Isaac's AM build - newbie- picture heavy[*AM]

[theisaac]

Hi all,

Thanks to your insight I went and ordered an AM Lite kit and it arrived today. Its my first build ever so I will have a ton of newbie questions. I've tried to read as many build posts as possible and will try to just ask questions that are unique to my situation but please be patient if I ask something thats probably obvious to everyone else

 

First I got the box and my twin boys were as excited as I was to get it. They saw their first "real life stormtroopers" at the recent 3D re-release here in Arizona and they were in awe of seeing them. This sealed the deal for me.

 

 

The box came and they were as excited as I was..

 

 

------

 

My forarms are an odd shape so trying to fit them right.

 

Im posting some pics of a really rough fitting as well as some pencil marks I made to show where I was considering trimming to make the forarms fit better so I can touch my ears as other posts have suggested. I also wanted to make sure I was doing the test fitting correctly.

 

 

 

 

Can you let me know if Im on the right track here?

[Beren[501st]]

I am relatively new, but just finished my first build. The opening at your wrist should be big enough to get your hand through. With regards to the length at the wrist and elbow, you will have the ability to adjust it later once the sides are glued together.

 

Good luck and have fun! My kids were excited too when my box arrived... just wait until you get your lid assembled!

[theisaac]

Thanks for the input.

 

I guess the next question is should I trim and start fitting the the two pieces together before I trim out the slot where my bicep and forarm meet? Or should I shave off that part first then do another test fit before i cut?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Before you do any fitting, the first thing you'll want to do is to take off all the return edge at the wrist end on both the inner and outer forearm. Then proceed to fitting for trimming. You'll also want to trim the inner forearms so that you get a nice taper from elbow to wrist, just like your actual forearm is shaped.

 

Like this:

 

[theisaac]

Thanks for the info Brian,

 

Just to make sure I know what you mean. Cut out the area I have circled here? I know its not completely even but trying to draw with a mouse isnt easy lol.

 

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Just like the small photo in the upper right. Take all of that off. You could also take the return off at the elbow end (larger photo), if that suits you. Personally, I'd at least trim it down a bit.

[LadyInWhite[TK]]

I'm going to say it's about fit and comfort. I first built mine too long and they are still too "big" compared with all my other pieces, but I couldn't really taper any more. (Girly wrists) I know a lot of guys also pad the inside a bit so they don't move around, which suggests to me that they are a bit big on them.

 

As for the trim, yes, you'll want to take a bit of the upper return edge off to avoid "armor bite" - you'll be doing this as well to your thighs and shins.

 

GOOD LUCK! Your boys are absolutely gorgeous!

[silverBoyd[501st]]

looking good. I am ordering my AM kit by end of April. Still have some $ to save. But i already have my helmet built and finished. You got a great start so far. I'll definately be watching this build thread. I don't know why but building the main armor is making me nervous.

[theisaac]

Jason,

I was in the same boat. I read posts and watched youtube videos... I have a bookmarks folder thats literally got 43 bookmarked posts and sites and folders on my desktop with hundreds of saved pics. Then you order and its a whirlwind! I emailed TupperwareTK on Monday, and Thursday the box came. I thought I would just tear in and start cutting and trimming because my confidence level was pretty high... until it got here. Then the butterflies kicked in. I sat in the garage placing parts in order and taped a few parts thinking I would just follow the plan I had in my head.

 

Then I ran inside and jumped back in the forums and didnt want to touch anything lol.

 

Everyone has been super helpful and once you feel that support from the FISD community (and you will) your confidence comes back. The best way to describe it is its like being a freshman in highschool and your first day of school you are nervous about everything until you get to there and all the Seniors are your friends and they are showing you around.

 

In the end and at the root of it all we are Star Wars fans. When I was a kid growing up that was the basis for being friends with someone. You could meet a new kid anywhere and the first question, the icebreaker was "hey do you like StarWars..."? If they said yes, you had a friend for life.

 

Its the same thing here.

[theisaac]

Is it ok to trim the return edges off of the bicep parts as well? I've got the return edges trimmed off the wrist openings now as well.

