initial TK approval, but I encourage everyone to consider them as an option. Hope this helps, and best of luck on your build! PLEASE NOTE: Some kits come with all the hardware you will need to build to Centurion level, i.e. split rivets, ear screws, TD screws, etc., however, not all armorers supply the correct ones. If you are (hopefully) planning on aiming for level 3, please check with your armorer to see if they provide these. You can also reference the photos below to see if they are accurate. These supplies are based on using the snap method for connecting the armor. Example photos are shown at the bottom for many of the items, but not all. (Everyone knows what a hammer looks like). Items with photos have a notation. 1. E-6000 glue- Great for almost everything, and removable if necessary. Highly recommended. (Pick up some wooden tongue depressors as well, makes spreading it easier)! (Photo 1) (Please see updated information on E-6000 below, after #50 before purchasing). 2. Binder or notebook- To keep notes on your research. 3. Dremel or rotary tool- A "must have". (Photo 2). Be sure to get the sanding drum attachment and extra sanding drums (Photo 3). I suggest the 180 grit type. 4. Small plastic containers- Keeps everything organized. 5. Lexan scissors- Curved and straight, for cutting ABS. (Photo 4) 6. Small spring clamps- For holding things in place while gluing. You can't have too many! (Photo 5) 7. Line 24 snaps- For strapping. You will need at least 30, and do NOT "cheap-out" on these, but purchase quality ones. (Steer clear of Wal-Mart snaps). Tandy is recommended. Tutorial located here: https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/44617-snap-setting-101/ (Photo 6) 8. Snap setting tools- There are 2 types to choose from- One is a two piece set (requires a hammer) (Photo 7) and the other is the pliers style (Photo 8) 9. Hammer- For setting snaps if you use the 2 piece style of snap setter. 10. Pliers/vise grips- 11. Screwdriver- Slotted head. 12. Rivets-** 5/16 (8mm). (Photo 9) Round head bifurcated/split rivets with washers. You will need 9. (3 for the kidney, 3 for the ab, one for the cod piece, 2 for the thigh ammo pack). You will also need 3 speed (Chicago") rivets to attach your ABS belt to your canvas one. These are attached by hand and not to be confused with the aluminum ones listed below (#19). Some like to use the screen accurate single cap rivets (Photo 10) to attach the ammo thigh pack but these are not a requirement. 13. Elastic- 1 inch wide black for shoulder bells, etc. (4 ft.) 2 inch wide white for ab/back plate shoulder connection (1 ft.), 1 inch wide white for drop boxes, (1 ft.) 1/4 inch wide white** (1 ft.) for shoulder straps. 14. Nylon strapping- 1 inch wide black, at least 6 to 8 ft. long. 2 inch wide black (48 inches) for high tension areas if you are using the double snap method. (NP) 15. Exacto knife/extra blades- For cutting, trimming, cutting nylon strapping. (Photo 11) 16. Heavy duty razor knife/extra blades- For cutting cover strips and scoring around pieces that will be removed. (Photo 12) 17. Heavy duty scissors/tin snips- For (carefully) cutting large sections of ABS. (Photo 13) 18. Metal ruler or straight edge- (At least 18 inches long). For use as a cutting guide, especially cover strips. 19. Hand Rivet gun/aluminum open end blind rivets- For putting your helmet together. Available for about $10-$12.00, EASY to use! (Photo 14) 20. Metric Ruler- 21. 2 x 2 or larger piece of carpet- Protects work surface, keeps dust down, and stops small parts from rolling away. 22. Rags/paper towels- And plenty of them. 23. Blue painter's tape- 1 inch and 2 inch widths. For keeping glued parts in place and dry-fitting your armor. 24. China marker/pencil- For marking cut lines. 25. Sandpaper- I highly recommend Sandblaster Pro Flexible silicone sanding sheets from 3M, 220 grit. You will never use anything else, I promise. They last forever! 26. Sanding block- The sponge type, 120 grit. 27. Band Aids- You will need these. Might as well keep them handy. 28. Rare earth magnets- (10 minimum) SUPER strong! I use the 20 mm x 3 mm round ones. Cover them in blue tape to prevent scratching your armor. You cannot have too many!!! Tutorial located here: https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/44619-magnets-101/ (Photo 15) 29. Butane Lighter- For sealing the ends of nylon strapping. (see # 44 below for a better option) 30. Large "half-round" file- For smoothing out edges before sanding. I used this a LOT, especially in the curved areas. (Photo 16) 31. Small "Needle file" set- Very inexpensive, comes in 6 different shapes, and is perfect for the teeth and eye openings on your helmet. (Photo 17) 32. Foam padding- 1 inch thick. Great for helmet and armor padding. Available at craft or fabric stores. 