W.I.P ANH Stunt AM TK[*AM]

[Spectre]

Well, I ordered my AM armour and TK boots today! Few weeks and it should all be here!.

[Femtrooper Julie[501st]]

Good Deal! Congrats! Got a neck seal, belt, and gloves on the way? Holster/blaster? E-6000? Velcro? Snaps? CA Glue? Paint? LOL Welcome to the TK world!

[Spectre]

Yeah.

I have the neck seal, gloves, undersuit and balaclava (for cold days) already.

Blaster is a build in progress.

Holster paid for awaiting arrival.

E-6000...not yet.

Velro also to be bought still. What is CA glue?

Snaps I have, but I have yet to attach them to plastic squares as I have seen others do for strength or something.

Paint...not yet. What kind of paint do I need?

I also have an Aker amp and iComm J-box.

Haha thanks. Can't wait to start building!

[gazmosis[501st]]

How'd the helmet turn out?

[Kade[TK]]

Hi Spectre

 

The AM kit comes with glue - ABS Cement.

Paint - you will need a couple of humbrol paints - #5 medium grey and #15 midnight blue for the ab buttons.

Edited October 31, 2011 by Kade

[Spectre]

@gaz

The helmet isn't finished yet... Still waiting on the trimmed ears to arrive from America.

@Kade

Does the headless kit come with the ABS cement?

Ah ok, would I just get those paints from Bunnings or something?

[Spectre]

YAY! I picked up my armour today! I am soooo excited yet also a little worried about starting.

 

As you know I got the AM kit, and it came with both the ANH and the clamshell handplates. It also came with both the normal knee plate and two diamond knee plates (not entirely sure why.. )

 

It looks so shiny and sharp. I'm gonna get started on the forearms and biceps, as they seem to be the best/most common starting point.

 

Also, just cos I know you guys love brown boxes...have some pics!

Resized to 86% (was 960 x 720) - Click image to enlarge

 

 

 

Resized to 86% (was 960 x 720) - Click image to enlarge

 

 

Wish me luck!!

 

Oh and I also got a pair of the newly designed TK boots. they are super comfortable, but I got them a tiny bit too big, there's about 3cm - 4cm between my big toe and the toe of the boot. Ah well, s'all good!

[Spectre]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand I just realised I have absolutely no idea what I am actually doing...

 

I am starting with the biceps, but I don't know where to start with the biceps. It's sorta fail that I don't actually know how the parts go on, like, which way they are meant to face.. With the biceps, does the 'thumbprint' part face outwards from my arm?

Like this?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Thumbprint faces inside, basically it centers on your bicep. Exactly opposite of how you are wearing it in the photo.

 

Before you start, there are a number of AM build threads that cover the different possible ways of assembling the kit. I suggest having a read, and contacting the authors directly if you have specific questions.

[Spectre]

I have about 4 open in separate tabs at the moment, but none of them are making any sense to me. :/ I can't tape the biceps together because the return edges (is that what they're called?) Keep blocking the pieces from lining up. >.<

Should I trim the return edges so they line up properly? Or should I cut a slot in one of the pieces like in this build? http://forum.501tag.com/index.php/topic/9337-anfo-tk-td-build/page__st__20

I am so confused, and I don't want to cut something and then realise I shouldn't have.

 

 

 

[tkrestonva[TK]]

The AM bicep halves don't really align all that well if you plan to use the overlapping join assembly method.

 

However, if you use the butt-join and cover strip assembly method like myself, Pandatrooper, and a fair few others have used, it resolves the problem for you.

[Spectre]

Ok, is that where I cut off the overlap part on the other part of the bicep? (the outer part) and then join them with about a 15mm strip of ABS?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Yes, exactly. Not only does it solve the problem, but the end result looks better and is more accurate. I'd use this build technique for the biceps, forearms, thighs, and shins.

[Spectre]

I've trimmed about 9mm off of each side of the inner part of the forearms. If I trim any more I won't be able to get my hand through the hole. Does that matter? Or will I be using velcro to attach the parts on one side?