 

The biceps are pretty snug if I leave them on is why I ask

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Yes, it's fine to take off the bicep return edges.

[inglorious trooper]

my forearms have about a finger wide gap all the way round if that helps,and my biceps are almost without an edge,just a bare minimul.also remember when cutting the top of the forearms you can always remove more but cant add on,just test then cut,test then cut.even when i thought id taken enough off i still cut it twice more after wearing for a while and feeling the pinch.spending a good amount of time in your armour is the only way youll find all the bites and pinches that will need adjusting!

good luck

[theisaac]

I spent the day cutting the return edge off of the biceps on all 4 halves. Cut the forearms and glued one edge of 1 of them. Then I cut the return edge off of the bottom of my shins.

 

I have seen people use velcro for the opposite side of the forearm and I have seen what looks like the glue both sides and slide your arm in method. Any opinions?

 

Isaac

[theisaac]

Going to have to shim the biceps. Does anyone have a picture of how they shimmed theirs?

Thanks guys!

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Better to have the forearms completely glued together if possible, as opposed to one side glue and the other velcro.

 

As far as shimming the biceps, seeing some photos showing how they currently fit you would be helpful. How big around are your flexed upper arms? Mine are about 17.5 inches cold (i.e. no post-workout pump). By my estimate, if you take off all the return edge they should be able to fit up to 18" biceps without shimming.

[theisaac]

Here are the pics sir. The flexed arm one is cold didnt workout today at all. In fact, havent been to the gym in 3 weeks once I decided I wanted to do this. Im a little hesitant to post them as I dont want to hear Im too big to be a trooper. I can drop down to 225 or so but that will take about 6 months and I know there is a lot of charity things here in PHX over the summer and I'd like to be able to be a part of them.

 

 

The above picture is with the bicep taped at the overlay on the outside and this is where it meets if I pull it down without any room for moving my arm up to touch my ear or anything.

 

 

 

This piture above is when I give myself the room to move my arm up and touch my ear. I just need enough room to be able to take my helmet off without breaking a seam. Remember the opposite side is taped down using all of the overlap so If I need to shim or even some type of butt joint to give more room I can do that. I know I wont get to EIB until my body adjusts to not working out and I diet back down to my normal 220-225. Right now Im at about 245 or so. Even at 225 my arms are still about 18 flexed.

 

[theisaac]

Couldnt find shim threads here unless im calling it something different that what people usually use for it. I found some for the seams in calves and i'll cross that bridge when I get there. I did think about doing a shim where I can still hide it by using an overlap and clamping everything down. Take a look at this pic of what Im trying to explain and if anyone or anyone you know has tried it, did it hold up?

 

I know its a small piece of ABS but Im just using it for reference to try to illustrate what I mean. I would probably do this on both sides so its centered and not lop sided when I wear it.

 

 

think that will work? Or better ideas that are proven to work to make this bigger?

Thanks for looking and your comments. You all really help a lot and give me confidence that I can pull this off. I appreciate it!

 

-Isaac

[tkrestonva[TK]]

19" flexed - impressive. You're a big dude. Screen-accurate stormtroopers are short and skinny by today's standards, and you'll find there are advantages to being a super-sized stormtrooper when you're out in the public eye.

 

Here's the method most people use when they need to do shims, except you use glue to put the shim in permanently instead of using velcro. It applies not just to the calves, but to pretty much any part that needs shimming: http://www.tonybarne....com/shims.html

 

In doing the bicep assembly I would first cut off the raised overlap part and assemble the bicep using the butt join & cover strip method (look at the photo I posted). Not only is it screen-accurate, in the AM kit it actually makes the bicep come together easier. Same advice applies to the forearms, shins, and thighs. Like you said, I also would position the two halves such that the gap on either side is equal before permanently putting in shims, that way it's not lopsided and ill-fitting.