33. Velcro- 2 inch wide black (various uses) and 1 inch wide white, for calf closures (about 36 inches). Go for the "Industrial Strength" kind. 34. PAINT: Satin Black: Humbrol # 85 or Testors # 1747 for vocoder, trap/ tear drop/ear bar outlines/stripe(s), ROTJ and ESB frown, TD screw heads. Gray: Humbrol # 5 or Testors # 1138 for trap/tear drop/ear bar background, ANH frown and ab-buttons. French Blue: Humbrol # 14 or Testors # 2715 ForTube stripes/ab buttons. Mediterranean Blue Humbrol (Tube stripes alternative color) Testors: No exact match Gloss white for all rivet heads (excluding cod rivet). Mineral spirits for brush cleaning 35. Goo Gone- Citrus based solvent that will remove latex and enamel paint and NOT harm your armor. (Photo 18). 36. Small paint brushes- Assorted sizes. Try to buy quality ones.. Cheap brushes =cheap looking results. I suggest picking up a "filbert" (Photo 19) style brush (photo 5) as well, as it's rounded tip works great for painting the ab plate buttons and vocoder. Another GREAT way to get clean, crisp lines on the ab buttons is to use Testors Micro-Sponge brushes (Photo 20). 37. Wire or fiberglass mesh- (Window screen). For inside the "frown" of your helmet. A piece 3 x 8 inches will work fine, and you can trim it as needed. 38. Safety Glasses- It never hurts to be too careful, especially when using a Dremel type tool. For your Thermal Detonator, (TD) clips: (Note: There are some GREAT pre-made TD clips you can buy on this site, and some kits include them, but you can use the following 5 items to make your own. 39. Aluminum strip- 1 inch wide 40. Screws- Size #6 pan-head slotted screws **, 1/2 inch long, You will need 4. (Photo 21). NOTE: The CRLs have been updated and round head screws are permitted, but they must be the slotted (not philips) style. 41. Hacksaw- For cutting the aluminum strip. 42. Drill- Electric or battery operated, with various size bits. 43. Vise grip OPTIONAL ITEMS: 44. Heat sealing iron- For making return edges. Not normally needed, but there are some great tutorials on this here on FISD. Try it on a scrap first, though! 45. Soldering Iron- For making holes in nylon strapping and sealing the ends. Pretty inexpensive, and worth the cost! (Photo 22) 46. Plasti-Dip- A black rubberized coating you can spray inside your helmet, (also available in a brush-on). Or, you can use spray paint. Just remember to sand and prime first! 47. Heat gun- Not normally needed. For shaping ABS. Use this CAREFULLY, and practice on scraps first until you get the hang of it. These things can reach 1500 degrees and melt your armor. 48. CA (super) glue- Not recommended for first time builders, as it is PERMANENT, and you can't fix mistakes. Also, if it drips on your armor it is nearly impossible to remove. It can also become brittle over time, causing connections to fail. 49. Acetone- For use ONLY in making ABS paste for filling small gaps, (see tutorials). Do NOT put this directly on your armor, as it will melt it. 50. SUGRU- This is an easy way to attach the lenses in your helmet. Tutorial located here: https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/44593-how-to-attach-lenses-using-sugru/ 51. Respirator- An informative post was made by Clint, (cm325i) concerning the effects of E-6000 glue on some individuals. Definitely worth a read: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/33347-e6000-warnings-read-them-and-wear-a-respirator/ 52. Cut resistant gloves- Especially helpful if you are prone to cutting yourself. Available online for about $12.00 (Photo 23) E-6000 update: Please note that there are certain online retailers (including those in Europe) that are selling FAKE E-6000 or "knock-offs" like these: The genuine product is clearly marked Made in the USA, and has a batch number on each tube. They do not sell to distributors in Asia, so if you try to save a few bucks by ordering from a seller there it is not the real stuff. If you have any doubts, you can contact the manufacturer at www.eclecticproducts.com, and they will let you know where to get it. The fake stuff is garbage and will not hold up. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. IMPORTANT UPDATE! To make life easier, Ray (Dieltski) made this into an awesome Google spreadsheet, which you can download to keep track and add notes! Just click here. Thanks, Ray! .

