Brent Posted April 7, 2012 Author Report Posted April 7, 2012 Some fitting, as half a stormtrooper. I'm noticing from the pictures that the torso seems a little twisted to the side. I might need to tighten my right shoulder strap, but it may also be due to me standing funny and only having one arm attached. The arm has a little tape on the bicep where the bicep hook will go. I think I can stand to trim the bicep a little smaller. When I move my arm the forearm pushes against the bicep and shifts forward and back a bit. I'm assuming that I should expect mobility to be limited so that is probably normal. The arm in various positions: The leg. The shin is already trimmed, and the thigh is overlapped in the back. I took two pictures of the thigh in different positions. On the left the cover strip is aligned straight up and down with the shin, on the right its rotated out slightly. I think having it rotated a bit is better. Quote
Brent Posted April 7, 2012 Author Report Posted April 7, 2012 Prepping the belt and drop boxes. My understanding is the drop boxes should be about 10mm thick. On the belt I will trim the top and bottom as close to the ammo packs as I can. I haven't seen any measurements for the ends of the belt, but I've penciled them in with enough room for the rivet cover. I think I will move the diagonal corner cuts out by another millimeter or so from what I have penciled in the picture. After trimming, I'll need to set the cap rivets. Should I get a special tool for this, or do I just hammer them against a hard surface? Quote
Brent Posted July 26, 2012 Author Report Posted July 26, 2012 After a long break I was able to get back to my armor and made some good progress over the last few days. I'm pretty close to done. I still need to paint the rivets (side and knee) and the strapping screws. As far as adjustments go, I may want to trip the back top of the thighs since they came together uneven. I didn't think the join would be as noticeable as it is. If I do that I may want to trim the left thigh to be a little narrower. I'm hoping that would help with the sniper plate creeping under the knee. The torso also seems to be leaning a little to my left in the pictures. I didn't notice that when I was wearing it, any ideas of what I should look for to adjust that? Any other suggestions? I think I'm ready to submit for 501st approval . Quote
Locitus[Admin] Posted July 26, 2012 Report Posted July 26, 2012 I think you seem to have it under control. You'll have no problem getting that approved. Nice work trooper. Quote
troopermaster Posted July 26, 2012 Report Posted July 26, 2012 Everything is looking really good. The knee plate problem is pretty common and I think a bit of foam inside the back of the thigh (at the knee) cures the problem. The side strap between the kidney and abdomen looks too long in your build photos. It really should be very short and only long enough to reach the snap on the abdomen. Trim the tops of the thighs by all means. Quote
Brent Posted July 26, 2012 Author Report Posted July 26, 2012 Thanks Mathias! Thanks for the tips Paul. I'll definitely trim the thighs where you marked in the picture. Until I saw a picture of myself from behind I wasn't sure if it would look ok and I figured it was always better to trim too little then too much. Here's a closeup of that side strap: It could be a little tighter, but I didn't think it was too long. Were you looking at this photo from before when I glued it? Quote
troopermaster Posted July 26, 2012 Report Posted July 26, 2012 That's the one! It doesn't look too long on the finished armour but a shorter strap allows less movement. Also, if you have original strapping, it kind of forces the armour to hang a certain way and the chest brackets could be forcing your abdomen down. Try having longer loops at the chest only and see how it feels. Quote
Brent Posted July 31, 2012 Author Report Posted July 31, 2012 It doesn't look too long on the finished armour but a shorter strap allows less movement. Also, if you have original strapping, it kind of forces the armour to hang a certain way and the chest brackets could be forcing your abdomen down. Try having longer loops at the chest only and see how it feels. I think you're right about trying larger loops on the chest. I'll give that a try when I pick up some more elastic. I painted the screws and rivets and trimmed up the back of the thighs. I also added the bicep hooks, I was originally trying to see how it worked without them, but they seem to actually be a big help. Quote
RedSpecial[TK] Posted July 31, 2012 Report Posted July 31, 2012 Gorgeous build sir Im loving the last pic Quote
Daetrin[Admin] Posted July 31, 2012 Report Posted July 31, 2012 I can't wait for you to go Centurion - you're the single best looking suit in the Garrison! Well done, well done Quote
