Shin *re* sizing question

[TK-6630]

Ok so i was trying to think how i could stretch the plastic on my left shin ever so slightly to make it fit just a bit more comfortably, i know using a heat gun can and will ruin your armor if not careful... so im looking into different methods ive thought of using boiling water then pull after it comes out, what do you guys think? the one shin is ever so slightly tight on the one side and it left a nasty bruize after about a 3/4 mile parade route.. thanks in advance

[TK8776 jgarrettg]

Trying to stretch the shin like that without destroying it might be tough. Unless you just need to change it's shape just a bit. I've tried the boiling water trick but didn't have much luck with it. ABS becomes pliable near 350 deg. Boiling water is around 200 deg. depending on elevation. The heat gun blows at around 450 deg. I've heard of guys putting parts in the oven set at 350 deg. for just a couple of minutes to warm them up. Either way be careful and wear gloves. I made a slump mold like this to form my side shims. Worked pretty good. Not sure I'd try it with a whole shin unless I had a form to lay it over.

[Jag[TK]]

Stretch? Which axis? Are you trying to make the shin longer or make it wider? It sounds like it's too narrow.

 

Heat guns are very fickle... well, for me, it's not the gun, it's my impatience! I've had great success by being patient and evenly distributing the heat to reshape the waist and butt armor. I've also slagged pieces due to inattention and impatience. Going slow is the best way if you dare.

 

I haven't done any stretching/widening although I'd like to make the opening on my shins a bit wider for me (they are destroying my boots). Right now it's nothing more than an inconvenience so I'm not that motivated to taking that risk.

 

Stretching would actually deform the shape of the shin and that scares me. Bending a piece with heat is one thing, but reforming seems risky to me. The piece would have to be heated to be pliable and over a large enough surface to maintain the "scale" (i.e. not just bulge). Once heated then expanded evenly.

 

Would a balloon work? Imagine the shin closed up with a deflated balloon able to withstand the heat and of the size to assume a shin like shape at the needed diameter. Heat the shin up, inflate the balloon. Is this too insane a concept or is getting new shins much more easier?

[pandatrooper[TK]]

The key to using a heat gun to doing less concentrated heat on one area, and instead you want to heat an area slightly larger and don't make the plastic too soft. Avoid using fingers or pointy objects to reshape the plastic. For example, I needed to make the ankle opening larger, so I stuck a roll of masking tape inside the shin (which made it "bulge" out a little.) then I heated the general area a little bit at a time, until the plastic softened. You don't want it to go limp, you just need to soften it.

 

I probably had the same bruise as you, on the front edge of my ankle. The heating helped big time, and I trooped for 7 hours this weekend with no problems.

[TK-6630]

The key to using a heat gun to doing less concentrated heat on one area, and instead you want to heat an area slightly larger and don't make the plastic too soft. Avoid using fingers or pointy objects to reshape the plastic. For example, I needed to make the ankle opening larger, so I stuck a roll of masking tape inside the shin (which made it "bulge" out a little.) then I heated the general area a little bit at a time, until the plastic softened. You don't want it to go limp, you just need to soften it.

 

I probably had the same bruise as you, on the front edge of my ankle. The heating helped big time, and I trooped for 7 hours this weekend with no problems.

 

 

Basically where the top of the shin meets under my knee is where im having the issue, luckly its the knee where the plate goes over it so i shouldnt have too many issues covering up if i make a mistake, ill try the heat gun with something approx the right size to make it stretch a tad before applying heat.... i have some problem with my knee cap (on my leg) where it appears that my kneecap may be seperated and i need to get a doc to look at it but i would like to make the armor more wearable for my situation... thanks for the replys guys...

Edited March 17, 2010 by TK-6630