James, The product I used to attach my lenses is called SUGRU. It is basically a moldable glue, sort of like play-dough, which sticks great, but can be removed if necessary. I just rolled it into a 7 or 8 inch "snake" about 1/4 inch thick, pressed it into the inside of the eye opening, and pressed the lenses in. Bada bing. Be sure to wipe off any excess that squeezes out with a toothpick, and let it dry for 24 hours. I found it at Lowe's, near the paint counter, and it comes in little "single use" packets. Hope this helps!

A wet suit as in a latex diving wet suit?

I agree, Joe, the armor is very nice. I'm also on the thin side, and had to do some heat bending of the thighs to decrease the angle a bit. Besides the trimming, it was a pretty straightforward build. I will give you and Steven a little hint if I may... Go to Lowe's and pick up some 3M Sandblaster Pro Ultra flexible sanding sheets, (220 grit). This stuff is AMAZING. You can bend it, shape it, roll it, and it is VERY hard to tear. It is made from silicone instead of paper, comes in a 4 pack, and seems to last forever! Put it this way, I used one sheet to complete my E-11 and armor build, and it is still in going strong.

You are correct, Christian, the old AM 2.0 back plate is only acceptable to EIB, but in Feb. of this year they re-tooled, and the ones that have come out since that are approved to Centurion, (I got lucky)!

Thanks for the pics, Clint! Makes me feel a lot better knowing that I may be able to just trim down the back plate straps a bit.

I received my AM 2.0 armor a few months ago, and they thought the chest plate that they sent would be "acceptable at all levels", but unfortunately it isn't. I emailed them several times, asking about getting one that is acceptable, and they let me know that they were doing a run of ones that were, and would keep me updated. That was 2 months ago. That is why I went with ATA, and am wondering if I should just order an ATA back plate.

You can also try Imperial boots. My dealings with them were 100% positive, and there is a lot of positive feedback from other members as well.

Hola! I need some advice on trimming, please! I received the ATA chest plate to replace my current AM 2.0 one for my next level, (Centurion), but I noticed that they do not line up at all. Since I can't expand the ATA, it looks as if I am going to have to seriously do some trimming on the back plate straps in order to get them to line up. I have a heat sealing iron, and can put back the small return edge on the outside, if needed. Or, will I need to order a new ATA back plate to match? Many thanks in advance for any and all help!!!---------

I am far from an expert, Christian, but I would like to offer a few suggestions if I may... First, your canvas belt seems to be way too high, and covers your lower ab buttons. The top of it should ride just below them. Your back plate/kidney plate has a large gap. Perhaps if you closed them up a bit it might make your butt plate ride higher and fit better. Your shoulder bells are riding really far back, (I had the same problem), but some black 1 inch nylon with snaps attached to my bicep cured that. Lastly, it looks as if your calves (especially the right one) might need some extra ABS and a strip of white 1 inch velcro to get them to close correctly. Also, it looks as if you removed your sniper plate and thigh ammo pack in the last photos. These are pretty easy to re-attach. Lastly, (and this may just be me with my failing vision), but it looks as if your left hand side thigh is using the overlap method, and your right is using a cover-strip. Just know that all these details are just that... details. There are no problems, Christian, only solutions. Great job so far, and I am confident that others, more learned than I, will jump in and help you out, and before you know it, you will be joining the TK ranks! All the best, and be sure to check out the EIB and Centurion specs., which will help you a lot!