Locitus[Admin] Posted July 31, 2012 Report Posted July 31, 2012 I can't wait for you to go Centurion - you're the single best looking suit in the Garrison! Well done, well done Just needs a new blaster and he's ready to go. Quote
Daetrin[Admin] Posted July 31, 2012 Report Posted July 31, 2012 At least he can get his EI in the meantime. Brent - I updated your membership to full TK status here on the boards (hey, I'm your GML too , so you should be able to apply for the EI anytime. I have swag awaiting you. Quote
Geaux Saints[TK] Posted August 31, 2012 Report Posted August 31, 2012 I love the trooper relaxing at home pic! Nice build! I can't wait to get my TM armor. Just needs a new blaster and he's ready to go. What's wrong with the blaster? (Newb question) Quote
Brent Posted August 31, 2012 Author Report Posted August 31, 2012 What's wrong with the blaster? (Newb question) Nothing wrong per se. It doesn't meet the qualifications for Centurion since it is based on a Hasbro. I did more than most people do with this one so it's a bit harder to tell, but if you see it up close there are some pretty obvious Hasbro giveaways. This one was sort of a learning project for me. When I'm done I'll have a Centurion blaster and a backup blaster; and who couldn't use more blasters? Quote
Toddo[TK] Posted August 31, 2012 Report Posted August 31, 2012 Such excellent work. I look forward to seeing you make Centurion as well Brent and can't wait to see this in person. Quote
Locitus[Admin] Posted August 31, 2012 Report Posted August 31, 2012 Indeed. Brent did an amazing job on his hasbro, and it's one of the best hasbros I've ever seen. But that doesn't change the fact that it's based on a hasbro, which is not allowed for centurion. Quote
Geaux Saints[TK] Posted September 1, 2012 Report Posted September 1, 2012 Nothing wrong per se. It doesn't meet the qualifications for Centurion since it is based on a Hasbro. I did more than most people do with this one so it's a bit harder to tell, but if you see it up close there are some pretty obvious Hasbro giveaways. This one was sort of a learning project for me. When I'm done I'll have a Centurion blaster and a backup blaster; and who couldn't use more blasters? Thanks for the clarification. That shows how well of a job you did with it for me to have to ask. Quote
gmrhodes13[Staff] Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 Just found out the same thing, my hasbro was a goog learing experience though. There is soo much to read, learn and take in when it comes to putting an amor together that sometimes the finer points get missed, now on to my pipe build Quote
TK bondservnt[501st] Posted September 2, 2012 Report Posted September 2, 2012 there have been some even better hasbro builds out there! ones that are not even really a hasbro anymore! look over the old threads. Quote
Geaux Saints[TK] Posted September 16, 2012 Report Posted September 16, 2012 Thanks everyone for the encouragement. I'm still fighting off this cold so I'm not making much progress. My head felt clear enough this evening for me to take the plunge on the first cut though. I started with the back plate and tried curved lexan scissors. I found that they were really hard to maneuver in the inside curves, and I couldn't force it to cut in as tight a diameter curve as I needed. I backed off from using the scissors and switched to my dremmel using a sanding wheel at low speed. Personally I felt like I had a lot more control with the dremel, so I'll probably use the scissors for rough cutting and use the dremmel and sandpaper for the rest. I'm basing the return edge depth from TK9477's post and I'm leaning toward the larger dimensions, figuring I can always sand it down further later. During my convalescence I've spent some time watching the Star Wars blurays and it appears that the normal amount of return edge is on the smaller side, so I'm guessing I should sand this one down another 2-3mm on the sides. Maybe I'll wait until I've made more progress before I nitpick at that sort of detail. What grit did you use for the dremmel AND sandpaper sanding? Quote
troopermaster Posted September 16, 2012 Report Posted September 16, 2012 I use the stone grinding tool attachment to sand the edges of armour. The good thing about these is that they do just as good a job as the sanding drum but hardly ever wear down. You can get various shapes but this one is my favourite. You can clean up any rough edges with fine grit sandpaper to leave a nice, smooth edge. Quote
TK bondservnt[501st] Posted September 16, 2012 Report Posted September 16, 2012 I use power tools too... it's fun! Quote
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