 

For the shims themselves, I would first take a piece of scrap plastic (a lot of troopers will buy a thin white plastic "For Sale" sign and cut it up), cut out two pieces to the same length as the bicep and with enough width to close the gaps, and glue them in place using E6000. Glue the shims on the inside like you show in your photo. Once the glue is dry, verify that the biceps fit properly. The beauty of E6000 is that it's very forgiving, and if you find the shims are too small (or too big for that matter) you can carefully slice through the glue with a razor or simply pry off the shim with a thin-bladed screwdriver, remove the shim, clean up the residue (Goo Gone is safe and works well), and start over.

 

After the shim is in place, use one of the plastic "belt strips" (there will be 4 of them and you will NOT use them to make the belt - despite what the instruction book says) that came with the kit, cut it to the length of the bicep and width needed to cover the gap, and glue it in place on the outside of the bicep. Be careful with those strips, they are a limited resource and you want to make the best use possible out of them. That's why you'll use throwaway plastic for the hidden internal shim, and save the nice plastic for the external cover strip that will be seen.

[theisaac]

Brian,

Thanks for checking on my build and giving me feedback like you have! I really appreciate it.

 

Makes sense on the shim, I have seen that site before and just never thought to put a cover strip on the outside to hide it. Even if I have to have larger than normal cover strips and it might look a little wonky I'll take it. So before I cut... Remove the part I marked red below and then shim inside with "forsale sign" then use the good ABS and coverstrip over the gap?

 

 

My next question is with the forearms.

 

Can I trim the cutout down a little more to make it so I can bend my arms up higher to reach my head? I have it dotted to show what I mean visually.

 

 

I can bend a little bit right now but as you can see in the pics, as soon as I move my arms up the forarms are pushed down and dig into my wrists. Not sure if that was "normal".

 

 

thanks for the feedback!

Isaac

[tkrestonva[TK]]

Yes, on the bicep remove the part you have shaded red, then use the butt-join and cover strip method (with an internal shim) to assemble the bicep. Just like you described.

 

For the forearms, you can cut away the part you have marked in red if it helps your mobility - it's actually a modification many people make. Take enough off so that you can reach up and get your helmet on/off without help. If you still have any return edge at the elbow end of the outer forearms (the part with the divots) you can remove that completely to give yourself more room - in fact I would do that first and see how it feels before trimming the inner forearm.

 

Happy to help - that's what we do here (along with trooping, talking shop, etc.)

[TK1636[TK]]

Isaac when i get to your house i will have to show you the butt end and strip process it will be much cleaner and give you alot more room for your bicep and forearm, and your legs. we are also going to shape your leg armour to your legs so it doesn't look funny and also shape the tops so it looks more like the TE screen used suits. We are also going to cut down your chest back and shoulder bells to fit you all of those pieces are very big and we need to ft it more to your body style. So don't cut off to much plastic until i can get over there to help you more, can't wait to help you out and get you started, just remember it will probably take us a couple of months to get it right but in the end you will like the result.

[theisaac]

Im at a standstill on my armor until I can meet up with my buddy from the Dune Sea Garrison to make sure I dont cut anything wonky so I assembled my ATA helmet today. The ears suck but I guess thats why the good folks at ATA send two pairs. Its fun and I had a great time doing it but I would much rather have one someone built so it looks the best it can. Im drooling over those new RT-Mod prototypes I saw posted here with the fans built in.

 

[dennybobbutt]

It's looking I know what you mean on waiting I got mine a month ago and is been killing me to put it to getter but I'm waiting I'm going to a comic convention this weekend and meeting with some guys from my garrison so they can grey me on the rite track good luck and keep posting pics bro

[theisaac]

Used the other set of ears and took what I learned from the first go of it and the ears matched up a lot better. Also got the first pass of paint on the frown.

 

[theisaac]

Got some really good advice and hands on help from my buddy Mike TK1636 from the Dune Sea Garrison and started over on the forearms and started on the biceps. He showed me how to butt joint them together. Im using the previously suggested "for sale" sign for the inside strips that nobody will see and will use the extra belt ABS material to make the visable strips on the outside. Got the biceps done today. Didnt have to shim them after all and even cut down some of the material and they fit pretty well.

 

Edited March 30, 2012 by theisaac