If you are going with AM 2.0, Steven, then measurements are not necessary. Being of a slim/med. build, I ended up trimming quite a bit off of my AM, but easier to remove than to add! If you decide to go with them, just PM me when you get it, and I can help you out with a few of the details.

I got mine from Dick's sporting goods, but I am sure you can try another large store of the same type. The nice thing is that you can try them on before purchasing to ensure they fit correctly, and are not loose.

Which armor are you ordering? The reason is that some armors are designed for taller/wider troopers, (AM, etc.)

A couple of things... You can always (carefully) drill out the rivets with a cobalt or titanium bit, re-align it, strap it down with blue tape, and re set them in the position you like. For the 4th frown holes, you can use an exacto knife to cut it out, or use a small (5/16ths) bit to drill out a hole, and purchase a "needle file" set from Lowe's for about 5 bucks to shape the sides. Like Rob said, when you attach the ears (with screws), and put the S trim on, that will give you a much better idea of what you are looking at. Hope this helps!

Love my Imperial boots! Francois kept in touch frequently, and I got them in less than 10 days!

Just got my Darman neck seal last week, and couldn't be happier!

Looks pretty darn good at this point, Gary, nice work! I like the look of the "rubber" neck seal as well, but it would probably get a bit uncomfortable here in FL. with 90 degree heat! I had trouble posting on here as well, until I learned that you have to have Google Chrome. (Thank you, Tony)! If you have that, click on the small icon above that looks like a Polaroid, (Image), then, in your Photobucket, click on the Direct option, cut, then paste it to the URL in the Image box. You might want to play around with the image size as well. Hope this helps, and best of luck on your neck-seal/TK build!

Some great advice from folks here, Ricky... Another good thing about purchasing from an FISD "vetted" vendor is that there will be build threads from these armorers you can research. Also, I cannot say personally what ANOVOS' customer service is like, but I have purchased armor pieces from both Trooperbay and ATA, and been extremely happy with my dealings with them. All the best in your decision, and I look forward to your build thread!

Not sure about the E-11s, but my DLT-19 Hyperfirm from Slavefive was good to go right out of the box. Painted, "weathered", and B E A utiful!

Oops, my apologies!

I have my mic, speaker, 2 fans, and 2 battery packs in mine, all attached with Velcro, and have had no problems. I installed them after the Plasti-dip. If you wanted, you could always mask the sections for the electronics off before applying paint, so that they stick better.

You are correct, Tony.. I had a lot of trouble with feedback, and I ended up having to mount the speaker towards the top part of my bucket to eliminate it. It works for now, is good for the price, and easy to set up, but I will be upgrading to another system at some point... as soon as I go back to school for my advanced electronic engineering degree. (You know my computer skills are limited, Tony, well, my small electrics knowledge is worse),LOL I can wire a house or fuse panel, but not a bucket mic!

Hi Laval! Instead of paint, I used a product called Plasti-Dip for mine, and have been very pleased with it. It is a black rubberized coating that comes in a spray can, and pretty easy to use. (Available at Lowe's in the spray paint section). I personally like it, as it sort of masks the white of the inside, and seems to make it a bit more difficult for people to see inside your bucket. If you have already installed your lenses and frown screen, just be sure to mask them off well. If not, it is a bit easier. Also, whether you decide to use paint or Plasti-Dip, make certain you give the inside a good sanding, clean it well after, and use a primer. (Krylon makes one just for plastic). Hope this helps!