 

How it started

 

Where I'm at

I feel the hole at the bottom is too oval shaped, so should I cut the forearms so that it is round and then just use velcro to get it on and off?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

It's better if you simply glue the forearms shut entirely. Velcro will work but it adds bulk at the seam, and doesn't give you the clean look of a fully-glued forearm. Ditto for the biceps. E6000 is the preferred adhesive, as it dries clear and is very forgiving - if you make a mistake, you can gently pry the parts apart, clean off the residue, and start over.

 

I tapered my forearms such that the hole near the elbow is pretty much as you show it, but the hole at the wrist is nearly circular. Ideally it should fit such that your hand should just be able to squeeze through. If necessary, you can give yourself more room to squeeze your hand through by trimming off the return edge at the wrist. For screen-accuracy, it shouldn't be there anyway.

[Spectre]

Ah ok, if I trim that off it should be all good. For the biceps, do I cut off the entire overlap? Or do I only cut off half of it?

 

Is this how much I trim off of the forearm return edge?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

I'd extend that black cut line up and into the outer part of the forearm as well such that there is no return edge at all at the wrist. But yes, in terms of how much to take off that looks good.

 

As for the biceps, it's your choice. Others may have left part of it on. Me - I cut it off entirely.

[Spectre]

Ok. I cut off the overlaps completely on one bicep part. Currently it is stuck together with tape. It seems to fit rather well, but also has a bog oval hole rather than a circle. Can I trim the return edge on that too and have it circular?

 

 

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Yes, you can also trim back the return edges on the biceps if you like, or even trim them off entirely.

 

With the exception of the forearm (at the wrist) and shin (at the foot) which had no visible return edges, the thickness of the return edges on the screen suits were pretty inconsistent. It all depended on how that particular suit was trimmed, and it seems they were largely trimmed differently. Personally, I prefer to preserve as much of the return edges as possible while still allowing the suit to be reasonably functional and comfortable. Although the large return edges on AM armor are a departure from screen-accurate, they also create the illusion of thickness and depth to the armor.

 

As for the shape of the bicep, even trimming the return edges completely won't make it perfectly circular. The only way to do that is to reshape the piece with heat. Given how easy it is to ruin the plastic with a heat gun, that's something I would recommend only for someone with advanced skills.

[Spectre]

Mmk, I think I'll try shaping the biceps first. I've heard that using heat guns can cause really bad warping to occur. Apparently you can boil a pot of water, sit the piece in the water for a bit, and then hold it in shape while it cools without risking damage to the pieces. I might try that...might.

I'm gonna go get some more done on the forearms now I think.

Edited November 16, 2011 by Spectre

[Femtrooper Julie[501st]]

Looking good! I am not a fan of the ABS glue, I used it on my first femtrooper build, and it takes forever. I switched to E6000 and never went back. I also think the blue is French blue now instead of midnight, but read up on the guides here. The biceps are a great place to start. I have seen the guys here overlap the AM OK, just have to "notch" the return detail off the lower piece. But as others have said, butt-seam with a cover strip detail looks much more smexy!

[SolderMaster]

Julie is right, butt-seam with finishing strips is the way to go. And...I'll have to go find the thread, but I think I used Blue Angel Blue for my ab buttons...I'll go get that link...

 

Here it is...

 

http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=8117

Edited November 16, 2011 by SolderMaster

[tkrestonva[TK]]

As a reference point, here are my arms:

 

 

[Spectre]

Thanks Julie. Surprisingly Bunnings (our main hardware store in Aus) doesn't have E6000....I was quite disappointed. They also son't have Vario pliers. >.<

I tried notching the overlap but I couldn't get it right so I just cut off the overlaps.

I've got one of the biceps taped together, I just gotta get to trimming it to size better.

Thanks Brian! I got a royal blue from Bunnings (they didn't have humbrol paint so I couldn't get what I needed. >.<) but it will be to dark if I have to use French blue, it was pretty similar to Midnight blue though.

Ok, now to trim my biceps and forearms! I can't glue anything for now...unless I use my Araldite..would that hold up OK? Or should I wait until I source some E6000?

[Spectre]

Also how do I tell which pieces are meant to be left and right??